A Closer Listen
Astronomical spring is only two weeks away, and hundreds of spring albums have begun to poke through the sonic ether like crocuses and daffodils through dirt. In a few weeks time, the bouquets will become fields, and the hills will be alive with the sound of new music. We love this time of year, as we’re venturing outside without jackets, putting away the sweaters, opening the windows and letting the fresh air in. After a somewhat slow winter, the music industry is also awakening from a months-long hibernation, with shows and festival announcements galore. This week, we’ll be previewing all the music we have permission to share in advance. We hope you’ll enjoy the 2024 edition of our Spring Music Preview, beginning with Ambient & Drone!
Our cover image comes from Montgomery & Turner’s Sound Is (Our) Sustenance, previewed below!
While the birds are returning, Shards founder Kieren Brunt is interested in another kind of Byrd: British composer William Byrd, now gone 401 years, his music once performed illegally in secret, now widely celebrated. Byrd Song is a gorgeous album of modern resettings, reminiscent of Ian William Craig; the album is also perfectly suited for Eastertide (Erased Tapes, April 19).
Some call the music of Pan American post-rock; if so, it’s the slowest, dreamiest post-rock we’ve ever heard. Teamed up with Shimmy Disc founder Kramer, the duo presents Reverberations of Non-Stop Traffic on Reading Road, a sprawling set that shimmers like an oasis (Shimmy-Disc, March 22). On the same day, Daou releases the sedate and lovely Forgotten Stories. The pieces drift, crackle and swirl, akin to the experience of reading a good book by an evening fire (rohs!).
The documentary Eno is controlled by A.I., and the chapters appear in different order every time it is screened. One can replicate this experience with the score simply by pressing Shuffle. The film opened this year’s Sundance Film Festival and is drawing critical acclaim; the score includes three unreleased tracks. Also, a classic unreleased 1968 concert from Brian Eno & Holgar Czukay & J. Peter called Sushi. Roti. Reibekuchen will be released on Groenland Records on May 24. Spring”s best historical release may be Triángulos De Luz Y Espacios De Sombra (Triangles of Light and Spaces of Shadow), a compilation of long-lost, restored electronic music from Mexican artists of the 1980s and 90s. Whether new age or new wave, Mesoamerican or modern, these artists found ways to distinguish themselves from others in the dominant music landscape. The double LP is a blast from the past, but was once a glimpse of the future (Séance Centre and Smiling C, April 8).
Harpist Andy Aquarius‘ took a hike in the Sardinian mountains, and returned with the ideas that would eventually become Golla Gorroppu. The music reflects the spirits of rocks, hills and local wildlife, in particular a surprising mouflon or wild sheep (Hush Hush, March 22). Mary Lattimore contributes her harp sounds to Montgomery & Turner‘s Sound Is (Our) Sustenance, joining flute, clarinet, saxophone, Wurlitzer and a host of other instruments tuned to the key of spring (Astral Editions, April 26). Only a couple weeks later, Lattimore will release Rain on the Road with Walt McClements (Thrill Jockey, May 9). Paul K channels Eno on Hyperobjects, a piano centric set that dances on the edge of modern composition, backed by field recordings and a sense of calm (April 19). Mini-movie The Shepherds gets a mini-score from Dylan Henner, its piano notes like sheep in the vast green fields of spring (Phantom Limb, March 22).
Will glacial ambience outlast glaciers? For now, Tewksbury‘s undulating Floes: Volumes I-IV offers the opportunity to reflect on the Canadian and Arctic scenes that inspired it. Comprised of Moog synthesizer and loops, the music is in no hurry; while listening, one can imagine the cold weather sticking around for a while (March 21). Ran Slavin‘s Oolong: Ambient Works can be experienced as the score to walking a tea path (with or without video). The premise is to slow down, to appreciate the sounds of nature and of micrograin music, in an attempt to connect the physical and immaterial, perhaps the terrestrial and extraterrestrial (Mille Plateaux, April 22).
Don’t be fooled by the cover art of Colin Johnco‘s Crabe Géant, which may remind people of Skinny Puppy; the music does have a sci-fi tinge, but it’s sedate, bolstered by layers of vibraphone, piano and synth (Johnkôôl, March 22). Sam Tabasi‘s After the Rave Rush is definitely a comedown album, one to play after a difficult night, dancing or otherwise. Preceded by the single Bloom, the full EP is out April 9. Daryl Groetsch, also known as Pulse Emitter, returns with the 75-minute, single track Above the Shore. Designed for napping or relaxing, the music acts as a sonic prescription to anxiety and stress (April 2). Piano loops, divided into “earth” and “ether” sides, form the basis of Thanos Fotiadis‘ The Hope Realm. Unique charcoal drawings are offered for each cassette (esc.rec., March 23).
Andy Clausen recorded Few Ill Words: Solo Trombone at The TANK, Vol. 1 in a converted water silo in Colorado, known for its extended reverberation (May 17). Like an ambient version of Coldcut, Group Listening starts Frogs with amphibian calls before adding keys, harpsichord and clarinet. “Frogs” is the first single from Walk (PRAH Recordings, May 10). On Earth, Our Planet?, Pedro Vian explores the climate crisis through compositions that begin in quietude and veer into electronic soundscapes. Trumpet, violin and piano make guest appearances, sharing space with the sounds of the sea (Modern Obscure Music, April 12). Projections of a Coral City is another pretty pink album from Balmat, inundated with seascapes and as soothing as the waves against the shore. The project began as a Miami installation in which coral images were beamed on the outside of a local building; the Coral City camera is still operational, and pairs well with the music of Coral Morphologic and Nick León (April 5).
Taner Torun, the founder of Fluttery Records and the artist known as Celestial Trails, describes the cover image of Lunar Beachcomber as a cross between a “llama, cat, lion, sheep, and dog.” The animal came to him as a dream, and now strolls happily along the imaginary beach. In like manner, the album invites daydreaming, awash in waves of comforting bliss (Fluttery, April 12).
Difficult Art & Music has a pair of releases lined up for early spring. However, the music is not difficult in the traditional sense; in fact, it’s quite inviting. Chelidon Frame starts the ball rolling with Flatline Voyages, which includes shortwave radio transmissions from across the world and is a bit like turning the dial all the way to the left in the wee hours of the morning (March 29). Then on April 8, Polygone resurfaces with a very interesting project. After recording only 18 minutes of live instrumentation and world music samples in 1988, they disappeared; this year, Tactics Faculty revisits the original project with remixes from electronic luminaries.
Where does electronic ambient end and ambient electronic begin? Perhaps somewhere in the region of Raveled Veiled Known, from modular synthesist LFZ. The album celebrates the birth of a new daughter, from anticipation to adaptation (Gnome Life, March 22). Veteran producer Chris Coco returns on April 5 with daydream utopia, preceded by the lush double-A Tokyo Ame/Serenity Test (DSPPR, pictured right). Arushi Jain, described as a “modular princess,” adds depth to Delight through organic instrumentation including cello, flute and saxophone, heard in the lush single “Imagine an Orchestra” (Leaving, March 29).
Now we turn our attention to Drone, and the season’s first array of thick, immersive, extended tone releases!
As always, Room40 has its act together when it comes to announcements and streaming tracks. Eight spring releases are already in pre-order status, with many more sure to follow. First up is Ogive with Opalescentia, which treats music like weather systems. On the closing track, one can hear the rain; or is it digital synthesis? The collaboration between Chris Herbert and Elías Merino continues to bear fruitful results (March 22). A week later, Stuart Argabright & AfterAfter offer a series of LA Drones: pitched down tape recordings that sound murky and subterranean (March 29). Ulrich Krieger unveils Aphotic III – Bathyal, a sonic reflection of oceanic depth, with electronics, flute, accordion and contrabass playing the parts of sea creatures under pressure (April 5). On the same day, Loscil teams up with label head Lawrence English on Chroma, a companion piece to Colours of Air, played on the organ at Brisbane’s Old Museum. Madeleine Cocolas experiments with water, breath and synth, producing altogether new and undefinable Bodies (April 12). On the same day, as if offering a counterpart, Pinkcourtesyphone, will release Arise in Sinking Feelings, drenched in the senses and thick with anxiety (April 12). Asher Tull‘s Opus is thick with loops and subliminal rhythms (April 19), while France Jobin‘s Infinite Probabilities (Particle 2) delves into quantum mechanics and the fluidity of time (May 10).
We love the description of Hanno Leichtmann‘s Outerlands as “organ drones, tones and odd signature arpeggios.” Highlighting the Villa Aurora organ, built 1928/29, the music nearly reaches centennial status (Discrepant, March 29). Calum Builder‘s Renewal Manifestation is even more immersive, written for organ, saxophone and CRUSH string trio. If the music seems foreboding, credit the approach to the organ as “a creature being taught how to breathe and sigh” (April 19).
Warm Winters Ltd. presents Quintela, an album of bagpipe drone. Those looking for something entirely unique will find it here; Carme López discards and dispels any previous stereotypes of the instrument’s range and usage, creating something otherworldly in the process (March 29). Using modular synth, bass clarinet and saxophone, Czarnoziem creates “magma drones,” a sub-genre title we’d love to see enter the mainstream. A touch of jazz is evident on Socha, but more blazing, bubbling atmospheres prevail (Séance Centre, April 8). With a similar vibe, The Johnny Halifax Invocation pushes its drone into ritualistic territory, bolstered by lap steel and harmonica. Açid Blüüs Räägs Vol.2 is out April 5, preceded by single Cosmic Fanfare (God Unknown).
who is this for may not be the best title for a release, but it fits the profile of those who prefer drone. missing scenes‘ album is rife with modular synth and static-charged clouds: two long tracks divided into movements (Varia, April 5). Julien Bayle‘s Attractor is comprised of three parts recorded in three takes, the remastered version of a 2016 release. Feedback threatens to burst the speakers but relents before the damage is done (Elli, March 22). Ohr Hiemis performs sonic alchemy on Opal Spine, whose title references the spinal difficulties of a loved one. The music bends and shifts, sometimes brittle, other times sharp, drawing on both drone and industrialism, creating a dark yet contemplative mood (Wic Recordings, March 22).
Richard Allen
Sun Mar 03 00:01:34 GMT 2024