Bang On A Can – Music For Airports (Brian Eno) [VBR][Requested]

Music For Airports (Brian Eno)
Label: Point Music
Format: CD, Album
Country: US
Released: 1998
Genre: Classical, Electronic
Style: Modern Classical, Minimal, Ambient









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Album requested by Walt.
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One need not be a fan of Brian Eno's ground-breaking original, "Ambient 1: Music For Airports," to appreciate this exquisite rendition from Bang On A Can, a New York City-based outfit comprised of three classically-trained musicians: Julia Wolfe, David Lang and Michael Gordon. Eno's opus emerged as a textbook example of what has become quite an important genre: Ambient music. What this trio (heirs to another important genre: Minimal music) have accomplished is what might be both the simplest and the hardest task of performing other people's music: they offer their own voice without usurping Eno's original brilliant composition.

In an age of remixes, reworks, dubs and covers, Bang On A Can gently present an acoustic version of the original "loops & tapes" classic. Originally, Eno designed "Ambient 1: Music For Airports" to be continuously looped as a sound installation, with the intent to diffuse the tense, anxious atmosphere of an airport terminal. He conceived this idea while being stuck at Cologne Bonn Airport in Germany in the mid-1970s. Contrast that with the startling presence of Bang On A Can's simply-employed layered instrumentations, which rattle, pluck, drone and twitter expressively, whereas the quiet becomes the space for anticipation of the instruments. So, rather than the steady rolling pulse of Eno's modulations, the subtle use of guitar, winds and even pipa give Bang On A Can's cover a worldly feel that the original soars above. It may even be posited that Eno's original is best expressed indoors while this cover complements an outdoor setting. In fact, a 1998 performance of "Music For Airports" in Central Park serendipitously began with an airline jet passing overhead with an awed audience maintaining a respectful silence throughout the entire concert. In an interview with Lou Reed and Laurie Anderson regarding the fact that they had recently attended this performance, they said they were both moved to tears. Eno was later surprised to hear this, commenting that he had written the music to be without emotion, but that he was pleasantly surprised that people had been affected by the music many years after he had written it.

A succinct review from Steve Tignor distills this album endearingly: "Bang On A Can is an avant-garde ensemble playing the 1978 Brian Eno piece which put ambient music on the map. Eno's idea was to make a series of tape loops into tightly composed Muzak. He wanted a sonic backdrop for bland public spaces that would reward close listening. Bang on a Can, playing acoustic and electric instruments, breathe life into it, making the music's neutrality seem coldly beautiful. The piece is divided into four parts, each consisting of a few gentle, minimal figures, calmly repeated and shifted. Rhythm is eliminated and time seems to stretch. What is revealed is the sensuousness possible in a single note. Music has never been the same. This is the best place to hear where it changed."

Review by Walt [http://www.thisismyjam.com/walt.brown]

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Sinoia Caves – The Enchanter Persuaded [MP3][320]

The Enchanter Persuaded
Label: Brah Records
Format: CD, Album
Country: US
Released: 2006
Genre: Rock, Electronic
Style: Progressive Rock, Ambient








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The Enchanter Persuaded, the debut album from Black Mountain keyboardist Jeremy Schmidt (billed here as Sinoia Caves), is a nice example of the early-21st century's fascination with synthesizers. Unlike his contemporaries, who tend to echo new wave acts, Schmidt draws inspiration from a different pack of synth gods -- bands that boasted cosmic monikers like Tangerine Dream and Hawkwind, musicians who wielded their Moogs and Mellotrons like mighty swords. And as such, this album shouldn't be viewed as a particularly innovative work but rather as an adept tribute to the analog wizards of the mid-'70s and early '80s. The standout tracks here are the soundscapes, which echo Tangerine Dream's Phaedra both in terms of the vast aural territory covered and in terms of actual length. "Dwarf Reaching the Arch Wonder" and "Sundown in the New Arcades (Milky Way Echo)" make for over half an hour of galactic terrain built on sheet after sheet of analog synth and Mellotron effects. There's a definite sense of composition here; every whoosh and drone serves the structure, and Schmidt does a good job of keeping these sprawling compositions under tight rein. Shorter, acoustic guitar and vocoder-knit tracks like "Naro Way" and "Through the Valley" are a nice break from the epic stuff going on elsewhere, and they'll probably draw more than a few comparisons to some of the tracks on Air's 10,000 Hz Legend. From the druggy green cover art right down to the humid, slightly grimy production, The Enchanter Persuaded is a convincing period piece, not to mention a fitting showcase for Schmidt's impressive synth sorcery.

Review by allmusic [http://www.allmusic.com/album/the-enchanter-persuaded-mw0000451923]

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Various Artists - Underground Stratosphere Mixes Vol. 1

Hello guys. This is my first try on creating mixes. I really hope you liked as I do. It took me some days to compile and organize that.
Enjoy.

Tracklist

1. Poppy Seed (Boards Of Canada Remix) - Slag Boom Van Loon
2. Kirlian Changes - The Flashbulb
3. Shortcuts - The Flashbulb
4. Strotha Tynhe - Aphex Twin
5. Evil Ball - Sinoia Caves
6. Bbydhyonchord - Aphex Twin
7. (Cherokee Script) - The Flashbulb
8. Tommib - Squarepusher
9. Left Side Drive - Boards of Canada
10. Adrift - Tycho
11. Olson (WRM Remix) - Boards of Canada
12. Poppy Seed .... Reprise (Boards Of Canada Remix)  - Slag Boom Van Loon
13. Rorschach - Loscil
14. For Years And Years - Helios
15. At the Edge of the World You Will Still Float - Telefon Tel Aviv
16. 14 31 - Global Communication

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Aphex Twin – Selected Ambient Works 85-92 [MP3][320]

Selected Ambient Works 85-92 

Label: Apollo

Format: CD

Country: Belgium

Released: Nov 1992

Genre: Electronic

Style: Techno, IDM, Ambient, Experimental

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Stop me if this gets sappy. And it might. Because Selected Ambient Works 85-92-- recently reissued by PIAS America-- was the very first electronic music I ever bought, and certainly the first I ever heard over and over again. Long ago, before I was old enough to drive, I would sit in a small, cluttered bedroom in my parents' suburban ranch house, absorbed for hours by the sounds contained on this disc. The creeping basslines, the constantly mutating drum patterns, the synth tones which moved with all the grace and fluidity of a professional dancer, the strange noises that I'd be unable to identify even if I tried. Back then, Aphex Twin was making music like nothing I'd ever heard before.

What's become apparent since is that I probably wasn't the only one affected. After last year's disappointing Drukqs, it's easy to forget that, back in the Warp Records heyday, Richard D. James was to this new breed of ambient and electronic music what Babe Ruth was to baseball. Sure, there were upstarts; \xB5-Ziq, Squarepusher and Autechre were all on the scene by the time this collection hit shelves. But James was still the posterboy, the presumed ringmaster, single-handedly defining a style of music in the minds of many. Now, as a new wave of mostly twenty-somethings step to the forefront of IDM, redefining electronic music for the third time in a decade, it becomes more and more obvious just how far reaching James' influence was.

There's nothing new about this re-release, aside from improved availability and decreased cost. But then, improving on this package would be near impossible. Sure, the music on Selected Ambient Works 85-92 may sound a bit dated (as does, to be fair, most electronic music more than a few years old), but there's no denying it was the defining statement of Warp's early years, and the foundation for the careers of bands like Boards of Canada and Plaid.

The songs here are not ambient in the same way as those on this disc's sequel. Technically, most fall into Brian Eno's broad definition of the style-- it can be appreciated in small segments just as much as in its entirety. The music develops slowly, unafraid to linger on a particularly effective sound for as long as necessary-- the creeping keyboard loop of "Schottkey 7th Path," for example, is continually modified throughout the course of the song, but never once eliminated from the mix-- but James would never be content as a mere follower in anyone's footsteps. His work here serves a model for what would come to be known as traditional IDM. A simpler version of the style we've grown accustomed to, certainly, but IDM nonetheless.

James' early work is heavily indebted to early dance music, filled with beats so eminently danceable as to confuse those who only know him from the spastic drum patterns that came later. There's little of that here, though. Selected Ambient Works 85-92 is, rather, an album stretching back to the days before software allowed for heavy sampling or glitch technology. Drum machines serve as its backbone and synthesized bass and keyboard sounds provide the meat. Most of the songs follow a relatively basic formula as well. One element-- say, a synth melody-- is introduced and repeated, and as new elements are added with each go round, the song gradually builds to a dense, multi-layered swirl. This Ravel-esque approach flavors much of James' older material, and yet, despite the simplicity of his equipment and approach, the songs here are both interesting and varied, ranging from the dancefloor-friendly beats of "Pulsewidth" to the industrial clanks and whirs of "Green Calx."

Indeed, these early works do a fine job of showcasing James' ability to transform even the most seemingly mundane patterns into something unique and interesting. "Hedphelym," for instance, is built around a relentless headache-throb cliché of a house beat. But James surrounds the pulsation with an ethereal feedback that bleeds all over the track, leaving the percussion awash in a murky solution of synth tones, pairing dance music with ambience in ways the Orb never dreamed possible.

Slightly more structured (and equally enjoyable) is "We are the Music Makers," a track which follows a drumbeat and a bassline past a pair of intertwined synth loops and a repeated Willy Wonka vocal sample as simple keyboard melodies pour down from overhead. But the aforementioned "Green Calx" is the closest Selected Ambient Works 85-92 comes to the spastic trickery of which James would become such a pioneer. It matches pitchshifted tones and drum machines with a burbling bassline, assorted machine-gun synth interjections, the slightly effected tones of various pistons, motors, and machines, and even the occasional cartoon spring noise. Moments like these serve to foreshadow both James' later work, as well as the infinitely more complex twists and turns that IDM would make in the years that would follow.

They say next to no one heard the Velvet Underground's first album when it was released, but everyone who did went on to start a band. Listening to Selected Ambient Works 85-92, one can't help but imagine the seeds being planted in the imaginations of the lucky few who were there when it all began. Nestled in these simple, undeniably danceable tracks are the roots of contemporary IDM. And despite its somewhat primitive origins, the final product remains among the most interesting ever created with a keyboard and a computer.

Review by Pitchfork [http://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/223-selected-ambient-works-85-92/]

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Biosphere - Substrata [320][MP3]

Substrata 

Label: All Saints

Format: CD, Album

Country: UK

Released: 1997

Genre: Electronic

Style: Ambient, Field Recording

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It rapidly turned into my favorite ambient music album, ever. I'm sad I didn't find this before. It's genius how this guy could transfer the ice, mountain and wind into music. Listen to it in your way back home and a simple walk will transform the place around you into a incredible, nature-driven scenery. A must have for all Ambient fans!

Ripped from pure FLAC.

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This small description will fit it. Everything I'd say about this album wont be enough to describe how genius it is. This album is responsible for the coined term "Ambient music". Nice, isn't it?

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Substrata by Biosphere is one of the all-time classic ambient albums, if not THE all-time classic album. Chilling atmospheric tones with ambient samples of ice, snow, forests, Twin Peaks-samples and Russian radio broadcasts… Substrata is difficult to describe in words alone. This is one album that every ambient fan needs to hear, if not own. For my own part the album is never far from my stereo. From the initial drone of an aircraft high overhead to the rambling monologues of later tracks every minute sends a chill down your spine. 

Biosphere’s work is often described as “dark ambient” but to me this sounds to negative as every piece of music Geir Jenssen composed expresses so much different feelings and his albums are not simply a couple of “drones” thrown together. Neither is Substrata 

Substrata is inhabited by the vast spaces spreading across the artic region, endless nights and midnight sun, sub-zero temperatures and northern lights.

Review by Moanerman [http://www.discogs.com/user/Moanerman]

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Brian Eno – Ambient 1: Music for Airports [MP3][320]

Ambient 1: Music for Airports 

Label: Polydor

Format: Vinyl, LP

Country: US

Released: March 1978

Genre: Electronic

Style: Ambient, Experimental

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This small description won't fit it. Everything I'd say about this album wont be enough to describe how genius it is. This album is responsible for the coined term "Ambient music". Nice, isn't it?

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From Wikipedia

Music for Airports was the first of four albums released in Eno's "Ambient" series, a term which he coined to differentiate his minimalistic approach to the album's material and "the products of the various purveyors of canned music".

Notice of similarly quiet, unobtrusive music had been given on albums such as Another Green World, Evening Star, Discreet Music, Music for Films and Harold Budd's The Pavilion of Dreams (which he produced), but in this album it was given precedence as a full-blown concept.

The music was designed to be continuously looped as a sound installation, with the intent to diffuse the tense, anxious atmosphere of an airport terminal. Eno conceived this idea while being stuck at Cologne Bonn Airport in Germany in the mid-1970s. He had to spend several hours there and was extremely annoyed by the uninspired sound atmosphere.

It was installed at the Marine Air Terminal of New York’s LaGuardia Airport.

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Cocteau Twins - Victorialand [320][MP3]

Victorialand

Label: Virgin Schallplatten GmbH

Format: Vinyl, LP

Country: Europe

Released: 1986

Genre: Rock

Style: Ethereal, Ambient, Dream Pop

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The premise of Victorialand is really a good one, and a great one for this particular band. It's essentially a concept album, in the best sense since they aren't trying to tell a damned story but rather are making a collection of songs aimed at invoking a concept. The concept is a simple one (as concepts should be), they're making a whole album of songs meant to sound like Antarctica or other polar regions. It's right in the title of the songs and the album itself (Victoria Land is the name of a British portion of Antarctica).Every song here plays toward the theme without exception, and if you know anything about their delicate gorgeous sound you should definitely be nodding your head in agreement that this fits them well. And you know what? They do it pretty proud.

The songs are without exception extremely pretty, and all sound like perfect soundtracks to montages of glaciers and icebergs. It is basically a success. Unfortunately though..... it falls victim to one major issue. That everything more or less sounds exactly the same. Not sort of the same. Exactly the same. All the tracks pretty much could at best be different movements of the same symphony, you could make them fade into eachother with little issue. Sure they have a pretty well defined sound, but nothing about their sound means that the stuff has to be this similar. After all one of the major strengths of Treasure was that every gem on it had it's own personality even if they were basically cut from the same sort of cloth. "Ambient Snowscape Aria" could be the descriptor of damn well everything here.

There's much they could have done to avoid this honestly, namely they could have dared to add percussion? Yeah, there's next to no percussion on here at all. They stick to this very very rigidly. I don't really know why they did either, maybe they thought drums would break the concept?? Beats me. Drums on some of these tracks would have gone a long way toward making some stand out from others. Overall it's a huge shame because the songs are all so gorgeous, they didn't just forget all the genius on Treasure, this is definitely the same band that made that one. Except they've stuck to one note through and through, a really wonderful note, but one note nevertheless. This might be better suited to actually being a soundtrack, a perspective it seems 100% tailored toward. But as an album it can't really be considered great.

This review was made by Zephos [http://rateyourmusic.com/~Zephos]

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Grouper - A I A : Alien Observer [MP3][320]

A I A : Alien Observer

Label: Yellow Records

Format: Vinyl, LP, Album

Country: US

Released: April 2011

Genre: Rock

Style: Experimental, Drone, Ambient

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The tools Liz Harris uses to make music as Grouper tend to be pretty basic: piano, guitar, synths, drones, hiss, and lots of reverb. If you've been following along with the twists and turns of noisy ambient music these last few years, this collection of elements may sound familiar, possibly bordering on cliché. But it's all in how you fit the pieces together. Despite sharing characteristics with a lot of other current music, Harris' has a distinctive sound that she pretty much owns. These short LPs, released at the same time and that share an overall aesthetic, sound beamed in from another realm, and they also sound like they could have come from no one else.

Part of the distinctiveness can be traced to Harris' voice, which floats above the music and can sound delicate and shrouded and mist and can also evince an approachable earthiness. Particularly on Alien Observer, she layers her voice in a way that occasionally brings to mind Julianna Barwick, but Harris sounds comparatively distant and less immersive. Her voice haunts these songs instead of leading them; it's a presence and not a personality, and the voice and instruments are in balance, serving each other without any one element becoming more prominent.

The other aspect that sets Grouper apart is an approach to sound that feels somehow both cruder and more sophisticated than the majority of the lo-fi crop. It's crude in the sense that it seems to hearken back to the dark, home-recorded songs of an earlier era. David Pearce's music as Flying Saucer Attack, recorded mostly during the 1990s, was often referred to as "rural psychedelia," and that description would fit this pair of records. This music feels both spacey and expansive and also oddly intimate and grounded, the work of someone who has mastered her tools and knows how to get the most out of them. The sophistication comes from the care in presentation. This music doesn't sound like it was built from mistakes or thrown together, it seems precisely ordered and arranged even while it's often muffled and warbly and distorted. Every sound exists for a reason.

Full review and more please follow this link [http://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/15332-a-i-a-alien-observer-a-i-a-dream-loss/].

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Carbon Based Lifeforms - Interloper [MP3][320]

Interloper

Label: Ultimae Records

Format: CD, Album

Country: France

Released: 2010

Genre: Electronic

Style: Acid, Downtempo, Ambient, Chillout

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Carbon Based Lifeforms is one of the best ambient music composers I have ever crossed across. It's something studied, known, but in the same time it is natural, it's fucking well done, with nice melodies and frequencies that cross your brain side to side.

My favorite sequence starts with Euphotic. If you get trapped by Euphotic melodies, the album will end very fast. The combo Euphotic - Frog - M is my favorite ambient combo sound ever. This is not my favorite album from Carbon Based Lifeforms but it's certainly a ambient/natural sound masterpiece.

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I was highly anticipating this release and a little sceptical if the Carbon Based Lifeforms would be able to achieve a high level again such as in "World Of Sleepers".

Trust me, they did.
They announced they experimented a little more with guitars and vocals this time so I was even more worried that they may be losing their style. But it turns out to be at an absolutely minimum scale and fits very very well.
The sounds they arranged this time are mindblowing and for me personally even more sound-of-the-universe-level.
I have listened to it as much as I could since the release and I am always discovering more electronic details. If I had to pick a favourite track (which will probably change from time to time),
right now it would be "Supersede". You may be reminded of "Epicentre" when listening to it but they gave it such a unique touch which makes it an absolutely epic arrangement.

The overall feeling is very intense yet peaceful. They put so much love in this album, it is worth every cent!

For me it is the release of 2010 so far.

Review by SpaceAgeHero [http://www.discogs.com/user/SpaceAgeHero]


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