This release by Sshe Retina Stimulants is one of the most claustrophobic works I’ve heard in some time. This is noise, but done with a way that makes the experience almost magical. I had the feeling of falling down an endless rabbit hole a la Alice in Wonderland. It’s a harrowing release, and one of the most worthy noise releases I’ve heard in some time.
Instrumental
[Music] Mahavishnu Orchestra – Live on BBC TV – Paris Theatre (1972)
Thanks to ProJazz.net for posting this amazing set from the Mahavishnu Orchestra.
[Music] Ambient Fields – Ólafsfjörður
A hearty thanks to Geoff Gersh (Ambient Fields) for sending me an album of such spacious, head-filling music that I managed to unwind for the first time in a week. All the effects created in this work are done with a guitar, some effects and a pump organ. Taking inspiration from being in Ólafsfjörður, a small town in the north of Iceland, his location seeped deeply into these compositions. This was a treat to listen to.
[Music] Qualia – Lost
I think ‘cinematic post-rock’ would be an apt way to describe Qualia, a great instrumental rock band led by Dan Leader, who works out of Cambridge, England.
[Music] Neil Peart, Rush Drummer Who Set a New Standard for Rock Virtuosity, Dead at 67
Rolling Stone Magazine gives a fitting obituary on behalf of Neil Peart, of rock’s most innovative drummers here. Words fail at this point from my end, as I’m grieving the loss of two friends at this point. Losing an icon only adds to what is turning out to be a very rough beginning to 2020. May Neil’s memory be eternal.
For further on his passing, you can follow this Twitter feed.
[Music] Don Cherry – Live At Café Montmartre 1966 Volume Two (full album)
Expect us to drop a score of old classic albums onto your collective laps.
Don Cherry was in fine form throughout the 1960’s, and this album catches him peaking. Go enjoy yourselves with this disc to burn up your earphones.
[Music] Raphael Weinroth-Browne – Worlds Within
Ladies and gentlemen, I have to be admit to being a bit thrilled to mention this release. Some time ago, I reviewed a band called Flying Hórses, a band Raphael Weinroth-Browne was a member of, and whose stunning work on the cello made the album so memorable for me.
On January 24, he will release a new album which balances post-rock, contemporary classical music and the most tasteful aspects of metal. It would have never occurred to me to blend such aspects together, but Raphael weaves things together masterfully.
[Music] Robert Scott Thompson – Phonotopological
Since the weather has been hovering near the 10-degree Celsius mark this evening, now would be the perfect time to share a chilly, yet inviting, ambient album courtesy of the blog’s friend, Robert Scott Thompson. Though this release is available through Acousmatique Recordings, he also has his own Bandcamp site worth perusing.
[Music] La Maison Dieu – Earth
Only one track on this release, but it’s a winner! La Maison Dieu are a band out of Istanbul, Turkey who combine elements of EDM, old-school lo-fi electronic music and a touch of cheese in the vein of Giorgio Moroder. I’m digging this!
[Music] Astral & Shit -XĤ
Though I’m not a big fan of bands who release new music almost daily, there are a handful whose work I enjoy in small doses. One of these is the Russian project Astral & Shit. Yes, I know, lovely name, but the music is soothing enough to let one drift into the Solaris Ocean when one is feeling a bit exhausted from the daily grind.
With well over 660 releases to their credit, I’m not about to become a completist, but it’s nice to know that there are artists who are putting out high-quantity/high-quality ambient music to keep my ears busy.
A Miscellany Of Tasteful Music 