Lost Children netlabel and The Silent Ballet have put together an absolutely stunning 75 minute long adventure through the universe of post-rock with the release of The Silent Ballet Compilation volume 14. Featuring some very diverse artists from all over the world, the stand out track on the album is from a Ukrainian band called Nice Wings, Icarus! Their track, Eagle, is absolutely superb. I have a feeling we will be seeing more of them here on the orbit in the very near future. Back to the current release, it grabbed me from the very first track – a very ambient piece by The Sight Below – and wouldn’t let go. I literally listened to the entire album as soon as I clicked play – given my schedule, thats a rarity for me. The intensely mellow first track quickly gave way to an onslaught of post-rock, shoegazer, psychedelic and even modern piano composition. Each track is unique, making this a difficult album to describe. I’ll simply say this: it’s an incredible album, and I urge you to give it a listen.
Posts Tagged ‘Ambient’
The Silent Ballet Compilation – Volume 14
Nettless – From Beyond
Nettless has created eight tracks of beautifully flowing, ambient space music. It doesn’t get much better than this.
Carl Sagans Ghost – Colonial Spa EP
Starting out with a beautiful and moving ambient texture, the Colonial Spa EP weaves a sonic tapestry of aural textures backed with subtle well timed beats. It’s a 25 minute walk down a road less traveled, with an occasional stop to visit an old friend along the way.
Chris Tenz – Forlorn Memories
A deeply touching release, that induces a feeling of quiet reflectiveness. At 36 minutes, Forlorn Memories combines ambient synths, deep bass sounds, minimal piano parts and acoustic guitar melodies to paint an audio picture of those despondent, melancholy times in our lives that for some reason we hold so dear and meditate on from time to time.
Casimirs Blake – Ejecta Nebula
The Kahvi Collective has, for quite a number of years now, and each of their releases has a unique sound and style that can only be described as ‘Kahvi Music’. Casimirs Blake created Kahvi’s latest release, Ejecta Nebula, and it doesn’t disappoint. With the typical relaxed, Kahvi attitude inherent in each track, Blake presents a galactic soundscape that is part ambient and part breakbeat, upbeat space music infused with subtle percussion and flowing atmospheres that will melt away reality for a while and bring you back to it refreshed and recharged.
In Chains – Dead Heart Bloom
I guess you would call this folk, but it has a dreamy, ethereal quality about it that transcends genres. It’s just good, relaxing music that will make you fell a bit better about the world. The third track, Halfway Gone, really reminds me of a song by the Beatles, but I can’t put my finger on which song. They’ve somehow invented what can only be called ‘ambient funk’. At any rate, all five tracks on the EP rock. This is definitely one of the best finds so far this year (even though we’re only one month in).
Wixel – Clouds
Wixel dreamed up a project in which he would record an album a month; he followed through, bringing to life twelve albums of music (not all of which I’ve checked out at this point). His album from February 2009 stands out to me, with five tracks at just under thirty minutes. Each track is reminiscent of a certain aspect of atmospheric water vapor grouping; for instance, the first track, Cloud Formation, is a rambling and haunting ten-minute build that puts the evaporative process in sonic form. The second track, Rising Clouds, is a slow paced, smooth yet grating discord of sound that makes you feel as though your floating upwards into the sky. Track three is a disonant mish mash of ambient acoustic guitars backed with meandering sounds that tie it all together. Track four, In Clouds, is a fuzzy bit of static that drones on giving the impression that you’ve arrived in the middle of the cloud layer, about to break through into the sunlight at any moment. And when that moment comes, 3:26 later, you’re in a Fog Rainbow, a melancholic soundscape of cloud-like sounds with an atmospheric vibe.
Orange Crush – Autumn Reflections
Very mellow ambient electronica. The compositions in this release are astounding. If you like Boards of Canada then you are going to love Orange Crush. Moving pads swell and fade with subtle melodies fading in and out.
Mark.Nine – In Memories
Mark.Nine blesses us again with five tracks of his typical light and airy ‘ambient breakbeat’. The first track opens up with a wavering pad and a sci-fi audio sample that suddenly give way to a slow chill-out breakbeat and bassline. The rest of the EP follows suit, leaving us with a quiet and thoughtful feeling.
StillStream Radio
Hi folks. Sorry for the loooong time between updates… I’ll try to get some more music searched out and posted here pretty soon. I’ve been SO busy what with my company going out of business and all. I’m changing career paths now; I’ve decided to exit the marine industry the way a 1980’s communication satellite exits orbit – screaming down from the sky in a blaze of flame and smoke.
So, musically here’s what I have for you today. StillStream Radio, a net radio station, plays all sorts of ambient music, 24 / 7. It’s great for background noise while you’re being creative, or to fall asleep to. When I say all sorts of ambient music, I mean ALL sorts. From the website:
- Soothing light ambient
- Ambient mood music
- Impenetrable dark ambient
- Berlin-school electronic ambient
- Challenging experimental ambient
- Futuristic ambient noise
- Powerful tribal ambient
- Cinematic symphonic ambient
- Expansive space music
- Textural abstract ambient
I didn’t realize all that even existed. So enjoy some ambient sounds, be creative, and check back here in a few days – music is on the way.
