Luscious atmospherics and hyperchill beats from the ever-ethereal Usagi Acid. Wandering between strange atmospheric rhythms, textural drones and stacks on stacks of dense surreal sonic imagery. Blissful and ambitious while remaining relaxed and content. So much diversity packed within 3 tracks it could almost drive you to madness! But alas, it does not – its a lush and supremely satisfying listen that has left me wanting more and more! Luckily you can explore the whole discography for a wealth of amazing creative projects.
Beautiful experimental vapornoise, brought to us by Vacuum Noise Records. 2 tracks drifting around melancholy dreampunk drones, slushy vocals resting ontop of plump, fuzzy and cavernous atmospherics. A brief yet satisfying study of sounds, headphone listening highly recommended! Especially getting into the second track, devolving into nearly musique concrete tonal wandering as things become stretched around the listener in 4 dimensions.
Delicious and thoughtful Lofi House and Experimental Techno from the mind of Anthony Pandolfino under the FROSTOWER alias. Overwhelmingly nice energy here in my opinion, with 5 tracks exploring the different sonic possibilities of deconstructed electronics, fuzzy tones and overall raw energy. In fact the very nature of the sounds are almost punk – leading this to be possibly a better representation of the what “Dreampunk” could mean as a genre and a sound. Ambient-Punk? I am sure you can come up with a hundred genres to pin on this style, but it’s pure satisfaction for me. The energy combined with the lo-fi grit, the subtle atmosphere built within each track – it’s all very hypnotic and almost addictive, as I find myself playing this one top-to-bottom on repeat. Grab the digital album now via bandcamp at name your own price – and be sure to explore the other aliases and offerings from Anthony Pandolfino via Mystic Timbre!
Asleep in the Creek is a brooding and intricate 2-track collaborative release featuring the sounds of Diamonstein together with the photos of Kait Fischer, brought to us by Doom Trip Records.
The tracks themselves capture the essence of the visuals perfectly – hovering in a melancholy ambience that is as thick as florescent haze caught on the twilight mist. Touches and tastes of hope and splendor drift throughout – creating a thoughtful and considerate atmosphere. The subtle progressions on which the songs are constructed lay a dreamlike foundation – which when combined with the visuals of Fischer’s Photography is only enhances and broadens the emotional applications, swirling the listener in nostalgia and wistfulness.
It’s quite a beautiful listen, with so much atmosphere condensed into 2 tracks you really have no excuse not to give it a spin!
The ever-delicious dronegaze ensemble of Nonconnah is back at it with a sleek 4-track project titled Transcription of Headstones. The EP in itself is a microcosm of the Nonconnah sound and aesthetic – perfectly packaging lo-fi melancholy mood that their songs so often dance within. Featuring a plethora of lush atmospherics paired and layered with sublime string noodling, the sounds draw the listener in, beckoning them to stick around a while…..
And if you’re like me, 4 tracks just isn’t enough – and thankfully it does not have to be! Nonconnah has a thick and delicious back catalog that is worthy of exploration and appreciation. Do have a poke through their bandcamp and support when you can!
Quite a beautiful full-length project by Oh Woe, released by HoloJamz – drifting somewhere between alternative ambient and dream pop, At the End of the Rainbow There’s a Sunset Without Regrets is a masterpiece of melancholy beyond classification. I was hooked the moment I heard a washed out Debussy floating my direction over the airwaves – lots of plunderphonic goodness drenched in a thick haze of nostalgia. Feelings of soggy summer nights, you can almost smell it the atmosphere is so potent….
𝑵𝒆𝒘 𝑳𝒊𝒇𝒆 ® is a new full-length and collaborative project by ₳§ᗐMR and friends, currently released via Vivarium Recordings with a physical version on the horizon. Featuring some top-notch collaborators like maggie.wav, V//Tomo, Soul▲Craft and many more – somehow this manages to be one of ₳§ᗐMR’s most focused and comprehensive projects to date. Never shying away from a unique concept to package sounds within – ₳§ᗐMR’s 𝑵𝒆𝒘 𝑳𝒊𝒇𝒆 ® is a full blown course in sonic self-actualization. Drawing a lot of influence from Dystopian Cyberpunk style while utilizing very abstract and creative interpretations of Vapor Trap and Alternative Ambient – at times pushing towards surreal Dreampunk and lush Synthwave. It’s a diverse and rich listening experience from top to bottom, and definitely one of my favorite releases by ₳§ᗐMR to date….
Download and Stream the album now – and keep an eye out for a physical release on September 18th via Pacific Plaza Records.
Beautifully mellow Chill-hop and Ambient from Saigon Trio All Things Flow – Good Morning Miss Fox is a compact 5-track project with big moods and emotion. Displaying quite a nice variety of style and approach, the songs float in-between relaxed beats and delicate, thoughtful guitar/synth noodlings. All of it is painted with a soft yet vibrant palette, bringing about those feelings of warm nostalgia. This is some highly recommended morning music, perfect with a cup of tea and a hazy sky…
The ever-intoxicating sounds of 36 are coming back to us on fresh waves – this time in the form of a so-called “mini-album” Wave Variations.
A collection of short flowing compositions – Wave Variations features 12 tracks (2 of which are exclusive to the vinyl release) presented as Sequences One to Twelve. Now that would typically seem like a full-length album, but I understand what the producer is going for when they dub it a mini-album. Each track floats around 3 minutes in length, which is a definite oddity in the world of ambient music. 36 explains…
‘I feel like a lot of ambient music (including my own) is often unnecessarily long and these small vignettes work as a nice counter to that. Don’t expect long build-ups or over-extended crescendos”
It may seem like a negative and/or blanketed statement, but it’s quite spot on. And in the case of this album, the brevity definitely plays to its advantage. I actually think this is a fantastic introduction of sorts to 36 in general, with each track highlighting different aspects of their signature sound – melodic and melancholy, expressive yet relaxing.
Wave Variations takes cues from it’s own name, with each track having pulsing hypnotic qualities. Tracks like “Eighth Sequence” masterfully coaxing the listener into a pensive state, floating in time for a brief reflective moment. The tempo and pacing of the noodling synthesizers and humming pads translate across the project, whether taking a more playful approach or sinking back into a numbing melancholy.
The album was originally released back in July by Past Inside The Present – and although the physical editions are currently sold out, we are lucky to have access to this digital edition. Support the artist directly via Bandcamp.
Truly blissful new sounds from the gang at Vivarium Recordings – Merak holograms is a 2-track project by bliss3three of quite pleasing ambient-vaporwave experiments. Starting melodic and meditative with ‘eremocene music’, an 11 minute mellow epic that deserves to be on repeat – leading into ‘hygge’ – a much shorter creation focusing on a few very peculiar yet satisfying riffs. Taking less than 15 minutes to experience, I encourage you to explore this microcosm!
Eternity Tree 