hiddenplace music mp3 mix #1

Download mp3 (160kbps, 54MB)

things have been a little quiet around here lately because the wizards at hiddenplace music have been preparing something really special: the first official hiddenplace music mix.

sometimes simply listening to the music is the best way to discover and share it. i find a lot of my favorite music through podcasts and dj mixes, plus i really enjoy putting together playlists and 'mixtapes.' i hesitate to call this a 'podcast' because that implies that i plan on doing this at a semi-regular basis. unfortunately time and my obsessive-compulsive tendencies dont permit that, but i have several mixes in the works and i plan on putting them out here as often as possible (ie whenever i feel like it).

at hiddenplace music we like free music, so nearly all of the tracks featured on this mix can be downloaded cost- and guilt-free at the links provided. each release represented is full of excellent music and is most definitely worth your time. enjoy the music!

tracklist:

(00:00) hiddenplace intro
(00:19) Makunouchi Bento - Two Mechanical Snowghosts [pj001]
(02:01) My First Trumpet - Takt Short Takt [aer009]
(03:56) Endlos - Ich bin Dur [1bit028] +welcome
(09:31) The Lymbyc Systym - Astrology Days [live 18 Apr 2007]
(14:01) Re'sequence - Interview [es28]
(17:55) Implosion Quintet - For Sesselja [diginet011]
(21:40) Mr Moods - Variations [DBR005]
(25:24) The Incognito Traveller - Chaleur [konfort016]
(29:42) Owltree - Head Swirlin' [lokw-010]
(32:57) Jah Free - beatcontest (amuses-bouches complete album download)
(37:58) Sel/Reechad - Masterplan [iD.037]
(42:01) Saine - Absent Minds [Imagine This] +tracklist

extra: hiddenplace music on solipsistic NATION

Proviant Audio - Welcome Wilderness EP

my latest addiction is surfing through the mad bloggings of Phlow Magazine, and i've come accross another great release thanks to our favourite german listening machines! 'Welcome Wilderness' from the long-silent Aquavelvas netlabel, presents slightly bizarre, slightly campy collection of sampledelic cutup elektro-jazz which will make a perfect addition to your afternoon chillout playlist. the release starts out chilled and low-key and develops into trippy freaked-out breakbeat/disco beats. insane catchyness!

The Incognito Traveller EP

here at hiddenplace music, i normally like to keep a nice variety of music between posts. however, in searching through the aforementioned No Copy Protection netlabel, i came across a release which was so fantastic i had to feature it.
anyone else who has played with ACID or other loop-based recording software knows how easy it is to make bad loop-based music. but every so often, there comes an artist who knows how to spin the loops with just the right mix of flavours. jazz drums, latin percussion, muted trumpet, antique piano, and even an charming french language song make up The Incognito Traveller EP, providing some of the most listenable sample-based music i have heard in a while. prepare to be whisked away into the world of smoky cafés and lazy cobblestone streets, tinged with the mystery and intrigue of a classic spy movie.

Flux and Vega - Believe EP

downtempo/triphop with female vocals is one of my favourite types of music, however it can be difficult to find quality vocals in the netaudio world. some netlables, such as kahvi collective, have even adopted an unofficial rule of not releasing anything with vocals. other fans of electronica with vocals will be delighted by 'Believe EP' from the No Copy Protection netlabel. the short selection of tracks provides a pleasant and sunny selection of [mostly] spanish-language female vocal-fronted triphop, along with a few electro-house flavoured remixes. for me, these tracks really work because they avoid the temptation of overly processing everything with excessive electronics and fx. here the vocals and arrangements are quite charming and effective in their relaxed, unassuming style.

this netlabel, previously unknown to me, provides an intriguing (and attractively designed) catalogue of releases. i will definitely have to investigate further..

shout out to the new english-language Phlow Magazine blog for pointing me in the direction of this release.

The Silent Ballet

i would like to take a moment to spotlight another interesting compilation series which i stumbled onto a while back: The Silent Ballet compilations, a collaboration from the indie rock website of the same name, and the Lost Children netlabel. breaking the electronic mould of most netlabels, Lost Children features [mostly] instrumental indie/shoegazer/post-rock from a host of bands around the world. there are quite a few gems to be discovered here. unfortunately, Lost Children could use a bit more quality control, as there are some rather awful tracks in the series as well. however, fans of heartfelt soft/loud emotional energy (queue references to bands such as explosions in the sky, mogwai, godspeed you black emperor, m83 etc) will find much to be enjoyed in The Silent Ballet series. in my opinion, the most recent installment of the series is the strongest yet. it starts out slowly, with a very long introduction of two minimal guitar-based ambient tracks. however, in the later tracks the energy slowly builds to the exploding crescendos we expect. in my opinion, many of the tracks never quite reach their full potential-- i am frequently left wanting more, but all in all, the bands and the netlabel show some real promise, and there are some quite breathtaking moments to be enjoyed here.

Intelligent Toys 4 (Sutemos019)

hiddenplace music newsflash: for those of you not on the Sutemos email list, the 4th part of their frequently brilliant all-star idm compilation series was just released. clocking in at 2,5 hours play time, and featuring such favourite artists as Sabi, Esem, Sense, IJO, Machine Drum, and Sleepy Town Manufacture, this compilation is a must-listen. "It's listening time now."

Moosefrog - Come EP

on a recently tram ride home, i re-discovered a chillout netaudio gem: the first release from the great little netlabel lo-kiwi. if you enjoyed the downtempo/instrumental hiphop of Mr. Moods which i featured a couple months ago, 'come' from chillmasters Moosefrog will tickle your ears most pleasantly. looped jazzy guitars, soft rhodes and synth chords, groovy brushed drums, a few gritty turntable samples and creepy filtered spoken word samples make for a super-chilled evening listening session.


as with most good eps, this release is a bit of a short listen, so make sure to check out lo-kiwis' back catalogue, such as Moosefrog's Adrift, which includes two songs featuring vocals by Chillcast hostess Anji Bee.

Phrozenlight

[once again abruptly shifting gears, into dark ambient territory] dutch composer Phrozenlight is one of the most prolific electronic music producers ive come across. typically releasing 2 or 3 hour-long compositions per month, most of his extensive catalogue is available for download at archive.org. this is not music for everyone-- slowly evolving, abstract, dark ambient spaces, usually with little or no harmonic or 'musical' elements. yet for fans of the genre, his music is always excellently produced with consistent quality and careful attention to sound and texture. his recent release, Sunday Afternoon recently provided an excellent soundtrack to one hour of my day with the usual deftly sequenced deep spacey textures, accented by an otherworldly melody which slowly evolves into a berlin school-style analogue sequence-- pleasantly and fascinatingly reminiscent of the classic spacemusic series Dark Side of the Moog by veteran producers Pete Namlook and Klaus Schulze (of Tangerine Dream). when the dark autumn months call for a quiet introspective journey into deep space, Phrozenlight's music fits the bill quite nicely.

Netaudio-Mixtape IV / t.slubs (thinners slow Dubs)

in case you dont obsessively check the thinner netlabel website for updates, the previously mentioned german music collective Das Kraftfuttermischwerk has released an excellent mix of deep spacey dubby trax pulled from the thinner archive. it made for a most pleasant and nostalgic morning's listen, taking me right back to the original thinner classics like Falter, Selffish, & Digitalverein
viel spaß!

Mikael Fyrek - In riots of color they spin

as i slowly emerge from the world of boxes, suitcases, airports and multi-lingual signs, allow me to recommend an excellent new release from perennial favourite kahvi. for 'In riots of color they spin' Mikael Fyrek creates 4 miniature worlds of idm beauty full of all the best building blocks of intelligent chill- warm atmospheres of breathy pads, delay-soaked mountainous landscapes and soaring leads accented by subtle paintstrokes of filtered beats. another beautiful (if short) glimpse into digitally-created dreamworlds. i think you will find, these landscapes are certainly worthy of many return journeys.

backlog: dont miss Mr Fyrek's previous two releases, St Mare Abelle and i can finally see what darkness looks like, both excellent as well

weigl & hoffmann + krill.minima

two new & notable releases by the legendary netaudio portal thinner today -

for all fans of the most listenable electro-acoustic experimentations, dont miss the brand-new release by a true innovator of netaudio, Philipp Weigl. warm ambient atmospheres, hushed vocals, touches of melodic acoustic instruments, backed by a barely noticeable subtle smooth techno pulse. essential moody listening for all seasons!

also newly released is a dubby ambient LP 'Urlaub Auf Balkonien' by krill.minima (aka Marsen Jules), a worthy follow-up to the minimal ambient masterpiece 'Zwischen zwei und einer Sekunde' slow, quiet and subtle, this lp took me a couple listens to get into, but its beginning to grow on me...

Text Adventure - Fantastic Disaster

i wanted to take a few minutes to spotlight one of my all-time favourite netaudio releases - this little gem by the Glascow duo Text Adventure, released on Observatory Online, a now-silent netlable with a short but sweet selection of releases. glitchy 8-bit electronics, acoustic guitars and timid falsetto vocals make up this a magical little trippy acoustic/electropop gem. although this release is a couple years old now, these songs are still constantly stuck in my head.

it has been rumoured that a new full-length album, charmingly titled 'I Believe in Lassies' will be released soon. let us hope that it doesnt get lost in the infinite 'coming soon' category...

Muxu - Show Us Your Weak Side

Monotonik, one of the first netlables ever, and the netlable that started my netaudio obsession has sadly been pretty dead lately. there has been a few interesting releases, but nothing of the quality and originality of classics like Latatoo, Aze, or Aleksi Virta meets Tortsi at the Space Lounge. (it should also be noted that Monotonik was the portal for most of Planet Boelex's previous excellent releases)

however, i found the latest release from newcomers muxu (noted as Monotonik's first release from Malaysia) to be quite enjoyable. it reminded me quite strongly of The Ablum Leaf or Four Tet, a pleasing mix of subtle beats, piano, quiet guitars and rhodes mixed with warm electronics. like all good eps, it left me with a pleasant feeling but wanting more. perhaps things are looking up for Montonik?

KiloWatts - Uprouted

there was an unusual occurrence, i actually payed to download music! once again the riaa is proved wrong, and free downloads [sometimes] encourage the actual purchasing of music. i was listening to a live set by glitchmaster KiloWatts, and two tracks near the end (Weird Little Creatures and One Everchanging) immediately caught my ear. KW was kind enough to offer weird little creatures as a free download(right-click here) and the song was immediately ingrained in my head, thereby giving me the desire to play the track at full volume in my car. i like to support artists who make quality music, and i like download shops that offer lossless flac downloads. the aformentioned tracks are available at an affordable price at the KiloWatts Shop.
normally glitch idm gets on my nerves very quickly, but kilowatts is making some very listenable music...

backlog: and for more glitchy goodness, dont miss the classic 'microcosmos lp' by one of my favourite producers, jason corder (also known as off the sky)

chillout/idm double feature

short feature today - two recent releases by two of my favourite chilled idm artists - Motionfield and Das Kraftfuttermischwerk.

backlog: dont miss motionfield's excellent release from '06, Northern Lights

in other news, Comfort Fit's poor hamster died a few days ago. the world is sad to lose such a being who was witness to the creation of one of the all-time best netaudio releases, Forget and Remember. dont miss the massiv beat Boris created as a eulogy for Bounce the hamster.

Mr Moods - In Love We Trust...

Nothing is better for driving through the city on a hot day than gritty, downtempo beats. this release fits the bill very nicely. mr moods (not to be confused with a certain other very special artist) keeps the beatz rollin and mixes it up with an eclectic array of samples and sound-mashups, along with vocal samples seemlingly centred around illicit relationships. all in all, an excellently produced ep of downtempo and instrumental hip-hop.
if you enjoy this album, also dont miss his side project, Prototype 68, a slightly more ambient and abstract take on the genre. a must for fans of dj shadow and the turntablist pioneers of asphodel records...

shameless self-promotion

in a shameless bit of self-promotion, i've begun to put together a music section of my homepage, including my ambient/worldmusic albums, experimental stuff, and a couple dj mixes. far from perfect, but its a start at least..

Altus

now for another complete change of pace - spacey ambient music from canadian musician Altus. at times reminiscent of Jonn Serrie, Chuck Wild (Liquid Mind), Thom Brennan, or Steve Roach in his more melodic moments. peaceful synth pad chords with just the right touches of ambient sounds and atmosphere. almost all of his excellent releases are available as hi-quality mp3s for free download, released under a Creative Commons license. especially recommended are: The Wanderer, Autumn Breeze, Winter Embrace, Excursion One, Elements - Air. if youre a fan of ambient spacemusic, dont miss this very prolific musician!

Explosions in the Sky live shows

here at hiddenplace music(tm) , were very much into free music, so here's a couple excellent live shows from the aformentioned Explosions in the Sky which are available for free [legal] download right here on the internets.


Live at Rescue Rooms, Nottingham, England
courtesy of the Live Music Archive at archive.org
(these files are in FLAC format, but if you have a new version of winamp you should be able to listen to them)


Live at the 930 Club, Washington DC (opening acts Eluvium and The Paper Chase also available for download)
courtesy of NPR's All Songs Considered

My Brightest Diamond - Daytrotter Sessions

and now for something completely different - a few live songs by freaky rocker chick My Brightest Diamond. available for free download at Daytrotter. these songs totally rock my face off. dont forget to check out Daytrotter's archive for lots of other live sessions by other cool indie artists. I had the privilege of seeing My Brightest Diamond opening for The Decemberists earlier this year, and she rocked then too. and btw, her album Bring Me The Workhorse is quite excellent, probably one of my favourites in the genre.