Musikmesse 2009

last weekend, agents from hiddenplace music had the good fortune of visiting Musikmesse 2009 in Frankfurt, Germany- the world's largest trade fair for all things music-related. its quite impossible to see everything in one day, but i was able to shoot some photos and videos during the event, including a bit of @thomasraukamp performing a live set of netaudio minimal techno.

Saine - Clockwork

finnish producer Saine makes some of the most chilled out instrumental hiphop and downtempo music you can imagine. he already put out several tracks on the recently re-opened Tokyo Dawn, and this year he released his second full-length commercial album. as a promo for the new LP, he also put out the excelent Clockwork EP for free download.
stylistically, the ep is similar to his earlier work on TD but now the music has become even more refined and polished. hushed atmospheres, resonant jazz samples and restrained turntable beats make up a supremely classy mood. appropriate purchase links & samples for the full-length albums can be found on his website.

The Circular Ruins - Retrospective 2009

on an earlier post, i featured an album by Anthony Paul Kerby, aka Nunc Sans. he also produces music under the name The Circular Ruins, and he recently released a free retrospective of tracks from several of his albums under that name. the music is deep hypnotic ambient spacemusic with subdued rhythmic elements. although compiled from albums spanning over several years, the compilation maintains a strong artistic vision and aesthetic. it should be noted that one track features offthesky, a favorite artist of hiddenplace music who will no doubt be well known by many of my readers. in all, this retrospective serves as an excellent introduction to the artist, as well as a thoroughly enjoyable album in its own right.

Tracing Arcs - Fin

put out on the excellent Dusted Wax Kingdom netlabel, Fin by Tracing Arcs is quiet, atmospheric and subtle-- a smoky voice and smooth, flowing jazz textures. a fresh, original sound and top-quality production. in short, simply one of the best triphop albums i've heard in a long time.

via Free Albums Galore

hiddenplace music mix 5: macrocosm

Download mp3 (160kbps, 63MB)

a mix of a few of my favorite deep, spacious ambient tracks from 2008. warm synth waves by Altus, icy winter environments from Shiftless, spaced-out piano by Ben Woods, stunning vocal-based headphone candy by Tertium Auris, spectral desert ambience by Rudy Adrian...

playlist:
(00:22) Altus - Subspherical [Macro]
(03:39) Altus - Wood Grain [Macro]
(06:50) Shiftless - Icicles [ap3002]
(09:10) Coax - Quiet Minds reprise [ap3002]
(11:22) El Zoológico - Nada [pj002]
(12:58) Ben Woods - Realms of Detachment [OWL-33]
(19:12) Tertium Auris - Vox Auris I - III [DHS0040]
(38:21) The Dandelion Council - The Face of the Mountain [ah028]
(39:52) Rudy Adrian - Desert Realms
(47:34) Tone Ghost Ether - Gamelan Moon Landing [earman051]
...

Inna Breeze - Stairway to Heaven

i'm always quite pleased to discover a netaudio release that stands out from the usual electronica and experimental music. the ironically named russian netlabel top40 has already set a precedent of releasing live performances of works by modern classical composers such as Steve Reich and George Crumb. yet even among such distinctive releases, Stairway to Heaven stands out as the first symphony in their catalogue (and most likely the first new symphony to be released on a netlabel).
this amazing work, performed live by a full orchestra with organ, is a melodic and lyrical symphonic tone poem stylistically rooted in the program music of the romantic era, the americana jazz influences of the early 20th century and even modern film scores. brilliantly composed, performed and recorded, Stairway to Heaven is a must-hear for fans of classical music and film soundtracks (btw- the piece certainly has nothing musically to do with the Led Zepplin song of the same name! in the words of the composer, "In my youth I, of course, heard the beautiful Led Zeppelin's song of the same name. But «Stairway to Heaven» is dedicated not to this song nor my youth. I'm implying the different, almost literal meaning to this words nowadays: it's an ascension. The ascension of a whole life. We are all moving «there», one way or another...")

ambienteer

i recently discovered a very interesting ambient music project through a few of my followers on twitter. english producer ambienteer (@ambienteer) creates electronic sound studies every day and posts them on his blog as a sort of sound diary. the style ranges from deep spacious soundscapes to glitchy processed microsound. collections are also posted every 10 days for easy downloading.

Renzu - Across the Threshold

well-sequenced beats and synths, plenty of atmospheric reverb and a few japanese-flavored voice and instrument samples make up an excellent downtempo idm LP from the (apparently) videogame and anime-obsessed 3d animator Renzu. rhythmic and groovy yet smooth and chilled. more detailed info on the artist and tracks, as well as some very nice CG artwork, are available on the release page at bumpfoot netlabel.

Imachi Akira - Lycoris radiata EP

i have mentioned that quiet ambient music is very fitting to the cold dark days of winter. i have also discovered that sometimes other styles of music are equally appropriate for those rare sunnier winter days when the sun glitters off the snow and ice. the Lycoris radiata EP put out on the electronica netlabel certainly evokes such and atomsphere.
Imachi Akira skillfully blends a myriad of sounds and styles into a beautifully cohesive whole. icy ambient atmospheres, subtle filtered idm-esque rhythms, dubby echoes, acoustic jazz guitar, delicate piano malodies and airy field recordings blend together to form a perfect soundtrack to a beautiful winter's day spend in a snow-covered valley, on the shores of a frozen river bed or walking on a glacier.

Kit Watkins & Tone Ghost Ether

during its heyday (ie when it was still free), mp3.com was a perfect gateway to explore new styles of music. i found a lot of great artists there, many of whom i still listen to today. one artist i found at that time was Kit Watkins. Mr Watkins has been recording music since the 70s- from playing in the progressive jazz/rock band Happy the Man, to his own solo work, to his ambient improvisational group Tone Ghost Ether. his multi-instrumental solo albums explore jazz and world music-inspired ambient sounds and textures, with a uniquely positive and peaceful vibe. a distinctive element in Kit's music is his expressive use of the wind synth, which gives his melodies and leads a flowing, lyrical quality not easily achieved with keyboards and sequencers.
i was quite glad to notice that he recently re-released many of his older works as high quality mp3 downloads on the netlabel Earth Mantra. one standout in this collection is certainly his live performance at the ambient music festival The Gathering, including the longform postlude piece Music for the End. Mr Watkins puts on a stunning multi-instrumental performance, making excellent use of extended loops to create live overdubs and rich instrumental textures. other standouts include the two-disc meditative drone album Thought Tones, as well as the soft, luminous sounds of Condor Sail Curves and the world music-flavored Guard Lock Skin, both from his side project Tone Ghost Ether. endlessly deep and luxurious textures for spacefans...

solipsistic NATION guest mix

for part 1 of my own 'best of 2008' series, i did another guest mix for one of my favorite podcasts, solipsistic NATION. the mix features tracks from some of my favorite chilled ambient/idm netaudio releases which came out in 2008. full track listing plus links to download all the tracks are available on solipsisticnation.com

as a special bonus for my blog readers, check out michael hoffmann's band comfort zone's myspace site for a video of their live performance in mannheim, germany which i mentioned in the show. for on-the-go listening, you can also check out another live performance which they put up for free download here.

hiddenplace music mix 4: lessening

Download mp3 (160kbps, 81MB)
*this mix is currently unavailable for download. contact me if you want to hear it!

i almost didnt post this mix because the VOs ended up a bit noisy & i forgot to mention a couple things, but i decided to put it up anyway because the music really deserves to be heard and i didnt want to keep delaying it.
i actually put together this mix and Pontchartrain at the same time; there was simply too much good music to fit into just one mix. but this is definitely not the 'b-sides' mix, its more of a continuation of the same mood and atmosphere as the previous mix-- dark, quiet, and intensely thoughtful music for the colder days of winter...

playlist:
(00:16) L'Altra - Sleepless Night
(05:45) Nanang Tatang - On Me Forever
(10:14) Mar - Patience
(15:49) Weigl/Hoffmann - Country Lane [apl048]
(22:43) Caroline - Sunrise
(26:32) immanu el - Panda [The Silent Ballet vol. 5]
(33:75) A Northern Chorus - This Open Heart
(42:06) Barzin - Past All Concerns
(47:56) stockfinster. - two great lines of light
(52:55) Cibelle - Phoenix
(58:46) Elysian Fields - Narcosmicoma
(64:09) Gregor Samsa - Lessening
...

The American Dollar - A Memory Stream

on my evening commute home on the day of the inauguration of the next US president, it only seemed appropriate to listen to some music by an american band. i found that i have surprisingly little american music in my collection, but thankfully i had loaded my mp3 player with the 2008 album "A Memory Stream" by NY band The American Dollar. this was actually a reader submission- the band sent me the album out of a the blue a few months ago and asked me what i thought of it.
i was really blown away by their work; it is a shining example of cinematic, electronica-tinged instrumental postrock. the duo fuses processed drums, spacious keyboards and powerful organ swells with electric guitar and bass, creating deep sonic textures while maintaining the passion and energy of a live band. the swirling soundscapes build and swell, punctuated by glitchy beats, breathing and expanding into crashing guitars and soaring leads: precisely constructed symphonies for a new era.
unlike most of the music i feature on hiddenplace music, this album is not available for free download, but this excellent music is absolutely worth purchasing- The Memory Stream is most certainly on my "best of 2008" list.

sleepmakeswaves - In Today Already Walks Tomorrow

although its only a few weeks in, 2009 has already provided an impressive list of very promising new music. one of the first releases i downloaded this year was "In Today Already Walks Tomorrow"by by australian band sleepmakeswaves on the Lost Children netlabel. they already put out a fantastic two-song demo and since then i have been looking forward to hearing what this band would do next.
on "In Today..." they continue the epic keyboard-infused postrock sound they established in the demo but this time the production values have been upped significantly, adding even more dynamic complex song structures and a more sharp and polished sound. in the true postrock tradition where the songs have pretentiously long poetic titles, the moods vary from breathlessly quiet contemplative guitar harmonies to blistering explosions of sound. one standout track is certainly "One Day You Will Teach Me To Let Go Of My Fears" which was featured on the demo. this time they have expanded the song to new heights- a tense driving rhythm punctuated by heavy guitars slowly builds into a rapturous climax of soraing violins and crashing cymbals.
this excellently produced ep is an absolute must-have for any connoisseur of the finest epic, cinematic postrock.

sleepy town manufacture - Hello & Goodbye EP

russian collective sleepy town manufacture's classic ep 'latatoo' on monotonik was probably one of the first netaudio, indeed one of the first ambient electronic releases that i really fell in love with, and i still count it among my all-time favorite eps.
stm has been releasing music sporadically since then but has not put out a solo ep in quite some time. with 'hello and goodbye' stm returns to monotonik with a beautifully produced ep of classy ambient idm. precisely sequenced percussion, soft, spacious synths, sparkling textures, and a gorgeous 7-minute environmental ambient closing track-- what more could you ask?