DJ Richard – Dies Iræ Xerox [DIALLP040]

June 17, 2018June 17, 2018 hipodromealbum, ambient, dial records, dj richard, electro, experimentalLeave a comment

Following 2017’s ‘Path of Ruin’, DJ Richard returns to Dial with his much-anticipated sophomore LP, ‘Dies Irae Xerox’. Undoubtedly one of the most distinctive and fully-formed electronic producers in recent memory, DJ Richard imprinted the sound of a bubbling US underground with his label, White Material, founded in 2012 alongside Young Male. Now firmly settled once more in his hometown of Providence, ‘Dies Iræ Xerox’ is a personal and uncompromising journey that finds the Rhode Island native in reflective form, journeying without compromise into both his creative influences and personal psyche.

Morphology – Traveller [FS011]

June 12, 2018June 26, 2019 hipodromealbum, ambient, b12 records, electro, experimental, firescope records, matti turunen, michael diekmann, morphologyLeave a comment

The Finnish duo Morphology joins FireScope Records for their 10-track ‘Traveller’ LP, a vision of travel to destination unknown. Morphology’s third album continues their intensive deep-space exploration at the intersection of electronic/electro music and scientific discovery. Awash in the beautiful sounds of hardware-derived music direct from Morphology’s command center, the album takes listeners into their skilfully crafted universe. Each track is a new world in itself of crisp beats, deep basslines and melancholic melodies. Interspersing the frenetic pace of hyper-speed travel with ethereal landings, ‘Traveller’ is an intergalactic trip without taking off your headphones.

Tomaga – Music For Visual Disorders [MEA023]

May 6, 2018May 4, 2018 hipodromealbum, ambient, experimental, meakusma, tomagaLeave a comment

Tomaga’s Music For visual Disorders comprises nine tracks of intuitive automation, compiling compositions that have been used by different artists and curators within the context of works of visual art, dance and exhibitions. Tomaga members Valentina Magaletti and Tom Relleen use a multi-instrumental palette, conjuring up a musical sphere that touches on industrial music, minimalism, ambient and a gentle, at times inward, at times outward, take on krautrock’s motorik. Tomaga’s music is deceptively moderate as its core revolves around intuitive and gentle pulses. Its experimentation lies in its development as it is often driven by abstract images and intentions and even allows moments of soft-spoken absurdity. Music For Visual Disorders is a highly contemporary take on avantgarde and classic contemporary music.

VA – Flowers From The Ashes: Contemporary Italian Electronic Music [SALP006]

April 24, 2018April 23, 2018 hipodromealessandro adriani, ambient, andrea belfi, caterina barbieri, chevel, compilation, drone, electro, experimental, lory d, marco shuttle, neel, ninos du brasil, silvia kastel, stroboscopic artefactsLeave a comment

‘Flowers From The Ashes’ is the latest multi-artist project to bear the acclaimed Stroboscopic Artefacts imprimatur. There is a sensibility of decadence and corroded grandeur etched within its four album sides, reminding us that historically ‘decadent’ times have nonetheless resulted in some of the boldest acts of individual and collective creativity. Like the ‘floral’ theme that has remained a consistent feature of S.A.’s graphic presentation, the music here equally presents fragility and intensity in a way that really drives home this visual metaphor for good, while still holding out the promise that similar creations will be seeded in the near future. Though many of the artists involved have set of residence outside of their native Italy, all contribute here to make a captivating portrait of a shared spirit and cultural memory. Tracks from Silvia Kastel, Andrea Belfi, Marco Shuttle, Ninos Du Brasil, Alessandro Adriani, Chevel, Lucy, Lory D, Caterina Barbieri and Neel.

Sammy Osmo – Schaduw Horizon [NW017]

April 24, 2018July 16, 2020 hipodromealbum, ambient, cassette, danny wolfers, electro, experimental, nightwind records, re-release, reissue, sammy osmo, soundtrack, strange life records, utterLeave a comment

Digital re-issue coinciding with the tape release of this 2007 Strange Life CDR DX7 drenched cult spywave album. Very much influenced by real locations in the vicinity of the The Hague dune studio where this was recorded – this imaginary soundtrack scores a hypothetical story of a Cold War animal parapsychologist living in an abandoned zoo.

cassette / vinyl

XOR Gate – Conic Sections [TRESOR299]

April 22, 2018April 20, 2018 hipodromealbum, ambient, detroit, electro, experimental, gerald donald, heinrich mueller, tresor records, xor gateLeave a comment

XOR Gate is the brainchild of Heinrich Mueller, one half of Drexciya and Dopplereffekt. In linguistic or electronic logic, the XOR Gate designates a device, digital or grammatical, which outputs a value only when two di ering inputs are fed into it. This can be summed up with the formula ‘one or the other but not neither, nor both.’ A conic section is a shape created as a plane intersects a cone. This can result in di erent figures such as a circle, an ellipse, a parabola or a hyperbola. Conic Sections is here composed of eight themes, or shapes, over which waveform and synthesis entirely merge with human emotions. The line is blurred. These eight themes are intertwined, forming one long musical string. The line is forever blurred.

VA – Trame Due [MROME031]

March 18, 2018August 2, 2018 hipodromealessandro adriani, alessandro parisi, ambient, c-34, compilation, david kristian, electro, electronics, experimental, fabrizio lapiana, heinrich dressel, ian martin, iron blu, luciano lamanna, minimalrome, nursio, phalangius, polysick, stefano rocchi, teslasonicLeave a comment

“Eux sont de ceux qui trament en accordant desseins sur dessins.” MinimalRome is back with the second volume of Trame compilation. A full lenght 2xLP release gathering Legowelt (as Phalangius), Heinrich Dressel, Alessandro Adriani, Ian Martin, Teslasonic, Polysick, C-34, Iron Blue and David Kristian among others. Traveling through these eighteen ambient cosmic tracks from true heirs of library music, you’ll expand the surrounding space.

Polochord – Concretions [L2M005]

March 18, 2018March 16, 2018 hipodromealbum, ambient, cassette, experimental, listen2me, polochord, romanianLeave a comment

Original Soundtrack to ‘Summer’s Over’ (2017).

Severnaya – Polar Skies LP [FAUXPAS024]

March 18, 2018March 18, 2018 hipodromealbum, ambient, boris bunnik, conforce, fauxpas muzik, severnayaLeave a comment

Boris Bunnik is no stranger in the world of electronic music. Fauxpas Musik welcomes him for a new project called Severnaya. Originally hailing from the Island of Terschelling. the most Northern and remote part of the Netherlands he now made a piece of music dedicated to this special place. Severnaya means north in Russian and refers to the bright frozen landscapes of the northern archipels. Boris often plays with the influences and elements of ambient in his music. If we have to believe the man himself. Polar Skies is his most personal sound trajectory to come from his mind. Drum programming is scarce and what remains is a lush and profound listening experience floating on scapes and melodies. Things sound spacious and life is at ease in these melancholic compositions. Crispy crackling percussions and icey pads place you in the midst of a resonant arctic landscape. The tracks were composed over a couple of years (2015-2017) in a more contemplative mindset.

Jonny Nash / Lindsay Todd – Fauna Mapping [IOTG003]

March 4, 2018March 1, 2018 hipodromealbum, ambient, experimental, island of the gods, jonny nash, lindsay toddLeave a comment

Jonny Nash (Guissian Curve / Melody is Truth) and Firecracker’s Lindsay Todd get barefoot and turn out a stunner of an LP. Over the course of twelve compositions we find the pair utilising their recordings in a whole host of ways, avoiding the well-trodden cliches of the “exotic” and instead attempting to achieve a personal interpretation of the flora, fauna and climate of the island. Spending time amidst the insects, rice fields and scorching sun, the pair gathered a library of found sounds which were then taken back to a studio space to be stretched, mangled and manipulated alongside a variety of electronic and acoustic instruments. The outdoor studio itself became a living instrument, with the duo setting up multiple microphones for durations of up to 12 hours around the space, layering and processing the results in tracks such as “Fauna Mapping” and “A Series Of Small Frogs.

Vakula – Metaphors [LELEKA009]

March 3, 2018March 1, 2018 hipodromealbum, ambient, drone, experimental, leleka, vakulaLeave a comment

Immersive listening music from Vakula, created in the hidden depths of the Ukraine. ‘Metaphors’ is slightly different from some of his (admittedly eclectic) full-length excursions, focused as it is on the gently unfurling, head-in-the-clouds world of ambient music. Of course, much of the music is still gently rhythmic – check for example, the pulsating arpeggio lines and tumbling kalimba melodies of the strangely foreboding “Proem”, or the spaced-out, keyboard demo rhumba rhythms underpinning languid opener “Smooth Movement” – but the vibe remains thoroughly horizontal throughout. While the standard is high throughout, we’re particularly enjoying the two versions of “Tale of Eternal Thought”, with the weightless bliss of the “Different Version” standing out.

Terekke – Improvisational Loops [MFM028]

March 3, 2018October 22, 2020 hipodromealbum, ambient, music from memory, terekkeLeave a comment

Terekke drifts gracefully onto Music From Memory with a long player of looping ambient pad pressure. The recording of ‘Improvisational Loops’ began in 2012 during yoga classes at Body Actualized Center in NYC. In the spirit of past ‘New Age’ or Minimal music, it aims to open up a space within the room giving the listener a chance to explore inward or outward. It was recorded using a digital synthesizer, reverb, and looper.

Nuances – Murmurs Of A Heavy Heart [TABR040]

February 18, 2018February 16, 2018 hipodromealbum, ambient, manni dee, nuances, tabernacle recordsLeave a comment

Manni Dee’s Nuances project joins the label with a mini-album recognizing splendor in feelings of somberness and isolation.

Giuseppe Leonardi – TBC [SC007]

February 17, 2018June 29, 2021 hipodromeambient, experimental, giuseppe leonardi, music from memory, outernational, second circleLeave a comment

Returning with another debut release, Second Circle’s eighth record to date comes this time from young Viennese musician Giuseppe Leonardi. Performed on an array of synthesizers and experimenting with spoken word and vocals from various local singers, Giuseppe’s ‘TBC’ EP take us on a dance through the catacombs and out through the jungle floor with ritualistic rhythm and haunting song… Whilst at other moments Giuseppe’s horizontal ambient pieces leave us gazing out on the shores of a distant half-remembered planet.

Jeff Mills – And Then There Was Light (Soundtrack) [AXCD052]

February 4, 2018February 1, 2018 hipodromealbum, ambient, axis records, jeff mills, soundtrack, tatsushi omoriLeave a comment

Last year, Jeff Mills provided the soundtrack for a curious Japanese film by Tatsushi Omori called And Then There Was Light. The movie was based on a novel called Hikari, which focuses on a teenager who kills his girlfriend’s other lover while mistaking their affair for sexual assault. The dark tone of both novel and film naturally shines through in Mills’ refreshingly electronic score, which flits between moments of quietly spacey ambience, creepy intensity, Reichian minimalism (see “Danger From Abroad”), icy soundscapes, industrial strength intensity (the panicked “The Players of Consequence” and “Lost Winners”) and, on the “Hikari Mix” of “The Hypnotists”, full-throttle Detroit techno with Giallo overtones.

Tuomo Vaananen – A Small Flood [LJ009]

January 21, 2018January 19, 2018 hipodromealbum, ambient, ambient techno, experimental, ljudverket, tuomo vaananenLeave a comment

Typically outstanding, cultured, listenable techno by the co-founder of this excellent Finnish label, adroitly traversing dub and ambient. Nothing lunky or domineering, dystopian or Gothic, this debut LP generates senses of immediate, natural being out of field recordings (Waiting Halls, Winners, Temple) and the foibles and hiccups of the music-making process itself (New to the System, Sloth, A Small Flood).

RA.605 Chris SSG

January 7, 2018January 4, 2018 hipodromeambient, chris ssg, experimental, interview, mnml ssgs, podcast, resident advisorLeave a comment

Continue reading “RA.605 Chris SSG” →

VA – Element: Earth [EL001]

December 29, 2017December 26, 2017 hipodromeambient, electro, electronic leatherette, franck kartell, heinrich dressel, msrg, vessel in distressLeave a comment

Electronic Leatherette is the new label from Riga based producer Dmitry Distant. After years of making electro and wave music he decided to create a new story and run his label. With a first release label provides a series of 4 basic nature elements. As a fundament of everything this release is dedicated to element Earth and can bring you though atmosphere of esotoric electronic music within guides from Vessel in Distress, Heinrich Dressel, Franck Kartell and new comer name from same planet MSRG. Enjoy your travel and sound scape.

Docetism – Potential Natural Vegetation [SSX08]

December 17, 2017December 15, 2017 hipodromeambient, docetism, drone, maciej banasik, silent seasonLeave a comment

Maciej Banasik has been releasing plenty of music as MB as well as Docetism since 2012, but this release on Silent Season marks the first time the prolific artist’s music has been committed to wax. In true Silent Season style the mood is consistently haunting, leading in with the foggy pulse of “Dentario Enneaphyllidis – Fagetum I” before the second part of the piece heads off into pure swelling drone. “Querco – Pinetum I” is a different kind of droning techno that comes loaded with cinematic poise, but it makes for a natural partner to the A side. The second part of that piece drifts into calming field recordings of birds and shapeless synth swells of a truly majestic nature.

OWL – Blackstone [SSX07]

December 17, 2017December 15, 2017 hipodromeambient, drone, owl, silent seasonLeave a comment

OWL has previously been spotted on labels such as Anekoic, Circular Limited and Planet Rhythm, but he made quite an impression with the digital release of his Blackstone EP on Silent Season. Now the label have done the right thing and cut the release to vinyl, giving ambient belters such as “Fragment” the chance to sit beside none quieter gems like “Solar Wind” on wax. There are whispers of rhythm to be found tucked away in “Blowing The Light”, while “Innominate Horizon” imparts a little warmth with its tender chords, making this a record rich in variation as much as subtlety.