[ Hypnos Forum ]

Hi Drone On

We've got the Subradial release ICE DIVING finally into production so that will be released around the end of this month, possibly the very beginning of May.

We've got the sequel to Martian Chronicles and Max Corbacho, as you mentioned. Possibly also some solo Seren Ffordd, and a Numina, and Dave Fulton. I need to make some progress on getting those moved forward before I promise dates for those. I really do intend to get several items moved along this summer, and make a dent in this backlog.

Here's a look at the cover for ICE DIVING.

I picked up a pair of Targus that handle 17" lappies and has dual fans. It's pretty quiet, seems to be loud now (lately) till things are spun up but I am happy with it. Cost me I think $29.99 each via Amazon a couple yrs or so ago.

Mike

STYLE    
Smooth, flowing ambient.
Eros Thanatos is an eminently serene disc of lush, velvety texture and rich sonic colour. Dan Pound uses deeply-effected guitar sounds as the basis for this album - although you would rarely perceive that such a familiar stringed instrument was employed except for perhaps the sliding tones of Between Breaths or the soft fingerings at the start of From Beyond. The meandering, sonorous layers reverberate weightlessly rising and falling from silence: delicate at times, faint, subtle; dreamy and charming in places; mysterious in others, shadowy, inhabited by peculiarly organic presences; there are tribal passages of sober intensity and sparkling sequence dances. The multi-voiced guitar sounds at the root of the music are enhanced by a range of analog and digital synths, piano-like impressions, distant chanting voices, woody flutes, water effects and infrequent lazy, percussive beats.
 
ARTWORK         
Eros Thanatos is a jewel-case release with a single sheet insert. Imagery centres on a stark, leafless tree curving sidewards as if frozen within an invisible wind. On the front panel the strong colours of an amber-hued field and indigo mountain range make the lifeless branches all the more stark - grey sky above. On the rear, the image is repeated in monochrome - softer, simpler. Track titles in black hang in the sky; credits and contacts in white lie in the grass. On opening up the case the disc again repeats the cover shot, echoed still further behind the plastic grip. The left-most sheet zooms in on the field, the colours and textures of bright stalks and interlaced blades filling the entire space: word-free.
 
OVERALL          
Ambient musician/composer Dan Pound delivers his latest album of exploratory three dimensional sound in the form of Eros Thanatos - a title suggesting love and death. Dan takes the listener through a range of drifting expanses and textural zones: mostly beatless, faintly primal, spacey, dreamy, down into disquieting gloom and back into celestial light. Eight tracks in all, mostly around the seven to ten minute mark allowing for unrushed development and expression. Dan explains: "After trying on some newly acquired guitar effects, I decided to do a whole album dedicated to these guitar sound worlds I was discovering... I was able to extrapolate a myriad of tonal timbres that resembled other instruments like organ, strings, oboes, bassoons and even human voices. Adding of course some deep layers of reverb, this sound set ended up being one of the most originally challenging and creative projects I've ever done." You can find out more about this release and other Dan Pound music via the official Dan Pound website where there are sound samples and opportunities to download tracks in different formats; there is also Dan's Facebook page where a variety of news and personal details are provided.

The Winterhouse "Gathering Autumn" 2xCDr

"Gathering Autumn" is the 5th collaborative album between DataObscura's Anthony Paul Kerby from London, Ontario and Robert Scott Davies from Ithaca, New York. Released on DataObscura at the beginning of January 2014, this double album comes with an eye-catching front cover image by Robert. The same image is also featured on a pro printed glossy card, which is included with each CDr order. Each of the previous collaborations from these two creative sound sculptors offered a tremendously transporting journey, so my expectations are again really huge. Let's confirm that...

Disk One starts with "Secluded Vale", a tranquilly organic piece, led by rich natural field recordings and surrounded by monolithic drone and intermittent rumbles. This soundscape is exactly described by its title, no wonder I am immediately immersed. The journey has begun!!! "We Must Endure", which clocks over 15 and a half minutes, is quickly invaded by monumental drift expansion, again rather flatlined, with hidden, slightly mysterious distant embellishments. The transition in the middle is warmly relieving and shifts from gorgeously wide-screen panoramas through polished lively cascades to nearly symphonic blankets. Welcome to deep drone paradise, it's intense and graceful!!! The next piece, "Deepwoods", which is a few seconds longer than its predecessor, safely stays in serenely encircling forest wilderness and quietly traverses from calmer terrestrial authenticity to slightly harsher and disruptive shadowy paths. Another appropriate track title!!! No wonder "Curious Pathways" immediately follows ... A mysteriously undulating texture blending warmly drifting expanses with nostalgic culminations. Colorful sounds of the ecosystem's inhabitants are starring in "Autumn Nights", while monotonously spiraling distant drone is guarding above. "When The Day Ends" quickly dives into heavier, hissy fields although hauntingly counterpointed with joyful and placid piano expressions. Moving through richly sculpted cascades, both natural and hummed. This is a stunningly exciting conclusion of the first part!!!

Disc Two unfolds with "Gathering Autumn", a 10-minute title track, on which is immediately apparent coalescence of a massive static drone blanket and live performances of forest residents. Along the way smooth traverses with rumbling motifs and uncanny noises inconspicuously sneak in, while sparse fragile tinkles add contemplative feel. "The Shifting Sky" keeps its panoramic structure, floating and ebbing through intense peaks, with velvety clinks mesmerizingly arising from behind the mysterious clouds. "Growth Of The Soil" again precisely amalgamates catchy organics, meditative patterns and monochromatic drone mindscapes. The next track, "They Lived Here Before", attracts with its deeply evocative yearning texture, masterfully embellished by occasional native flute fragments and distant rumbling delicacies, but toward the end an array of sharply outbursting and swirling rattles steal the center stage. "Autumn Gardens" returns to a more relieving, yet colorfully enticing environmental terrains. The following composition, "Wandering Alone", meanders quietly through scenic landscapes, touched by slightly pensive calmness, before reaching a glitchy flavored piano conclusion. "To See Everything" with 11 and half minutes the longest piece on this disc and a closing opus, merges subtle oscillations with hissy dissonances, all guarded by celestial drifts, gracefully floating and swelling. Fascinatingly immersing finale!!!

Without doubt "Gathering Autumn" is a really monstrous double set from The Winterhouse!!! Hats off to both, Anthony Paul Kerby & Robert Scott Davies, who effectively integrate their freshly distinctive signature sculptings into one utterly homogeneous and detailed recording devoted to the natural beauty and diversity of flora and fauna in beautiful forests that are within our reach. "Gathering Autumn" works well as a background ambience, but I definitely would recommend a deeply attentive listening session, and if possible, with your headphones on. Trust me, this way you will explore many well-hidden surprises and rewards!!!

Richard Gürtler (Apr 13, 2014, Bratislava, Slovakia)

Yes, Butterfly is an incredible album!!!  If you like alio die and his hic sunt leones label you will probably really like this.