Currently listening, part 1

drone on · January 26, 2016, 12:46:32 PM

Here are five essential early ambient releases on the Virgin UK label, currently on rotation:

Ashra-New Age of Earth
Ashra-Correlations
Edgar Froese-Epsilon in Malaysian Pale
Steve Hillage-Rainbow Dome Musick
Edgar Froese-Aqua

Seren · January 26, 2016, 02:09:51 PM

mmm, aqua....mmm, epsilon.....mmmm nniiccee 8) 8)

thirdsystem · January 29, 2016, 02:58:32 AM

Checking out the bandcamp stream of Nachtplank - Alien,on Carpe Sonum. Just added last night I think.

I've been looking forward to another Nachtplank since Echo Ark, so great news. First four tracks played so far- spacey, alien like music from another galaxy and dimension. I like this.

drone on · January 31, 2016, 01:53:41 AM

I see there's another Autumn of Communion coming on txt as well....

Giles Reaves--Wunjo. Rare CD I found on eBay for a reasonable price. Predated his Hearts of Space album Sea of Glass. Wunjo I would consider "proto ambient" or atmospheric contemporary instrumental. Nonetheless, it's very good indeed.

Tangerine Dream--Cyclone. Not highly rated by fans, but I really like this 1978 album, with Froese, Franke, and Steve Jollife. Part of it has vocals with lyrics, which are excellent. Live drums on here too. It's more prog rock than their previous catalog. The synths are excellent as usual for 70s TD. Underrated album IMO.

David Bowie--Ziggy. How great is this album??? The playing and production are unbelievable, with stellar (no pun intended) songs.

chris23 · January 31, 2016, 09:57:58 AM

Looks like it is going to be a sweet year for ...txt, Carpe Sonum, and affiliated artists. My wallet senses a disturbance in the force.

36 - Ghost Vault
Collection of tracks that didn't quite make the cut for Lithea in 2012. Some of these are true gems; I'm glad he released them.
http://3six.net/album/ghost-vault

Moss Garden - In the Silence of the Subconscious
Speaking of Norris and crew: This is an outstanding 2014 release. I didn't really give it the attention it deserved when it first came out, but it has been on repeat around here over the past week. Great stuff.
https://carpesonum.bandcamp.com/album/in-the-silence-of-the-subconscious

ffcal · January 31, 2016, 11:04:05 AM

Quote from: chris23 on January 31, 2016, 09:57:58 AM
Moss Garden - In the Silence of the Subconscious
Speaking of Norris and crew: This is an outstanding 2014 release. I didn't really give it the attention it deserved when it first came out, but it has been on repeat around here over the past week. Great stuff.
https://carpesonum.bandcamp.com/album/in-the-silence-of-the-subconscious

Yes, that's a really nice one. Moss Garden's Understanding Holy Ghosts isn't bad, either.

Forrest

thirdsystem · February 01, 2016, 04:48:55 AM

Agree about Cyclone drone on. I like that album a lot. Something a bit different with challenging (but interesting :) ) vocals. That "Bent Cold Sidewalk" is actually quite catchy ;). Great track name also - Rising Runner Missed By Endless Sender. The album cover is one of the things that made me notice TD back in '78 .A lad walking about the school carrying his Cyclone LP , remember when everyone used to do that. I think I had heard snippets of Phaedra and Rubycon before that, so these albums hooked me in for life.

Moss Garden CDs are wonderful, some of my favourite ambient music. I see there is an ep listed on discogs which is apparently a free download from the "Kaiko" bandcamp. Haven't heard that so will check it out.

Current play - Steve Roach - Live in Tuscon , excellent.

drone on · February 03, 2016, 01:46:33 PM

New releases out now on Virtual and txt...

I haven't bought these but been streaming on Bandcamp.

The two on Virtual are very mediocre and I wouldn't order the CD's. On the other hand, the new Autumn of Communion on txt, called "Polydeuces," is pretty good. It has some psytrance beats like the Ultimae label (Solar Fields, Carbon Based Lifeforms, etc.). Very similar to CBL and Namlook in spots. More active style than the previous long series they did.

APK · February 03, 2016, 02:10:40 PM

- been playing a bunch of Endless Melancholy that I picked up from bandcamp. Interesting material. Some are minimal subtle piano, some are Hecker-like drone crescendos.

- Fenton :: Pup -- also bought from bandcamp. He is Shuttle358, but this time playing fairly minimal guitar. Good stuff.

chris23 · February 03, 2016, 06:29:02 PM

Quote from: drone on on February 03, 2016, 01:46:33 PM
New releases out now on Virtual and txt...

I haven't bought these but been streaming on Bandcamp.

The two on Virtual are very mediocre and I wouldn't order the CD's. On the other hand, the new Autumn of Communion on txt, called "Polydeuces," is pretty good. It has some psytrance beats like the Ultimae label (Solar Fields, Carbon Based Lifeforms, etc.). Very similar to CBL and Namlook in spots. More active style than the previous long series they did.

I just streamed the first few tracts from Polydeuces. It seems pretty neat; I'm looking forward to the release.

The Virtual samples are great too. But I'm a sucker for that stuff. ;-)

drone on · February 05, 2016, 02:41:09 PM

Led Zeppelin- Eleven Years Gone. This is an unofficial, 10-CD, 2-DVD box set (pressed CD's), of 1979 shows from Copenhagen and the Knebworth Festival in UK. Pretty good recordings, excellent packaging.

Tangerine Dream-Reims Cathedral 4CD box. One set from 1974, one from 1976. On Esoteric, UK label. Official bootlegs. The 1976 set sounded really good on headphones last night. Presently the Zeppelin box is competing for my time in the Listening Department.

chris23 · February 06, 2016, 05:42:39 PM

Best Of Dream Catalogue, 2814-2815
Compilation of tracks from Dream Catalogue--a UK outfit that curates some of the better ambient vaporwave. This particular release has some fantastic tracks and, importantly, they hang together nicely.
https://dreamcatalogue.bandcamp.com/album/best-of-dream-catalogue-2814-2815

DeepR · February 07, 2016, 12:44:18 PM

Tetsu Inoue - Organic Cloud

Chill In, Chill Out & Ring of Power -> A glorious pinnacle moment in ambient music.

drone on · February 07, 2016, 02:09:39 PM

Tangerine Dream Reims Cathedral 1974/Mannheim 1976 official bootleg vol 1 box set. My final summation after multiple listenings is this set is very disappointing. The Esoteric label has done high quality TD projects before, but this box is kind of cheap on a physical level. The recordings are typical bootleg quality. They are audience recordings, hence lo-fi, flat, tinny, etc. Why does every bootleg have some German guy talking to his friends? And somebody's always having a coughing fit. I mean who coughs that much? I bet it was one guy who did it to sabotage all illegal recordings. The music itself, though occasionally having some nice sounds, is very improvisational aka noodling. For diehard fans only.

drone on · February 07, 2016, 09:52:25 PM

To add to above, disc 3 (1976 Mannheim) is very good, the music is more of the classic Phaedra type style. Also, disc 4 is only 30 minutes long. Guess it was necessary so as not to exclude part of the performance, but a waste of 50 minutes, so you only getting 3.5 CDs really. I think I should give this box more time. Actually the sound quality IS better than your average bootleg, no doubt due to mastering these old tapes.

Seren · February 08, 2016, 02:33:31 AM

Dark Side of the Moog box set. Arrived at weekend.

Never had the originals so unable to compare....

I like Cds 2 - 4 a lot, will need to listen to 1 again and yet to listen to 5.

I like the box itself, very nicely done.

I think there could be more information on both Klaus and Peter, as well as each album in the set.

I think they could have made different covers for each disc.
I think just listing Klaus's other albums inside the covers is not enough - I would have liked more information.
I think bonus material disc could have been something other than what appears to be excerpts of tracks from the series, including discs 1 - 4.
Overall, despite my qualms, a good deal for the music.

drkappa · February 08, 2016, 05:39:06 PM

Ah so the first compilation Dark Side of the Moog now available in the UK.
The release date was moved back. It was funny last autmun I was going to ask
Ron Boots why nobody had compiled the hard-to-get series (Second-hand copies
were GBP 20+), especially Klaus releasing his archive on La Vie Electronique,
only to discover the following day a box set available for pre-order on
amazon.co.uk. Prayers answered. :)

I'm in a mixed mind over the TD Reims/Mannheim bootleg. Reims wasn't as good
as the hype. Having recently bought some modern TD live concerts, there's quite
a contrast from the improvised to the highly orchestrated.

Thinking of Edgar, three months ago I too was delighted to find an unadulterated
boxed set of his early Virgin recordings. My vinyl recordings have languished
unplayed for a generation. It's great to hear Aqua and Epsilon in Malaysian
Pale in the original form.

Recent `spins' include
Howard Givens & Craig Padilla -- Spirit Holy Rising (free download)
Steve Rothery -- The Ghosts of Pripyat (similar vein to last Pink Floyd)
Redshift -- Life to Come

Looking forward to getting the new Sverre Knut Johansen CD which has some
Wollo tonalities.

thirdsystem · February 10, 2016, 02:29:54 AM

First listen to DSOTMoog yesterday. All 5 discs. First time I have heard these as I only had VIi. Have to say there is way more beat orientated stuff than I would normally tolerate or purchase, however I really enjoyed all of it. Interesting and diverse with the ambient in particular something special.

In respect of the new TD boots. I suspected the overall sound quality would be dissapointing no matter what they did to it. That was certainly the case with the Bootleg Box Set , vol 1, ie the five disc set from Esoteric that was reissued in 2012. Sure the same boy is constantly coughing during the Blbao gig. The Reims album is on Spotify and have heard it through once, quality a bit disappointing . All this stuff however is an interesting look at the mighty TD live.

Also have the Edgar Froese box set , really excellent to get these masterpieces on CD. Only dissapointing thing was no Mac Transfer. I have a superb vinyl copy of that one though. That may be my favourite actually.

drone on · February 11, 2016, 10:32:49 PM

The bonus disc on Moog box is Evolution of the Dark Side of the Moog, previously issued on Fax. It's just a collection of excerpts from the first four Moog albums.

The Edgar Froese box set mentioned contained the original studio versions, although the tapes were remastered. For some reason I prefer all the original Virgin issues from the 80s for TD and Froese. Some of that remastering can really ruin a perfectly good thing. As the saying goes, don't fix it if it ain't broke.

drone on · February 14, 2016, 02:42:39 AM

Klaus Schulze--Stars are Burning. Speaking of official boots, here's a two disc set released by the artist via his manager/publisher, Klaus D. Mueller. Audience recordings from 1977 and 1979 that circulated for years, now cleaned up and official. The coughing guy is here, he even blows his nose as an added bonus. Not high fidelity but a cool memento of the time period. Recommended only for those with more than a casual interest in KS. As on the La Vie Electronique sets, Mueller gives some really idiotic titles to some of the tracks.

I see there's now another TD bootleg box on Esoteric, I think from around 78-80.