Back catalogue: Ambient/Drone

Review: Basel-based experimental labels Amenthia Recordings and A Walking Contradiction join forces for their first collaborative release here in the form of the Flash Crash/Hack Crash EP. Both labels are known for pushing boundaries within their close-knit creative circles and this one features Agonis' heavy stepper and Konduku's whirlpool of low frequencies on the Amenthia side, while Lemont continues the low-end, tripped-out vibe. Varuna represents A Walking Contradiction and delivers swampy, slow-motion sounds in their signature style. This release embodies both labels' commitment to daring, unconventional electronic sounds.

Review: A record that explores deep, hypnotic rhythms with a strong tribal and mystical undercurrent, the latest Siamese Twins records pushes the boundaries of what is possibly in eastern influences underground techno. Side-1 opens with 'The Golden Triangle', an atmospheric introduction that feels cinematic, setting the stage with ambient textures before giving way to movement. 'Lens of Time' follows, locking into a deep, primal groove where rolling percussion and rich low-end create an entrancing effect. On Side-2 'Mekong' leans into tribal mysticism, blending ancient rhythmic patterns with a modern pulse. The production is detailed yet raw, drawing from rich percussive layers. 'Ruak' closes the EP with pulsating bass and deep, rolling rhythms, channeling Eastern influences into a hypnotic techno flow. A powerful release from Siamese Twins Records, driven by Sunju Hargun's distinct vision.

Review: KANZ's artist alias, when reversed, becomes ZNAK, meaning "SIGN" in Bulgarian. He hails from Lyulin, a district known for breeding either crime or art, and thankfully Kaloyan embodies the latter. This outing on MELMAK is opened with '25% Personality (with Dickie)' which is deep and atmospheric dub techno. 'Low Orbit' is just as deep but more driving with some pad laced beauty up top, 'Trench Music' then brings frosty Berlin dub techno vibes, 'Dub Tool A' has conscious vocal mutterings and 'Splais' is a slow motion gem for late night contemplation. 'Kopriva (Opa Kanz Rerub)' is a spine-tingling closer with angelic vocals.

Review: Still riding high from the success of his superb re-make of Manuel Gottsching on Test Pressing ('A Reference to E2-E4'), Alex Kassian returns to Pinchy & Friends - who released his similarly popular 2021 EP 'Leave Your Life' - after a three-year break. Beginning with the lusciously languid, Balearic, effects-laden and sonically layered title track ('Body Singer', where Jonny Nash style guitars and tumbling sax motifs rise above a sparse drum machine beat and shoegaze-esque aural textures), the Berlin-based producer offers up a loved-up mix of weightless ambient bliss (Kinship), kosmiche soundscapes (the sun-flecked 'Skinship'), revivalist Krautrock (the Can-after-several-spliffs headiness of 'Trippy Gas') and immersive, cinematic excusions (the gorgeous 'Mirror of the Heart').

Review: Heart Dance Recordings is a genuinely unique proposition: a new age, ambient and spiritual music label run by, and for, women, offering up decidedly calming music from an ever-growing roster of artists. The Phoenix-based imprint's latest full-length excursion was created by a trio of musicians: flautist Sherry Finzer, percussionist and vocalist Karasvana (real name Ella Hunt) and synthesizer enthusiast-come-guitarist City of Dawn (Damian Duque). There's much to admire about The Journeying Sun, from the daybreak beauty of 'Memory of Awakening' and the immersive, enveloping bliss of 'On Seashores of Endless Worlds', with its haunting chimes and drifting vocal refrains, to wide-eyed aural wonder of 'Resident Wandering' and the simultaneously pastoral and ethereal 'Indefiniteness'.

Review: Trash Can Lamb is the layers solo work from Akron-based multi-instrumentalist Keith Freund. With two decades of musical exploration, Freund, known for his work with Trouble Books and Lemon Quartet, crafts an eclectic blend of analogue synthesis, piano, bass, saxophone, and field recordings. This album delves into experimental realms, melding 8-bit delays with acoustic elements that give rise to great ethereal melodies. Handmade electronics coalesce with wistful piano and saxophone melodies to make for a juxtaposition of chaos and tranquillity. Freund captures the essence of a backyard at dusk, where the cacophony of nature meets the serenity of twilight.

Review: Ben Kaczor and Niculin Barandun's debut album, Pointed Frequencies come on the tasteful German outlet Dial Records and explores the healing potential of sound through six immersive tracks. Their collaboration began in 2022 for an audiovisual show at Digital Art Festival Zurich and has developed masterfully since and as Kaczor studied sound therapy, Barandun became intrigued by its possibilities, and it is that which has inspired the album's direction. It incorporates therapeutic elements like binaural beats and solfeggio frequencies into a seamless blend of ambient and experimental music. Through free improvisation, the pair have cooked up some brilliantly contemplative pieces here.

Review: Parisian label InFine presents Collection, a stunning anthology of Kaito's ambient works, the project of Hiroshi Watanabe, a techno veteran with nearly three decades of experience. This album compiles remastered and re-edited tracks originally released between 2020 and 2022 on Watanabe's Cosmic Signatures imprint, offering a serene sonic journey for introspection and reflection. Collection shows off Kaito's ethereal soundscapes, blending layered drones, emotive synthetic strings, and analogue harmonies that ascend to euphoric heights. Pieces like 'Summer Mood' evoke a nostalgic beauty, blending piano-led melodies with a bittersweet sense of reminiscence. The track 'Birds of Passage' features delicate, treated textures, while 'Summer Sketch' nods to the warmth of Miles Davis' Sketches of Spain with its humanistic horns. The album's beat-driven tracks stand out, with 'Silent Cloud' echoing the vibes of Mo Wax and Massive Attack, and 'Silent Sky' delivering deep basslines and subtle details reminiscent of classic downtempo electronica. Masterfully remastered by Rashad Becker, Collection is a testament to Kaito's mastery of ambient music, blending minimalism with emotional depth. Hats off to InFine, for further solidifying his place among Japan's ambient music luminaries.

Review: Following their latest maxi-EP for Infine, 'Silent Sky', Kaito (a beatsmith's production alias of a towering name, none other than Hiroshi Watanabe) returns for Collection, his newest album for Infine. Celebrated for his contributions to the "enviro-ambient" scene in his home Japan, Collection marks the latest reminiscence under Watanabe's Kaito pseudonym, which was started in 2001 after visit to Europe and subsequent release on the Kompakt label. With "Kaito" meaning both "universe" and "secret" depending on its usage, Collection is comprised of ambient, quiescent and melodic tunes which serve as individual therapies for the ear, despite their dual esoteric and cosmic quality.

Review: French label Good Morning Tapes welcomes Paris-born electronic innovator and 70s GRM alumni Ariel Kalma New York-based trio Asa Tone for some serious deep ambient soundscapes. The wellness movement has never been more polar than it is now but if you ask us, nothing could be better for your mental health and sense of self than sitting a dark room with this one nice and loud so you can soak up its high fidelity designs, the microscopic pads, the whimsical melodies and slowly shapeshifting sounds in all their glory. A tremendous work.

Review: No prizes for guessing the kind of sonic avenues we're invited to explore here. Less obvious is the fact Kandodo is actually Simon Price, a name many psych lovers will recognise from British heavyweights The Heads - a group that have spent the last few decades bending minds to their will, or at least sound, and opening up third ears with far reaching cosmic tones. Here you can expect similar wormholes to open, but dark matter reigns supreme. Introverted to the point of collapsing in on itself, Theendisinpsyche feels sludgy, deep, heavy and all the things that make us look down and then inside ourselves. With the B-side taken up by 22-minute long epic, 'Swim Into The Sun', you should hopefully know just how intense and inescapable things get - which should only ever be taken as a strong recommendation from us.

Review: Polish producer, multi-faced musician and multi-instrumental maestro Albert Karch knows his way around the sound engineer's desk. So much his finesse is unmistakeable, with a number of standout records already behind him. For example, the 2019 stunner, Celestially Light, created in collaboration with Japanese folk singer and songwriter Ichiko Aoba, Here, he delivers another exceptional joint project, teaming up with Irish ambient icon Gareth Quinn Redmond, himself no stranger to the WRWTFWW label, for a sublime outing of precise strings and pianos. A slow, meandering journey into melodic immersion which captivates and lulls, it moves between moments of sparse quiet, electronic experimentation, and more complex and full sounding arrangements in a way that holds the attention until the very last. A thing of patient beauty that deserves to be in your shopping basket.

Review: Since delivering his debut album on PNN a decade ago, Matt Kent AKA Matt Karmil has proved adept at adapting the club-focused sound of his EPs to the long-playing format - as his inspired and wonderfully atmospheric sets for Idle Hands and Smalltown Supersound prove. He continues this notable run of form on this Studio Barnhus released set, crowding ultra-deep, dusty grooves in opaque chords, cut-up sample snippets, lo-fi crackle, hazy ambient textures and nods towards a myriad of ear-pleasing electronic styles and sounds. Highlights are plentiful, with our picks being the dubby, mind-altering late-night hypnotism of 'Still Something There' and the becalmed, meditative ambient deepness of superb closing cut '15 Mins' (which, confusingly, is just 13 minutes long).

Review: Eli Keszler hears the New York percussionist and composer of the same name lord his soundworld over as yet unhaunted terrains. Rooted in dust residues of American abstraction, jazz noir, ancient melodic memory and crumbling industrial forms, the record unfolds as a footworking meditation on beauty and erosion, gawping at the anguishes and awes of the present moment. Keszler's metamorphic practice spans releases on PAN, Empty Editions, and ESP Disk, as well as collaborations with Oneohtrix Point Never, Rashad Becker and Laurel Halo. Icons emerges as a natural continuation of his previous, equally as unsettling LP Stadium from 2018, and this one emerges as its natural progression. The release coincides with a conversation between Keszler and filmmaker Adam Curtis, framing the album within a wider dialogue on sound, history and collapse.

Review: Dubio makes no secret of its intention, from the word go. The opening, titular track give us the lay of the land. A record inspired by the soundtrack to a puzzle game of the same name, there's a cyclical, perpetual kind of motion to everything here. Obviously, we know where the start of each piece is, and the conclusion. But the vibe isn't forward motion, nor backwards. Instead, there's a gradual meandering tempo, a loose, open-ended kind of aesthetic that invokes the old cliche - the journey, not the destination. And with that, you can't help but sense a little mystery here, too. Kettel isn't always known for this type of free spirited exploration, and yet here we are, and how we got here is part of what we're trying to figure out. Musically, that means warm pads and string refrains, twinkling chimes, plodding, almost unsteady percussion and a sense of wonder and perpetuity throughout.

Review: Reimer Eising, aka Kettel, and Lennard van der Last, aka Secede, had already been lifelong friends by the time they began working on When Can. The Dutch producers wanted to create a seamless listening experience that would unfold and develop as a film does, using cinematic-leaning sounds to achieve their big idea. The whole thing feels like a narrative, a beginning-middle-end, which is doubly impressive when you learn there was no grand plan to begin with. Just two pals exploring what might come next. Originally released in 2012 - hark!, those heady, innocent days - what's perhaps even more astounding than the picturesque, immersive soundscapes here, is the fact this is the first time When Can has made it onto vinyl. Having said that, 12 years ago was another time and place, not least in terms of music sales, so let's not dwell on what everyone was thinking by not bringing this out on wax sooner. Instead, savour every moment of the rich, dreamy electronica.

Review: Klaus's Tanum compilation unites five groundbreaking 12" releases, originally scattered between 2012 and 2021, into a cohesive journey that reveals the innovative spirit of the artist. Each record, known for pushing boundaries, defied expectations and explored new sonic territories and in this compilation, the hidden connections between the tracks become clear. The work effortlessly blends genres, while maintaining a smoldering core of intensity that pulses through every track. From the unexpected twists of rhythm and texture to the emotive undertones, Klaus never settles into predictability. This collection, presented on a CD housed in a recycled card gatefold digisleeve, showcases the depth of Klaus's artistry and vision. Mastered by Matt Colton, the tracks retain their raw energy and sonic clarity. Marking the conclusion of one chapter while igniting anticipation for what comes next, this CD concludes a vital period for the artist.

Review: Layer is the new label from Berlin techno favourite Berghain for the music released by its residents. Ben Klock is one of the most celebrated of those and here he links up with Fadi Mohem for an album that eschews his famous techno sounds in favour of a new blend of IDM, ambient and experimental sounds. 'Layer One' comes on double vinyl and opens with 'Ultimate (feat Coby Set)' which is an atmospheric opener with icy synths and sparse landscapes, then 'Escape Valley' explores kinetic rhythms and glitchy synths, 'The Vanishing' is another exploration of a distant corner of the cosmos and 'The Machine' brings more cinematic and evocative electronic designs.

Review: When KMRU accessed the Royal Museum of Central Africa's sound archive, it inspired his last album Temporary Stored which engages with colonial sound archives. Temporary Stored II extends that superb concept by inviting artists like Aho Ssan, Lamin Fofana, Nyokabi Kari?ki, and Jessica Ekomane to critically explore these recordings of African traditions. The album reimagines these historical sounds as seeds for future sonic explorations that confront the colonial past while addressing contemporary political, economic, and ecological issues. It emphasises the importance of listening back to these archives to reclaim lost traditions and challenge existing knowledge systems rooted in anti-blackness.

Review: Pieter Kock shows us how it's done with The End II, a fantastic new experimental beats LP manifested on the Macadam Mambo label, in a move that has been described as "quite unexpected". A doyen of post-10s German kraut-tronics, Kock first found his savvy as a releaser of retrofutural cassette tapes for various outlets - the likes of RIO, Meakusma and Moonwalk X - all of which assumed album form (to date, Kock has not released a single single or EP). Macadam Mambo offer a suggestion as to why this is: "all the demos that he sent were so good that there was no question about doing something." If by "doing something" you mean releasing over 16 strident club-churners in the style of far leftfield dub, synthpunk and krauty Krankenschaften, you've made no mistake. Dive into any one of these exotic exo-treats, and your eyes will just as surely turn helical.

Review: Transporting us to a waking dream of Los Angeles, two enigmatic music makers from the City of (Fallen) Angels present a truly stunning journey into hazy half-memories, afternoon fantasies, borrowed recollections and thoughts of things yet to happen. In many ways, Salt & Sugar Look The Same feels incomplete; tracks, half-tracks, movements, bits and pieces feel like our minds often work. Was that what we think it was? Did this happen? According to the official release burb, these 18 brief but beautiful compositions combine finger-plucked guitar work, the lens flare of electronica, and warped samples to create a take on the American primitivism music movement. The result is something that transcends boundaries of sound, time and place, and exists in a world of its own creation.

Review: Over the past four years and under his Tyresta alias, Nick Turner has been integral to operations at PITP's sister label, Fallen Moon Recordings. His meticulous curation for FMR showcases top-tier sound collages and experimental electronic music and that dedication shines in Lia Kohl and Daniel Wyche's latest release, 'Movie Candy. It's a captivating exploration of free-spirited electronic music that seamlessly blends cello, guitar, synths, voice, field recordings, and electronic treatments into a record that brims with both nostalgia and innovation. Wyche describes it as an homage to the obscure ephemera of films-like the allure of candy wrappers and the mesmerising cinema carpets-forging vivid memories that linger and evolve through time.

Review: You might say the clue is in the name, but as well as bearing a nice selection of differently cut beat action, this double album from French/Syrian producer Ahmad Qatrami aka Konalgad on New York's Dance Data label, is also a nicely cerebral affair jammed with celestial adventures for mind as well as feet. It refuses to get stuck in any stylistic rut, from the cloud-like ambience of 'REM' to the brooding bass and dubby stepping of 'Subzero Experiment' and the simmering shimmer of 'Dots To Dots', half digi-dub thump and half subtly filtered junglist trimmings, it keeps on giving something new right to the end. Konalgad apparently translates as "the universe of tomorrow" in Arabic, and this artist definitely has a bright future to match his already quite impressive track record.

Review: Selene by Akira Kosemura & Lawrence English is a beautiful exploration of atmosphere and gravity, seamlessly weaving together expansive soundscapes with a grounding sense of stability. At its core, Selene is a contemplative journey that delves into the human desire for transcendence and new perspectives. Through its meditative compositions, the record captures the essence of celestial zones and the boundless visions they evoke. Drawing inspiration from various sources, including radio telecopy, filmic dreams, and fictional renderings, the album transcends traditional boundaries to create a rich tapestry of sound and emotion. As a collaborative effort, Selene builds upon a lineage of musical exploration, bridging past and future with its innovative approach to composition and production. Through its ethereal melodies and evocative atmospheres, the album embraces the beauty of the unknown.

Review: Isik Kural's Moon in Gemini is a captivating album that blends slow, evocative narratives with symbolic storytelling. While also combining environmental music with folk influences, Isik's vocals float over pastoral sounds, chamber instrumentation and archival recordings which trace a line back through his own diverse musical journey. The album's 14 tracks immerse you in a dreamy, liminal space - 'Moon in Gemini' for example reflects a multi-faceted and nostalgic exploration of Isik's past work by including recordings from Turkey, Miami, Helsinki, and Glasgow. Inspired by artists like Nina Simone and Aldous Harding, Isik experiments with new techniques of theirs to make this album a poetic, naturalistic experience with a portion of proceeds sent to benefit Mor cat? Women's Shelter Foundation.

Review: Four Seasons in Kyoto marks the final chapter in Argentina-based electronica group The Kyoto Connection's ambient trilogy following Postcards and The Flower, The Bird and The Mountain. The series is inspired by the ambient and environmental music of 1980s-90s Japan and this final piece of the puzzle paints another delightful musical portrait of rural life that has long been shaped by nature and tradition. Across 14 delicate, transportive compositions, producer Facundo Arena captures the emotional rhythm of Japan's changing seasons with whimsical melodies and gentle percussive patter, soothing vocal coos and more eerie and autumnal pieces. With contributions from Japanese friends and fans, this record feels personal and heartfelt and is a brilliant farewell to a project rooted in beauty and nostalgia.

Review: A new drone collaboration for the ages comes in the form of a heads-on collision between Kevin Martin (aka. The Bug) and Joseph Kamaru (The Bug). Firmly rooted in the esoteric, nigh chthonic drones of which both are now more than adept in evincing - Martin in tandem with his many collaborative efforts with the likes of Earth, and KMRU across the likes of recent albums such as Logue - this is a six track mesmeriser whose titles recall everything from apocalypses to hidden histories, and with each piece spanning anywhere between four to eleven minutes a pop. Beginning on a slow, soil-caked march and moving further into a land of serener incantations, on which KMRU submits his vocals, Disconnect is a haunting (yet equally, it could be said, calming) record for arrested epochs.