Back catalogue: Modern Classical

Review: After five years apart, Italian composer Eraldo Bernochi and Japanese violinist, electronica producer and current Tangerine Dream member Hoshiko Yamana return with a sequel to their much-loved 2020 album Mujo. Described by the pair's label, Denovali, as "a deeply cinematic experience", Sabi cannily combines the slow-burn, trance-inducing synthesizer sequences of Tangerine Dream, the intergalactic electronic expressiveness of ambient techno, the thematic movements of modern classical, Yamana's emotive violin motifs and the spaced-out ambient iciness often associated with Geir Jensson's Biosphere project. It's a genuinely brilliant album all told, with the pair smartly sashaying between hazy melancholia, string-laden creepiness and picturesque aural colour.

Review: Canadian composer Hecker's movement into scoring for film and television has been a natural progression over the past 25 years and now the artist has perfectly aligned his sound with motion pictures and film. Perhaps not fully intentional by Tim but most fans point to him as an artist whose music evoke emotions that equal the power of what a film could create. Known for his transcendent soundscapes that push ambient music into unclassifiable realms, Hecker collects a series of compositions originally created for projects like Infinity Pool, The North Water, Luzifer and La Tour. While some pieces were left unused in the final productions, their standalone presentation here showcases Hecker's ability to evoke vivid atmospheres. The seven-track EP, released via Kranky, includes the hauntingly beautiful 'Sunset Key Melt', where celestial chimes echo amidst layered, dense melodies. It exemplifies Hecker's knack for crafting spacey, droning soundscapes. Meanwhile, 'Morning' begins as a delicate piano piece before unsettling feedback disrupts its serenity, blending traditional composition with experimental textures. Shards reflects a late-career revelation: Hecker's immersive sound design translates seamlessly to visual storytelling. His work on Arctic psycho-chiller The North Water and supernatural horror Luzifer underscores his ability to merge ice-cold atmospheres with emotional depth. This EP is both eerie and ethereal, showing why Hecker's style is so compelling.

Review: Further Selections from the Electric Harpsichord is a profound rediscovery of Catherine Christer Hennix's early masterwork, offering a mesmerising, never-before-heard recording of her 1976 opus. This long-lost piece, originally debuted at Stockholm's Moderna Museet, further solidifies Hennix's unique contributions to minimalism, combining precise just intonation with electronic experimentation. Like her contemporaries La Monte Young and Pandit Pran Nath, Hennix's work transcends traditional boundaries, using carefully retuned synthesisers and feedback loops to create a hallucinogenic soundscape that manipulates time, space and perception. Released shortly before her passing in 2023, this recording stands as the most comprehensive version of The Electric Harpsichord to date. Extending the previously released 26-minute fragment, this new edition spans 47 minutes, immersing listeners in sustained, shimmering waves of sound. Henry Flynt, who championed Hennix's work in the 1970s, described the music as "hallucinogenic/ecstatic sound environments" and this recording lives up to that description. The spellbinding oscillations and drones, accompanied by Hans Isgren's sheng, evoke a deeply meditative and otherworldly experience. Hennix's polymathic background in mathematics, poetry and philosophy enriches the composition, making it as intellectually rigorous as it is emotionally transformative. A landmark of minimalist music that will excite new audiences, reaffirming Hennix's lasting influence on experimental sound and the transcendent potential of her artistry.

Review: Ezekiel Honig is a New York City-based artist who founded two vital labels, Anticipate Recordings and Microcosm, and now he is back with a new album on 12K. Unmapping The Distance Keeps Getting Closer is a tender and honest work of art that wears its heart on its sleeve with piano, horns and broken rhythms all characterising the palette. Field recordings are also worked into the arrangements to add a real narrative and to really evoke a sense of place. Add in plenty of textural and tactile motives and you have a journeying album full of melancholy but also a sense of hope.