Best New Releases from August 2020
The month of September continues with a stunning volley of new releases coming from the likes of Lanoche, Gacha Bakradze, Wa Wu We, Seph, BLNDR, Thomas Ebb, Liam Ebbs, Amandra, RDS, Johannes Albert , DJ Slyngshot and Pugilist via IDO Records, Die Orakel, Hypnus Sweden, 3024, Analogue Attic Recordings, Danza Nativa, De Lichting, Frank Music, Workshop Germany, and Affûtè.
Lanoche
The Rainbow
IDO Records
Valentino Mora has unveiled the first installment of the new full-length ambient compilation series "Transcendental Movement Vol. 1." Compiled by the IDO Records founder Valentino Mora, the compilation features ten tracks from the artists like Konduku, Donato Dozzy, Lanoche, Neel, Refracted, Varuna, Marow, Olaf Tonstein, and Ligovskoï who provides a solo track and in partnership with Valentino.
"I dedicated three years of developing ideas around active meditation after experiencing it for the first time in Berlin," states Mora. "Active meditation differs from regular stationary meditation through the focusing of one's attention on sound whilst in motion — the form this motion takes is personal. The goal of active meditation is to transcend one's awareness of motion — in fact, the awareness of being in a body — and to become absorbed entirely in the sound. I found that this process has the potential to ease anxiety as all conscious thought is alleviated through a concentrated focus on music."
Among the standout tracks on the compilation is Lanoche's "The Rainbow." The Madrid-based producer's stunning contribution is designed to immerse the listener in a meditative world of mesmerizing yet menacing beauty. Underlined by dubby elements reflective of nocturnal ambiance, "The Rainbow" is wrapped in the cloak of dark atmosphere and subtle mysticism.
Gacha Bakradze
Constant
Die Orakel
The latest release on Oliver Hafenbauer's Die Orakel comes from the Georgian producer Gacha Bakradze who marks his debut on the label with four tracks of an artistic cross-pollination of breakbeat, techno, and acid-tinged electro. "Western Arrogance" EP is a manifestation of hypnotizing rhythms inflicting equal parts of sophisticated, futuristic, and atmospheric sounds.
Beneath its breakbeat-driven foundation, the opening track "Constant" gives off a flair of deep house combining immersive rhythms with pastel chords and subtly dazzling mesmerizing melodies.
Wa Wu We
The Grip Of The Frost Release Itself
Hypnus
The legendary Swedish electronic music producer, an accomplished musician, visionary, live performer, a creative mastermind behind the Circle Of Life project, the man of many monikers Sebastian Mullaert has released a new album called "108 Dimensions Of Green" through the Hypnus imprint under his "meditation, improvisation and dance alias Wa Wu We.
Sprawling across seven tracks, Sebastian Mullaert immerses the listener into its sophisticated, colorful palette of sounds, minimal dubby rhythms, multilayered sonic spheres, and vast ambient soundscapes.
The opening nearly 14-minute composition "The Grip Of The Frost Release Itself" is both tranquil and poetic, weaving ambient themes to create a frosty, atmospheric sound present throughout the entire album.
RDS
Aro
De Lichting
Netherlands-based artists and members of the De Lichting collective queniv, Kaap, and RDS connect with a joint release on their own eponymously titled imprint for a first part of the VA compilation. Entitled "Drie punt één," it's built on a vast spectrum of genres ranging from ambient to breakbeat to atmospheric drum and bass. The digital-only release features a limited edition riso print (screenprint quality) generated by the music's waveforms.
Combining subtle threads of delicate ambiance with fluid atmospheric breakbeat, RDS offers "Aro," a beautiful tapestry of sound woven with superb attention to details.
Pugilist
Cider Skank
Melbourne-based multi-genre producer Pugilist reveals his new collection of tracks as “Gradient 3” E.P.. "Gradient 3" features five-tracks of dub-infused techno drawing upon broad facets of influences and moods.
Channeling the raw energy and infectious broken groove, "Cider Skank "is fueled by rolling bassline spheres and twisted sequences, all dubby by nature.
DJ Slyngshot
A1
Workshop
August sees the Hardwax affiliated deep house imprint Workshop presenting two outstanding releases that overflow with vibrant leftfield futuristic sounds. "Workshop 28" is a various artist compilation that draws attention to Japanese artists in the likes of Yone-Ko, YPY, Kiki Kudo, and Iku Sakan. In contrast, "Workshop 29" presents the new EP from the YAPPIN Records label boss DJ Slyngshot who offers up four tracks of driving, syncopated breaks, and shining synth flourishes all primed for the dancefloor.
The opening track 'A1' is a gorgeous excursion in the realm of breakbeat. A beautifully expressive story, it blends breakbeat drum patterns and subtle pads embedded in layers of constantly morphing sonic soundscapes.
Amandra
Ruban Rouge
Affûtè
The French artist Amandra joins Affûtè for its seventh release titled "Ruban Rouge". Comprising two originals and three remixes by a fellow French artist AWB, Affûtè label boss Téo Dréan, and Glasgow-based artist Exit Select, the new record is a strong melting pot of stark mechanical rhythms, subtle repetitive sounds, and cold futurism.
The title track "Ruban Rouge" stretches Amandra's signature rhythmic structures into an elegy of mutating soundscapes. It brings energy with its driving rhythms and mood enchanted by a void of ambiance.
Johannes Albert
Sohlhöhe
Frank Music
After releasing a stunning collaborative album with Iron Curtis earlier this year, Johannes Albert has returned solo to Berlin-based Frank Music with an utterly gorgeous album that draws on elements of ambient and meditative sounds influenced by the powerful magic of the Spessart heartlands. The eight-track album "Spessart" is beatless, composed of lush tones and delicate melodies imbued with a divine elegance.
Here how the label describes this release:
"The Spessart with its presence of extended woodlands is widely known for its legends, ghost stories, and fairytales. Thus, the tale of Snow White may have originated in the Spessart heartlands, with the town of Lohr pushing forward a substantial case for being the home and inspiration for the main characters and elements like the magic mirror."
The fourth track on the album "Sohlhöhe" is a well crafted beat-less piece of abstract and subtle impressionism that radiates warmth and tranquility bolstered with piano sounds.
Thomas Gray and Liam Ebbs
That Was You
Analogue Attic Recordings
Analogue Attic Recordings continues its journey with the return of Sydney duo, Thomas Gray & Liam Ebbs. Following their outstanding 2019 collaboration "3 days, 2 nights'' EP on the Melbourne imprint, the pair is back with yet another refined and sophisticated record. "Recollection of Everything Beautiful" puts on a vibrant display of superb vocal harmonies filled with overtly beautiful orchestrations and a few discreet touches of jazz.
"The record is a reflection on the natural undulation of affective states, and the joy that ones' surrender to them may bring,'' describe Thomas Gray & Liam Ebbs. "Written over the space of 18 months, it captures the waves of our emotional experience throughout that time, offering an optimistic interpretation of sorrow and loss."
Poetic in its atmosphere and textural nuance, "That Was You" brings together an organic blend of ambient field recordings, piano patterns, atmospheric sound collages, and glitchy rhythms.
Seph
MB4 (BLNDR Remix)
Danza Nativa
Following releases on veteran music producer Sebastian Galante, better known as Seph, takes the helm for the seventh release on Argentinian record label Danza Nativa with a deep and absorbing "Ulizen EP." Over the last fifteen years, the acclaimed electronic producer has released music on numerous labels such as Echocord Colour, Insurgentes, and his own imprint Aula Magna.
The three-track packages encompass elements of panoramic sound design and textured surfaces, and distill the sound of Seph's extensive techno catalogue into a beguiling, building club-ready excursion. The "Ulizen EP" comes complete with remix support from BLNDR.
Fusing introspective inspirations in a lush, timeless techno soundscape, the French producer BVNDR shifts the focus to the intricate widescreen textures and spacious synth pads to create a mind-bending listening experience.