A Decade of Ambient

Ugh, this was difficult. I went through old end-of-the-year lists, checked Spotify playlists, looked up other folks' lists and dug up old mixes. There is just no easy way to sort through soooooo much music. But I finally ended up with something that is sort of coherent.

I decided not to call this mix Best of the Decade as I have done with mixes for years. I've realized that the "Best" label is not accurate.  I'm sure I missed a ton of albums and I feel bad leaving some out. So these are my favorites that provide a good cross-section of ambient throughout the decade.

Initially, I had harder electronic artists like Jon Hopkins & Rival Consoles on the list but I realized that I'd rather split those off into a smaller, favorite electronic album of the decade lineup. I'm not sure if I'll make a mix for the electronic favs but I'll at least post the list soon.

The first thing that you'll notice about this mix is it's looooong. This is the longest mix I've done other than Endless Ambient, which was 5 or 6 hours long. This one clocks in at about 3 hours and 19 minutes. I basically was too lazy to make 2 mixes so we'll all have to put up with this monster which is actually kind of cool having this large of a collection of great music.

Here's the list in alphabetical order:
1. 36 - Memories in Widescreen (2010)
2. 36 - Sine Dust EP (2015)
3. 36 - Tomorrow’s Explorers (2017)
4. 2814 - 新しい日の誕生 (2016)
5. A Strangely Isolated Place - Full Circle (2018)
6. A Winged Victory for the Sullen - s/t (2011)
7. Alva Noto - Xerrox Vol. 3 (2015)
8. Benoit Pioulard - Lingnin Poise & Slow Spark, Soft Spoke (2017)
9. Bersarin Quartett - II (2012)
10. Brambles - Charcoal (2012)
11. Brian Eno - Sisters (2017)
12. Chris Walla - Tape Loops (2015)
13. Chris Watson - El Tren (2011)
14. Colin Stetson - All This I Do For Glory (2017)
15. Dylan Howe - SUBTERRANEAN (2014)
16. Eli Keszler - Stadium (2018)
17. Jane Antonia Cornish - Constellations (2018)
18. Jens Pauly - Vihne (2019)
19. Johann Johannsson - Arrival OST (2016)
20. Johann Johannsson - Orphee (2016)
21. Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith - Ears (2016)
22. Kasper Bjorke Quartet - The Fifty Eleven Project (2018)
23. Klangriket & Sjors Mans - The Amsterdam Sessions (2018)
24. Koss, Henriksson & Mullaert - The Mollan Sessions (2011)
25. Kyle Bobby Dunn - A Young Person's Guide To...(2010)
26. Kyle Bobby Dunn - Bring Me The Head of (2012)
27. Loscil - Endless Falls (2010)
28. Loscil - Sketches from New Brighton (2012)
29. Mac Quayle - Mr. Robot, Vol. 1 OST (2016)
30. Maps & Diagrams - Get Lost (2011)
31. Maps & Diagrams - the town beneath the sea (2011)
32. Marconi Union - Distance (2012)
33. Max Richter - Sleep (2015)
34. Mohn - Mohn (2012)
35. Nest - Retold (2010)
36. Nils Frahm - Felt (2011)
37. Ocoeur - Inner (2018)
38. Olafur Arnalds - Island Songs (2016)
39. Olafur Arnalds - re:member (2018)
40. Paul Haslinger - Halt & Catch Fire (2016)
41. Robert Davies - Elemental Shimmer (2018)
42. Ryuichi Sakamoto And Alva Noto - The Revenant OST (2016)
43. Solidarity Hymn - For a Wandering Beam of Sun (2018)
44. sonmi451 - spectrum (2010)
45. sonmi451 - Star Atlas (2011)
46. Steve Roach & Dirk Serries - Low Volume Music (2012)
47. Taylor Dupree - Fallen (2018)
48. William Ryan Fritch - Deceptive Cadence: Music For Film Vol. I & II (2019)
49. William Selman - Musica Enterrada (2018)
50.   willamette - always in postscript (2012)


Here's to the next ten years of ambient music and ambient mixes!


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T R A C K L I S T :

• 00:00    36 - Poekhali (Tomorrow’s Explorers 2017)
• 06:27    Bersarin Quartett - Jedem Zauber wohnt ein Ende inne (II 2012)
• 11:36    Brian Eno - Hannah (Sisters 2017)
• 15:22    Chris Walla - Kanta's Theme (Tape Loops 2015)
• 20:00    Jane Antonia Cornish - Constellations 1 (Constellations 2018)
• 24:53    Brambles - To Speak of Solitude (Charcoal 2012)
• 29:00    Saffronkeira + Mario Massa - The Journey (Cause and Effect 2013)
• 33:33    Loscil - Khanamoot (Sketches from New Brighton 2012)
• 37:20    Koss, Henriksson & Mullaert - Monday Conversations (The Mollan Sessions 2011)
• 42:40    William Selman - Lithic Reduction (Musica Enterrada 2018)
• 44:40    Benoit Pioulard - Velha, nacre (Slow Spark, Soft Spoke 2017)
• 50:40    Solidarity Hymn - For a Wandering Beam of Sun (For a Wandering Beam of Sun 2018)
• 56:10    Kyle Bobby Dunn - The Tributary-For Lost Voices (A Young Person's Guide To...2010)
• 1:02:15 Robert Davies - Honeysuckle Vapour (Elemental Shimmer 2018)
• 08:55    Maps & Diagrams - Floating Sculptures (Get Lost 2011)
• 13:22    Taylor Dupree - The Ephemerality of Chalk (Fallen 2018)
• 19:40    sonmi451 - Orange (Spectrum 2010)
• 23:25    Ocoeur - Echo (Inner 2018)
• 27:10    Paul Haslinger - The Scenic Route (Halt & Catch Fire 2016)
• 28:28    Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith - Existence in the Unfurling (Ears 2016)
• 36:25    Johann Johannsson - Kangaru (Arrival 2016)
• 38:49    Olafur Arnalds - Raddir (Island Songs 2016)
• 42:26    Nest - Cad Goddeu (Retold 2010)
• 46:45    Ryuichi Sakamoto - The Revenant Theme Atmospheric (The Revenant 2016)
• 49:18    William Ryan Fritch - Visible Wear (Deceptive Cadence: Music For Film Vol. I & II 2019)
• 51:14    Nils Frahm - less (Felt 2011)
• 56:27    Max Richter - Dream 11-whisper music (Sleep 2015)
• 2:12:00 A Winged Victory for the Sullen - Steep Hills of Vicodin Tears (awvfts 2011)
• 15:05    Winterlight - Awake and Sleeping (A Strangely Isolated Place - Full Circle (2018)
• 19:14    Alva Noto - Xerrox Solphaer (Xerrox Vol. 3 2015)
• 24:20    Marconi Union - Inter (Distance 2012)
• 28:45    Eli Keszler - Flying Floor for US Airways (Stadium 2018)
• 32:03    Dylan Howe - Moss Garden (SUBTERRANEAN 2014)
• 37:27    Kasper Bjorke Quartet - Seminom Non Seminom (The Fifty Eleven Project 2018)
• 42:00    Klangriket & Sjors Mans - Prinsengracht (The Amsterdam Sessions 2018)
• 48:10    Mohn - Ambientôt (Mohn 2012)
• 53:08    Mac Quayle - 1.0_2-oneincontrol.aiff (Mr. Robot, Vol. 1 2016)
• 54:54    2814 - テレパシー (Birth of a New Day 2015)
• 3:00:50 willamette - avenue heights carouselled horse (always in postscript (2012)
• 02:45    Jens Pauly - Elde (Vihne 2019)
• 06:52    Steve Roach & Dirk Serries - Bow (Low Volume Music 2012)
• 3:18:51 end

Film Scores of the Decade

Here's another impossible task - compiling a mix of the best film scores of the decade. Like any of my other year-end mixes, this is not really a "Best" mix. It's a collection of scores that I listened to a lot and fit within my ambient aesthetic.

The tracks are laid out chronologically from when the films were released. Starting with Monsters in 2010 to Ex Machina in 2015 and finishing up with American Woman in 2019.

There are scores from four TV series included in this mix - Halt and Catch Fire, Mr. Robot, Stranger Things, and The Knick. They are some of my favorite soundtracks and definitely worth checking out.

There's not much else to say about this mix, it's pretty straight forward. I'm sure I missed a bunch of very good film scores but I think this mix holds together as a cohesive set. I hope you enjoy it!

Cheers!



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T R A C K L I S T :

• 00:00    Jon Hopkins - Water (Monsters  2010)
• 01:15    Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross - Intriguing Possibilities (The Social Network 2010)
• 04:05    Cliff Martinez - Rubber Head (Drive 2011)
• 06:35    Alexandre Desplat - Emergence of Life (Tree of Life 2011)
• 09:57    Dan Romer & Benh Zeitlin - The Thing That Made You (Beast of the Southern Wild 2012)
• 12:08    Tom Tykwer, Johnny Klimek, Reinhold Heil - Prelude to the Atlas March (Cloud Atlas 2012)
• 13:18    Alexandre Desplat - Maya on Plane (Zero Dark Thirty 2012)
• 17:05    Max Richter - Find Schumaker (Dosconnect 2013)
• 17:31    Arcade Fire - Sleepwalker (Her 2013)
• 20:13    Mark Orton - Their Pie Hawthorne version (Nebraska 2013)
• 22:40    Cliff Martinez - Finish Your Breakfast (The Knick 2014)
• 24:22    Han Zimmer - Cornfield Chase (Interstellar 2014)
• 25:42    Ben Salisbury & Geoff Barrow - Falling (Ex Machina 2015)
• 28:45    Nick Cave and Warren Ellis - Farewell at Tinguit (Loin Des Hommes 2015)
• 30:50    Ryuichi Sakamoto & Alva Noto - The Revenant Theme Noto Remodel (The Revenant 2015)
• 34:14    Johann Johannsson - Heptapod B (Arrival 2016)
• 37:40    Nicholas Britell - Metrorail Closing (Moonlight 2016)
• 38:52    Paul Haslinger - The Scenic Route (Halt and Catch Fire 2016)
• 40:27    Mac Quayle - 1.0_5-pierreloti.au (Mr. Robot 2016)
• 43:13    Kyle Dixon & Michael Stein - Hazmat Suits (Stranger Things 2016)
• 44:52    Christopher Spelman - Source of the Verde River (The Lost City of Z 2017)
• 48:03    Tamar-kali - Ronsel Leaves (Mudbound 2017)
• 49:10    Valgeir Sigurðsson - Communication (Little Moscow 2018)
• 51:33    Nicholas Britell - If Beale Street Could Talk End Credits (If Beale Street Could Talk 2018)
• 53:00    Adam Bryanbaum Wiltzie - Lipstick in the Trash (American Woman 2019)
• 56:29    end

Best Ambient Vol. 2

 

As I said in the previous post, there was so much good music this year, every year really, that I couldn't fit it all into one mix. So here is volume 2. This one focuses on modern classical/electro-acoustic music.

The first track in the mix is from William Ryan Fritch's massive album - Deceptive Cadence - Music For Film Vol I & II, easily the best release of the year. It was just one of several albums put out by Lost Tribe Sound that are all phenomenal. Anybody who likes beautiful packaging should check out their stuff. 2019 saw some gorgeous sets from LTS.

https://losttribesound.bandcamp.com/

Some of my other favorite releases of 2019 came from Whitelabrecs. They had a monster year putting out a ton of excellent albums. They started the year strong with Grønland by Glåsbird and Vihne by Jens Pauly and kept going all the way to Timecuts by Luis Miehlich and Lowlands by Jack Hyde.

https://whitelabrecs.bandcamp.com/music

Here's to more good music and more mixes in 2020, that is if the presidential campaign doesn't make me drive off a cliff.

Cheers!


[ s t r e a m ]    [ d o w n l o a d ]    [ i t u n e s ]


T R A C K L I S T :

• 00:00    William Ryan Fritch - Sleight of Hand (Deceptive Cadence-Music For Film Vol I & II) [lost tribe sound]
• 07:00    Olga Wojciechowska - Ready to Return (Infinite Distances) [ASIP]
• 11:35    Sven Laux and Daniela Orvin - A Moment of Silence (The Writings) [dronarivm]
• 16:32    Bersarin Quartett - Nichts zu verlieren (Methoden und Maschinen) [denovali]
• 21:40    The Phonometrician - We're Burning (Mnemosyne)[lost tribe sound]
• 25:05    Seabuckthorn - To Which the Rest Were Dreamt (Crossing) [eilean]
• 28:20    Dalot - May-ness (Place Language) [fluid radio]
• 34:05    A Winged Victory for the Sullen - The Slow Descent Has Begun (The Undivided Five) [ninja tune]
• 38:38    Anne Müller - Nummer 2 (Heliopause) [erased tapes]
• 44:09    William Ryan Fritch - Pristine (Artifishal)[lost tribe sound]
• 46:07    Glåsbird - Hvítar Fjöll (Grønland) [whitelabrecs]
• 53:00    Porya Hatami, Aaron Martin, Roberto Attanasio - Rebendan (Sallaw) [dronarivm]
• 61:00    Ian Hawgood - Grace (Impermanence) [Slowcraft]
• 65:10    end

Whitelabrecs on cassette

Earlier this year I did a mix featuring all music from the Whitelabrecs label out of the UK. They had an incredible year releasing album after album of great ambient music. Harry Towel, who runs the label and records as Spheruleus, liked the mix enough that he decided to release it on cassette. How cool is that?!

It's a limited run of only 50 copies and it looks like there are less than 10 left. Here's the link...

https://whitelabrecs.bandcamp.com/album/wlr-t03

This is about as close as I will ever get to releasing an album of my own. He even used one of my own pics for the cover art. Thanks Harry!

Best Ambient Music of 2019

It's an impossible task to narrow down the multitude of ambient recordings released every year into a definitive "Best of" list. There's so much music out there that I'll never hear it all and what I do hear is hard to give the proper attention to. So many factors can influence a record making the list - where did a first hear it, what mood was I in, what other music did I listen to around it, did I use it in a mix, etc. Suffice it to say, this list is not definitive and is highly subjective.

I will end up making two mixes from this list - this first one is more straight forward ambient and the next one will have a more modern classical/electro-acoustic tone. I split it into two mixes so that I didn't end up with a 4-hour mix. Ain't nobody got time for that!

So here it is, my personal favs of 2019, in alphabetical order:

1. A Winged Victory for the Sullen - The Undivided Five [ninja tune]
2. Ann Annie - wander into
3. Anne Muller - Heliopause [erased tapes]
4. anthéne - asymmetry [whitelabrecs]
5. Benoît Pioulard & Sean Curtis Patrick  - Avocationals [Beacon Sound]
6. Bersarin Quartet - methoden und maschinen [denovali]
7. Chihei Hatakeyama - Forgotten Hill [room 40]
8. Danny Scott Lane - how to empty a cup [shimmering moods]
9. Glåsbird - Grønland [whitelabrecs]
10. Halftribe - Backwater Revisited [dronarivm]
11. Hipnotic Earth - Suspended In Silence [whitelabrecs]
12. Hipnotic Earth - Extended Savasana [desert trax]
13. Ian Hawgood - impermanence [Slowcraft]
14. Innesti - Between Worlds
15. Jazzdefector and Slow Clinic - Green Echo [whitelabrecs]
16. Jens Pauly - Vihne [whitelabrecs]
17. Jogging House - Lure [seil records]
18. Jonsi & Alex - Lost And Found [krunk]
19. Kryshe - Hauch [serein]
20. Loneward - Home
21. Louigi Verona - Nocturnal Creatures
22. Luis Miehlich - Timecuts [whitelabrecs]
23. M. Grig - Mount Carmel [12k]
24. Marty Hicks - Olreilion [white paddy mountain]
25. Moss Covered Technology - Slow Walking [polar seas]
26. Ohio - upward, broken, always [12k]
27. Olga Wojciechowska - Infinite Distances [ASIP]
28. Past Inside The Present - Healing Sounds- A Compilation for Hurricane Recovery [pitp]
29. Plïnkï Plønkï - Pangur Din [piano & coffee records]
30. Porya Hatami, Aaron Martin, Roberto Attanasio - Sallaw [dronarivm]
31. Ripperton – Contrails [ESP institute]
32. Seabuckthorn - Crossing [eilean]
33. Sean Curtis Patrick - The Best Driving Music in the World Ever [pitp]
34. Sjors Mans - Noord [piano and coffee records]
35. Sven Laux and Daniela Orvin - The Writings [dronarivm]
36. The Phonometrician - Mnemosyne [lost tribe sound]
37. Trond Kallevag Hansen - Bedehus & Hawaii [hubro]
38. Various Artists - Place Language [fluid audio]
39. William Ryan Fritch - Deceptive Cadence- Music For Film Volume I & II [lost tribe sound]
40. William Ryan Frisch - Artifishal [lost tribe sound]


And here is mix #1:


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T R A C K L I S T :
00:00    Innesti - Barrockstadt Station (Between Worlds)
04:28    anthéne - lucky (asymmetry)
07:25    Moss Covered Technology - Gen #4 (Slow Walking)
10:50    Ohio - Crepescule (upward, broken, always)
14:10    Benoît Pioulard & Sean Curtis Patrick  - Sunek (Avocationals)
17:25    Ripperton – Love Is Not Enough (Contrails)
22:22    Plïnkï Plønkï - Pangur Din (Pangur Din) 
27:05    Danny Scott Lane - Four (how to empty a cup)
30:12    Jogging House - Fountains (Lure)
34:18    Jens Pauly - Form (Vihne)
37:55    Jonsi & Alex - hundslappadrifa (Lost and Found)
42:55    Loneward - Savour (Home)
48:42    Louigi Verona - Coming of Dawn (Nocturnal Creatures)
54:02    Halftribe - Bumpy Roads (Backwater Revisited) 
56:18    Saltbreaker - Leaf pt 2 (Healing Sounds - A Compilation for Hurricane Recovery)
59:47    Hipnotic Earth - The Gentling (Suspended In Silence)
63:25    Ann Annie - wander into (wander into)
68:52    M. Grig - Capistrano (Mount Carmel)
71:08    Sean Curtis Patrick - Simon & Anna (The Best Driving Music in the World Ever)
73:50    Jazzdefector and Slow Clinic - Green Echo (Green Echo)
81:12    Kryshe - Meditation (Hauch)
84:27    Marty Hicks - Hiolorium (Olreilion)
90:07    Sjors Mans - Oventura (Noord)

95:18    end

2019 Film Scores

I use a fair amount of film music in my mixes and have done mixes of all soundtrack tunes but I have never made a best of the year mix for film scores. Until now.

There were no blow my mind scores, like Arrival or Solaris, this year but there was a lot of excellent music to choose from for this mix.

As an ambient guy, I lean towards more atmospheric film scores. I'm not at all interested in the soundtrack for the new Star Wars film or Avengers Endgame. So in my list of 2019 favs there are the usual suspects - Clint Mansell, Max Richter, Cliff Martinez & Johann Johannsson. Along with great music from folks like Hildur Guðnadóttir, Peter Gregson, Stuart A. Staples, Daniel Hart, and Adam Bryanbaum Wiltzie.

One of my favorite film music discoveries of the year is William Ryan Fritch. In addition to the monumental collection of film music, Deceptive Cadence: Music For Film Volume I & II, he released two more film scores in November - Artifishal & Exit 12 which I knew I had to include because they are both excellent. All three recordings are available on Lost Tribe Sound - https://losttribesound.bandcamp.com/

Sometimes I start a mix with high expectations but with this one, I was just trying to cobble together enough tracks to make a mix worth uploading. But I've been listening to this mix for a week and I'm very happy with how it turned out. It flows really well is an engaging listen.

Up next Best Film Scores of the Decade.

Cheers!

[ s t r e a m ]    [ d o w n l o a d ]    [ i t u n e s ]

T R A C K L I S T :

• 00:00    William Ryan Fritch - Canary in the Coal Mine (Artifishal)
• 01:35    Ben Salisbury And Geoff Barrow - Amy Follows Luce (Luce)
• 03:45    Bryce Dessner - The Homecoming (The Kitchen)
• 05:19    Guðnadóttir, Hoedemaekers, Jóhannsson - Secret Rendevous (Trapped)
• 07:21    Max Richter - A Trip to the Moon (Ad Astra)
• 11:24    Paul Haslinger - The Connection (Halt & Catch Fire vol. 2)
• 13:15    Peter Gregson - Sequence Four (Mari)
• 17:24    Daniel Hart - John Beckers (Over Water)
• 21:00    Richard Thompson - The Cold Blue (The Cold Blue)
• 24:00    Cliff Martinez - I'm Not Going to Hurt You (Too Old to Die Young)
• 25:42    M83 - End Credits (Knife + Heart)
• 27:49    Hildur Guðnadóttir - Vichnaya Pamyat (Chernobyl)
• 31:30    William Ryan Fritch - Vietnam (Exit 12)
• 34:23    Clint Mansell - Timeslip (Out of Blue)
• 38:27    Johann Johannsson - Playing With Ball (White Black Boy)
• 40:16    Stuart A. Staples - Grow Baby, Grow (High Life)
• 40:51    Daniel Hart - A Beacon of Honesty and Hopefulness (Over Water)
• 41:51    Cliff Martinez - Jesus and the Snake (Too Old to Die Young)
• 44:37    Max Richter - Erbarme Dich (Ad Astra)
• 47:35    Paul Leonard-Morgan - Assessments (Amateurs in Space)
• 49:29    Rob Simonsen - On Her Trail (Fast Color)
• 51:03    Paul Haslinger - Venture Capital (Halt & Catch Fire vol. 2)
• 52:27    Stuart A. Staples - Main Title (High Life)
• 53:42    Adam Bryanbaum Wiltzie - Bridget's Theme (American Woman)
• 55:00    Daniel Hart - Anna Elizabeth Shaw (Light Of My Life)
• 56:36    Peter Gregson - I Want You To Move Out (Adolescence)
• 58:11    Hildur Guðnadóttir - 12 Hours Before (Chernobyl)
• 60:13    PJ Harvey - Waltz (All About Eve)
• 62:55    Johann Johannsson - Intro (White Black Boy)
• 64:24    William Ryan Fritch - Life Cycle (Artifishal)
• 65:58    end