Recent Ambient albums for deeper immersion
Explore new work from Taylor Deupree and Joseph Branciforte, Masaya Ozaki, Aja, Tulpa Twin, Seabuckthorn and Lisa Lerkenfeldt
Taylor Deupree - sti.ll
Recorded over several years, Sti.ll is an acoustic reimagining of Deupree’s 2002 album Stil. The collaboration between Americans Deupree and Joseph Branciforte (multi-instrumentalist, producer, composer and Grammy award-winning recording engineer) alongside a supporting ensemble including Madison Greenstone (clarinet), Ben Monder (acoustic guitar), Laura Cocks (flute), Christopher Gross (cello) and Sam Minaie (double bass) produces an unexpected vibrancy in contrast to the original's quiet dormancy; like the emergence of new life in early Spring.
Bonus: pick up the original for name your price.
Masaya Ozaki - Mizukara
Masaya Ozaki is a Japanese composer based in New York and Iceland and Mizukara is his fourth album. The main focus of his work examines:
the idea of space as a transient entity, the subtleties behind small moments, the sensitivity of the ephemera, and the future of sound in an exceedingly materialistic world
Finding inspiration in nature and the human condition, Mizukara presents a portrait of life in the cold climes of Iceland with voice, piano, violin, flute, guitar, field-recordings and electronics. Fragile, threadbare music.
Aja - Ajasphère Vol. II
French artist Clémence Quélennec operates as Aja and this new album is the second in her ongoing Ajasphère series. With a combination of synthesisers and acoustic instruments (voice, piano, organetto, clarinet, trumpet, ocarina (aka a potato flute)) we're discreetly invited into Quélennec's private world. Vast yet immersive.
Tulpa Twin - Coping Strategies
Little is known about the mysterious musician from Austin, Texas called Tulpa Twin, but wow are they prolific! Since the beginning of 2023 alone they've released about ten albums/EPs, including Trial Seasons on Not Yet Remembered, Final Names on arrhythNia, Isolation Room on Slithering Black Records, Sola Busca on Abyssal Productions, Tragedy Paradigm on Anticipating Nowhere Records, Companionable Solitude on Move Quiet and now Coping Strategies on Adventurous Music. His music is mostly experimental and gently challenging in style but the glacial pace of this new one conversely soothes the ear. A warm, contemplative mood.
Seabuckthorn - this warm, this late
My fav entry in the quiet details series this warm, this late comes from Seabuckthorn, aka English guitarist Andy Cartwright, and sees him tackle the subject presented in the label's name with the help of double bassist and trombonist Phil Cassel. Along with his guitar, Cartwright employs a bank of sounds and instruments including ukulele, banjo, clarinet and field recordings. The balance of melody and experimentation hangs throughout. Harmonic distortion for the heads.
Lisa Lerkenfeldt - Suite For The Drains
Not quite a remix album (Lerkenfeldt calls it an epilogue to 2023's Halos of Perception) but with a resonant piano throughout, Australian composer Lisa Lerkenfeldt explores the hallucinatory nature of echo in the storm water network on new album Suite For The Drains. Friends claire rousay, Abby Sundborn, Emile Frankel and Martyna Basta help to reinterpret four of the originals, resulting in hypnotic dub loops that circle your synapses. Watery samples and white noise add depth to the treated piano samples.
Dedicated to patience, the discreet and quiet subversion with a city's infrastructure.