Best of 08

#2
Fennesz - Black Sea

Most of you have probably already checked this one out, but for those that haven't, consider this as a "you're welcome" in advance. Fennesz uses a mixture of electronics and loops with guitar to create a noisy, droned out effect. Overall this is a very solid album.

1: Black Sea (10:11)
2: The Colour of Three (8:07)
3: Perfume for Winter (4:36)
4: Grey Scale (4:10)
5: Glide (9:22)
6: Vacuum (3:59)
7: Glass Ceiling (5:49)
DOWNLOAD (Sendspace/mp3/320/94mb)

Best of 08

#3
Matthew Robert Cooper - Miniatures

Most of you know Cooper by the alias Eluvium. This year's Miniatures falls nothing short of his previous records. Dense layers of the dreamiest synth and piano that drone in and out. Cooper takes a simple idea and throws it at you until you've got shivers in your spine. Seeing him play live is gut wrenching and emotional, as any good soundscape should be.

1: Miniature 1 (5:39)
2: Miniature 2 (1:28)
3: Miniature 3 (5:34)
4: Miniature 4 (3:43)
5: Miniature 5 (2:43)
6: Miniature 6 (1:22)
7: Miniature 7 (5:44)
8: Miniature 8 (1:05)
9: Miniature 9 (6:11)
DOWNLOAD (Sendspace/mp3/V2/43mb)

Best of 08

#4
Growing - All the Way

Growing has always done a great job of taking noise and experimental sounds and turning them into something more delicate, more smooth. . As the album progresses, the tracks remain consistent and playful. Random hisses of noise thrown in to the mix guaranteed to tickle your brain.

1: Green Flag (6:16)
2: Wrong Ride (6:13)
3: Rave Pie Only (6:22)
4: Innit (6:39)
5: Lens Around (5:30)
6: Reconstruction (5:57)
DOWNLOAD (Sendspace/mp3/V2/59mb)

Best of 08

#5
Library Tapes - A Summer Beneath the Trees

This year hasn't been too exiting for the ambient genre, but I've come across a few hits. This particular release often leaves me confused from track to track. Many tracks are accompanied by a violin, giving off a dreary orchestral sound (much like Esmerine/Set Fire to Flames). Other tracks are doodles on the piano, showing influences from Max Richter and the early ambient Eno recordings. Fans of Hammock and Windy & Carl would definitely follow this album well because it has a really droned out dramatic tone.

1: The Sound Of Emptiness Part 1 (1:30)
2: Pieces Of Us Were Left On The Tracks... (7:22)
3: Above The Flood (3:55)
4: A Summer Beneath The Trees (2:39)
5: The Fragile Tide (2:38)
6: The Modest Triumph (4:06)
7: The Sound Of Emptiness Part 2 (1:35)
8: The Rivers Turned To Cobblestone (3:19)
9: ...And The Rain Did Fall (10:49)
DOWNLOAD (Sendspace/mp3/192/51mb)

Lustmord - Heresy [2004]

Lustmord is the kingpin of dark ambient music. He's been doing it since the 80's and since then his style has been emulated to death, such as many great artists. His music uses tones that are meant to inspire fear, and he goes to absurd lengths to make sure of it. One of my favorite things about him is his signature sound: a tibetan horn that sounds like a battle cry. Listening to lustmord can turn any room into the deepest pit of hell. Eeerie rumbles accompanied with wind that fill up the room around you.

1: Heresy Part I (7:26)
2: Heresy Part II (10:16)
3: Heresy Part III (16:04)
4: Heresy Part IV (6:35)
5: Heresy Part V (7:47)
6: Heresy Part VI (14:42)
DOWNLOAD(Sendspace/mp3/320/144mb)

William Basinski - The Disintegration Loops III [2003]

William Basinski's Disintegration Loops are truly unique and beautiful. Circa 2001, Basinski set out to take old loops he made in the early 80's and convert them to digital. When he put the reels on the rod and began recording, brittle pieces of metal began chipping off the loops. The music was literally dying in front of him. I can't imagine what it would feel like to be Basinski, watching a masterpiece made 20 years earlier getting destroyed.

1: dlp 4 (20:07)
2: dlp 5 (52:21)
DOWNLOAD (Sendspace/mp3/v0/88mb)