analog scene
Analog Scene updates with fresh tracks and commentary on art and music throughout the work week. If you like what you hear send the artist some naked pix of yourself. Just make sure the nudes are tasteful, sexy, and original.Archive for Ambient
the album leaf
Wednesday 04.22.08
Ambient electronic music has always been a favorite of mine but occasionally you’ll find that it’s sometimes a mixed bag because as with all music genres becase simply liking ambient electronic music doesn’t mean that I’m going to enjoy it all. Some ambient tunage that I do like however, and it happens to come from Californian post-rock electronic outfit, The Album Leaf. The San Diego based group creates beautiful pop sounds with gorgeous instrumentation and relaxing vibes. Quite simply, their music is almost ambient pop perfection with the occasional somber but welcome overtone.
The following track comes from The Album Leaf’s mostly overlooked 2007 release, Green Tour EP. Drawing Mountains is a beautiful track of which I’m sure you’ll stick on repeat.
The Album Leaf- Drawing Mountains
right click and save as to download.
-Kyle
music: tipper
Tuesday 03.18.08
This week is final exams week at my university and If you’re in the same boat as me; this song goes out to people like us. People who wish they could be playing Wii instead of studying Communication Theory.
A lot of times when I’m studying I listen to music and you could say that’s true for a lot of students. However, the one particular genre of music I listen to the most is instrumental because often times I find vocals to be distracting. One particular artist that I’ve been listening to lately would have to be British DJ and producer, Dave Tipper. Tipper’s nu breakbeat and ambient workings are phenomenal and the particular song I’m sharing with you seems to have excellent tempo and energy for what I’m studying so hopefully it fits whatever you’re working on.
Tipper- Relish the Trough
right click and save as to download.
-Kyle
photo via flickr user, ybite.
music: kelpe
What starts off as something that seems like improv Jazz, Kelpe’s Colours Don’t Leak ends up turning into a phenomenal ambient instrumental track with some droning synths, electronics and a high class drum kit. The track is off of Kelpe’s 2008 album, Ex-Aquarium and I have yet to get a hold of the whole album but I’ll be sure to post about it when I do.
The song clocks in around six minutes but don’t worry, shit never gets tiring. It’s a great song to add to your weekly playlist and if you dig it enough, It probably wouldn’t be a bad idea to check into some of Kelpe’s other stellar music.
Kelpe- Colours Don’t Leak
right click and save as to download.
-Kyle
photo via flickr user, piccadillywilson.
music: nick butcher
The beginning static is your day being turned on and your sleep being turned off simultaneously. They’re fighting each other; one wants it to begin, the other wants to press snooze. Eventually the one that wants to wake up rolls out of the slumber and on to the floor. The the sound after that is your eyes adjusting to the light; after that you hear metal, more static, blips, and beeps and sounds you’ve never heard before. These aural events are you noticing the world around you and how everyone is too busy to stop and say hi to you.
Soon the music in your life turns to something with rhythm but it’s occasionally chaotic and makes little sense but the rhythm, that’s the thing you hold on to. The balance, the medium, all in it’s most precious state inside of your head.
The static reappears, it’s beckoning you to end your day. You smile despite some of the lower points of the day. You smile because this is your life.
Nick Butcher- Geographical Distance
right click and save as to download.
-Kyle
photo via flickr user, Peter Kaminski.
music: milosh
You’re tossing and turning. You’re legs are tired and to top things off, you had a terrible dream about him. The thought of the nightmare made your head hurt but when you awoke he was there and he told you simply that it was all just a bad dream. You had to get up, you had to go, and you had to leave. You had things to do and he understood.
You kissed him goodbye and walked out the door and down the stairs to the lobby where you noticed your bag was heavier. You sit down in the nearest chair and look at the contents in your bag. A box is inside. It’s hastily wrapped in brown paper and an emerald green bow because you know how terrible he is at wrapping. You take the package out and inside is your missing iPod with earphones.
You smile, you put them in your ears and you press the play button. It comes on and this is what you hear:
Milosh- Couldn’t Sleep
right click and save as to download.
photo via flickr user, accidentallyonpurpose.
music and culture: drm news and matmos
Hope your weekend went well! Let’s get started with some news about Amazon’s DRM-Free mp3 Service. Amazon now has a Linux client for the service and now Amazon supports all major operating systems which definitely could give them an edge over iTunes but then again; Linux users are a pretty minuscule number of the computing population. Other DRM news includes a NY Times story on how publishers are phasing out DRM. Audible has yet to jump on this band wagon.
Alright enough of that, let’s get to the music! My good friend Matt Kish once posted the following track at his blog on Spudd64 and I can’t look into the archives to quote him directly but I will paraphrase I little of what he had to say about the Matmos song I’m sharing with you. Kish has a way of describing music that I’m not very good at but one of the things that he said really stuck with me. First off he said that the song reminded him of summer and I believe he was posting this in the middle of winter so it was applicable but the thing that really got me was his intimate description of sitting on a front porch just simply enjoying summer while listening to the fireworks in the distance along with other ambient noises. It was a gorgeous description and it’s a bummer I can’t recreate it for you.
Regardless, I miss summer too.
Matmos- For The Trees (Return)
right click and save as to download.
- Kyle
music: mute with stupefaction
Mute with Stupefaction is the moniker for Benjamin Seretan, who just self released called They Came Around and Sold That To You. The album is a sixteen song collection that features a mess of vocal loops, overdriven guitar, and lyrics that cut right to the heart.
“The Falls” and “4th” are pretty good approximations of the stylistic extremes the album spans, and you can also download the whole thing here. The album has been called “an experimental mix of Brian Jonestown Massacre, Animal Collective, and maybe Pavement,” but I think you should just see for yourself.
Mute With Stupefaction- 4th
right click and save as to download.
Mute With Stupefaction- The Falls
right click and save as to download.
-Kyle
decoder ring
Occasionally I’ll find myself increasingly tired of the human voice and I’ll start to listen to more instrumental music. The one voice I never get tired of is Lenka Kripac’s voice when she sings the theme song for the movie, Somersault. Decoder Ring did the whole soundtrack and theme song could very well be instrumental as it has soft pianos and ambient bass movements but her voice adds to the song rather than retracting from it.
It’s an absolutely gorgeous song and it’s perfect for a cold winter’s day; it won’t warm you up with it’s restless demanour and it’s overall pace and lyrical topic but it’ll give you some hope and perhaps you’ll crack a smile if you’re having a much less than perfect day.
Decoder Ring- Somersault
right click and save as to download.
-Kyle
clark’s line of products includes fork-lift trucks
Electronic music sounds the same a lot of the time and it’s very hard to find an artist that really makes you step back from the genre and regain your respect for it. Clark is the man that’ll slap you in the face and convince you that the electronic genre has room to grow. Clark makes incredibly stylish industrial and gritty electro music that’ll destroy your subwoofer if it’s up too loud. He just released his new album, Turning Dragon which is his darkest effort yet. The entire album just reeks of sharp edges and juxtapositions of sounds. In the track I’m sharing with you, towards the half-way point of the song, Clark decides to add a soft piano layer on top of the desolate electro mixings to create a ridiculously incredible five minute aural experience.
Clark- Penultimate Persian
right click and save as to download.
Alright, that’s it on the scene for this week. I hope everyone has a fantastic weekend and we’ll see you Monday!
-Kyle
i wish i had a monome. daedelus does.
The product featured in the above picture is a Monome and it’s essentially and awesome, über-pricy keyboard with lights and buttons that you plug up via USB to your computer. After that, you grab a compatible program, some tracks and loops and you’re ready to go. They’re so incredibly awesome and I definitely wish I had the money for one. Alas, I don’t so I’ll just post about a dude who uses Monome in his live show.
Daedelus is the name and homeboy has been making intelligent dance music and eletronica since 2001. The track I’m sharing with you today is called “At My Heels” and it’s from the album, Denies the Day’s Demise. In the song, Daedelus uses an excellent sample of someone reading a story about the Greek mythological God, Daedalus along with ridiculously cool lo-fi orchestral loops and high tempo drum tracks. It’s a really incredible hodge podge of sounds and voice that creates a really fun song that it as dark as it predominately silly. I’ve been repeating the song all day as I happened to stumble upon in it my library while haphazardly searching for something to post. I think it’s an incredible track and I’ll hope you’ll enjoy it too.
If you need more Daedelus after this, you’ll be happy to know that homeboy just released his new 2008 album, Live at Low End Theory and is touring in support of it.
Daedelus- At My Heels
right click and save as to download.
-Kyle
