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The Slow Music Movement Blog

​Mostly we put our daily recommendations here for the blog readers among you, although occasionally we go longform.
Reading about music is a bit like looking at pictures of food - not nearly half as much fun as getting involved, so we scribble a brief intro to hopefully whet your appetite but you're better off just hitting play. Not very "slow" I know but there's a lot of music to check these days & hopefully you'll find the recommendations a handy filter.
​Trust your ears, not opinions.

30/4/2021 1 Comment

The Howard Hughes Suite - Smoke from a Future Fire, single (The slow Music Movement)

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WHAT WE SAY:

​Another big day, the title track from The Howard Hughes Suite's LP (coming next week) is released today & it's a sublime slice of cosmic Americana. Just wait until you hear the LP :)
Streaming Smartlink to Spotify & Deezer
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29/4/2021 0 Comments

Hillside - Sunday in June (Claremont 56)

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WHAT WE SAY:

Summer is officially here as Hillside & Claremont 56 stir not shake the smoothest of jazz funk with becalmed yacht rock, give it a fruity Steely Dan twist & then pop in a Balearic umbrella for good measure. Now where is that sun?

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In the midst of a global pandemic that has seen gigs, club nights and festivals cancelled, and tens of millions around the world in some kind of lockdown or quarantine, the need for musical escapism and aural daydreaming is greater than ever. It was this search for creativity and positivity that led to the recording of Sunday in June, the gorgeous and sun-kissed debut album from Hillside. 

The outfit’s origins lie in the ongoing friendship and musical relationship of guitarist/bassist Alex Searle, percussionist Patrick Dawes and Claremont 56 founder Paul ‘Mudd’ Murphy, a trio who have been playing on each other’s records since the dawn of the millennium. They began jamming and creating instrumental music together for what would become the Hillside project a few years back, but the pace of production increased during the pandemic year of 2020, with multi-instrumentalist, composer and arranger Michele Chiavarini (an experienced solo artist and long-term member of Dave Lee’s Sunburst Band) coming on board to help shape the sound of their eight-track debut album. 

Built around warm, languid grooves, expansive musicality, simmering strings – arranged by Chiavarini and replayed live by Pete Whitfield – and seductive solos provided by a handful of guest musicians (most notably flutist Tamar Osborne and violinist Mike Piggott, who has previously worked with Ralph McTell, Pentangle and Bert Jansch), Sunday in June could be considered an imaginary soundtrack to a long, lazy drive down the U.S West Coast. 

The collective’s intent is exemplified by stunning opener and title track ‘Sunday in June’, where soaring strings, eyes-closed guitar solos, expressive keys and subtle percussive touches seemingly dance atop a sun-soaked groove that sits somewhere between jazz-funk and vintage West Coast rock. It can be heard, too, on the low-down hustle of ‘Trinity Strut’ – think Steely Dan doing Blaxploitation movie funk and you’re close – and in the languid drift of ‘Aguila Negra’, with its heart-aching orchestration, jazzy guitars and sunset-ready synths. 

Sunday in June has many subtle twists and turns. Check the swelling, flute-sporting, organ-rich breeze of ‘For Daniel’, a track written in tribute to an old friend of Murphy’s who passed away in 2020, and the kaleidoscopic, smile-inducing positivity of ‘1939 Grand Avenue’, whose title references the address of a favourite San Diego hang out. There’s also room for recent single ‘Walpole Days’, a gorgeous downtempo odyssey, and a new album mix of the combo’s most Steely Dan-esque cut, 2019 single ‘Hidden Port’. 

Rounding things off is a rather impressive bonus cut: a previously unheard ‘Spiritual Healing Mix’ of ‘Walpole Days’ by the great Joaquin ‘Joe Claussell’. Whereas his previously released versions of the track were largely percussive and dancefloor-friendly, this interpretation takes us deep into the world of weightless new age ambient, with Hillside’s impeccable instrumentation slowly rising above immersive chords and pads. 

As usual with Claremont 56, the album’s artwork is every bit as detailed and painstakingly crafted as the music, with the stunning cover illustration coming courtesy of regular label collaborator Mark Warrington. His vibrant vision is naturally a perfect fit with Hillside’s colourful and emotion-rich music.
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28/4/2021 0 Comments

Singles & EPs Round Up - 28th April, 2021

Cuushe - Waken Remixes (Flau)

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It's not often remixes are better than the original material but pretty much unfailingly they are on this extended EP. A fine selection of producers take the lovely dream pop vibes of Cuushe & elevate the somewhat clunky production of the originals to all sorts of dreamy electronic places and spaces.

Cameron Knowler & Eli Winter - Anticipation (American Dreams)

Intriguing, digit licking finger picking from these two  guitarists from different backgrounds and cities in the USA, who are obviously sitting on the same creative layline, as they take an adventurous, free spirited, free thinking approach to the broad Americana church
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m. meddes gengras - echelons beyond reality

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Gengras decides he's done enough braincell melting & neuro rewiring for a while and lays downs some slower, soothing frequencies to repair some of the mental damage he's previously caused, in this transmission full of ambient frequencies and space crystal healing vibes.

Sunburned Hand of Man - Pick a Day to Die (Three Lobed)

This is a proper far out cosmic trip though psychedelic rock realms. Nothing you haven't really heard before but up there with the best of the acid popping, Thai-dye t-shirt wearing, sandal sporting freaks and toad licking geeks of the last 50 years.
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Gianni Brezzo - The Awakening (Jakarta Records)

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Gianni Brezzo flirts with  cheesiness but has a certain quality and refinement that stops him slipping into pure schmaltz, although it is still a release that your mum might like. If that isn't too worrying a thought, then slip on your speedos, hit the Brezzo beach, slide into those warm waters and relaaaax....

Guazú & Terror Cactus - BOTANAS​ (Shika Shika)

You really have to sift though the Global electro cumbia and slow-mo tropical beats to find the good stuff. Luckily Shika Shika are on hand to filter out most of the dull, overly simplistic offerings and serve up the cream to save us time and earache.
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Achim maerz - A.M Untitled vol. 3 (Bandcamp)

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I've just stumbled across Mr. Maerz and am currently marveling at his stripped back yet lush deep house vibes. Using a lot less than most producers he somehow manages to sound a whole lot better and pleasingly different. Now I'm going in for the rest, I maybe some time.

Dubharp - Spiral Heights (100% Silk)

Another artist who is treading a fine line between ethereal zones and propulsive dance rhythms, an area I'm not quite sure why more dance producers haven't explored in this age of virus, is Dubharp. Ideal for pre/post club moments, simultaneous hip and head stimulation and sunny road trips I'd suggest.
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earthtones - Ritual Soun (Bandcamp)

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​I've been sitting on this EP of globally minded slowtronica with a Balearic feel for the last couple of months and it's high  time to spread the word. Earthtones gives the rural voices of Vietnamese tribes a push from the Fourth World into the wider consciousness via this clash of cultures and sounds.
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27/4/2021 0 Comments

Misleading Structures - Outer (Archives)

WHAT THE COVER LOOKS LIKE:
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WHAT WE SAY:

The cold & dark too often obscure the qualities of the winter months, so as the sun warms our bodies once more Misleading Structures takes a walk down memory lane with Archives, through forests where the animals are asleep or have fled south, the few sounds left are dampened by fresh snow & the absence of people provides a rare moment for reflection. The ambient skies are grey but there is a rare beauty.
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WHAT YOUR EARS SAY:
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WHAT THE RELEASE NOTES SAY:

​Written and Produced by Dovydas Vasiliauskas 
Mastered by Ian Hawgood 
Photography by Alexander Kopatz 
www.go70north.com 


​

ARCHIVES72 // ARCHIVESCD53 
Archives | 2021
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IF YOU LIKE THAT YOU MIGHT LIKE THIS:
​Smartlink to playlist on Apple Music, Deezer, Soundcloud & Youtubre
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26/4/2021 0 Comments

Satomimagae - Hanazono (RVNG. Intl)

WHAT THE COVER LOOKS LIKE:
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WHAT WE SAY:

Take leave of your earthly confines for a while with the mismanaged microdosing folk of Japan's Satomimagae for RVNG Intl. as grazed guitar & spectral sounds cling to her bruised but beautiful voice in this hazy otherspace.
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Satomimagae’s Hanazono is an invitation to revel in your immediate and imagined surroundings, to make time and space for guileless curiosity and garden variety enchantment. A tribute to everyday mysticism, Hanazono is an ecology of simple, cyclical refrains and elegiac entreaties cross-pollinating with ludic and layered folk vibrations.

Credits:All music written and performed by Satomimagae 
Produced by Satomimagae and Hideki Urawa 
Mixed by Satomimagae, except: 
“Numa,” “Ashi,” and “Uchu” by Hideki Urawa 
“Houkou” by Chihei Hatakeyama 
Additional guitar on “Suiheisen” and “Numa,” and field recording on “Suiheisen” by Hideki Urawa 
Mastered by Yui Kimijima for Tsubame Studio (Tokyo, Japan) 
Cut by Josh Bonati for Bonati Mastering (Brooklyn, NY) 
Front cover print by Natsumi Magae 
Back cover illustration by Satomimagae 
Design by Will Work For Good 

On behalf of Satomimagae, a portion of the proceeds from this release will benefit the International Rescue Committee and Sesame Workshop, the nonprofit, educational organization behind Sesame Street, who together give displaced children in Syria, Jordan, Lebanon and Iraq the support they need to learn, grow and thrive.  rescue.org/sesame 

Learn more:  igetrvng.com / gurugurubrain.space

​
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IF YOU LIKE THAT YOU MIGHT LIKE THIS:
A laid back and open minded look at the world of traditional, indie and acid folk,  Americana, singer songwriters, cosmic blues, global roots & electro acoustic fusions. 
​
Smartlink to the playlist on Apple Music, Deezer, Soundcloud & Youtube​
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25/4/2021 0 Comments

Ishmael Cormack - Fennec (Krysalisound)

WHAT THE COVER LOOKS LIKE:
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WHAT WE SAY:

It's great to hear Ishmael Cormack returning to the Krysalisound pastures where, with his usual lightness of touch, he scatters delicate acoustic seeds into the soft electro breeze to further foster the ambient fields.
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It’s a pleasure to have for the second time in the catalogue Ishmael Cormack who perfectly represents the sound line that I’m looking at for the future. 
Ishmael is a gentle soul and all of his works are little gems of pureness and minimalism. 
About the album he says: "This work is the result of my interest in Glet Masa's artwork & my obsession with the word Fennec. It's a simple work, in which I have tried to honour little moments." 
Thanks to all who will enter into his world. Dedicated to all the fans of Federico Durand and 12k in general. 

Ishmael Cormack is a British sound artist living in rural Somerset. 
His work focuses on gathering and weaving found sound with acoustics. His use of electro-acoustics creates a delicate atmosphere, immersing the listener in a web of sound that subtly shifts and scatters. 
He uses tape loops and polyrhythms to create a sound which reflects the cyclical nature of the natural world in the constraints of man-devised time.  

ishmaelcormack.bandcamp.com 
www.ishmael-cormack.com

Credits:- Recorded in Somerset between 2020 and 2021 
- Mixing & Production: Ishmael Cormack 
- Mastering: Francis M. Gri 
- Artwork: Glet Masa
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An eclectic ambient selection for relaxation, meditation, introspection and contemplation. Smartlink to the playlist on Apple Music, Deezer, Soundcloud & Youtube.
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24/4/2021 0 Comments

Danny Scott Lane - Caput (Schematic Music Company)

WHAT THE COVER LOOKS LIKE:
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WHAT WE SAY:

With a childlike curiosity Danny Scott Lane rearranges his toy sounds into fresh eyed patterns & throws in some phrases from overheard adult conversations to create a wondrous & playful sonic space, devoid of bogeymen, world weariness & cynicism for the Schematic Music Company.
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Danny Scott Lane is a musician and photographer based in Los Angeles. Working mostly from his home studio, he has composed music for short and feature films, pop artists, fashion shows, art exhibits, commercials and many other weird things. CAPUT is his 3rd full length, following the 2019 releases How To Empty A Cup & Memory Record. 

Written and Produced by Danny Scott Lane 
Danny Scott Lane - Synth, Keyboard, Sampler, Field Recordings, Percussion, Guitar 
David Lackner - clarinet, flute, saxophone, EWI, co-production on tracks 1,3,10,12 
Molly Lewis - whistle on track 7 
mixed by David Lackner  davidlacknermusic.com 
mastered by Danny Scott Lane  tinyurl.com/Danny-Scott-Lane 
cover illustration by Unpis  www.instagram.com/wa_unpis/ 
layout by Shawn Wolfe  shawnwolfe.com 

2021 Schematic Music Company 
SCH-169​
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23/4/2021 0 Comments

Rob Frye - Exoplanet (Astral Spirits)

WHAT THE COVER LOOKS LIKE:
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WHAT WE SAY:

Leave your musical baggage behind, ingest your psychedelic of choice or pop the pill provided & jump on the Rob Frye & Astral Spirits bus heading to groove anchored sonic outskirts where men & machine morph, free meets freak & jazz juiced genre bending is standard.
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On Exoplanet, Rob Frye generates an atmosphere in which drummers and improvisers orbit synthesizers, inhabiting a Goldilocks zone of electronic and biotic components. Some of the tracks were created spontaneously or composed of strict loops, but two of the arrangements are melodic adaptations of the song of Musician Wren. After working as a field biologist with the Institute for Bird Populations in California from 2012-2016, Frye began to slow down and transcribe birdsong, eventually developing a performative lecture called Hearing Hidden Melodies. "XC175020" and "XC222182" are not potential earth-like planets in another solar system, indeed they are individual birds recorded by Peter Boesman in the Amazon. This bird, known as Uirapuru in Brazil and La Flautista in Peru, reminds us of the mysterious sonic knowledge threatened on our very own home planet. 
  
On this, his first album for Astral Spirits and his first as a leader, Rob played woodwinds and synthesizers and directed a specialized crew, recruiting Bitchin' Bajas (Drag City) bandmates Cooper Crain and Dan Quinlivan on engineering and electronics. Ben Lamar Gay's cornet (International Anthem) and Macie Stewart's violin (OHMME) pitch and roll, fueled by the dual propulsion of drummers Quin Kirchner (Astral Spirits) and Tommaso Moretti (Amalgam), while Nick Ciontea (brownshoesonly) consults on modular synthesizer. Like the Uirapuru, Edbrass Brasil (Sê-Lo!) also searches through fallen leaves in some of his own work, though for sound not insects. On "Innercosmos" we he hear his unconventional wind tubes, and on "XC222182" his voice calling as instruments gather, playing the bird's melody.
  Credits:ROB FRYE - compositions, woodwinds, synthesizers 
COOPER CRAIN - electric organ, synthesizers 
DANIEL QUINLIVAN - synthesizer, electronics, wurlitzer 
BEN LAMAR GAY - cornet and wurlitzer 
TOMMASO MORETTI - drums (right channel) 
QUIN KIRCHNER - drums (left channel) 
MACIE STEWART - violin on tracks 2, 5, and 7 
NICK CIONTEA - synthesizer on tracks 3 and 4 
EDBRASS BRASIL - wind instruments and voice track 3 and 5 

Recorded by Cooper Crain at Decade 
Mixed by Cooper Crain 
Mastered by Mikey Young 
Cover Art by Matias Santa Maria 
Layout by Dylan Marcus McConnell 

Thanks to Uirapuru, Ted Parker, Peter Boesman, Emily Bax, Adam Wille, Martin Frye, Cristian Pinto, Will Faber, Tadeu Mascarenhas, Estúdio Casa das Máquinas, Nate Cross, Erik Rasmussen, NASA, University of Iowa Space Audio.​
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Modern psychedelic music. All styles welcome as long as the artists are tripping or at least microdosing then all put though the purple slow filter.
​
Smartlink to the playlist on Apple Music, Deezer, Youtube and Soundcloud.

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22/4/2021 0 Comments

Black Brunswicker - Temple Of Spring (Bandcamp Self Release)

WHAT THE COVER LOOKS LIKE:
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WHAT WE SAY:

Nudging the folk & warm springtime melodicism above the distant early morning electronic haze the new LP from Black Brunswicker is a lovely fingerpicked, feelgood ambient folk soundtrack, ideal for all sorts of intimate moments & pastoral escapism.
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WHAT YOUR EARS SAY:

WHAT THE RELEASE NOTES SAY:

​Temple of Spring is a divergence from past releases as it draws back on ambience and textures in favor of acoustic fingerpicking and warm melodies. It’s music that celebrates the return of the sun after a cold dark northern winter spent locked up.  

The tracks in this release are the results of a series of experimentations with tunings, capos/partial capos, and fingerpicking patterns.creditsreleased April 20, 2021 

Tracks 1, 2, 3, and 6 were written during summer 2019. The rest of the tracks were written during fall-winter 2020. 

Recorded between December 2020 and January 2021 in my flat in Manchester, UK 
Mastering: Andrew Klimek 

Gear used: Harmony guitar, lapsteel (track 2 and 8), Yamaha keyboard loops (track 7), Kyser capo, modified Shubb 3 string partial capo, LR Baggs reverb, Digitech Digidelay, Hermida Tape Echo 

Tunings: 
Strange times we live in: DADEAd 
Morning through my window: DGDEGd 
At Least we still have dreams: DADEAd Capo 7 
In the Wind: DGDEGd Partial capo 7 
Dead on a Hilltop: CGCGCd 
Pagan Sun: CGCGCd partial capo 5 
Green Leaf: CGCGCd 
Wake me up when this is over: CGCGCd​
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IF YOU LIKE THAT YOU MIGHT LIKE THIS:
A laid back and open minded look at the world of traditional, indie and acid folk,  Americana, singer songwriters, cosmic blues, global roots & electro acoustic fusions.

Smartlink to the playlist on Apple Music, Deezer, Youtube and Soundcloud.
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21/4/2021 0 Comments

Balmorhea - The Wind (Deutsche Grammophon)

WHAT THE COVER LOOKS LIKE:
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WHAT WE SAY:

Another interesting signing from classical behemoth
Deutsche Grammophon as this time they bring Balmorhea, with their genre ambivalent ways, into the fold to help steer them through this golden age of musical fusion & fast moving times. Reflecting on the climate crisis, the result is naturally a somewhat sombre, yet nonetheless beautiful, ambient, neo-classical & folk fused listen.
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