WHAT YOUR EARS SAY & THE COVER LOOKS LIKE

WHAT WE SAY

Float & shimmy your way into the week as Tristan Arp injects a few glitch leaning riddims into his aquatic ambient & future New Age world to provide a bit of gentle bump and grind to this otherwise peaceful, mind soothing transmission for Wisdom Teeth

WHAT THE RELEASE NOTES SAY

UK label Wisdom Teeth returns with it’s third long-form offering - Sculpturegardening: a new LP by Mexico City-based artist and producer, Tristan Arp. Incorporating elements of ambient, glitch, microhouse and downtempo, it’s an otherworldly record populated by knotty modular textures, blossoming floral melodies, tight pointillist rhythms and glossy acoustic instrumentation. 

The record was born from a process of “collaborating with machines”: using modular synthesisers to generate probabilistic melodies and rhythms, with the artist taking on the role of sculptor and curator. Throughout, the boundaries between the organic and digital are playfully blurred: we hear synthesisers played by guitars; emotive and distinctly human melodies generated by modular circuits; digital percussion drummed by hand; and live cello processed with a digital finish. 

The results sometimes recall Roman Flügel at his most colourful, or Benge’s meandering synth workouts, and even at times echo the dubbed-out cello experiments of Arthur Russell. But really sculpturegardening occupies a sonic world of its own, born from a unique web of happy accidents and incidental arrangements. 
The record’s bright colours and subtle rhythms make it a fitting follow-up to K-LONE’s 2020 LP Cape Cira and Facta’s 2021 LP Blush, and place it neatly alongside the work of label mates Duckett, Benoit B, Steevio and Iglew. 

“With sculpturegardening, my concept was to approach music like gardening. I collaborated with machines inspired by the way a gardener collaborates with the earth. A gardener creates the conditions for the plants to come to life and develop on their own. In a similar way, I created a set of conditions and probabilities for the music to make itself. Who is making the music here? 

“A sculpture garden to me can be a really beautiful environment of balance between randomness and order––between nature and human interaction. Things that are either extremely organized or completely random tend to not resonate with us. On the other hand, something very interesting happens when a balance between the randomness and organization is struck. I invented this verb sculpturegardening to represent creating with the aim of this balance, and the with the aim of building a world in which each piece is a zone, or a sculpture in a garden.” 

The record will be twinned with a physical iteration - a sound installation at an exhibition curated by Tristan Arp titled Nada Se Pierde; Todo Se Transforma. The show opens on 9th October in Mexico City at Avant.dev. The physical sculpture garden will be a collaboration with Mexican sculptor Pablo Arellano. The sound installation will centre around a 4-channel audio system that gives voice to different sculptures and allows visitors to create a mix of the sounds depending on their position in the garden. 

Sculpturegardening is Tristan Arp’s second LP, following 2019’s Suggested Forms, released on his own label Human Pitch.​

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WHAT YOUR EARS SAY & THE COVER LOOKS LIKE

WHAT WE SAY

Serene Sunday sounds from Santilli for Growing Bin Records, as he anchors New Age vibes and organic ambient warmth to gentle animistic percussion, lest they dissipate to become one with the universe & escape beyond the range of human hearing.

WHAT THE RELEASE NOTES SAY

Keeping his carbon footprint at a minimum, Santilli sails from Sydney to Hamburg via ten textured vignettes delicately drawn with guitar, bass and organic percussion. Relaxing, reflective and endlessly beautiful, ‘Tidal’ explores elemental inspiration through a humanistic gaze. 

Whether you know Max Santilli through Ken Oath duo Angophora, previous releases ‘Surface’ and ‘In Circles’, or this is your first time making his acquaintance, you’ll agree he’s right at home on the Growing Bin. The multi-instrumentalist crafts exquisite acoustic music in tune with the finer moments of Windham Hill and ECM; a perfect fusion of talent, balance and the emotion shared by each release on the Hamburg label. 

As befits its inspiration ‘Tidal’ is an organic affair, related through bright acoustic guitar, hazy chimes and hand played percussion. Where the Australian draws you in with hypnotic repetition, the subtlety, warmth and tonal variation serve as a welcome reminder we’re living off grid. Though expert fretwork often takes centre stage, especially on the delicate B1 ‘Warm You Give’, it’s the blend of kalimba, woodblock, hand drums and shaker which truly transport the listener through open waters; a rhythmic breeze carrying us through the maritime drones and bowed squall. At times the salt air is spiced with cardamom and cloves (‘Sea’) or lemongrass and galangal (‘Valleys’), as we skirt the Indian Ocean or the Java Sea. ‘Lapse’ provides subtle hints of fourth world jazz as mallets take the lead, leaving the guitar to provide its own shimmering texture. 

Clear your mind, clear your schedule and make some time for ‘Tidal’, an opportunity to breathe in time with the planet. 

CreditsAll instruments* are played and all tracks are written, produced and mixed by Max Santilli at home. 

*Acoustic Guitars, Electric Guitar, Electric Bass, Bow, Juno 6 Synthesiser, Roland Rhythm Composer, 
Drums, Congas, Tabla, Bongos, Udu, Kalimba, Cymbals, Bells, Shakers, Chimes, and other misc percussion. 

Mastered by Sergey Luginin @ Luginin Studio in Moscow 
Distributed by wordandsound from Hamburg 
Sales notes by Patrick Ryder​

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WHAT YOUR EARS SAY & WHAT THE COVER LOOKS LIKE

WHAT WE SAY

Oakland's Inner Islands label continue their mission to pacify the masses with 3 new pleasingly hazy & lazy transmissions, the New Age nebula, cosmic country & ambient acoustics of the Golden Brown LP being my pick, but check out the rest too.

WHAT THE RELEASE NOTES SAY

"Gems and Minerals" sees Stefan Beck taking a deeper dive into the lush and pastoral instrumental terrain that he has been refining over the last decade plus of releasing music under the Golden Brown moniker. The earthbound and celestial visions are more vivid than ever, as seen through the lens of Beck’s cosmic-inflected Appalachian folk stylings and deftly dappled production. 

The pieces that comprise "Gems and Minerals" began to take shape during 2020, shortly after the pandemic began to permeate many aspects of life. Beck says of the time, “music became a sanctuary and a safe space in the gloom and trauma of last year (both my wife Sara and I continued to work in person throughout the pandemic, so there was a lot of anxiety around that. Playing music in the morning every day helped set a good tone and intention for the day before venturing out).” The pieces were also largely inspired by the local Colorado landscape and the sense of refuge taken in that space. 

The sounds and moods of the album reflect a certain sense of unease with the restless lead lines on “Gems” and the dark undercurrent of cello on “Spores” played by Sara Beck. But there is also a dreamy serenity, expressed by the floating lap steel on “Finisterre” and the languid riffing on the electric mandola on “Palimpsest”. One may also feel a sense of surrender to the sublime and unhurried rhythms of the natural world on tracks like “Fruiting Bodies” and “The Lyre Tree”. This album is a culmination of experiences interfacing with the difficult realities of the human world, while also endeavoring to find transcendence from that in both imagined and wild spaces. 
Golden Brown is the work of multi-instrumentalist Stefan Beck, based out of Longmont, Colorado. This is his sixth full-length release and his first on Inner Islands.
  CreditsStefan Beck: guitars, lap steel, electric mandola, keyboards 
Sara Beck: cello 

Recorded at home, 2020-21. 
Mixed by Benjamin Price at Studilaroche. 
Mastered by Sean Conrad at The Gentle Ways. 
Artwork by Stefan. Layout by Sean.

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WHAT WE SAY

Wale's one man Tropicalia movement, Carwyn Ellis is back with a new LP, so if you're in need of some autumnal sunshine then juice the limes, dust off the beach volleyball set & head over to his classy, sweet, string laden, Welsh language vocaled Brazilian sunshine sounds.

WHAT THE RELEASE NOTES SAY

​Late in 2020 as a global pandemic was raging, BBC Radio Cymru approached Carwyn Ellis with a view to performing a radio concert with Rio 18 and the BBC National Orchestra of Wales. 
There would be no audience present. The orchestra would have limited numbers due to social distancing measures. And as the pandemic worsened, it became clear that Rio 18 themselves would not be able to travel or rehearse together either. 

But the show must go on! So Carwyn adapted. He came up with these songs, and began recording them alone at home. Then, he sent them to his co-producer Shawn Lee who added drums and percussion at his studio in London. With these elements, the rest of the band were able to add their contributions from wherever they were, with Shawn co-ordinating the group’s recordings into the super tight tracks you hear here. Rio 18 did not see each other, or play together at all during the course of this process! Which is truly remarkable because the energy, joy, love and pure magic is palpable in these recordings. 

In conjunction with these musical elements, Carwyn worked alongside two brilliant arrangers to make the orchestrations: the Brazilian Christiaan Oyens and Welshman Owain Gruffudd Roberts, who also conducted the orchestra. 

The words are in Welsh. The music is international. In Rio 18 alone, there are Brazilian, American, Venezuelan, English and of course, Welsh members. The album is mixed by a French man. It is mastered by an Italian. The record label is German. 

The title of this album, ‘Yn Rio’ reflects the theme and the sentiment behind the performance - it’s loosely based around a day in Rio. The first two Rio 18 albums were recorded mostly in Rio de Janeiro at the studio of producer Kassin in the Botafogo district, and this is where Carwyn stayed on his visits. Arpoador is the spot between Ipanema and Copacabana beaches where people go to see the sunset. Açai is what the band drink during their breaks in the studio. Y Bywyd Llonydd’ is a cover of Kassin’s masterful song, ‘A Paisagem Morta’ translated by Carwyn into Welsh. And ‘Y Ferch Ar Y Cei’ is a musical reflection of a poem by the great bard, T.H. Parry Williams written after his visit to Brasil a hundred years ago. These songs make up a heartfelt love letter to Rio, and to better times for us all. 

And so, at 8pm on March 20, 2021, Carwyn Ellis sang and played these songs with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales in one performance, over the course of an hour or so. The full show was broadcast the following day on BBC Radio Cymru (no time for re-takes or overdubs!) and was more than we could ever have hoped for. This record is a document of the thrilling new music created in that performance. 
These are songs of hope, history and harmony, recorded in exceptionally challenging circumstances but in a spirit of international brother- and sisterhood, showing just what we can achieve if we dream, work and play… together. 

- Mr Mellow (Légère Recordings) 

"I sat in the room when the BBC National Orchestra of Wales accompanied Carwyn Ellis at this very special concert. I’m so glad this record is being released; it shows the depth of Carwyn’s talents and takes us somewhere very special!" 

- Huw Stephens (BBC Radio Cymru / BBC 6 Music)  creditsreleased October 22, 2021 

Carwyn Ellis - voice, guitars, piano and harpsichord 

& Rio 18: 

Shawn Lee - drums and percussion 
Baldomeru Verdu - percussion 
Andre Siqueira - percussion 
David Page - guitars 
Joe Carvell - bass 
Elan Rhys - voice 
Marged Rhys - voice 
Nina Miranda - voice 
Jim Hunt - flute 

With the BBC National Orchestra of Wales conducted by Owain Gruffudd Roberts. 

Produced by Carwyn Ellis and Shawn Lee 
Mixed by Pierre Duplan 

Rio 18 recordings co-ordinated by Shawn Lee 
and engineered by Paul Elliott and Aled Wyn Hughes 

Carwyn Ellis & BBC National Orchestra of Wales recordings engineered and recorded by Simon Smith at Hoddinott Hall, Cardiff. 

Mastered by Andrea de Bernardi 

Tracks 2,3,5 & 9 arranged by Christiaan Oyens 
Tracks 1 & 8 arranged by Carwyn Ellis 
Track 7 arranged by Carwyn Ellis and Christiaan Oyens 
Tracks 6 & 10 arranged by Owain Gruffudd 

Orchestrations and score preparation by Owain Gruffudd Roberts 

Cover Art by Michael Gillette 
Design by Richard Chitty 

These performances were originally broadcast on BBC Radio Cymru on Sunday March 21, 2021.​

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This is the first single from the forthcoming debut LP from Blue Mantra Rhymes the microdosed, Anglo-Thai folk project of Ed Cook, an Englishman living in Bangkok for many years.​

WHAT THE RELEASE NOTES SAY

"A song themed with parenthood composed at night as my children were going to sleep. The strings and erhu were made by playing an app on the phone. The strings are meant to drift like waves with the way they swing on the track. The lyrics center around the hope of taking the next generation to a better place and catching the last boat or chance we have for their future."

​There's been no shortage of whimsy & randomness with the releases on The Slow Music Movement & the Blue Mantra Rhymes LP is no exception, stemming from checking out the music of Ed Cooke after he'd liked the TSMM Instagram page. I was immediately struck by the unusual fusion sounds coming from this English man's Bangkok studio and wanted to know more. 

Having moved to Thailand in 2005 as a legal immigrant he's been "Broadcasting mediative guitars and harmonies from a sunburnt landscape" via boutique labels and his Bandcamp page, since settling there to raise his family." 

The LP you have before you is a real evolution from his previous guitar centred sounds, so Blue Mantra Rhymes has been born. The name is meant to convey his new Thai rooted, psychedelic, orchestral folk sounds, not to mention his first foray into singing after some encouragement and confidence building from Shana Patterson - a music teacher at the school where he works, who also makes a welcome appearance on the LP. 

Hour Of Solitude is not only a musician's evolutionary leap, it's a meeting of worlds and emotions. The straight and the psychedelic, Asia and Europe, loneliness and hope, traditional and alt-folk forms, pandemic isolation with it's associated fears, introspection & reflection tempered by the love, support and tightening of bonds with family and friends. 

It's an LP that is between many places, but one which has embraced and shaped those places into that rare beast - an LP that doesn't really sound like anything else. Consequently, and like all good LPs, it takes a couple of listens to tune in to and I hope you can find the time to do just that. 

What Blue Mantra Rhymes says: 

The idea was originally to create an EP with a lush Asian string sound based on regional instruments from Thailand and Asia. A chance to break away from the acoustic guitar, normally the main focus, and move towards a more classical and orchestral folk sound rooted in Thailand. The album grew from the first 2 songs which were like eureka moments sonically. The sound of the Erhu lifted the mood and created new melodic possibilities. The orchestral string backing gave these tracks an emotional base. From their two EPs were combined, one with strings and vocals and the other with woodwind (pan pipes, kaen pipes, and harmonicas). 

“Hour Of Solitude” refers to the timing and process of making my music, the pockets of time between school holidays when I am not busily tending to my family. I have always been introverted when composing and found solace in retreating to my home studio (the end of a shared studio with my children’s home schooling area), creating these songs and caring for them just like children. The album built my confidence to sing after working with a teaching colleague (the music teacher at my school; Shana Patterson) to create some duet vocals as an important part of my sound. Most of the lyrics were written in a spontaneous way to convey an honest emotion within the songs. 

Within the context of the pandemic the idea was to make a project which would provide me with the mental freedom to explore new ideas and find a tribal folk sound that would feel like a wake up call from nature, a fantasy world that I could escape into during daily life. There are sad moments on the album with lyrics and harmonies that conjure a sense of yearning and loneliness. But passing through these low moments helps the album lift with a sense of hope, especially with the song “See Hundreds More”. It is a work of art that is intended to help my family, friends, and colleagues find a moment of reflection.

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