numün - Book of Beyond (Shimmy Disc)

What Your Ears Say & The Cover Looks Like

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What We Say

I must have been a receptacle for transatlantic vibrations recently when wondering what had happened to the ambient Americana scene, as low and behold out from under the scene's shady desert commune porch, where they've been sheltering from their moment in the sun amble numün with a new LP. Even better, they've obviously been having vision quests about the possibility of button laden cowboys going back in time down the hippy trail to visit Germany's 70s Kosmische heyday & the deeply cosmic attuned music that might have ensued.

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What The Release Notes SAy

numün, the NYC psychedelic instrumental trio pitchfork dubbed as ‘savvy navigators of paths less traveled’, is releasing its second album Book of Beyond on the legendary Shimmy Disc label. With this record, the band, which includes Joel Mellin and Christopher Romero of Gamelan Dharma Swara and ambient country pioneer Bob Holmes of SUSS, continues to stretch their exploration of the inner and outer astral worlds of their first release Voyage au Soleil – voted one of the Best Ambient Releases of 2020. 

Dave Segal of Pitchfork called that album a “blending of the opiated psychedelia of Brightback Morning Light with a loose-limbed minimalism that privileges subtle effects and incremental chord changes” and Chris Ingalis from PopMatters called it “a trippy, ambient ride and ambitious debut that pulls off the neat trick of creating music that evokes space travel while also sounding refreshingly grounded to Earth's atmosphere.”

The new album, mastered by Kramer (Galaxie 500, Butthole Surfers, Bongwater, Low, Bill Frisell, etc.) features a unique mixture of Eastern and Western musical stylings and instrumentation including balinese gamelan, gender wayang, and cumbuz (a 12-string fretless banjo) alongside the classic Americana instrumentation of slide guitar, baritone, mandolin and violin. The instrumental music charts new territories as it explores themes that are sometimes deeply personal, spiritual and otherworldly, including new fatherhood, sleep deprivation, loss and rebirth with titles that include Steps, Vespers, Eyes Open & Lullaby. Guests on the album include Trina Basu (Brooklyn Raga Massive), Tori Lo Mellin (Dharma Swara), and Willa Roberts (Black Sea Hotel). With their new album, Book of Beyond, numün creates music that provides a star map to help us all navigate the inner constellations of our daily lives.  

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For more astrally aligned ambient adventures tune in to The New Age of New Age Playlist sometime:

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