New posts on The Future Elements :: Canyons of Static and Good Weather for an Airstrike

My first two posts are now up on The Future Elements website.

Of Farewell shadows by Canyons of Static I said this...

"This is a release that moves… it has a wonderful sense of fluidity… it doesn’t stay in one place too long… it doesn’t over-emphasize the point… there are no labored drones or overly used motifs. It has a taut muscularness about it… the guitar-orientated equivalent of a championship racehorse… all muscle… all business."

8/10
Follow the link above for more
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And of Underneath the Stars by Good Weather for an Airstrike I said this...

"This is sunrise music… soundscapes that almost perfectly capture the still of pre-dawn, expertly convey the anticipation of the pending rapture of a new day and paint a glorious representation of first rays of morning."

9/10
Follow the link above for more
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I really enjoyed the experience and look forward to my next assignment. I won't stop blogging about music here... but instead have expanded my reach.

Grateful to Noor and the rest of The Future Elements gang for inviting me to join them.

Please do all you can to support independent music.

Tx

Loving... The Republic of Dreams by Jeff Scott Townsend

The Republic of Dreams by Jeff Scott Townsend is simply one of the most entrancing and engaging pieces of neo-classical music I have heard in a very long time.

I can't quite find the words to adequately describe how wonderfully luscious and pastoral Townsend's simple piano-orientated soundscapes are... but they have hit home to me and become cherished like the score to an old favourite film.

I think magical is an appropriate term for the music presented in this release... simply and stunningly magical... in an otherworldly sense. These soundscapes transport me to another place... a place of warmth, comfort and rest... a place I want to be.

I would heartily recommend this album and am very grateful to Jeff for giving me an advanced copy to soak up a couple of days ago. This week has been a great week for music... and The Republic of Dreams was/is definitely a highlight.

Have a listen below... and do all you can to support such wonderful independent talent like Jeff Scott Townsend:





Thanks Jeff!

Tx

The Joy of Books

Sometimes WOW just doesn't quite do it...

Tx

(via This is Colossal)

An iPhone Captures New York City :: a book by Tony Cece

My twitter friend, photographer Tony Cece, has done something I would love to do... he visited New York and captured the trip with his iPhone 4S and a SX70 Polaroid camera... and has now self-published a book showcasing the iPhone photos. The book is entitled 'an iPhone Captures New York City' and is available on blurb.com.



When I took the time to preview the book I was mightily impressed at the quality of the images captured.

According to the foreword... Cece used an iPhone 4S with the Hipstamatic app (using the Loftus Lens and Rock BW-11 Film) without the flash. He also used an Olloclip lens that slips on the iPhone for wide including fisheye angles.

All images contained in this book were taken with an iPhone 4S. It was my first trip to New York City, so the images captured reflect my desire to see as many popular spots as I could during my brief one day and a half in the city. They are wide shots that show the larger context I was seeing as I took it all in. I'm sure that my photographs will be completely different the next time I visit the city and zoom my focus to show more of the people, lifestyle, extures and movement of New York City.

Tony Cece... taken from the foreword of 'an iPhone Captures New York City'.




Apart from Cece's images... I like the fact he has created a physical artefact from near-disposable digital media... something lasting built from something fleeting and almost throw-away.

We snap... fix... upload... move on... never really taking the time to review and return.

Think about it... if you have an Instagram account... when was the last time you took the time to review your own feed? We tend not to... and as such we lose the spiritual bond that comes from handling the physical artefact. What Cece has done is renew this bond by creating a physical book. I like that idea a lot and am inspired by it. It's not a new idea... but it is an idea well executed here.



'an iPhone Captures New York City' by Tony Cece is available on blurb.com.

"Flowers Into Stardust" by Christopher Willits

Simply beautiful!

Thanks to Noor for the heads-up.

Tx

Received... in the post

Its always nice to receive a package in the mail... today, I received two. One was a CD wrapped in a brown paper bag (pictured above and below) from Ed Rotherham. The CD is entitled "Start Listening" by the Being Human Project and can be downloaded for free from Come and Live.



Now... I am not usually a fan of worship music... but this has that something special about it. I loved the small details... like the wax seal on the back of the bag or the stamp on the front. They are nice touches, in my opinion... that amplify the music contained within the bag.

Thanks Ed!



I also received this nifty little tin from Roy Petersen who recently tour Hong Kong and New Zealand. Apparently he saw it and thought of me... not sure what that says about me (I guess I am a bit red) but I love it and have immediately brought it into use as a 'business' card holder. I holds a dozen nicely.

Thanks Roy!

What I am listening to... (2)

The following have been on rotation over the last week or so...



Farewell Shadows by Canyons of Static

I've been given this and the following album to review for Noor Kadiwala's site 'the Future Elements'. I'm excited at this opportunity and whilst I don't want to give anything away... if you like post-rock then you'll love this album.



Underneath the Stars by Good Weather for an Airstrike

Again... I can't say anything at the moment other than... OMGoodness!!!



Deep Politics by Grails

The next few releases were picked up due to their inclusion on the Silent Ballet's top 100 albums of 2011.

If you are a fan of instrumental post-rock, like me, then it doesn't get much better than Deep Politics by Grails. They create wonderfully deep and immersive soundscapes that bewitch the listener. Truly brilliant and their listing at no1 on the Silent Ballet's top 100 was well deserved.



Celestial Lineage by Wolves in the Throne Room

I'm not a big fan of extreme metal... whilst I love the music, the vocals leave me cold. WINTR however have something magical about their sound... a deep ambience within the dark metal guitars... that helps me to warm to their harsh vocal stylings. Its an acquired taste... and we do have some ideological differences but there is more to agree on than disagree... and their pounding drums do help at the gym.



Red Riding Hood OST by Brian Reitzell and Alex Heffes

Soundtracks do not get better... or darker... than this one or the next in this list. Deliciously dark and mysterious... the electronics work well with the orchestral accompaniment to make a truly excellent backing. The inclusion of Fever Ray is simply inspired... I love her vocal style and electronic soundscapes... they really fit into the over ambience of the recording. I haven't seen the film but I want to.



The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo OST by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross

I haven't seen this film yet but I have read the book... and I can't think of anyone more appropriate for the starkness and brutality contained within the pages than Trent Reznor... whose pairing with Atticus Ross (whose soundtrack to 'The Book of Eli' is brilliant and a favourite of mine) is truly inspired.

The opening track... a cover of Led Zep's "Immigrant Song" with Karen O on vocals... is so raw and direct that it took my breath away when I first heard it. It still does affects me after repeated listens.

Whereas the closing track... a cover of Bryan Ferry's "Is Your Love Strong Enough" by How To Destroy Angels (a band which features Mariqueen Maandig Reznor on vocals as well as Reznor and Ross) is almost directly opposite... it is exquisite in its beauty and delicateness.

Truly brilliant... and with 39 tracks... well worth the investment.



Plains of the Purple Buffalo by *Shels

More metal sounds... this time from a band I hadn't heard before their listing on the Silent Ballet's top 10. They infuse their metal with ambient soundscapes and even brass instrumentation to create something truly special and beautiful.

Have a wee listen below to see what I mean:



That's me for now... keep supporting independent music... and check out The Silent Ballet for the heads-up on other great albums/artists.

Tx

my first 'intentional' online fast

One of my intentions for 2012 is to consume less... and on Friday night... over to Saturday morning I did just that... I held an 'online fast'. From 1900hrs until I woke at 0815hrs on the Saturday I was offline.

No Twitter, Facebook or this blog... no Wikipedia, Flickr or Tumblr... I was offline.

Instead of being online... I read two longform articles from Loops Journal and watched a couple of Bear Grylls shows with Dayna and Olly. I listened to a live King Crimson CD (The Great Deceiver vol1) and Bon Iver's eponymous album from 2011. I drank tea and let go.

I know 13 hours isn't that remarkable... especially when 8 of them passed with me sleeping... but it is a start.

What did I take from the experience?

1. I had time to think... and to consider new ideas.
2. I got to spend time with Olly and the we'ans... and was with them... not partly but completely.
3. I got to appreciate the 'yin and yang' of contrast... I appreciate more being online for having been offline... I was able to rest.
4. I was able to experience 'real time' again... the sense of a hour feeling like an hour.
5. I recovered a sense of control... I could say no to my iPhone and it's attractive distractions.

I gained as much as I missed... and I'd do it again.

Yes... I am probably over-analysing the experience but it did work for me... so much so that I believe it could become part of my weekly rhythm.

Tx

new URL... same content

I recently won a domain and hosting in a competition run by NSDesign... a Glaswegian design company who my friend Marc de Ridder speaks very highly of. Gary Ennis' "twelve days of tweetmas" was a great wee comp and I won a caption competition by referencing the Social Media workshops he runs.

Anyway, whilst I was choosing the domain for "a hint of bergamot" I decided to get another "vanity" URL - I own www.headphonaught.com already and decided to get www.headphonaught.co.uk for this ol' nanolog. I've had this blog since 2005 and I can't think of any reason to change it... so I just changed the URL.



The old address (www.nanolog.blogspot.com) will redirect to it no problems albeit Google are telling porkies as they are still hosting it... only the name has changed.

I would heartily recommend both NSDesign for their service and JDBlundell for his web-ninjutsu... I'm such a newbie when it comes to setting up domains and hosting... and he sorted it all for me without any hassle. He is a star and a true brother.

Tx

Three key releases at the back end of 2011

There were three key releases in December that I missed off my lists that warrant acknowledgement now:

First up... we have the "more hope for Japan" compilation is simply stunning with 37 tracks from a wide range of artists in the ambient, electronic and postrock fields. This compilation, curated by Noor Kadiwala from The Eternal Twilight and Adam Homfray from Oxide Tones, is simply wonderful. Both deep and wide, instantly accessibly and rewarding of repeated listens... it trumps it's predecessor and comes in as THE best compilation of 2011, in my humble opinion.

There are too many artists to name on this recording... and I wouldn't do justice to those I'd miss out by doing so... instead I will recommend you buy it, support the Japanese relief effort and, in doing so, have something beautiful to fall in love with and treasure for a very long time.

€10 for download with other options available

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We then have the fourth and final instalment in the Echelon Effect's Seasons series of EPs. One track coming in at more than twenty three minutes is a fitting end to the project. Rogers' work has been exemplary in the intersection between ambient and postrock and whilst it will be sad to think their will be no further output from him during 2012... I feel his hiatus has been more than well deserved.

Pay what you want

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Lastly we have Rainer Straschill's "akustik kies" which is a collection of piano-orientated neo-classical soundscapes that are partnered with electronics, manipulation and a whole heap of dissonance to create something truly interesting and engaging. I find I have to be in the right mood for this album but when I am... I marvel at Staschill's inventiveness and imagination.


Pay what you want

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Please support independent music.

Tx