Bandcloud 274

Am I sorry I sent you my own mix the other day? No. Would I do it again? Probably not. 

Deep South Podcast 046 - Baronhawk Poitier
This is a wonderful mix that blends deep house sounds with rnb vocals, most notably putting Koffee Brown's 'After Party' over chunky vibes and then letting the instrumental drift out before bringing in bmore-type sounds. This one in fact turns out to be a flip of PM Dawn's 'Set Adrift On Memory Bliss'. Then he drags down the tempo, moving into some Tony! Toni! Toné! It's something to behold. Then it switches up again. There's a lot happening, yet it's a singular groove. One party.

Numb Mob - Where To Build In Stone
When I first received this it was accompanied with the following words: "There aren't many people who might cover abstract A/V pieces inspired by the shapes and sounds of Kingston upon Hull, so I hope you can give it some time." Originally performed as a live audiovisual piece at the PRS New Music Biennial 2019, it accompanies a film that explores a day in the life of the city of Hull in east Yorkshire, UK. It's a fascinating mixture of electronic sounds and mournful woodwind echoes. In the film, I particularly liked a shot of a plastic chair on a beach. There's something plaintive about that.

Jessika Khazrik - Holographic Caves (Extended Version)
This 12-minute piece is stunning. Part digital vocal experiment, part found sound, part unnerving synth exploration, it melds all these elements into one coherent journey. The artist was interviewed in Mixmag some months back, giving insight into her practice.

Laura Agnusdei - Laurisilva
This is like a weird Latin jazz album from the 30s, only with swirling electronics playing underneath. It's hugely rich, with absolutely brilliant solos from a host of instruments, sax ensembles and trumpets, it's smoky and hazy, the sound of a rain-sodden forest in your sweatiest nightmares.

Beyond / Below - 26. Isabella DiBlassio
This mix series is essential, but this particular entry deserves a special mention. It's ambient, but moves through moods and ideas brilliantly. It's delightfully springy, if that makes any sense. There's a track that samples a speech from Twin Peaks — well, I don't know if the DJ has used it herself or if it's part of a track. There's certainly a trippy 90s aesthetic throughout the mix's latter half, which I am down for all day long.

Whettman Chelmets - Long Read Memories
I was lucky enough to be sent a link to this one some months back, and on my first listen I wrote to the artist saying the following: "This new release is making me feel a lot of emotions. Most of them something like 😭😳😖" He replied that he didn't think it would get a lot of repeat listens. I wasn't sure, but then it took me about six weeks to return. I was startled to learn that this wasn't just a dank album made up of weird sounds and kooky samples. Nearly two decades in the making, it is in fact a reflection on the artist's experience of being the brother of a killer. In the late 80s, still a teen, his brother was sentenced to life without the possibility of parole. Chelmets was 9 when this happened. He lays it all out in this longread to go with Long Read Memories. The sounds are terrifying, upsetting, haunting, beautiful. The most harrowing moment comes during 'The Devil DoubleCrossed You', when a distorted scream gives way to the sound of a train passing by. The melodies that follow are utterly heartbreaking; I could make comparisons but you need to hear it for yourself. This is a powerful and fascinating project that upends your expectations and can change your worldview. 

Maria Chavez - Plays Stefan Goldmann's 'Ghost Hemiola'
I've found it really hard to write about this but it deserves to be shared. It is "Based on the physical treatment of just one record: Stefan Goldmann's blank double vinyl loop kit 'Ghost Hemiola'", yet I know nothing about that kit so I can't even say how much it resembles or deviates from the source material. The heavily processed digital sounds rumble and whisper, shuffling back and forth and leaving a lot of space between each strange breath. It's subtle and intriguing but requires your attention.

i.ruuu / Cammack Lindsey - blue activate
This feels like a Christmas carol over super dank Ableton squiggles. It's not even two minutes long and I want more. Apparently it's coming out on December 2. In the meantime, you can read "Ghost Assemblies on the Musical Interruption of Production in Color Space and How to Redistribute Stolen Futures" here.

Guido Flichman - Horizontalismos
Longform mushy ambient sounds from Argentina. It's a bit like early Huerco S. minus the beats. Play over and over. Name your price. 

H&S Mix 012: Efemmera
Efemmera has done a mix for the hue & saturation series, running through fun stuff with lots of colourful, acidic 90s trance. There's a jungle/dnb-type section in the latter half of the mix, which isn't my favourite thing lately, but that's just me. The first half is dope!

Lo Five - Geography Of The Abyss
"Are human flaws and a loss of production mastery in exchange for a more intuitive, subconscious connection with music a worthy payoff?" That's a question asked by this album, which grew out of live experimentation and improv rather than the artist's more familiar approach of more, shall we say, straightforward composition. It's a lovely tread through electronic sounds, the elephant in the room is obviously Boards of Canada, whose influence can be heard in the woozy textures and haunted melodies. That's not to say it doesn't have its own character and flavour. It's almost jaunty at times, such as the bouncy 'Children Four', which mutters unknowable phrases over shuffling beats. It's really one to sink into, wrapped up indoors or walking down cold streets. Either works. The album comes in a lovely package* — a hardbook CD with strange digital imagery inside a classy black envelope. (*I was sent a gift of this one, I should say.)

N+1 - guest mix ✹ KP Transmission
Finally this week, some muted, dank sounds from Moscow artist KP Transmission. Twisted ambience, post-punk, floaty beats.