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Ah Pook
Aug 23, 2003

Seconds Before Awakening makes some great ambient/drone/dreamy stuff that helps me concentrate whenever I need to do something creative. The guy (?) used to have a web site but it seems to be gone now, thankfully it's all free and you can find it wherever, like here: http://archive.org/search.php?query=creator%3A%22Seconds+Before+Awakening%22

Each album seems to have a different "theme" but they blend into each other well enough that I don't notice the change.

edit- Nevermind here's the blog. http://2ndmindproductions.blogspot.com/ looks like there's another project too but I haven't listened to that

Ah Pook fucked around with this message at 00:53 on May 20, 2012

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bleedbackwards
Jan 13, 2008
weapon finesse: my dong
I love this kind of music but I would have no idea where to start looking for more of it, so I'm glad this thread exists.


"Dive" by Tycho has gotten me so ready for going to the beach next month: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CyuxPdHumLA

The Sight Below hits a sweet spot between "wall of noise" and structured sound for me: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C6be18GacTs

Rageaholic
May 31, 2005

Old Town Road to EGOT

bleedbackwards posted:

I love this kind of music but I would have no idea where to start looking for more of it, so I'm glad this thread exists.


"Dive" by Tycho has gotten me so ready for going to the beach next month: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CyuxPdHumLA

I'm not even kidding when I say that Tycho's Dive is one of the most relaxing albums I've ever heard in my life. Anytime I hear any of the tracks from it, I instantly feel this warm, chilled out feeling wash over me no matter what my mood is before listening.

I've heard many people refer to him as a lovely Boards Of Canada clone in the past, but Dive gets me even more relaxed than some Boards Of Canada stuff.

Basically, this album is just the bee's knees.

real nap shit
Feb 2, 2008

bleedbackwards posted:

"Dive" by Tycho

Dive is a fantastic album, but I think my favorite Tycho tune is "Coastal Brake" - a single from 2009.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XgJOAdo8HQQ

Rush_shirt
Apr 24, 2007

slardel posted:

Hi ambient thread, I just finished my 3rd EP, it falls somewhere between ambient, downtempo, and hip hop, except for the 4th track. but maybe you'll like that one too.

also it's free

http://mathbonus.bandcamp.com/album/sounds-of-gloaming

Those are not my sounds. Those are not my sounds at all. :colbert:

(Those are some pretty sick sounds, though.)

real nap shit
Feb 2, 2008

^ cheers. I'll be sure to post my current project here when it's finished, too.

i've been finding some really great stuff with bandcamp's new discover feature, like these 2 records:

http://rickyeatacid.bandcamp.com/album/seeing-little-ghosts-everywhere

http://3six.bandcamp.com/album/hypersona

slowdave
Jun 18, 2008

Rageaholic Monkey posted:

I've heard many people refer to him as a lovely Boards Of Canada clone in the past, but Dive gets me even more relaxed than some Boards Of Canada stuff.

I don't think it has ever been BoC's intention to make relaxing music.

some kinda jackal
Feb 25, 2003

 
 

Emetic Hustler posted:

Solar Fields is a producer from Sweden who makes nice ambient/psybient and is a labelmate of Carbon Based Lifeforms (among other similar artist such as Aes Dana and H.U.V.A. Network) on Ultimae Records, so if you haven't checked out that label and you like this sort of stuff then what are you waiting for!

I've been into ambient/chillout for basically as long as I can remember, but Solar Fields really struck a whole new chord in me. I'd bet that much like 90% of the population I discovered him when he did the Mirror's Edge soundtrack.

While I don't think all his tracks are great (in fact, of his entire discography I would say that only a handful have double or triple-digit plays in iTunes), the ones that work REALLY loving WORK:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=knjJ2hOOvIk

I can stick this on repeat and quite literally play it all day.

This remix just soars over the original, but that's not to say the original track is bad. This kind of spacey-drifty-"feel like I'm floating on a cloud of nothing" music is the stuff I could listen to for the rest of my life.

some kinda jackal fucked around with this message at 07:32 on Jun 23, 2012

canis minor
May 4, 2011

If it's ok, I would like to drop some music that I've not seen mentioned, though I find myself listening to and enjoying. Maybe somebody will find this stuff interesting:

A Dancing Beggar - his album "Follow The Dark As If It Were Light". His first album - "What We Left Behind" deserves a listen as well, but the second one struck me as more moving, or more polished. In terms of similarities rustic soundscapes of Balmorhea come to my mind, but also electronica of Helios (on that matter it has more in common with the later).

Anduin - stemming from post-rock Souvenir's Young America, Anduin is more ambient/drone oriented than his root band. He has released currently an album entitled "Stolen Years", which is available for listen here. It's more along the lines of Stars of the Lid, but with distorted glitches and environmental recordings.

Pan•American - a solo project of Mark Nelson from Labradford. My experience with Pan American comprises to the albums from the beginning of his career - the self-titled, "360 Business/360 Bypass", "The River Made No Sound". That said, I can say that his Labradford roots are fortunately quite obvious - it's a haunting electronic music, sometimes quite glitchy, but definitely unwinding.

Kinack - his recently released "Ondas" I'd say nicely fits in between trip-hoppy Bonobo's style and moody surroundings of Emancipator, though in my opinion it has more in common with the later (and his "Safe in the Steep Hills").

edit: thanks to the man below

canis minor fucked around with this message at 08:05 on Jun 25, 2012

SpruceZeus
Aug 13, 2011

eithedog posted:

If it's ok, I would like to drop some music that I've not seen mentioned, though I find myself listening to and enjoying. Maybe somebody will find this stuff interesting:

Pan American and A Dancing Beggar are pretty good. For the record, sophomore means the second one, although that's clearly not what you intended there. I'll agree that I enjoyed the second, much more ambient album more, the first one was a more along the lines of a fairly typical (although by no means bad) post-rock album.

Will give the other two a listen. Thanks for the recs.

bad day
Mar 26, 2012

by VideoGames
Lately I have been listening to Chill Out by The KLF a lot - it's a very good cd if you haven't heard it before. I was surprised to not see it mentioned in the OP. I think the only place you can legally buy this CD is in North America, because The KLF deleted their entire UK catalog because of art.

Also Instinct used to put out a lot of really interesting ambient compilation cds in the 90's. I had this one which had supposedly been produced in "3D sound" and had all sorts of weird trippy background things going on like subway sounds and people mumbling and moving around the room on top of the music. Also there was a very good 2CD set that was one cd of trance music (this was pre-stadium trance, very mellow and different from what they call trance today) and one of ambient music, mostly by the same artists. I remember Taylor Dupree did quite a lot of it in his various names (Human Mesh Dance, Prototype 909, etc).

My ex-girlfriend once had a cd of St. Giga - the Japanese satellite radio station that played 24/7 ambient music with broadcast themes were approximately matched to the current tidal cycle according to the rule of twelfths throughout the 24-hour broadcasting period. It was really good. I have never seen another copy of it, even on :filez: though I'm sure it can be found somewhere.

This was the radio station that later hosted Satellaview for the Super Famicom, a subscription-based video game service that was sort of a cross between online video games and live radio broadcasting.

ghableska
Jul 9, 2008
That Solar Fields remix is really great. Though I loved the soundtrack for Mirror's Edge, I never bothered to really listen to his other music, oddly enough.


I just had the opportunity to see Tycho live, and it was great. Awesome visuals, and Scott and the rest of the band were super down to earth.

Slashkun
Sep 19, 2011
Do you guys know a good place to source and download chillstep or chillstep remixes of other stuff?

slowdave
Jun 18, 2008

Slashkun posted:

Do you guys know a good place to source and download chillstep or chillstep remixes of other stuff?

Check out Arctic Circle Radio's cloudcasts I guess. http://www.mixcloud.com/arcticcircle/

I have no idea what you mean by chillstep though.

o.m. 94
Nov 23, 2009

It's dubstep and chill, slowdave. Don't you know anything?

o.m. 94
Nov 23, 2009

Note Chillstep is *not* the same as Liquid Dubstep.

o.m. 94
Nov 23, 2009

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wTiXaKITz9M

SpruceZeus
Aug 13, 2011


If you like Emeralds (and you should) then Blanck Mass is also worthy of investigation.

o.m. 94
Nov 23, 2009

Taking the music on its own, I appreciate what he's trying to do but the blurb on his Bandcamp is so bedroomy and sophomoric it makes want to be sick.

quote:

Blanck Mass is Benjamin John Power, a young musician in thrall to Carl Sagan, Ennio Morricone and the infinity of nature, both universal and personal.

His eponymous debut album, a collection of tracks loosely themed around cerebral hypoxia and the beautiful complexity of the natural world , features ten songs which were written, recorded and self-produced at home in London between Summer and Winter 2010. An interstellar journey that defies classification, revealing itself further and further with each listen; offering more with each visit.

Out of step with the nostalgic focus of current climes, there's a sense of the unresolved running through this record. Like perpetually coming up....endlessly walking Escher's Ascending and Descending....swimming for a surface that you will never reach. This paradoxically claustrophobic-but-liberating warmth is brought about through a heavy, shimmering, orchestral, electric guitar prominence on the record, alongside manipulated field recordings, warm analogue synth, heavy sub and deep drone, a palette of sounds as wide and emotional as the world Blanck Mass sees before him.

Power’s imprint can be felt all over the record. “I do like the fact that this album represents a pretty clear image of myself” he tells us, “that which I am aware of and that which might be controlled by some other type of subconscious guidance.”

Easily one of the most poorly written and scoffable things I've seen all year

slowdave
Jun 18, 2008

oiseaux morts 1994 posted:

Note Chillstep is *not* the same as Liquid Dubstep.

That's wonky as hell dude.

SpruceZeus
Aug 13, 2011

oiseaux morts 1994 posted:

Taking the music on its own, I appreciate what he's trying to do but the blurb on his Bandcamp is so bedroomy and sophomoric it makes want to be sick.


Easily one of the most poorly written and scoffable things I've seen all year

Haha wow I didn't even notice that until you pointed it out.

I guess I've just grown accustomed to automatically ignoring stuff like that.

Obnoticus
Dec 30, 2004
Yeah, no, I got it.
Yesssss thank you for this fantastic thread and all the phenomenal suggestions herein! Ambient music is the poo poo. These are a few artists that have really stuck with me, some of whom you may enjoy:

Amiina - They're Icelandic and more on the organic side of things. They use a huge array of instruments to build dreamy little melodies. A great pick if you're looking for string-laden work. Definitely check out their album Kurr.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fy6uJmg5ZLw

Balam Acab - This guy is an early 20-something with a real knack for evoking that sense of being underwater. His album Wander/Wonder is filled with gems.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ID-GXHgvK54
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_r05i4_VHts

Hildur Guðnadóttir - Another one from Icleand, Hildur is on the darker side of things. If you're looking for eerie, cello heavy tunes, look no further than her album Without Sinking. Also, she's gorgeous:



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mSwj3wuhkvM

Mountains - I never got too into drone, but I love Mountains. They use many acoustic instruments and field recordings, which gives them a very warm vibe. Highly recommend their album Choral. Similar to Stars of the Lid.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-vBZrc4ZEYM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gGgkKu60On0

Pantha Du Prince - This is some very cold, crystalline minimal ambient, and a staple in my rotation of reading/studying music. You can't go wrong with either Black Noise or The Bliss.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xEJp2s2FnVI

I want to echo the suggestion to check out the em:t label, particularly Woob. His 1194 release is a god drat classic. Props to Earwicker, oiseaux morts 1994, Emetic Hustler and anyone else that provided a solid playlist. I'll be following this thread very closely!

real nap shit
Feb 2, 2008

Hey y'all, one guy said he liked the last thing I posted here, maybe some of you will like this project too.

Free album from me that touches on ambient and hip hop - http://mathbonus.bandcamp.com/album/passage

Check it out if you like. I'd love feedback, positive or negative.

Professor Latency
Mar 30, 2011

Near The Parenthesis- Really, I just have this to recommend. His album L'exaimple is hands down my favorite album. These glitchy, yet calming sounds never cease to absolutely floor me. It's a very dreamy album and the songs build to an amazing reverie.

I couldn't find a youtube video of the song I wanted so here's a beatport link, so buy it.

http://www.beatport.com/track/modernisme-original-mix/656781

SpruceZeus
Aug 13, 2011

Obnoticus posted:

Amiina

Hildur Guðnadóttir

Pantha Du Prince

Really solid recs. Although Kurr is great, I personally enjoyed Amiina's second album, Puzzle, even more, although it's a bit poppier and less on the ambient side of things. And I think Pantha du Prince is technically minimal techno, but who cares, his music is very much in the chill and laid-back spirit of this thread.


I keep hearing about them. Gonna have to give Choral a listen I suppose. Thanks for the rec, mate.

Aerobic Robot
Dec 11, 2007

ASK ME HOW I HAVE CRYING MELTDOWNS ABOUT BEING A GAY FURRY. PS, I'M 16 YEARS OLD
I'm not sure if it's the kind of ambient that is appropriate for the thread but James Ferraro does some things.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7W6xESV0C78
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dp0pYN9Sd6M

o.m. 94
Nov 23, 2009

James Ferraro is a goddamn genius and will be mostly misunderstood in his time. Although a lot of his work is not categorically "Ambient" with a capital A, is very much "ambient music", in the way that Eno would agree. He has done loads of ambient / drone tape releases, but I would like to mention two releases of import:

With "On Air", somebody once described Ferraro's music as "dark energy temples of 80s consumerism filtered through the prism of hypnagogic post-noise and vhs distortion". This album is like witnessing some kind of huge cosmic burp happening late at night on Channel 400 in 1989. I can't really describe it to be honest, but taken as a whole it's an amazing experience

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t8M_Nt0L5nU

"Far Side Virtual", a kind of absurd rumination on a world full of ringtones, Starbucks, Korean MMOs, and Second Life. The music is trite and vacuous, even hilariously inspired and uninspired at the same time. But that's what makes it brilliant; in the same way that musicians like Throbbing Gristle and Merzbow make uncompromising, visceral music in an attempt to erode mediocrity and complacence by shoving the uncomfortable truth down listener's throats. So does Ferraro by perfectly realising a meaningless and wholly artificial musical eco-sphere which reveals so many uncomfortable truths about our existence and sense of purpose in the information age. Truly avant-garde imo

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YIvR9rqae7Q

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n7u-xHPNIco

I'm a bit retarded so it's hard to explain why he is such an important artist right now, but be sure to investigate his already prolific output on Discogs, there's bound to be something you like whether you embrace his concepts (and you should) or not

lee hazlewood
Mar 8, 2007

HOME CRAP HOME

SpruceZeus posted:

If you like Emeralds (and you should) then Blanck Mass is also worthy of investigation.

I'm digging that Blanck Mass, although I agree that blurb is pretty silly.

If you're into Emeralds, I recommend the related solo projects from its members:

Steve Hauschildt:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EQhscx2MfsY
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mtXu06x_z_Q

Mark McGwire
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GXPTsw_FUw0

Imaginary Softwoods (John Allen)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5hrwQONDKCw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RNBw9wMW47A

There are releases by the three of them under other monikers as well. Lots of the minimalist/krautrock stuff is really loving cool.

One other band that should be recommended in this thread is Casino vs Japan:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t5bexGQZ_KI
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zVwyB3nhwws

Lots of this borders on minimalist rather than ambient; hope it's appreciated nonetheless.

Aerobic Robot
Dec 11, 2007

ASK ME HOW I HAVE CRYING MELTDOWNS ABOUT BEING A GAY FURRY. PS, I'M 16 YEARS OLD

oiseaux morts 1994 posted:

I'm a bit retarded so it's hard to explain why he is such an important artist right now, but be sure to investigate his already prolific output on Discogs, there's bound to be something you like whether you embrace his concepts (and you should) or not

Nah man this is basically how I would go about describing his music to someone who hasnt really gotten into this kinda stuff before. Another good artist that comes to mind (especially in relation to Night Dolls With Hairspray/Feed Me era James Ferraro) is Sam Meringue, who is a major part of Outer Limits Recordings, an alias that sometimes has contributions from Ferraro.

MATRIX METALS "TANNING SALON, PART TWO"

And on another note, New York based musician Fatima Al Qadiri releases some nice ambient vocal stuff under the alias Ayshay

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AJobaxZqy18

Shadalator
Oct 22, 2005

I hate her so much. Vince could've married some young hot gold digger, bought her everything she ever wanted, and still saved tens of millions of dollars. Instead he married an old dumb zombie woman who kicked JR in the nuts. What a bitch
What is some more trippy poo poo like Oneotrix Point Never?

lee hazlewood
Mar 8, 2007

HOME CRAP HOME

Shadalator posted:

What is some more trippy poo poo like Oneotrix Point Never?

I strongly suggest Tim Hecker:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EE9mT4JaW_0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QUpA8R01d50
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Ft2U8NJDns

I've been on a kick lately with artists from the Editions Meego and Kranky labels.
Anyone else have other suggestions in that vein?

Lord Krangdar
Oct 24, 2007

These are the secrets of death we teach.

Shadalator posted:

What is some more trippy poo poo like Oneotrix Point Never?

If you haven't already heard it I recommend tracking down his side-project with Mark McGuire (of Emeralds) called Skyramps - Days Of Thunder.

Example Song: "Flight Simulator"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PH_ygB_uZ0o

o.m. 94
Nov 23, 2009

Aerobic Robot posted:

Nah man this is basically how I would go about describing his music to someone who hasnt really gotten into this kinda stuff before. Another good artist that comes to mind (especially in relation to Night Dolls With Hairspray/Feed Me era James Ferraro) is Sam Meringue, who is a major part of Outer Limits Recordings, an alias that sometimes has contributions from Ferraro.

MATRIX METALS "TANNING SALON, PART TWO"

And on another note, New York based musician Fatima Al Qadiri releases some nice ambient vocal stuff under the alias Ayshay

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AJobaxZqy18

Her video for Vatican Vibes is completely, utterly, utterly insane. Tabor Robak also did artwork for OPN

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hKosaf5tmpI

Aerobic Robot
Dec 11, 2007

ASK ME HOW I HAVE CRYING MELTDOWNS ABOUT BEING A GAY FURRY. PS, I'M 16 YEARS OLD

oiseaux morts 1994 posted:

Her video for Vatican Vibes is completely, utterly, utterly insane. Tabor Robak also did artwork for OPN

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hKosaf5tmpI

Tabor Robak is some kinda render deity. He's also in the sadly now irrelevant boy band #HDBOYZ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9C5YAc6L_KQ

But this isnt ambient music SO have some Lee Noble
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0COzYcZwaVY

Aerobic Robot fucked around with this message at 00:59 on Jul 18, 2012

Aerobic Robot
Dec 11, 2007

ASK ME HOW I HAVE CRYING MELTDOWNS ABOUT BEING A GAY FURRY. PS, I'M 16 YEARS OLD
e: EDIT NOT QUOTE

SpruceZeus
Aug 13, 2011

http://zacbentz.bandcamp.com/album/field-recordings-from-the-edge-of-hell

Over 8 hours of dark ambient terror and oppression.

Spellman
May 31, 2011

Pretty cool album here called Lost at Sea (on Bandcamp) by Splitter. It's a free/pay-what-you-want download. Nice bass, cool melody. I'd embed a YouTube link, but the version I found was kind of crunchy, so you're better off just playing or downloading it from Bandcamp.

precision
May 7, 2006

by VideoGames

eithedog posted:

Pan•American - a solo project of Mark Nelson from Labradford. My experience with Pan American comprises to the albums from the beginning of his career - the self-titled, "360 Business/360 Bypass", "The River Made No Sound". That said, I can say that his Labradford roots are fortunately quite obvious - it's a haunting electronic music, sometimes quite glitchy, but definitely unwinding.

Labradford is one of the only bands I can think of who released three albums in a row that I would say are essentially "perfect" (self-titled, Mi Media Naranja, E Luxo So). I found Nelson's solo stuff to be frustrating; the self-titled holds up as one of the best dub-influenced post-rock albums outside of HiM's 90's output, but once I got to The River Made No Sound I threw up my hands and shouted "And neither did the CD!"

I thought he really returned to form with Quiet City, however, and it's especially amazing if you can find a copy with the DVD included; watching and listening to it is "intensely relaxing".

(It would appear that someone has put the entire thing on YouTube, actually! So check it out there.)

Lately I've been really liking Goth-Trad, a Japanese chill dubstep fellow:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dYnUDvEXtFo

hypersleep
Sep 17, 2011

I used to listen to a lot of dark ambient. It was a bit difficult finding stuff that wasn't just straight up drone though. I need something to keep me interested and most drone type stuff just puts me to sleep.

Here's a sample of stuff I used to be into:

Asmorod - The whole "Hysope" album is great.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mt_X6yZktFI

Kammarheit - Kind of droney, but really listenable.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PqtUZ1cMg1A

Atrium Carceri - This guy is still active but I haven't kept up in some years.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qW316kXF1FA

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precision
May 7, 2006

by VideoGames
I'm surprised Windy and Carl haven't come up yet. A married couple who own a record store and have put out a lot of very good albums, including a great 3-CD set of "singles and compilation tracks". They're a bit of a more lo-fi, stripped-down version of stuff like early Flying Saucer Attack or Hash Jar Tempo, usually with just washes of feedback and a minimalist bass line, often with her vocals. Their Depths album is easily my favorite thing they've done, and they're still active today, having just put out a new one this year.

Here is probably my favorite song of theirs:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YPZgN4i78rA

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