Ophalure

Stumble into 2026 with the 3XL favourites' uncanny vision of ambient. 

 It's become a tradition that the first RA Mix of every year eases listeners into January with soft, gentle and unhurried tones. For RA.1020, though, crimeboys take a different approach.

Made up of Ben Bondy, Special Guest DJ and Pontiac Sterator, the US trio are all loosely associated with 3XL. Over the past decade, the Berlin-based label, run by Special Guest DJ, has helped define a strain of ambient that foregrounds strangeness, texture and eccentric detail.

This energy comes through immediately on RA.1020.  Listen to the first ten minutes and you might not quite feel soothed. Stick with it, though, and a different logic begins to emerge, as church bells, corroded electronics and industrial abrasion give way to long passages of dub pressure, shadowy rhythm and low-lit propulsion. 

Across two hours, the trio draw a map of influences both internal and external to the 3XL universe, from foundational reference points like Skinny Puppy, M.E.S.H. and DJ Krush to artists embedded within the label’s wider orbit, such as Perila, james K and Critical Amnesia. Together, these selections trace a throughline from '90s industrial and jungle into dub techno, experimental club and contemporary ambient's more unsettled edges. 

RA.1020 isn't comfort listening in the conventional sense, but it does offer its own form of recalibration and release. Stay put, and you'll be rewarded.

Find the tracklist and interview at ra.co/podcast/1039
@triplexlarge
@benbondy
@pontiacstreator
@specialguest-dj

RA.1020 crimeboys

A brief solo bass track, improvised this evening. Just my Elrick 6 string bass played with an ebow.

shouting from the hundredth floor window, your cries lost to the wind

2026-01-05

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2026-01-06

plant 04

This year, I committed myself to an experiment of releasing new music twice a month — roughly every fourteen days — throughout the entire year. I apologize if the frequent release announcements became tiresome. Thanks to your support, I was able to release all 24 pieces without missing a single one. Thank you very much.
Of course I love performing live, but this process reminded me that, at heart, I truly enjoy the quiet, steady practice of making music. Ambient and drone artists, after all, should be prolific.
With that in mind, I have compiled the twelve pieces from the second half of the year into an album. I would be very happy if you would listen through one volume — or even both — from start to finish.
The digital album is available on Bandcamp from ¥0 (donations are very welcome), and you can also stream it on Apple Music, Spotify, and other platforms.
Thank you very much for listening.
I feel I have reached a certain sense of completion with this approach, so from next year I hope to focus on change — exploring new directions beyond my current music and production style.
Thank you very much for all your support this year as well. I look forward to the coming year with you. Wishing you a wonderful New Year.
https://hshirptsubaki.bandcamp.com/album/music-for-those-moments-that-will-never-be-reunited-again-part2
12.30.2025
Hirotaka Shirotsubaki

Music for Those Moments That Will Never be Reunited Again Part2 Trailer

A quickly recorded idea. Just my Elrick 6 string bass and an ebow.

a fitting end to the day

2026-01-07

plant 05

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taken from ET-013
http://www.archive.org/details/ET-013

ET-013 | Acufene

Christian Di Vito - Acufene (Excerpt) | ET-013

Netlabel based in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.

Christian Di Vito - Acufene (Excerpt) | ET-013

1834

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