We are delighted to begin the year with a mix from ASIP (Ryan Griffin), the founder of A Strangely Isolated Place - a label and mix series that has become a cornerstone for contemporary ambient music. Inviting him felt long overdue, and we couldn’t be happier to share this contribution from someone whose work continually inspires us. For this mix, Ryan delved into musical memories, crafting a journey filled with nostalgia and influences. As he beautifully puts it:

"Thank you, Mareen, for the invite to your series. This mix is full of nostalgia, some Balearic undertones, and classic approaches to ambient electronic music, without an agenda. It starts to speak to some major influences on me over the years. Growing up on 90's electronic music, influential summers in Europe, and the formative years of early 00's IDM and electronica. If Unrush is self-described as 'a serene space within the mind that is free from the encumbering stresses of daily life,' then this is music that always helps me get there."

Ryan’s contribution is a heartfelt journey through time, marked by the sounds that have shaped him and continue to inspire, perfectly embodying the unrushed ethos. Let yourself drift and enjoy... ❤️

ASIP on the web:
Website: https://www.astrangelyisolatedplace.com/
Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/astrangelyisolatedplace
Bandcamp: https://astrangelyisolatedplace.bandcamp.com/
iTunes: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/a-strangely-isolated-place/id409698179

UNRUSH on the web:
Bandcamp: www.unrush.bandcamp.com/
Hardwax: www.hardwax.com/label/unrush/
Instagram: www.instagram.com/_unrush_/?hl=de
Facebook: www.facebook.com/unrushme/

Cover artwork by Irakli Kiziria

Tracklist:
Ishq - And Awake (2011, Interchill Records)
Aspetuck - Hit Me With Your Pet Shark (Forthcoming, A Strangely Isolated Place)
Wilson Tanner - Further Than Your Headlights (2016, Growing Bin Records)
TSR - gtchi3 (2012, Record Union)
MPU101 - Sunset Memories (2024, Ilian Tape)
Dream Dolphin - L.E.A (Mirror Coordinate Mix) (2023, Music From Memory)
C-thru - Awake In A Dream (2023, Pacific Rhythm)
Norman Feller - Melting From The Inside (2003, Electrolux)
Gallo - That Moment (2023, Hell Yeah)
Spooky - Let Go (1993, Guerilla)
Neutron 900 - Empire (1994, Rising High)
Alvar - Our Peach Sky (Unreleased)
Mikkel Rev - Unknown (Unreleased)
Ebi - Kaze (1996, Space Teddy)
Jochem Paap - Dx-Snth (1999, Fax)

093 - Unrushed by ASIP

There’s a certain feeling that creeps in when listening to Illuvia. A delicate suspension between rhythm and atmosphere, where the weight of a breakbeat never overwhelms the stillness it moves through. 

Since debuting as Illuvia on ASIP with Iridescence of Clouds back in 2021, Ludvig Cimbrelius has steadily carved out his own temporal rift in the world of ambient and jungle- a sound that sidesteps nostalgia and instead uncovers a forgotten future buried deep in the recesses of our collective memory. 

With such a history on the label going back to our earliest of releases and our 7th vinyl press (as Purl, alongside Lav) this is the second time Ludvig has appeared on an isolatedmix, along with the close ties and inspiration of this Portals mix from God Is No Longer A DJ. 

Both across his latest release, Earth Prism, and  Iridescence of Clouds, he introduced a world of ambient lovers to weightless pads combined with chopped breaks, barely tethered to gravity, and melodies that seemed to shimmer. It was both an echo of something familiar and an entirely new dialect, not strictly jungle, not wholly ambient, not liquid in the traditional sense, but unmistakably Illuvia. 

This new mix is a continuation of those worlds. Or maybe a glance sideways into a parallel one. Illuvia’s approach has always been about restraint and resonance: every snare hit is softened by reverb, every progression feels like it’s been carved out of silence. 

For those who have followed his trajectory through ASIP and beyond, this is another precious window into Ludvig’s meticulous and emotive world. And for those new to it, welcome.

isolatedmix 131 - Illuvia: 'Mauna Kea'

South African Jason van Wyk is quickly becoming a favourite and prominent artist on these pages. You may even think I’m biased, because I asked Jason to rework one of my tracks. But this relationship is indeed in reverse – I only requested his participation because I admire his sound, and am indeed inspired by his music when I choose to work on my own. There’s something ethereal, delicate, and dreamlike in how his cinematic pads swirl in a cocktail spatial ambience and pulsating rhythm that takes over my heart and bewitches my soul. Stunning harmonic progressions show off true musicianship, while the layered textures keep me occupied with intelligent sound design. This is the culmination of elements that I highly respect in my music. This is why I keep listening to Jason’s music and try to share it with the world. This is why, I’m sure, Mike Cadoo continues to invite him on his label. We last heard from Jason nearly three years ago [time is always speeding up], when in October of 2022, he released Descendants, which inevitably landed on my Best of the Year list in the most coveted category, Music For The Film Behind Closed Eyelids. This is a sacred space, often occupied by the likes of Max Richter, Ólafur Arnalds, and, of course, Jóhann Jóhannsson. With his latest sixth full-length album, Inherent, Jason is back on n5MD, pushing his boundaries forward, featuring even more expansive soundscapes of warm ambiance, haunting piano melodies, and trance-inducing beats. Enjoy this exclusive track, and who knows, maybe Jason will show up on Headphone Community (wink, wink).

TRACK PREMIERE : Jason van Wyk - Remnants

“Forgetting oneself is opening oneself”

― Eihei Dōgen

dive in deeper

bortom molnen

A passing resemblance

A seeped continuum of electronic dialects & modal gestures into a genre-fluid layers. secret getii bends styles into one another as molten elements: ambient, deconstructed club, microtonal fragments and noise dissolve together into an endless exploratory.

secret getii [domingo castillo flores] is a sound artist creating textural, sonically eclectic works, released by Inner Most and appendix.files among other.

Amulet 062: secret getii

Jason van Wyk is a Cape Town (South Africa) based electronic music producer whose music I often wish could have been my own. From cinematic soundscapes to soft piano keys and mesmerising passages, the elements of his pieces are all the necessary ingredients that I often try to combine in my music. And that is basically the highest sort of praise that I could give. There are many incredible ambient musicians who truly inspire me with their ability to create and transport me to their fantastic sonic worlds. And plenty have contributed to my growth as a musician - I am permanently indebted to many of them, whom I am honoured to call friends. But in my soul, I am a pianist, and the instrument [or its echoes] inevitably make it into my tracks. And this is what I love about Jason's music. His most recent release on the beloved n5MD, Inherent, is a more upbeat, forward-driven progression, combining his skills of crafting dance-oriented grooves with atmospheric soundtracks. For his upcoming EP, Jason reworked three tracks into pure ambient pieces. To truly appreciate the transformation, start by hearing the original track, followed by this alternative version. If you want to dig deeper into the process behind the composition (including the details of the actual effects chain used, like the Space Echo, etc.), you can read up on Headphone Community, where Jason revealed it all when he was a featured artist for the entire month of July [the content is still up there!]. Deep listening and focus are essential to truly appreciate the textures here...

https://www.patreon.com/HeadphoneCommunity







TRACK PREMIERE : Jason van Wyk - Inner (Horizon)

AugustNightLove

An idea that sort of morphed its way into existence from playing around with some filtered synth sounds and reflected a kind of calm, pleasant and peaceful mood, yet with some dark undertones.  It's a bit of a remix really, given the source of the vocal, although its quite a long way from the original...

As I walk down the street,
Seems everyone I meet,
Gives me a friendly hello, 
I guess I'm just a lucky so and so.

And when the day os through,
Each night I hurry to,
A home where loves waits I know,
I guess I'm just a lucky so and so.

Lucky So and So

The original remix I created from @Bleeptwig's brilliant ambient soundscape 'Unlocked.'

Perhaps this is a way out, after all...

Woke up with wires in my skin,
Voices echoing where thoughts had been,
Strings pulled tight on every limb,
Smiling on the outside, dying within.

Light seeped into rusted seams,
And I remembered how to dream
You didn't break me, just delayed.
I found the key, I've walked away.

No longer boxed...
No longer mocked...
I'm Unlocked.
Unlocked.
I'm Unlocked...

Unlocked (SoundWarper Remix)

Messing around with creating a manual groove quantise feel with a funky shuffle beat, came up with this...

Export EP

Dee Minor Funnnk

Intensive ambient explorations and other stories.