A track from the album 'Paisajes Imaginarios' out now on Constellation Tatsu.

Paisajes Imaginarios is an online collaborative record by pianist Julia Gjertsen and electronic musician & visual artist Nico Rosenberg.  This album is a collection of piano-based and lo-fi sonic frequencies made with tape manipulation. The idea was to create something that transports the listener and helps instill reflection and enable retreat from everyday life.

Julia Gjertsen is a musician/pianist/producer based in Oslo, Norway. Her music is centered around piano layers evolving into ambient soundscapes. “Combining and organising piano parts with other textural elements in a minimalist way” is how she describes her composing process. Nico Rosenberg is an electronic music composer, visual creator and psychologist from Santiago, Chile. His sound is distinguished by the use of textures, string quartets and probabilistic algorithms.

Artwork by Sergio Mora-Diaz
Mastered by Arturo Zegers

Julia Gjertsen & Nico Rosenberg - Atlantis

Tarotplane is PJ Dorsey of Baltimore, who produces a collection of Kosmische Musik with synths and spacey guitar effects. Based on many years of research and correspondence with Manuel Göttsching, “Aeonium” channels Göttsching’s style and sound. This psychedelic treasure captures moments from Krautrock favorites but moves into new realms and spaces unexplored in the genre.

The cover image is “DENKENDER EMBRYO72” (1972), a silkscreen by Gernot Bubenik photographed by the artist specifically for this release. http://www.bubenikgernot.com/index- e.html

Tarotplane has previously released records on 12th Isle, Patience / Impatience, Lullabies For Insomniacs, Noir Age and VG+.

Tarotplane - Aeonium

In his debut release with Constellation Tatsu, Andy Aquarius takes us on a journey from the forest to the sea. Aquarius was in the process of writing another album, the follow up to ‘Chapel’ (Hush Hush, 2021), when multiple voices emerged, each of them holding a distinct energetic signature. Those incantations became ‘La Force Aquarienne,’ a collection of intuitive prayers.  

The first track, ‘U Lisi’ (Ukrainian for ‘In The Forest’), represents the connective and grounding tissue of our shared dimension. From there the space continues to open up to different layers and degrees, slowly moving into the forest’s polar opposite, the sea (or Nirvana, meaning ‘No Forest’). 

The Celtic harp, supported by the forces of nature and a subtle orchestration, moves through quiet territories, gently distributing and releasing resonance along the way.

Andy Aquarius - La Force Aquarienne

A Love Letter to Water is the instrumental debut EP by Colombian-born, Los Angeles based therapist and musician Alicia Ramírez, aka Inkarose.

Four sonic poems are dedicated to the Spirit of Water – its circular, shape-shifting motion spans from River and Ocean to Clouds and Rain, and then returns to River. This record explores the curative properties of Water; a precious inhale and exhale, the mantra and pranayama of the Forest. Woven with love, these tracks feature special field recordings from various natural environments, including the Tayrona Jungle in Santa Marta, the rainforest in Kauai, and surrounding soundscapes of Los Angeles and Bogotá.

This voyage of sound is graced by the loving touch and musical contributions of dear friends and loved ones, including Carlos Niño (percussion), Rumi Inoue (Alto and Soprano Flutes), Matt Little (Keys), Yeuda Ben-Atar (Flute Synth), and Ian Roller (Alto Sax).

A Love Letter to Water is a love letter to the Self.

Inkarose - Cloud Waltz (with Yeuda Ben-Atar [Flute Synth] and Carlos Niño [Percussion])

Part of the Winter Batch 2024 coming 02/02/24

Wenge, pronounced /wen-gee/, is a legume tree native to the forests of Congo, Zaire, Gabon, Cameroon, and the southern regions of Tanzania and Mozambique. Some of its indigenous names are dikela, mibotu, bokonge, and awong. It is a hard and heavy dark-colored wood used for musical instruments, like guitars, flutes, drums and balaphones, which we play on the recordings. The name struck us as an apt metaphor for resiliency, stability, durability, and the sonic resonance we bring you on this release.

Wenge is a collaborative recording inspired by music score created for the Raphael Sbarge-directed PBS series 10 Days in Watts.

Randal Fisher // Flutes, Clarinets, Saxophones, Ocarina, Wind
Dexter Story // Balafons, Guitars,  Koboro, Hand Claps, Congas, Sticks, Piano, Synthesizers, Programming, Surdo, Breath, Drum Set, Ngoni, Vibraphone, Cajon, Miscellaneous Percussion, Earth

Produced and Mixed by Dexter Story
Recorded by Dexter Story and Randal Fisher
Additional Production, Mixing and Percussion by Carlos Niño

Mastered by Andy Kravitz
Front Cover Art by Or Yogev
Back Cover Art by Matthew Mallinger

Randal Fisher & Dexter Story - In Hands, Heart And Breath

Following its release in the winter of 2018, "Landmarks", a collaboration between veteran ambient artists Celer and Forest Management, initially drew quiet accolades and a steadfast listenership that has since swelled to unimagined proportions (~20 Mil. streams), resonating with listeners perhaps now more than ever and cementing its status as an experimental classic. 

Inspired by Paul Theroux's novel "The Mosquito Coast" and Peter Weir's 1986 film adaptation of that book, "Landmarks" sets out 14 tracks in a "stunning hour of music" (The Quietus) that creates a "general sense of foreboding, critique of romantic retreat into individualism and colonialism" (A Closer Listen). The album is now offered on vinyl for the first time (originally out on cassette tape), newly remastered by Stephan Mathieu to enhance the depth and richness of this oneiric soundscape.

Both Americans, Celer (Will Long) resides in Tokyo, Japan and Forest Management (John Daniel) in Chicago, USA. "Landmarks" was born of their months-long collaboration, trading music back and forth and reshaping each other's work using a series of patches, tape looping, and electronic manipulation. As a throughline in each piece we hear their distinct voices and cultural contexts blend to unique, often otherworldly effect, conjuring a dreamlike tension that refuses easy resolution. We are hooked by a mood that captured listeners back in 2018 and continues to hold us today in the context of current events, related disquietudes, and a nostalgic longing for solutions that may be more imaginary than real.

Celer + Forest Management - Indistinguishable from magic + A big and a strange place (Remastered)

“Signal" is the new album by renowned electronic music artist Brendon Moeller. Known for his innovative fusion of ambient sounds, Moeller once again pushes the boundaries of the genre with swirling, organic forms and immersive textures grounded in the dark, moody tones of deep techno and dub. What results are the sounds of melodic, fluttering synths set to low, steady beats, all of which seem to playfully dance through some kind of cosmic aural nebula.

Brendon grew up in Johannesburg, South Africa. Throughout his childhood and teenage years, he learned piano and drums, finding particular inspiration in the music of artists such as Fela Kuti, My Bloody Valentine, De La Soul and Kraftwerk. However, it was not until 1993, when Brendon moved to New York City, that his own individual style began to develop. With NYC as his base, he has worked with several prominent labels and collaborated with artists like Mikey Dread, Speedy J, Mutabaruka and MATRiXXMAN.

With dozens of EPs, singles and albums to his name, Brendon’s love for experimenting with sound has created an endless source of inspiration to continuously self-reflect and advance his music. Brendon is consistently striving to reinvent himself and skillfully influence the dub scene in the process.

Signal

Brendon Moeller - Bask

Hot on the heels of their acclaimed second album, Iris, One Million Eyes unveil their latest work, Polaris. This new album is a rich tapestry of analog and instrumental elements, creating a vibrant and dynamic experience.

Formerly known as Tempelhof (where they collaborated with artists like Gigi Masin), Luciano Ermondi and Paolo Mazzacani created One Million Eyes upon the realizing they needed a new creative outlet to rekindle their passion for making music. This new project allowed them to approach their instruments and influences untethered to the body of work and inhibitions of their past. What results is a shimmering, energetic current of organic instrumentation and analog synthesizers that carries us on a meditative journey through interior landscapes.

Polaris

One Million Eyes - Koala

While working a job that required frequent drives between Philadelphia and a remote warehouse to sort furniture, Brendan Principato, the artist behind the project Saapato, noticed a fox on the side of the highway that had been struck dead by a car. Its vibrant red coat stood out against the asphalt. Day after day, the fox remained there, gradually transitioning from serene lifelessness to an unrecognizable state, a haunting reminder of nature’s cyclical processes.

This encounter sparked a year-long exploration of decomposition—not merely as a biological process but as a metaphor for transformation, interconnectedness, and renewal. The result is Saapato’s forthcoming album, a deeply conceptual project inspired by the five stages of decomposition: fresh, bloat, active decay, advanced decay, and dry/remains. In researching decomposition, Principato learned about the intricate network of factors that drive it: animals, bacteria, fungi, temperature, moisture, and time. Recognizing the inherently interwoven nature of these forces, he chose to mirror this interplay in the music. What began as a series of foundational “skeleton tracks” that Principato produced quickly evolved into a collective endeavor, with a wide array of guest musicians and sound artists contributing additional processing and instrumental textures to Principato's source material. These collaborators act as symbolic “decomposers,” breaking down and reshaping the sonic landscape to create an altered final form of the music found across the album. 

The album features contributions from an extraordinary roster of artists, including Laraaji, Shuta Yasukochi, Loris S. Sarid, James Bernard & marine eyes, KMRU, Diatom Deli, Haruhisa Tanaka, Ki Oni, Green-House, Golden Brown, Early Fern, Gregg Kowalski, Kallie Lampel, Ben Seretan, Patricia Wolf, and Nailah Hunter. Each artist adds their own unique perspective, resulting in an evolving, organic soundscape that captures the delicate balance of creation and decay.

The result is not only a sonic journey but also a philosophical meditation on the interconnectedness of life, death, and renewal. In the process of decomposition, nothing truly disappears—everything transforms, sustains other life, and/or persists in some form. This ethos permeates each moment of the album, inviting listeners to reflect on the beauty of impermanence and the cycles that shape all living things.

Saapato - Worms In (feat. Laraaji)

About Starlight
Julius Smack engages in a dialogue with a fictional AI assistant to create an album using the prompt, “Make an album that tells the story about the origins of Julius Smack.” Starlight emerges as the imagined response, envisioning a world where beauty and violence intertwine, and memories and dreams are excavated to craft stories.

In a near-future Earth, where artists are among the planet’s last inhabitants, a symbiotic relationship has formed between humans and AI—each relying on the other for nourishment and healing. At the sight of a shooting star, artists mine their memories and dreams with generative AI to produce art, which sustains them but generates toxins that must be expelled upon the next shooting star by creating more art.

To compose Starlight, Julius Smack drew inspiration from all facets of life, with the album’s “dataset” serving as a kind of diary. It weaves together old demos, bookmarked TikTok clips of AI-generated content (such as a deepfake of Biden and Trump singing in Mandarin alongside Kamala Harris’ laughter), 2000s dance music, and ‘90s cyberpunk anime, including Ghost in the Shell and Neon Genesis Evangelion. Everyday experiences also became part of the dataset: learning Yaqui in online classes with fellow diasporic Yaquis, riding the train, walking the dog, and dreaming. These disparate threads coalesce to question AI’s role in creative and labor economies, forming a counterfactual narrative where everything—and nothing—is art.

In 2025, Julius Smack will perform iterations of Starlight across the US, Europe, and Asia. Blending dance, music, theater, and video, the shows center around a painted toilet that acts as an intermediary between ingestion and expulsion.

About Julius Smack
Julius Smack is the musical alias of Peter Hernandez, a Los Angeles-based musician, performer, and director of Practical Records. His work explores intuitive and imaginative landscapes, envisioning new modes of perception and existence. Drawing inspiration from vogue, postmodern dance, Japanese environmental music, and contemporary dance music, he synthesizes these influences into a singular artistic vision rooted in queer and indigenous heritage. With releases on labels such as Leaving Records, Noumenal Loom, Practical Records, and now Constellation Tatsu, Julius Smack’s music resonates across diverse audiences. He has performed at prestigious venues including MOCA Geffen and The Getty Museum in Los Angeles, Stavanger Kunsthall in Norway, and Aunt Charlie’s Lounge in San Francisco.

Credits
Written, produced, and mixed by Julius Smack between Los Angeles and New York, 2024. Additional vocals on “Waiting For The Daylight” and “Green River Water” by Josephine Shetty. AI assistant vocal performance by Anna Luisa Petrisko on “Waiting For The Daylight” and “Starlight”. Mastered by Salz Mastering. Artwork by Danny Espinoza. Layout by Peter Hernandez.

Julius Smack - Green River Water

Portlander Paul Dickow, as Strategy, presents his latest album— A Cooler World. Fascinated by the unfamiliar limitations and inherent playability of a hand-me-down, 1989 model sampling keyboard, he played these pieces by hand, mostly abandoning the sequencer driven framework of sampling based music; he plays the sampler here the way a guitarist approaches the guitar. A Cooler World is a deep dive into glacial, pensive soundscapes that navigate the boundaries between experimental, ambient, and dance music. The pieces unfold with deliberate intention, expressed in a sound vocabulary that originates in the futurism of ambient techno, yet they open to the serendipitous outcomes of his instrumental experimentation. One of his few albums that fully commits to ambience, with this new album, everything is slowed down, gesturing towards stillness, and transformed into something otherworldly under a blanket of snow. Paul has released records as Strategy on Peak Oil, Kranky, and so many others. Prolific and motivated, Paul crafts his music to fill unanswered musical riddles and unexplored rabbit holes he discovers in his capacities as experimenter, record collector, and DJ.

Paul has released records as Strategy on Kranky, 100% Silk, Geographic North, Peak Oil, Further Records, Field Hymns, and so many others. Prolific and motivated, Paul considers himself “a record collector first, DJ second, musician 3rd.” He crafts his music to fill creative voids he identifies in his capacities as collector and DJ.

Strategy - A Cooler World

Ekolali - Om Sömn - 02 Of Necessity to Each Animal

Ekolali - Om Sömn - 01 The Exercise of Sense Perception

A track from the album Love Knows Where out 07/11/15 on Constellation Tatsu.

Hakobune - curtains far seen

A track from the album Just Roll out 07/14/15 on Constellation Tatsu.

Dang Olsen Dream Tape - Hi Breath

A track from the album You're Still In It out 02/23/16 on Constellation Tatsu.

Chihei  Hatakeyama - You're still in it (Excerpt)

A track from the album Five Cambridge Utilities out 05/23/16 on Constellation Tatsu.

L'eoscombu Couti - U-III

A track from the album Zonk out 05/23/16 on Constellation Tatsu.

Dang Olsen Dream Tape - Twilite Girl

A track from the album Body Trip out 05/23/16 on Constellation Tatsu.

H Takahashi - Enter

A track from the album Terelan Canyon out 08/05/16 on Constellation Tatsu.

Mary Lattimore & Maxwell August Croy - Dominant Eye

A track from the album Fantastic Garden out 10/26/16 on Constellation Tatsu.

Rhucle - Little Hut

A track from the album In Arboreal Whispering out 10/26/16 on Constellation Tatsu.

Hakobune - Intransigence

A track from the album 'UV Sea' out 02/13/16 on Constellation Tatsu.

Forest Walker - Desert Lighthouse

A track from the album 'Terra Nova' out 10/03/17 on Constellation Tatsu.
FALL BATCH 2017

Angel 1 - Karaoke

A track from the album districtアトランティス out 02/05/16 on Constellation Tatsu.

districtアトランティス

memorygarden禅 - 中央駅

Track from the album Scene out 03/15/18 on Constellation Tatsu.

Chihei Hatakeyama - Blue Reminder

A track from the album More Beautiful Than Silence out 11/13/18 on Constellation Tatsu.

Rhucle - Warm Winds

A track from the album Enveloped out 02/26 on Constellation Tatsu.

Jordan Christoff - Wash

A track from the album Thought Texture out now on Constellation Tatsu.

Opaline - Inside Sky

A track from the album Island Alchemy out 11/19/19 on Constellation Tatsu.

Sofie Birch - Myg

A track from the album Samosi out 03/03/20 on Constellation Tatsu.

Saphileaum - Sagzali

A track from the album Music for Tomato Plants out now on Constellation Tatsu.

Loris S. Sarid - O Like A Tomato

adventurous with spiritual artistic sensibilities

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