More often than not, a respected label introduces me to a new artist or a project. Sometimes, a rare instance occurs in reverse, where a favourite artist appears on a previously unknown [to me] label. This is the case with the Philadelphia-based Andrew Tasselmyer, whom I’ve been a fan of for his solo ambient releases on imprints such as Shimmering Moods, Constellation Tatsu, Polar Seas, Eilean, Home Normal, and laaps, among the many, but also as a member of Hotel Neon, which I’ve been following via Past Inside the Present, Thesis, Archives, Sound in Silence, and Fluid Audio. All of those are very familiar to me – in fact, you can find most of them in my Labels Directory, but the Las Vegas-based Mystery Circles is definitely new, and I only recognise a few names on its roster. So, more for me to hear! Now, back to the release! Titled Where Substance Meets Emptiness, this 8-piece album features more than just Tasselmyer’s beautiful ambience, with some piano keys and field recordings. There are lots of sparkling and shuffling beats and percussive elements reminiscent of the early IDM era, where harmony met rhythm. The track I am premiering for you today, “Flowers in a Storm”, reminds me of those days when I would listen to Arovane, Dabrye, Metamatics, Deaf Center, and Secede. This makes me want to revisit my very own liftmuziek sessions!

"Beyond the edge of the world there’s a space where emptiness and substance neatly overlap, where past and future form a continuous, endless loop. And, hovering about, there are signs no one has ever read, chords no one has ever heard.
— Haruki Murakami (Kafka on the Shore)

Taking in the magical surrealism of the celebrated Japanese author, Tasselmyer composes music that fades in and out of reality, bridging the atmospheric world of dreams and the present moment, where we find ourselves floating and merging with all the beautiful vibrations. Featuring some sonic postcards from his friends (Steven Kemner, Dave Mantel, and Sean Galloway), Tesselymyer paints a new world to traverse – one that is as imaginary as it is real, where “ordinary methods and immediate results are ditched along with their traditional maps in order to reach uncharted places of the imagination.” It’s an absolute pleasure to wander within this open space, and I find myself pleasantly lost among its many turns and expansive pastures.

The full album is out tomorrow, January 30th, 2024, on Mystery Circles. Mastered by Taylor Deupree, it is available as a digital, CD, or cassette edition. Beautiful album cover by his brother, Michael.

Where Substance Meets Emptiness

Flowers in a Storm

TRACK PREMIERE : Andrew Tasselmyer - Flowers in a Storm

Today, we're back with a track by Tristan Eckerson, who records under his Purple Decades moniker for the Portland-based Beacon Sound imprint. This piece is taken from his second album, Fraction of Centuries, where Eckerson continues experimenting with new textures, "creating an expansive zone of contemplation for his listener." I think that "Completely Still" is a perfect example of the aesthetic captured by this composer. Lo-fi tape hiss is holding up the lightly sprinkled synth keys as sweeps and drones slowly fill out the resonant crevices of the spacial landscape. The reverberated pads swell in as the fog slowly crawls over the sleepy lagoon, and the bass then awakens the cavernous rumble. Time stands still in this sonic projection, inviting the listener to pause, maybe close their eyes, take a breath, and awaken into another moment. With its glistening minimalism and neoclassical undertones, the music is an invitation to slow down, especially if you're a fan of contemplating the vastness of time, much like the surreal imagery that inspired its title. I've previously premiered a video from Eckerson's debut, Journey Test, and if you like this piece, I recommend you lead off there.

Fraction of Centuries

Completely Still

TRACK PREMIERE : Purple Decades - Completely Still

There is something special about that dark and nostalgic music that seems to be echoing from the past, as if breaking through another dimension of time, trembling through the gritty playback on a warped and dusty tape, fading in and out on a crumbling old photograph, shades of colours long gone... long gone. The music of Black Swan has embraced this noir-fi aesthetic throughout the years, ever since I first heard the debut, In 8 Movements, released in 2010. Immersed in chilling ambience, hauntology, and the ephemera left behind, the music of Black Swan captures the eerie essence of the in-between, exploring the shadowed depths that linger at the periphery. Exactly twelve years ago, I invited this mysterious artist from New York to make me a Halloween-themed mix, which I published here as Music For Masquerade. Today, I am premiering two tracks for you from his upcoming album on Past Inside The Present, titled Ghost, to be released, of course, on Halloween. This is now his ninth full-length release, in which the spirits roam in our world, leaving their voiceprints on abandoned reel-to-reels to be discovered and played back. And as the twenty pieces and vignettes recede and fade away, all we are left with are the memories imprinted on our hearts and minds. The memories of those who are long gone... long gone. As we will be some day.

Read more on Headphone Commute:
https://headphonecommute.com/2024/10/29/black-swan-somewhere-but-here-and-time-loop/

Ghost

Somewhere But Here and Time Loo

TRACK PREMIERE : Black Swan - Somewhere But Here And Time Loop

Album preview for “Archipélagos” the latest collaborative project from Ghostloop and Henrik Meierkord.

Album link: https://atlantearecords.bandcamp.com/album/archip-lagos

Music by Ghostloop and Henrik Meierkord
Mastering by Tom Lievens
Cover art by Anthony Asher - Yates

Archipélagos [AR035] Preview

Taken from "Hääletu kaos (A Silent Chaos)"

A few copies left:

https://shimmeringmoodsrecords.bandcamp.com/album/h-letu-kaos-a-silent-chaos

Edition of 35 handmade CD packages, wallets, stamped, hand numbered.

Releases February 8, 2025 

Music by Bertil Aas. 
Photos by Annela Samuel 
Mastered by Andrea Porcu 

SHM 330 
Shimmering Moods Records 2025
license


Etüüd - Päikese punane kaja (Red Echo Of The Sun)

Ambient Dreamscapes for you to enjoy. Relax, unwind, meditate and chillout

DARK AMBIENT - TELESTHESIA

May facilitate a Serene calming experience. Sending Love!!

Serenity - McFiddles

None of us is a 
Simple utility. Our
Hearts cry out for more

::

Original music & haiku poetry by Bob Weathers

None of Us

I See Planets

Under The Blue

From "Pillars". Out on limited LP 1/10/2020

North Atlantic Drift - Astray

Track taken from Erik Williamson's upcoming album 'The Streets Are Quiet, But The Birds Very Loud', released through Fluid Audio...

Written & Produced by Erik Williamson at In My Room Studio 
Additional Piano Recorded at Alchemix Recording Studios
Mastered by Marly Lüske at Alchemix Recording Studios
Images by Erik Williamson
Design by Daniel Crossley
Thanks: Craig Tattersall / Cotton Goods

www.fluidaudio.bigcartel.com

The Streets Are Quiet, But The Birds Very Loud

Erik Williamson - Hunters In The Snow

Here are some original solo piano pieces...  some mixes from my podcast... some exclusive track premieres...  and some tracks from the albums I review on Headphone Commute... Enjoy!