starting simple. i'm very out of practice with the modular (one of the driving forces behind restarting the diary series). starting simple and stress free. here a self-playing loop with the 4MS SWN going through a make noise QPAS and strymon Magneto. baby steps.

January 01, 2022 (swans)

JFK: We Choose the Moon

Dave Bessell Chromatic Lightning Cage DiN84

Release date 15th March 2024
Limited to 250 copies Digipak CD

This new release from synthesist Dave Bessell sees him completing a quartet of albums loosely based on the Greek philosophy of the Four Elements, namely Fire, Water, Earth and Air. There’s certainly no doubting that “Chromatic Lightning Cage” with its vivid cover is referencing Fire but this personal odyssey started with the concept of Water on his inaugural solo album, “Analogue” released in 2010. This was followed by “Black Horses Of The Sun” (DiN47) - Air, and “Reality Engine” (DiN62) - Earth.

Bessell has also released three collaborations with Parallel Worlds on the DiN imprint as well as being part of the synth supergroup Node. It is interesting that whilst the Berlin School inspired sequencer riffs of the latter dominate the soundstage Bessell largely eschews this approach on his own albums. Rather on this and his other DiN solo releases he explores interesting harmonic progressions with a series of interlocking delicate arpeggios. This is most evident on the opening track “After Hours” as well as the beautiful closing piece “Elegy”. Elsewhere Bessell blurs the line between guitar and synth using his stringed instruments as controllers for his modular systems. His music has always had an element of the soundtrack to it and this is certainly highlighted in the track “Ariel” which has a mystical, unearthly quality to its soundscapes. Bessell has noted that the ghosts of Amon Tobin and Nils Frahm wander through this album at times which is certainly an intriguing thought.

Always one to push the boundaries Bessell has included a QR code in the Bandcamp download version of the album that opens up an augmented reality vista from the cover image. Lovers of Electronica, Downtempo, Ambient and Soundtracks will find much to admire in “Chromatic Lightning Cage” and this new album once again showcases the unique talent of this highly individual musician.

 
 01 After Hours   05:43
02 Forest Under The Sea   03:41
03 Darkening Air   07:17
04 Dream Of The Red Chamber   07:10
05 Ariel   05:01
06 Unheimlich   08:36
07 Nightshade   08:55
08 Moths   09:34
09 Elegy   06:31

Total Time :  62:46

Chromatic Lightning Cage

Buy CD / Download

Chromatic Lightning Cage by Dave Bessell (DiN84) Demo Mix

UPDATE (20 Aug 2015): What made the comet sing? Scientists working on Rosetta's RPC instrument have found out why 67P/C-G was singing. Via http://wp.me/p46DHN-1nN
==
ORIGINAL Citation (Oct 2014): Rosetta’s Plasma Consortium (RPC) has uncovered a mysterious ‘song’ that Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko is singing into space. The comet seems to be emitting a ‘song’ in the form of oscillations in the magnetic field in the comet’s environment. It is being sung at 40-50 millihertz, far below human hearing, which typically picks up sound between 20 Hz and 20 kHz. To make the music audible to the human ear, the frequencies have been increased in this recording. This sonification of the RPC-Mag data was compiled by German composer Manuel Senfft (www.tagirijus.de).  Read full details in ESA's Rosetta blog: http://wp.me/p46DHN-Li 

Copyright Notice

Original Data Credit: ESA/Rosetta/RPC/RPC-MAG
Sonification: TU Braunschweig/IGEP/Manuel Senfft, CC-BY-NC-SA 4.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/

Thumbnail image credit: ESA/Rosetta/NAVCAM – CC BY-SA IGO 3.0

A Singing Comet

Various Artists Tone Science Module No.9 Theories and Conjectures DiN:TS09

Release date 19th April 2024
Limited to 500 copies. Digipak CD format

Tone Science sub-label, from DiN records, continues to explore the world of modular synth music.

Following the success and critical acclaim of the first eight Tone Science compilation albums,  DiN label boss Ian Boddy has collated another nine tracks from musicians of varying backgrounds  working in the realms of modular synthesis.

As the Tone Science journey continues it never ceases to amaze just how varied and individualistic  each musicians work can be. Whilst the hardware is technologically based each artist teases out a reflection of their own musical personality.

This volume kicks off with two pointillistic compositions from Loula Yorke and State Azure with intertwining sequencer patterns flowing and coiling around to create ever changing soundscapes.

After this energetic start the next pair of tracks from Theda Electronic Music and Swansither enter calmer, ambient territory where careful sculpting of synthesiser voices creates room for expression and atmosphere.

The mid-point of the album sees Sulk Rooms take us into darker territory with a drone based piece that slowly climbs from the undergrowth like some great creature arising from its slumber.

The next three tracks from Tomorrow The Cure, JacqNoise and Alex Ball are rhythmically based and showcase just how different the feel and energy of music made with modular synths can be with pure tones, deep bass and transient blips respectively. 

Finally Michael J. York leads us gently into the distance with a beautiful, shimmering cocoon of  blissful sound to close out the album.

“Tone Science Module No.9 Theories and Conjectures” continues the journey down the rabbit hole of possibilities and sound worlds inhabited by artists and musicians working in this ever fascinating and varied musical field.

01 Eala by Loula Yorke   7:44
02 Scanner by State Azure   8:23
03 Per-Bast by Theda Electronic Music   7:24
04 Muad’Dib by Swansither   7:04
05 Grasping The Eye Of The Duck by Sulk Rooms   6:43
06 Minimum by Tomorrow The Cure   6:18
07 Lono by JacqNoise   5:51
08 Adaption by Alex Ball   6:23
09 And They Shall Have Stars by Michael J. York   6:20

Total Time: 62:28

Tone Science Module No.9 Theories and Conjectures

Buy CD / download

Tone Science Module No.9 Theories And Conjectures Demo Mix

Dusty

Artist: exm
Track: "Meltt"
Album: Modulus
Label: Touched Music
Release date: July 21, 2017
Review: http://igloomag.com/reviews/exm-modulus-touched-music
Track: Exclusive stream July 14, 2017

exm - Meltt

Our third release will be this meditative masterpiece by Takashi Kokubo. 

Containing three tracks from the Sanyo air conditioner classic 'Get At The Wave' with a previously unreleased 15 minute 'Ocean Breeze' on the b side. 

Available for pre-order @ www.lagrecords.com

Symphony Of Glory And Wind

The Stanford Experimental Physics Lab sonified data from the European Space Agency and NASA's Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO). This humming sound captures the Sun’s natural vibrations and provides scientists with a concrete representation of its dynamic movements.

For more solar sounds, visit: http://soi.stanford.edu/results/sounds.html

Sun Sonification

Vibrations by ModeAudio - Rain Or Shine

Angel's Flight

As Bright as the Night

Hello, we’re NASA. You may have seen our astronauts, rocket launches, or Mars rovers — but have you heard our sounds? From interviews with astronauts and engineers to stories that take you on a tour of the galaxy, NASA’s audio offerings let you experience the thrill of space exploration without ever leaving Earth.