techno|ambient|experimental

animal-vocalisations

Ng Chor Guan, composer from Malaysia, improvised on the piano inside the studio at the Montalvo Arts Center in Saratoga, California.  The open doors allowed the chorus of crickets to get involved.  I was standing on the threshold, wondering if Guan was listening to the crickets and/or if the crickets were listening to Guan.  The merlin from Manitoba, an accidental improvisor, worked her way into the piece thanks to the Borror Laboratory of Bioacoustics.  Frogs captured on a spring evening in the rose garden of the Chattanooga Choo Choo complex tie it all together, but these creatures see a great change at the end of the piece, just as they are experiencing great change in their environment on the Southside in Chattanooga.

He Draws Pictures On The Map

Insect March

Synthetic Nocturnal Atmosphere

Recorded on an iPhone in Nablus, April 17, 2017, around 4:30am.

Call to Prayer with Rooster and Other Pre-Dawn Birds

»island people« is a new band project consisting of mastering engineer conor dalton, grammy award winning producer david donaldson, musician and DJ graeme reedie and guitarist ian »chippy« maclennan. on their first self-titled record, they present their collaborative work that evolved over the past three years.
 
being based in different cities, namely berlin and glasgow, files had to be exchanged back and forth between the band members in order to create tracks. for their delicate sound structures, field recordings and other sound sources were heavily processed and rendered unrecognizable. layer after layer, the tracks came into being quite naturally, not only reflecting their continuous way of working, but also incorporating their different and individual backgrounds: »during the whole creation of the album, we never realized our actions were quickly leading us into forming »island people«, we were too busy having fun, making music and sharing ideas.«
 
the result of their collaboration is a timeless music that is as open as a natural phenomenon, developing a certain feeling of euphoria over time. all in all, »island people« is a pure listening record in the best tradition of ambient.

Island People

island people »ember« taken from »island people«

»decadent yet depraved«, the debut album by belief defect, finds shelter and complicity in raster as home and label.

familiar with the underground music scene and how its skeptical nature can also be an obstacle to overcome, belief defect abandon any claim or credit in an attempt to transcend the limits authorship imposes, avoid the boundaries or expectations earned or self imposed and find the clearest, most direct path to their music for themselves and the listener.

at the core of the album is the music that inspired them, the conclusion of countless recordings listened to in their formative years that ultimately result in a life-long devotion to electronic music: from dance floor to primal anger and self-annihilating noise, to transcendental, ambient escapism and intense self-reflexive sonic layering.

the result is a soundtrack for this apocalyptic time, an uncompromising reflection on the state of mankind and its uncertain future — underscored by a sense of religious and secular demise referenced in track titles, samples, and soundscapes scattered throughout the album.

yet, more than a political statement »decadent yet depraved« is an introspective journey, turning each listener into a spiritual soul-seeker staring into the abyss, reaching for some kind of cathartic truthfulness.

sculpture, prosthetics, photography by sarah sitken.

Decadent Yet Depraved

belief defect »deliverance« taken from »decadent yet depraved«

belief defect »no future« taken from »decadent yet depraved«

belief defect »unnatural instinct« taken from »decadent yet depraved«

belief defect »slipping away« taken from »decadent yet depraved«

Excerpt from a live performance at Freeform 01 in St. Petersburg, Russia on April 1, 2018

Bororo – Live at Freeform 01 in St. Petersburg

Andrew Pekler