Natural Life Essence - Wetlands

Liquid Frog Records: 2020

Yep, didn't take long at all getting back to a little N:L:E action. This is probably what a hefty chunk of the next year is gonna' look like on this blog: some item from Mr. Giacovino, some random psy trance CD, and whatever else I happen to get sprinkled among them. Hmm, may need to bulk buy something else to break that up even further, but what? A proper dark ambient splurge? Some random retro-jungle net label? Another in the seemingly endless ambient drone options? Or maybe a genre wildly outside my wheel-house, like contemporary outlaw country or Victorian opera! I'm sure there's some Bandcamp newsletters covering such things to get my feet wet with.

Keeping with a somewhat soggy theme of his explorations of our planet's various biomes, Wetlands finds Juan Pablo taking a tour of the marshier realms of our planet. He even recently released a sequel to this, but after I did the full discography purchase of his Bandcamp catalogue, so that won't be getting covered at this time (if at all). For an idea of just how relentless our intrepid Argentinian has been in releasing music, Wetlands 2 came out just a half-year after I bought all he (then) currently had, and is something like the thirteenth item out since. Oh, and another five items have come out on Liquid Frog Records after Wetlands 2! At this rate, by the time I get through all the material I have bought from Juan Pablo, he'll have essentially doubled his discography.

Straight up, there aren't a pile of field recordings in this album, so if you were coming in hoping to hear frogs croaking, crickets chirping, alligators growling, egrets squawking, and mosquitoes buzzing, you've come to the wrong record, my friends. I actually had to look up what variety of sounds you might hear in a swampland, surprisingly few noisy fauna existing in such areas. Not that I was expecting critters like whirligig beetles and water skippers being terribly vocal, but who knew frogs were so dominant?

Anyhow, Wetlands is a tidy little nine-tracker of pleasant chill-out vibes and dubby grooves. Everything sounds nice and spacious, letting echoing synth pulses glide into the distance. Melodies maintain a relatively calm and tranquil atmosphere, with enough variety such that tracks do stand out, even if the overall experience may not (Juan Pablo isn't straying far from the roads typically taken with this genre). I was given hardcore Kitaro flashes in The Bioreserve (those whistling synths!), Liliums features a nice bit of acoustic guitar plucking, and Water Hyacinth [ Moving And Full ] has a surprisingly thick bassline compared to the rest of the album, even getting a little 'croaky' at parts. Huh, would have expected that out of Frog Pond.

So another solid outing from Natural Life Essence. I've a feeling I'm gonna' be typing that a lot, no matter how deep I've gotten into his discography. I mean, that kinda' was a reason I bought the whole damn thing.

The Future Sound Of London - We Have Explosive 2021

fsoldigital.com: 2021

Of course this was up for a modern remix album. Aside from Papua New Guinea, it's possibly FSOL's most well known single. Not that it was their best, oh no. It's just when all of '90s electronic music reached its 'electronica' fever pitch, the blunt, big beat brashness of We Have Explosive made all the rounds of the compilation circuit. One can't help but suspect Brian and Garry made this as stupid-simple as possible, a far cry from all the psychedelic, 'future sounding' music they'd been making since signing with the Mighty Virgin. But hey, the trick worked, We Have Explosive remaining one of their most recognizable productions to this day. Nothing will get you hype speeding down super-sonic racing tracks like hearing those blaring digital alarms and funky guitar licks.

That did have me mulling over a question though: what else can you do with We Have Explosive? Or more importantly, was there anything else I cared to hear? The original and Herd Killing are all I know, and was quite content leaving it at that. Unlike various forms of Cascade and Lifeforms, I've never heard alternates of We Have Explosive floating about, leading me to conclude all that was ever needed out of it was accomplished with the album variants, the extended takes unnecessary to all but completists. And given the FSOL boys have long been uninterested in returning to boshy dance music, there didn't seem much room for further exploration of the track. Still, that doesn't mean they wouldn't give it the ol' London college try.

The original kicks things off, and though given a little extra production beef and flair, it's basically as you remember it in the years 1996 and 1997. Ah, the memories of that utterly bizarre music video with the bobble heads and plugs come rushing back. Implosive, meanwhile, takes things into rockier pastures – or psych-rock in this case, followed upon by a heavy, trip-hop take with Abandoned Housing Blocks Of Prypiat. Jonesing for something more experimental and modern? Tracks like Vaporise and Slide Door will have you covered, all skittery broken beats and minimalist soundscapes – almost sounds like they'd be more at home on an Environments CD.

Okay, so FSOL can take We Have Explosive into some nifty tangents, but c'mon, let's hear some real kick-ass stuff, mates! Detonation basically chops and screws everything up into a funky freak-out, Herd Killing is also given the 2021 're-beefening' treatment, Exploding ramps things up into drum 'n' bass territory, and Exotype... Holy shit, this is some menacing-as-fuck frantic breakcore shite! Ah, the 'what if' possibilities of FSOL going full IDM, eh?

A few more sampledelic groovers round out the rest, including Waiting Your Return, which borrows more from Vit Drowning and Through Your Gills I Breathe than We Have Explosive. Ah sweet, those are some of my favourite 'deep cuts' out of the classic FSOL catalogue. Well played, good sirs, you've given me more than I'd hoped for.

Tristan - Way Of Life

Nano Records: 2014

Well, I appreciate Audiodrome more now.

Not that Way Of Life is bad. For a collection of standard Israeli full-on psy, it's competently crafted, hitting all the high points it needs to without falling back on cheesy riffs or tired tropes ...often. One track does feature a triplet breakdown, which were a tired cliche even before the '10s took shape, but the sense I get from these tracks is they're mostly in service of giving the party people what the want, and little else. And if Tristan Cooke is fine with making such stuff, that's fine too. It's just, y'know, after hearing some of his more challenging tunes on his debut, it makes him settling on standard party psy so many years later a bit of a let down.

Right, it's not like I was singing high praises for Tristan's explorations of just how minimal psy trance could go on Audiodrome, but I did give a fancy tip of the hat for the attempt. I thought he carried on down that road, though come to think of it, I never really saw his name brought up in dark psy circles. Part of that, I assumed, was simply due to lack of releases. Following his debut, he put out another LP on Twisted Records - Substance - then went on production hiatus for half a decade. He re-emerged on Nano Records with Chemisphere, then took another seven years before coming out with this here Way Of Life. He's mostly stuck things out with single-song collaborations since, including pairings with ManMadeMan, Vini Vici, and a variety of Nano artists I'm in no hurry to scope out. Like, let me at least get through Suntrip Records' catalogue before dabbling in another psy trance label where, if some Discoggian claims are true, this album from Tristan is among its highlights.

Right off the bat, I couldn't help but think, “Oh. He's doing what everyone else is doing now. Huh.” Talking In Technicolour features all the things anyone with a passing fancy for modern psy trance will have heard: peppy plastic bassline, squawky synths, spacey fills, cheeky vocal samples. There are sections that remind me of Tristan of old, cybernetic sounds during the usually wibbly portions of any full-on track. When they're paired with so many stock elements though, little really leaps out either. Tracks like Time & Space, Excitement Generator and Parallel Reality are perfect examples, their early portions taken up by trippy, digital effects, Tristan at his best. Then the second half goes for a standard full-on build, dragging such sounds in tow whether they're suited for it or not. Again, not bad in of itself, just feeling like they could have been something far more daring.

I dunno'. Maybe Tristan received backlash for going as minimal as he once did, or knew those roads were creative (and financial) dead-ends. Nothing wrong with playing things safer in such a fickle scene as psy trance's. Just doesn't do much to stand out from the glut either.

The Shape - Waveshape Fiction

Anodize/Intellitronic Bubble: 2014/2020

This is the second half of the double album that included _Nyquist's Sonic Periapsis, the fun little gimmick from Intellitronic Bubble of including two completely separate LPs for the price of one. I guess this makes the official first one of these I've completed? Like sure, I've technically done that with the double deal of Skua Atlantic's Atlantic Fusion and Devroka's Processor Overlord, but only by happenstance of already reviewing the Databloem version of Atlantic Fusion. As for the second half of the release containing G-Prod's Space Time's Bubbles LP, that won't be for quite a while yet.

As a side note, why did the label abandon this concept after just a handful of releases in 2020? I get Lee and Árni focusing more on the vinyl side of things, CDs relegated to compilations. This was such a cool idea though, luring in potential new audiences with such plumb deals. Or maybe that's all it was ever intended to be, some nifty CD deals getting folks through the door, keeping them after for the real highlights of all those lathe cut records. Not a bad marketing strategy, nosiree, but man, I cannot deny hoping they make a small return to these 2-for-1 releases as well. They've been handy in nabbing re-released hard copies of some real obscure stuff. Why yes The Shape's Waveshape Fiction is one such item.

Though the alias may be obscure and easily forgotten, the man behind it most definitely is not, as this is another in a great number of Mick Chillage projects. Actually, check that: Mr. Gainsford doesn't really have that many outside his main one – it just feels that way because I keep running into them. Heck, this is the second time I have within these Intellitronic Bubble bundles alone (he's one-half of Skua Atlantic, in case you forgot). I wanted to make a 'Bill Laswell quip' here, but it seems inappropriate, so I'll let it slide.

Anyhow, I hear why Mick adopted a one-off alias for this record, as it's nothing like his usual Chillage tuneage. He was well into his Pixels phase with Anodize that same year (to say nothing of the sublime work coming out on Carpe Sonum Records), putting the unapologetic retro-electro of Waveshape Fiction well out of sorts from his discography. Heck, I'm surprised this even appeared on Anodize, though I haven't had much chance to properly dig into that label. Burned too bright too fast, sadly.

After the album kicks off with the more chill Stranger Than Fiction, we're thrust head-first into second-wave electro – think vintage Anthony Rother and Boris Divider, with a tad less menace. Super dope if you can't get enough of the stuff, but little in the way of surprises either. Mick handles the genre quite well, with a few earworms scattered about the broken robot rhythms and futureshock synths. Still, I get the sense this was more of a fun lark on Mr. Gainsford's part than any serious exploration of the genre.

SVLBRD - The Waves

Faint: 2023

I'd like to think by now, Agustin Mena has established himself quite well within the larger ambient pantheon. Not an easy task, mind, that scene utterly inundated with such artists everywhere (to say nothing of the looming prospect of A.I. ambient spewing itself all over streaming services). In the few years since I myself stumbled upon his Archives print (thanks, Purl!), I feel like I've seen the label crop up in many more places than ever before. Which is great for getting that all-important exposure, but kinda' sucks for those who still want to buy physical copies of their product. Dammit, it was so much easier snagging CDs before everyone knew they existed!

Fortunately, there's Archives' sub-label, Faint, featuring dubby ambient with more of a techno pulse, and doesn't sell out of CDs ...erm, quite as fast. Some still do, dang'nabbit, but at least it feels like I've more a fighting chance to nab a disc or two when they drop, Faint not getting quite as much attention as Archives. Eh, just settle for a digital copy? But MP3 files look awful on my shelves!

As with his main label, Agustin's sub-label catalogue features a hefty amount of his own releases, operating under the alias of SVLBRD. It's not quite as fruitful as Warmth, which isn't that surprising, since Mr. Mena seems to crank out the ambient drone in his sleep. These tracks require a little more, y'know, thought, and consideration, what there being rhythms and all.

Actually, if his most recent album The Waves is anything to go by, SVLBRD features a rather simple idea: Warmth layers of ambient pads, with sparse dubby techno in support. Hey, it's a remarkably effective idea, it's just at twelve tracks long, the album does grow a tad samey after a while. Don't get me wrong, the synth work is lush as anything you'll hear from the archives of, erm, Archives. It's just when you hear the same deep bass throb and skittery hi-hats fed through plenty of reverb without much variation, an LP can start fading into the background of one's attention without some variation of the base elements. So it goes for dub techno, though.

Right, there are subtle differences among the tracks. For one, most of the rhythms are of a broken-beat nature, so we're not dealing with a strict exercise in techno functionalism in that sense. The mood also does vary, some pieces chipper (The Cliff, The Bay, The Lighthouse), some reflective (Crescent Moon, The Crossing, The Reef). The Storm, apropos of its name, features more of a rolling bassline compared to the other tracks' steady boppin'. And of course, it wouldn't be an Agustin album without at least a few regular ol' ambient pieces (Anchor, Abyssal, Seas).

The Waves presents itself with minimal fuss, Agustin more or less jamming about with his core elements. It's nice while it plays, and though few tracks will leave a strong imprint upon you, you'll at least come away rather blissed after.

Natural Life Essence - Wave Bio Generator

CYAN: 2017

Hm, been a bit longer than I anticipated coming back to Natural Life Essence in one form or another. Maybe going through his entire Bandcamp discography won't be as repetitive as I initially thought. *glances tenatively at the rest of 'W'*.

When Juan Pablo was starting out nearly a decade ago, the bulk of his releases were through CYAN, a free netlabel out of Germany primarily run by Jaja and Marco Köller, which they released their own material through. It was successful enough to lure in a myriad of other artists though, including Natural Life Essence with the album Hidrogenesis. This particular album, Wave Bio Collector, captures about the middle of that run. Which probably also explains why Juan was still using his original alias, not adopting N:L:E until he went fully independent. Hopefully these introductory paragraphs for future Natural Life Essence reviews won't be as boring as this one.

So the music. Looking at track titles, I thought I was in for something super-heavy on the field recordings side. Frogs And Toads (Hipnotic Swamp Choir); Geckos Tangled Trip (On A Confused Turtle); Spiders Trip... While there are samples of forest and swampy critters scattered about, it isn't the album's primary focus. Heck, that 'Swamp Choir' features more chattering birds than croaking reptiles within its peaceful ambient drone. Follow-up Snails Caravan (Snails Down The Mountain Dragonfly's Point Of View) mostly carries on the tranquil ambience with some added buzzing dub treatments, a simple rhythm of tribal drums and... a regular drum kit in a hall? Well, whatever, they gradually emerge with some added melodic bits, then abruptly ends on a hard fade-out. I only point this out as being odd because no other track just... ends like that, most quite content with a gentler fade. Makes me wonder if this was some weird production or upload flub.

Anyhow, the rest of the album mostly carries on in a typical world beat slash ambient dub sort of way. Mosquitos Trip On Train (Green Train Mix) has a fun little groove about it, and includes the requisite last train to the deep forest samples. The aforementioned Geckos Tangled Trip gets even groovier into the reggae dub bounce, while Slugs Caravan (Caravan Is Approaching) opts for more of a meditative vibe. Spiders Trip, meanwhile, does the multi-part thing, the first sticking to pulsing Berlin-School ambience, the second bringing in funkier ambient techno rhythms. Think I rather prefer the beatless version. Finally, Climbing Leaf (Hipnotic Petalum) features more synth pads, tranquil samples, and gentle, echoing rhythms. Really selling the feeling of a wide-open nature, 'tis.

So the base elements are all solid enough, but if I must quibble (and I must, since the title of this blog implies I will), the rhythms do come across rather flat and plastic at times. Like, this album could have used another pass on the mixdown. It's far from a deal-breaker, but if you demand immaculate production, you may not get as much out of Wave Bio Collector .

SadGirl - Water

Suicide Squeeze: 2019

”So [Vol. 3 – Head To The Mountains] wasn't what I expected or hoped for, not really convincing me SadGirl was actually a contemporary surf rock band. And yet, I still went and ordered their debut album, Water. Go figure.”

Flash forward nearly four years later, and here I am, finally reviewing the darn thing! If you ever wanted an idea of how backed up my queue has gotten, that's as good an indicator as any. I'm starting to wonder if I should even bother with the alphabetical stipulation at all. Like, it was a handy bit of organization when I was initially going through my original music collection, a definitive end-point to work towards. Now that that's done and dusted, however, what real need for it is there? Legacy? Maintaining a gimmick well past its usefulness? What I'm getting at is, for all practical purposes, shouldn't I now review items I get as I get them, rather than let them languish in a 'To-Review' pile for years, long after their 'hot on the streets' drop dates have cooled? Mind, if I was doing that, I'd probably still be going through all those goa trance CDs I bought earlier this year. Yeah, maybe let's keep things as are for now...

Anyhow, SadGirl. The band was tapped by Bandcamp as one of the nu-surf scene's ascendant acts, and at the time, they certainly seemed primed as such. A run of solid singles with eye-popping artwork, a debut album primed for launch... What could go wrong? Oh, yeah, that whole pandemic thing. That would stall any musical career dependent upon live shows for sustainability, and it seems SadGirl stalled indeed, nothing new released for a couple years now. Maybe they'll reconvene for a comeback, but as it stands, Water remains their lone LP.

They don't waste any time letting you know you're in for 'life's a beach' vibes either. Opener The Ocean immediately drops you into a lazy, hazy, dreamy bit of echo-drenched croon, organs swaying and electric guitars sliding. Follow-up Chlorine gets more into the cabaret side of classic rockabilly, while instrumental Hazelnut Coffee may have your Khruangbin triggers flaring. If you have any Khruangbin triggers to flare in the first place, that is. Y'know, the sort of easy-peasy tiki lounge jam music best enjoyed while laying in a hammock, frilly drink in hand.

Water mostly flits about such songs for its duration, unashamed in its ultra-retro aesthetic, never upping the tempo to more than a lukewarm simmer. I guess that doesn't really make it a proper surf rock album, even though you can't help but be reminded of endless waves as the sun sets below the distant ocean horizon. Forever remembering those loves lost, drifting somewhere out at sea while you remain landlocked and moribund. Oh yeah, the metaphors on this album are rather blunt and obvious, but hey, it is a surf record, a genre of music that was seldom ever subtle in execution.

God Body Disconnect - The Wanderer's Dream

Cryo Chamber: 2021

I was fairly active giving Cryo Chamber annual shine, but apparently it's been twenty months since I last talked them up! It's not for a lack of material attracting my interest, oh no. They simply drifted for a while, putting yet another Bandcamp bulk buy on the back burner. And further... and further... Or maybe getting properly physically active made listening to dark ambient music an unnecessarily depressing distraction? Nah, couldn't be.

Just as well, then, that Simon Heath has expanded the variety of cinematic drones available on his label. Explorations in urban reflections, noir, sci-fi that isn't straight-up cosmic horror... even some regular ol' meditative ambient. Okay, it's often of a more melancholic bent, not really the best backing music when aligning one's chakras or whatever. Compared to the outright oppressive drone that marked Cryo Chamber's early releases, however, we may as well be talking about Dreamloop sessions.

One of the label's earlier breakout acts, God Body Disconnect, actually wormed a few such gentle pieces within his albums. Indeed, Mr. Moallem's debut album, Dredge Portals, worked so effectively because of that contrast. I can't say I kept tabs on his material much after that though. Yeah, I eagerly snatched the pseudo-sequel Sleeper's Fate, but couldn't help but feel Bruce might hit a creative dead-end in doing the 'spoken word' gimmick over and over. I honestly haven't indulged in all of his material since to find out, but wanted to dive back in somewhere. Hence, me checking out this two year old album, The Wanderer's Dream.

First off, just look at that cover! Nothing about it strikes you as dark ambient, does it. Sure, some of the grainy, weathered aesthetic may suggest a grainy, weathered sound within, but for the most part, you could hang this on your wall with some regular naturalist artwork and have few side-glances in the process. It's a shockingly bright, almost sunny piece, the coming light of a new dawn. But this is Cryo Chamber, mang'! Ain't no way the ambient dronescape within can be as pleasingly light.

Well, maybe not, but it certainly is peaceful. A relatively short album at forty-seven minutes total, The Wanderer's Dream basically captures those melancholic moods one may feel when out for a stroll in the early hours of the day, particularly after being up all night lost in anxious thoughts. It isn't necessarily depressive, finding it soothing for depressive thoughts, a steady, calming tone with comforting harmonies easing one out of self-induced stress. Not to say there aren't moments of apprehension either, they just aren't the norm, and often nicely counter-balanced shortly after.

Another all-time classic from God Body Disconnect, then? Eh, I can't say as such. While the ambient on hand is quite nice, and definitely a departure from the Cryo Chamber norm, it is a relatively common sort, as heard from many other sources. A worthy addition to the label's canon, for sure, but probably all-too easily overlooked from ambient connoisseurs abroad.

Sykonee's 'Sportsing' Surveys: NORMAN COOK

The man, the myth, the legend: Norman Cook. Everyone knows at least a couple songs out of his catalogue, whether they want to or not. To this day, I'll hear Praise You on a grocery store speaker, or Right Here, Right Now at a sporting event. What about the rest, though? With a career spanning some forty years, surely he's done more to be known for other than tunes like The Rockafeller Skank.

Some, yes, but I realized my own knowledge of these various bands, productions, and projects was severely lacking. Heck, I only have two of his Fatboy Slim albums as it is - well, if you consider a 'kiddie clean version' a proper copy of Halfway Between The Gutter And The Stars. Digging through Mr. Cook's extended discography, however, yields plenty of material to sift through, more than enough to satisfy my survey requirements. Sounds about right to finally know the rest of the Norman Cook story, as Paul Harvey might say. (he'd never say that ...don't know if Paul Havery would even know what a Fatboy Slim is)













Well, that was a lot more music than I was expecting, especially so in the acid jazz lane. And yet, I still feel like I only scratched the surface, so much of Norman's career defined by DJing accomplishments as much as anything he did in the production booth. Wish I could say much of it inspired me to nab a few more items proper-like, but it does appear I already got the cream of the crop.

That one dusted, think it's about time I tackle a band that, while maybe not be the best for 'sportsing' to, has been on the perifery of my curiosity: Stereolab! I've a feeling it'll be a rather... challenging outing, especially coming off the 'what you hear is what you get' simplism of Norman Cook.

Various - VVAA - The Sky Sampler Vol. 2

Espacio Cielo: 2022

This is another one of those 'when did I get this?' items – they seem to be growing more common within my Bandcamp library. I'm assuming someone shared a link to the label's homepage, I browsed a couple releases, then snagged a couple items. Who or why this happened by, your guess is as good as mine, a chance of happenstance discourse and all that.

Which hey, is fine and dandy this day in age, getting recommendations from friends and folks I trust opinions of. About the only other way to 'discover' something new is pure dumb luck. Oh, sure, I could go by what a streaming service's discovery algorithm thinks I may like based upon previous listening habits, but where's the fun in that? Nay, give me the alluring thrill of the hunt, the satisfying sense of accomplishment upon hearing music you hadn't considered before, possibly only shared by a handful of others in an increasingly over-saturated market. Also, streaming service discovery algorithms generally suck ass. Stop suggesting me Tim Hecker, got'dang it, I know who he is!

Anyhow, Espacio Cielo is a relatively new net label, emerging at the start of this decade with artists like Parissior, Azaria, Andreas Rund, MI.RO, and Cannibal Coconuts. Mostly a blend of space synth, dark disco, and New Beat acid, their oozing retro vibes are undeniably infectious (hm, I think I remember who put this on to me now). Couple that with early cover art cribbing planetary beauty shots, and it's no wonder why I'd at least give them at least a casual ear-glance. And what better place to get a sampling than a sampler compilation called VVAA – The Sky Sampler Vol 2?

David Body kicks things off with Inside Out, a total electro love-in with grand cosmic strings attached. No, seriously, how can one tracks sound so epic while being so booty-shakin'? Follow-up Cielo Rojo from Tierra de Ovnis almost can't help but be a bit of a let-down, a straight-forward mechanical chugger with sparse robotic noises. Cool as a transitional piece in a tech-house set, I guess, but man, after flying so high with Inside Out, I wasn't ready to come down from that space.

Silicodisco and Futuristant provide a track that's more in Espacio Cielo's wheelhouse, He's Coming, a fairly standard little cosmic disco outing, while Parissior's Resistance follows them with some gritty New Beat boogie. Finally, Jay-Son closes The Sky Sampler Vol 2 with Chronicles Of Hedonism, a tasty blend of synthwave and New Beat ...which I guess is officially called dark disco? I dunno, that genre always seems to have eight different people providing slightly different variants of a sound that's highly reminiscent of something that already exists. Genre rabbit holes, amirite?

So a glorious start to this compilation, with a solid enough run with the rest. Obviously I shouldn't go expecting mind-melting material from a self-professed sampler, but as a taste of what Espacio Cielo's about, this mini-comp accomplishes that.