bandcloud

Let Night Come On Bells End The Day by Sarah Davachi

I know it could be easy to lump these two albums together because they're both ambient albums made by women but they appeared in my life at the same time and I listened to them both a lot so that's all there is to it. Sarah Davachi's latest album came out on Recital, and I tweeted forlornly about it not being available digitally. Sure enough, it's up on Bandcamp now (and Boomkat I think). It's a great album with spectacular moments, grand gestures and quite respite. 'Mordents' opens like a quaint medieval round, three notes repeating while a solo drifts above. Then three minutes in a drone fades in, with slow virtuoso taking off slowly, as organs grow and swell relentlessly. I think it's the most amazing thing I've heard this year. Several times I've put this album on while sitting on the train home and I've dozed off only to wake in the middle of this glorious drama. 'At Hand' then is a quiet respite after that searing explsion. Davachi seems to release a few things every year and yet every one is as good as if not superior to the last.

No. 4 by christina vantzou

Like Davachi, Vantzou's (solo) albums tend to run in sequence, as evidenced by this one's title. This one opens beautifully, with 'Glissando for Bodies and Machines in Space', a gorgeous vocal treatise, and 'Percussion in Nonspace', with its bells and flutters. 'At Dawn' continues in a blissful vein, until 'Doorway' gets dark, with ominous chords and unsettling piano lines. Then there's an almost resigned happiness and stillness to 'Some Limited and Waning Memory', with its drifting vocals and expressive piano. This constant flow between beauty and sadness continues until the jolt of 'Lava', a sort of tape-shifted monster that's somewhere between shockingly bold and terrifying. By some freak chance I happened to read The Garden of Forking Paths by Jorge Luis Borges around the same time that I was first listening to this album. The penultimate track shares its name with that story (minus the definite article) and is full of a similar darkness and submission to the whims of time, in whatever direction they fall. This is just waffle now, but the whole album is so wonderfully (and understatedly) dramatic that it directs the listener to create their own kind of narrative to go with it. The album then closes with even more beauty, with a track done in collaboration with Steve Hauschildt.

AMB1805 by SW:SVN

A few months ago, I tweeted something about introducing a new "album of the month" feature. Whether that would just be a tumblr post or a separate mail, well, I never got as far as deciding that. It's April now, one quarter down, so I should have three albums written about, and yet. Life etc. 

The first album that grabbed me in 2018 actually came out last year on a limited CDr run of 60 copies from Chocolate Monk. It's called Scchh...phh and it's by Natalia Beylis. The artist shared it on Bandcamp early in January and I was grabbed by the accompanying text: "These two tracks here are made from tapes gathered and recorded throughout my days including home recordings made by my dad & by Willie. The earliest tape is one my father made of when I was just learning to speak." Naturally it’s a lot of weird stuff and garbled voices; indeed, the opening track is titled after a vocal sample that appears at one point – ‘They eat them head fucking first’. Instructional tapes, film soundtracks, field recordings, wavering musics, animal shrieks that seem to predict a coming earthquake or weather disaster, preachermans, rivers, having the chats, poetry. “The walls seem to be made of a material that glows with a light of its own, and the vast floor of the hall is composed of amethyst, looking like a luminous purple light. At first it seems so hushed and silent, but now that our inner ears are beginning to open, we can begin to hear the voices… like a choir of angels. Listen.” Opera, olde timey piano. “They swallow the entire snake. It’s the weirdest thing on the planet. Starting at the mouth. They eat them head fucking first. It doesn’t make any sense to me.” Glistening bells, radio phone-in conversations, prayer circles, answer-phone recordings, all of the above colliding, layer upon layer of confusion and belligerence. “She’s a good skin, one of the good ones. Not like Jamie.” What the fuck is it? It’s not music. It’s non-music. It’s brilliant. “I’m at home in Ireland with all my friends.” 

The second track, ‘Kukalka, Kukalka’, is (even) more abstract. It continues with animal sounds and tape hiss, but other tape sounds are more difficult to pin down. Muffled and muted recordings are played at low speeds and stop and start in confusing fashion. It sounds like a squabble, if that word meant the onomatopoeic sound of a tape wobbling along, rather than a petty argument. Clean sounds of nature meet television adverts and spooky vocals. “I used to be obsessed with owls.” Folk music. Backwards talk. Children babbling with their parents. There’s a point towards the end where that tape stretch is being played like an instrument. It’s the most fascinating part of what’s already a fascinating piece of work. It’s safe to say it’s not like anything you’ve heard lately. Thank you, Natalia. It’s also unlikely you’ll have it on repeat like ‘Blue Pedro’ or the latest ‘Peggy Gou’ release*. Sometimes you just need a galaxy brain release to make more sense of everything else. 

On The Illusion of an Alternative Choice, Simon Haydo used just one instrument, a Korg MS-20. I couldn’t give less of a shit. I heard the album before I knew this fact, and knowing it didn’t change anything for me. I typed this article on just one laptop. And? The whining theme of ‘Let Know’ is heart wrenching, a searing wail that cuts through the tough rumble of beats to claw at your brain and shred your heart. ‘Not For You?’ is a challenge, its title a rebuke to hastily written promo feedback. Some tracks bang like lusty industrial mechanisms, power and commerce embodied in mass production. Some shuffle awkwardly like a drunk making his way home. ‘Parade of Unhappy’ combines all these impulses, rattling like an out-of-control wind-up toy, marching towards the dance floor with brain-fucking aplomb. Overall this album just sounds cool. Maybe it’s because of the MS-20. Maybe it’s because Haydo has great ideas and a great ear. The titles lend meaning and credence to the idea that it’s all a fucking joke, somewhere between that big Unilever picture you see on Twitter and Mr Burns in a supermarket. The sounds bang and whir and sizzle. Don’t buy that album, buy this one. 

Unlike the two listed above, I actually featured Ursula K. Le Guin & Todd Barton’s Music and Poetry of the Kesh in one of the mails: 

Sadly I can't say I've read anything by Ursula K. Le Guin. Her 1985 work Always Coming Home tells of imagined peoples in California, one of them called the Kesh. On this album, originally released to accompany the book and now reissued by Freedom To Spend, she performed songs, music and poetry of these people, together with her collaborator Todd Barton. Folk songs, speech, music, it's a magical journey into another world, almost unfathomable how a human mind could create such wonder. 

My understanding of the work is limited to the experience of listening to it, but that experience itself has been magical. It opens with ‘Heron Dance’, a glorious stomp around a campfire led by thumping chords and a flute (?) line that’s just on the right side of irritating. Crickets and claps accompany ‘Yes – Singing’, its repeated chant almost religious in its incessance. Part of me yearns to understand but the rest of sits back and allows my mind to sink into the experience. A bit like with the MS-20, perhaps context might enhance or alter my appreciation of the work, but this is me now, listening and shaking my head in wonder. The laughter and silliness at the end of this one gives a real lived experience quality to the track, taking it from a performance within a performance and throwing out the artifice in place of sheer enjoyment and pleasure. The solo ‘Dragonfly Song’ feels like a recording of an innocent moment of private expression, something to be savoured with guilt, a bold intrusion. The doleful rumbling of ‘A Homesick Song’, meanwhile, begs to be shared, a repeated mantra making supplication clear in any language. Eeri woah**; Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani? It’s hard to know whose voice we’re hearing, as the liner notes simply credit “the Kesh”. As above, it sounds great. It’s an enriching experience (and I realise I’m using that word a lot here). The rich composition and sumptuous harmonies surpass the brilliance of its conception, meaning this is more than just a cool tape to go with a book. It’s a magnificent album that’s both a companion piece and a stellar work in its own right.

Anastasia Kristensen is a force to be reckoned with. Her online mixes are constantly banging, her tracks are subtle yet monstrous. I’m seeing her for the first time this weekend and I’m hyped for her set.

Bruce. Larry only put out one release this year (not counting the remixes of his tracks on Timedance) but that one was a beaut, and he was also a brilliant interview subject.

Call Super. Yet again my favourite DJ and producer gave us a consistent run of stellar music, from his life-affirming fabric mix to his split release with Shanti and his collab with Beatrice, and then of course there’s AOTY contender Arpo. 

Dublin Digital Radio. A world of thanks to the team and general community at DDR, it’s a wonderful place to have a home. Long may it flourish.

Emra Grid. Rivalling Arpo in the AOTY stakes was Emra Grid’s Shay’s Vacation House on Opal Tapes (on vinyl). A gorgeous album, its dolorous tones were matched by the dark intensity of its artwork. 

Family. Orla and Cathal are my world <3

Graham Dunning is such a dude. He makes weird techno, puts out tapes taped from tapes taped from tapes, his label is super weird and he’s just a lovely guy.

Helm put on a great show in Dublin’s Bello Bar, one of the rare mid-week gigs I got to attend this year. Shout out to Off Target for bringing him over. More things in store next year, keep your ears open.

Intrigued By The Drum by Ploy was probably his strongest release outright to date. Sure, his records have had bangers, but this one featured championship-winning strength in depth. From the trippy percussion of the title track to the haunted wind of ‘Zoom’, the nervous tension of ‘Blow Poke’ to the half-time olde worlde loopiness of ‘Bad Seed’, it’s a delight from start to finish.

Jacktone is a wonderful label run by lovely people.

Johanna Knutsson gets a mention for several reasons - not least her incredible mixtape for Klasse entitled Somnis Vius. She put out a call for weird ambient music and I sent her some tracks I’d been working on. She played on her radio show, the first person to do so this year (or ever). So many kind thanks to Johanna!

L is for Leaaves and also Larson (April Larson). Two amazing artists who were behind the first exclusives on bandcloud.org. Leaaves with a split tape (with Opaline) on Oxtail Records that melted my heart, Larson with a release on Tobago Tracks that documented the various workings of said heart. Both were sublime bodies of work I was proud to share.

Mhysa is another inspirational artist, her fantasii album quickly becoming a firm favourite. Somewhere between confessional rnb and apocalyptic club, it’s a true statement of intent. 

Nina made my favourite tape of 2016, and she put out a bunch more this year. She really does make the weirdest and most wonderful mixes you’ll ever hear. 

Ole, aka DJ Fomo, brought me on as a guest to Subcity Radio in Glasgow. We played b2b with Beat Beneath, trawling the archives for trance classics and proggy goodness. Ole came through with the best transition I heard all year, a long blend of Call Super’s remix of ‘DTMF’ and Bedrock’s remix of ‘3.2′ by Humate. No one man should have all that power.

Pauline Anna Strom. Last year’s best reissue was Breadwoman, this year’s was Pauline Anna Strom’s Trans-Millennia Music. Both on Re-RVNG. I suppose reissue is the wrong word, but it’s a collection of her old music lovingly put together for the current age, with gorgeous packaging, art and liner notes.

Rádio Quântica were kind enough to give me a show when I was in Lisbon for work. It was such a rush of excitement that I ran out of music and didn’t even speak on the mic. Honourable mention goes to Objekt’s ‘Theme from Q’, which is probably my track of the year.

Rroxymore. I’ve been listening to Rroxymore for years, and finally got to see her this year in Glasgow. She did not disappoint. She brought the strange funk of her releases to the live setting in thrilling style.

Sybil Jason has been working so hard for so long it’s to my shame that I only came across her work this past year. Better late than never, it’s been a pleasure and a privilege to get to know her and for her to contribute a superb Truancy Volume. 

Without Truants I don’t think I’d be in the position I’m in at all. All love forever.

Upsammy is a Dutch producer who’s playing with Call Super and co in Amsterdam this weekend. Her track ‘Wish I Could Still..’ featured in the mail recently, a mournful plod that pulls at my heartstrings. More please! 

V I S put out the Nina tape mentioned above last year. This year they released six stupendous records that redefined what I thought I knew or liked. More coming soon, I can’t wait to hear what’s to come. 

Wilted Woman did a super guest mix for Bandcloud, one of just a few this year, and it caught the attention of Pitchfork’s Philip Sherburne. Not only that, she put out two stellar records, one for She Rocks! and one for Alien Jams. Don’t sleep.

Xenie by Witchblood is a tape I bought largely for the art (since there was no audio preview) but it’s wonderful. Slightly dank sounds rendered danker by the hum and hiss of tape. Laboured piano, strange fuzz, all the hallmarks of weird metal-infused noise music. Big up Witchblood and Invisible City Records.

Yamaneko made music for a spa and then shared it with the world. It’s simply gorgeous. Not to mention his work as Talbot Fade. 

Gerd Janson and Thorsten Scheu set up the label Running Back in 2002. The label was named after the American football position, "going back and simultaneously rushing forward", as Janson told Resident Advisor, saying elsewhere that the name "satisfies whatever kind of retro fetishism is the order of the day". To celebrate 15 years of existence, Janson, now running back alone, has released a mix CD with some of the label's high points. While many bosses might opt to mix such a release themselves, the famously modest German has tasked the legendary New York DJ Tony Humphries with putting it together. (It's also worth noting that Janson released fabric 89 last just year.) It's appropriate that Humphries, whom Janson regularly name-checks as a hero of his, should be involved. The history of this DJ was recently covered in some detail by RA, but in short: through the birth and growth of house music he held major US and UK residencies in clubs and on radio, as well as releasing classic CDs for the likes of Ministry of Sound and fabric. He claims he was largely unfamiliar with the label, but that wouldn't show, given his mastery (excuse the pun) of the material on display here.

Olo - Common Bad (Help) A lovely track from a great album that's the first digital release in the Regelbau/Help universe.

Rui P. Andrade - Only To Become Water (ACR) A lush track from a pretty bleak album.

TALsounds - Over (Patient Sounds) Something nicer, this time from the Patient Sounds sampler, which is raising money for animals affected by recent hurricanes in the US.

H. Takahashi - Körper (Where To Now?) This was apparently composed on the artist's phone, which is incredible to me.

Teresa Winter - Untitled Death (Death of Rave) Long-awaited music from Winter, on this brilliant record from Manchester's Death of Rave. It doesn't disappoint.

Forest Drive West - Scafell Pike (Frequency Domain) The compilation this appears on shares a wealth of different electronic music, from noisy drone and blissful ambience to pounding techno. It's a great label.

LNS & DJ Sotofett - Jugando Con Fuego (Sunrise Mix) (Wania) This collaboration features a series of different versions of this theme, with one side basically a 17-minute original take. This is one of those versions.

Lindstrøm - Tensions (Will Long Remix) (Feedelity) Tokyo-based Will Long turns his hand to this Lindstrøm track with great effect.

DJ Python - Las Palmas (Proibito) Slightly weird reggaeton-influenced dance music. The whole album is cool!

Bicep - Ayaya (Ninja Tune) Conversely, I'm not mad about the Bicep album but this track really grabbed me. Slow trance.

Chmmr - User (CLI Mix) (Pear) Pear is a new label in Dublin that grew out of a radio show and party. This is a stellar track that's going to be on a label comp in November. It's been ruling my summer.

Duckett - She Answered Back Through No Medium (Wisdom Teeth) Duckett makes beautiful heartfelt modular jams. I just got this release and found out he's got another record and a tape coming soon.

St David - La Luna (Spiritual Dub) (Let's Play House NYC) Nice throwback house that's not cheesy or trite.

Patrice Scott - Do You Feel Me (Sistrum) Gorgeous old track that's been haunting me for years but that I only bought recently.

Minor Science - Volumes (Whities) Incredible stuff from Angus Finlayson. Choppy, weird, lush, powerful. The synths feel like prog house but everything else screams future. Kind of like Lanark Artefax’s stuff, which also appeared on Whities, so I guess that’s fitting.

Joe - Tail Light (Hessle Audio) This is an incredibly fun party track, so many silly and amusing and brilliant things about it. “I’m lazy, and I don’t wanna do NOTHIN.”

Aybee - Scroll (RDV) Deep house. Real deep house.

PQM - The Flying Song (Jason Jinx' Dirty Old Joystick Remix) (Yoshitoshi) I bought this double pack of remixes back in March, mainly for the Markus Schulz remixes, one of which appears on my favourite mix compilation OF ALL TIME (Deep Dish’s Renaissance Ibiza mix). I left it in a friend’s house the night I bought it and only retrieved it this month. So I had to play it.

Beatrice Dillon & Call Super - Inkjet (Hessle Audio) Aaand play it into some future house. Beaty D and Call Spoop are two heroes and their collaboration is unsurprisingly brilliant. I nearly didn’t play it, cause everyone else is, but it’s too good to leave behind.

Schiller - Ruhe (Schiller Remix) (Data) I forgot this existed until I recently put on Danny Tenaglia’s London edition of the Global Underground mix series. It’s got everything: tough beats, German vocal samples,

Felix Da Housecat - What Does It Feel Like? (Röyksopp Return The Sun Remix) (City Rockers) I love how this starts off dark and sinister before opening up like a gorgeous sunrise. Of course, I didn’t let it get that far but hey.

Mor Elian - Satellite (Delft) Lovely choppy percussive business from a very talented artist.

Ploy - Unruly (Hemlock) Ploy put out an excellent release on Timedance recently, which was followed by an accompanying brace of remixes that just came out the other week. This is a weird banger coming soon on Hemlock.

Aquarian - Hamburglar Helper (Hanger Management) Speaking of banging, this is full throttle. Laced with breaks and classic jungle samples, this track shows Aquarian’s refined palate.

Lakker - Song For Rathlin (Eotrax) Okay I have to apologise here. I took this track and sped it up digitally as if it were going from 33 to 45. Then in the studio I played at +8. It works at every tempo I think.

Artful Dodger & Robbie Craig ft Craig David - Woman Trouble (FFRR) I brought this album to play 'Please Don’t Turn Me On' but this worked better in the moment, I think.

Strict Face - Silk Swathes (NLV Records) Lovely garage meets grime meets ambient synth work from an artist who seems to grow with each release.

You and Me - Synthpipe (Self-released) This is from an album of guerrilla field recordings.

Pauline Anna Strom - Energies (ReRVNG) An archival release forthcoming on ReRVNG, it takes the new age synth explorations of Pauline Anna Strom recorded throughout the 1980s and presents this futuristic body of work in a modern context

Daniel Fagerström - 01110100 (Beat Concern) Meanwhile, here is some thoroughly modern synth music, gnarly and distorted in the best way. Fresh on new label Beat Concern. Out to Matt.

Earthly - Rainway NC (Bounce Pass) This is from a gorgeous album, almost quaint in its delicate approach.

Eric Holm – Andøya (Subtext)

The closing track from this magnificent album was the perfect start to this show. Scratching noise and hints of dank squawk, it makes for a great intro.

Handpicked Tyrant – Into the Clouds (Unreleased) This is a track I made. An old track that's very dear to me features blissful moments of ambience yet is essentially a shuffling hip-hop groove. So, I took those elements and fashioned this strange beast from them.

Beast Nest – Tired AF // Pluto (Ratskin Records)   This is wonderfully expansive and life-affirming, a section of true wonder in the middle of an excellently strange release. Also, I'm always tired af.

Leama – Melodica (Ambient Version) (Platipus) My major entry point to ambient or chillout music was a series of compilations under the Euphoria banner. The series was also my entry point to club and DJ culture but that's another matter. Their Chilled editions, mixed by Red Jerry, utterly confused and fascinated me. My expectations of what I would find on that first compilation were so far away from what they featured I was dumbfounded. This track featured on Deep & Chilled Euphoria, as well as appearing on the Beginner's Guide To Platipus. It's airy and blissful, yet these elements are undermined by a repeated arpeggiated melody and the reverbed vocals stating "a journey".

Ideoforms – Bjorklund Drones (SoundCloud)   This is a track from Daniel Jones, who made those amazing slowed-down edits of the various Windows startup sounds. This is an old algorithmic drone composition. It's strange in that the description makes it sound so clinical, yet the music itself is beautiful, I would almost say heartfelt. But I guess I can't.

Nadia Khan – Milky Sweat (Where To Now?) This tape on Where To Now? has some of my favourite pieces of music of recent years. Nadia has been quiet since, unfortunately. Hoping for more music from her soon!

Perc & Passarella – Fast Forward (Passarella)   A lengthy piece that featured on a brilliant album of Lynchian horror. After allowing the next song float alongside it I slowed it down to bring in the thick noise of BFTT.

Jasmina Olsson – Jasmina's Song (Short Mix by Second Break) (Stray Recordings)   This is a very short version of a beautiful track, a solitary melody that seems to fit perfectly with the track above.

BFTT – iOSMIDI4_Orbit (Unreleased) Out to BFTT, who's about to appear on a Cong Burn tape.

Lancashire Folklore Tapes Vol.IV – Memories of Hurstwood (Lancashire Folklore Tapes)   This short excerpt has haunted me for more than two years. I believe this section is from a side by t/e/u/ that's called 'to​ ​rescue​ ​things​ ​beyond​ ​recall​-​soon​-​when​ ​the​ ​reaper​-​time​-​has​ ​garnered​ ​all​-​the​ ​ears​ ​that​ ​hear​ ​now​-​and​ ​the​ ​feet​ ​that​ ​stand​-​yet​ ​in​ ​​the fields​ ​where​ ​once​ ​in​ ​fold​ ​and​ ​hall​-​echoed​ ​the​ ​voices​ ​of​ ​our​ ​fathers'​ ​band’.

Circuit Rider – What Others Are Saying (J&C Tapes)   This is from one of the first tapes I ever bought, back in 2013 I believe. Just before I started Bandcloud and really got into ambient tape life. Soaring beauty undermined by a sinister bed.

Wiley – From The Outside (Actress's Generation 4 Constellation Mix) Perhaps this was a step too far. This strange remix takes Wiley's introspection and tears it apart.

Declan Synott – Soft Container (Bandcamp)  A palate cleanser of strange noise that paves over the abrasive harshness provided by Actress. A delicate release of sounds from Irish producer Declan Synott.

Endless Melancholy – Still (Bandcamp)   A fitting title and artist name, this is a slow piece of scorched ambience, elegant in its execution.

Black Thread – Pyre (Amplified Gravel) This artist's music often appears on Cascading Fragments, but somehow this release has disappeared from the web. It's frayed and distorted, heartbreaking in its evocation of imagined nostalgia.

In Media Res – Aurum Vitae (Exo Tapes Inc.) Beautiful choral work reverbed to bits.

Moving Still – Placid Saturn (SoundCloud)   More scorched sounds over a blissful bed of ambient wash, this is a great piece from a brilliant Irish artist.

M Geddes Gengras – Passage (Leaving Records)  This album is incredible, I remember the first time I listened was when I was hungover and it seemed to go on forever. I was lost and confused, wondering how to escape the music.

Sam Mullany – Smell The New World Coming (Blue Tapes & X-Ray Records)  Really dark stuff, this feels like stretched noise and what could be a trumpet announcing coming dread – the new world of the title.

Percival Pembroke – Darklands IV (Herhalen)  This is very Boards of Canada, almost like ‘Kid For Today’ stretched to pieces and cast out to sea.

Shaahin Saba Dipole – Remembrance (Flaming Pines)  The compilation this comes from is an excellent collection of experimental noise and ambient from Iran. This track felt quiet and strange at home but you could really feel the pulse of the beat in the studio.

Minced Oath – Ferric Appetite (Countersunk)   Another Irish artist, this is an ambient project from Sunken Foal. A minced oath is when you say something like "fudge it" or "sugar" instead of.... well you know. The album is excellent, it really was hard to pick which track to play.

Sealadder – Interlaken (Power Moves Library)  I love the conflation of soft, drifting tones and harsh buzz electricity here. It's from a limited-run tape by Toronto's Cheryl Fraser.

Moopish – Death Throes (SoundCloud)   A wonderful SoundCloud find, it reminds me of something between Silent Hill and Wagon Christ's ‘Glass World’. Shout out to Al Shadow Dancer and his incredible ambient mixes, which were truly inspirational for me. 

Nothing Natural – Skin2Skin (Bandcamp) Ilana from Wisconsin released this supremely dark and unnerving track recently. It could be sweet but there's something quite sinister about it. She's a wonderful voice on everything from politics to the history of clubland, and her music is excellent.

Park and Tamirisa – Untitled (A) (Private Chronology)   I came across this almost by accident. The pair have some incredible work together, including a brilliant live recording, but this tape is a gorgeous piece of work.

李松 - Nib (Zoomin' Night) Taken from a compilation bringing together experimental non-music disproving the album's title, this is an amazing track that's almost nauseating in its construction. I'm not sure if it's the panning or the frequencies but it's just loopy. See here for more on the artist.

Pan American – The Terrace (Geographic North)  There's something so beautifully open-ended about the title of this track. The terrace. I imagine it to extend from a balcony in a kind of Hollywood home (see Mulholland Drive), looking out over the hills at icy climes. I know that doesn't make sense.

Christine Webster - A Bird Meme (Hylé Tapes)  This one comes from the excellent self​-​identified non​-​male artists making experimental electronic music on Hylé Tapes. It's quiet and beautiful and it's got meme in the title.

Calico Jak – I Felt A Funeral (Bandcamp)  A sparse and haunting track, this comes from a collection of soundtrack pieces by Irish artist Eoin Mac Ionmhain, aka Calico jack.

Emily Berregaard – Yucca (enmossed)   Up there as one of the tracks of the year, this slow burner is a thing of beauty.

Jake Muir – Indian Pipe (Bandcamp) A kind of outtake from when he was making his album for Further, this is a nice wistful number. Check out his superb Acclimation if you get the chance.

Elodie Lauten – Relate (Wilde Calm) I played another track from this retrospective work a few months ago, I'll probably play all the rest too eventually. It's a gorgeous modular jaunt.

John Atkinson – Falls (Bandcamp)   This was inspired by a trip to Snoqualmie Falls outside Seattle, Washington, site of the iconic "Great Northern Hotel" on Twin Peaks.

Beauty Parlour – Cylch (Unreleased) This is part of the soundtrack to a documentary about extreme Welsh nationalism.

Baltra – Where Do We Go From Here (RVNG Intl) This lengthy piece comes from a release for RVNG called Peaceful Protest. It came about when Moogfest asked artists to soundtrack a meditation space, and was further inspired by the opposition to the House Bill 2, which hoped to prevent transgender people from using the bathrooms of their choice. The release featured six sides of music, including some long, freeform pieces of ambient movement, opening with this amazing lilting piece. All proceeds from the release go to the LGBTQ Center of Durham. This piece in particular is such a delight, a change from the lofi house associated with its creator.

rkss – Watched (Seagrave) This is a short piece that shimmers beautifully as we reach the end of the show.

Boards of Canada – Corsair (Warp) The grandmasters of not-quite-ambient-but-not-dance-music-either here, from their scariest album, Geogaddi. Tomorrow's Harvest is chilling in a scorched earth/nuclear winter kinda way, but this one is darker, creepier, hotter, weirder. ‘Corsair’ is the moment of light that follows the utterly terrifying 'You Could Feel The Sky', but it's just ambivalent enough that it's hard to tell whether it's a reprieve or an elegy.

Matt Nida – The Same Way That Bricks Don’t (Unreleased) A slow burner that wouldn’t be out of place in a Nolan film, it’s got a dark edge.

In case you're interested, here's what I played at Beatyard on Saturday. Three half-hour sets, each talking things in a different direction. Fun baby. This was a highlight, naturally.

Ginuwine - When Doves Cry RJD2 - Ghostwriter Eric B. & Rakim - Paid In Full (Seven Minutes Of Madness - The Coldcut Remix) Lil Mama - Lip Gloss Mariah Carey - Fantasy (Bad Boy Remix) Eli Escobar - Heavenly Break Ghostface Killah - You Know I'm No Good (Goodlife Re-Edit) Busta Rhymes & Amerie - Touch It (A.Brucker & Sinden Mix) Ol' Dirty Bastard - Got Your Money Big Boi - Shutterbug  Pitbull - Bojangles 

Dominatrix - The Dominatrix Sleeps Tonight Bullion - Blue Pedro  The Juan Maclean - Human Disaster (Holmes Price Cover)  Hall & Oates - I Can't Go For That (DJ Apt One Edit) Dubtribe Sound System - Do It Now  Ying Yang + Pitbull Vs Yaz - Shake Situation Jamiroquai - Space Cowboy (Classic Club Remix) Armonics - Red Eye (Black Spuma Remix) Chmmr - User (CLI Mix)

Astoria Sound - 34°32'42-n (The Calm) (Self-released)  Beautiful sounds from San Diego.  

Jeliwan Tok Hudoq - Abadiah (Ripstore.asia) Released for Netlabel Day, this is strange and possibly upsetting. 

Meemo Comma - Dialup (Objects Ltd) Coming soon, this release from Lara Rix-Martin is a study in experimentation, with this appropriately named piece standing out for obvious reasons. Bleeps and tones. 

Topdown Dialectic - Phlt V1.4 (Unreleased) Thanks to Aught for sharing this with me from the vaults. 

Mhysa - Siren (Halcyon Veil) This whole album is stunning, shadowy club meeting heartfelt R&B and riven throughout with political intent. This swampy cover of TLC’s ‘Red Light Special’ is beautiful. 

Michel Philippot - Ambiance 1 (Cacophonic) Taken from a collection of early electronics, this shows where it all began. 

D Hansen - Idioms (Angoisse) I missed this split release when it came out but I’m glad I found it. Lots of strange movements in sound. 

Baraclough - Anaglyphic (Forris) Dale Cornish sold off some copies of this CD and I’m glad I snagged a copy. The album is wild, I especially love ‘Brigitte Fontaine In Cuba’, but this piece of weirdness worked best here. 

Holovr - Hillraiser (Likemind)  Jimmy B goes deep into ambient techno. 

CM-4 - Rain (Docsleep Remix) (Outpost)  Docsleep is a great artist and label head, I love this remix she’s done for her friends at Outpost. 

Mustapha 3000 - Kongo Thong (Unreleased) Getting silly with this old bootleg track from Erol Alkan. That new ‘Thong Song’ rework is awful, why Sisqo, why? 

Look Like - Delta (Akoya Circles)  This comes from a great release that works with well worn samples but gives them new life. 

Cailín - First Taste (Jheri Tracks)  I’m still playing tracks off that triple vinyl Jheri put out because they’re super. By summer’s end I might have exhausted the supply but this one from Cailín is a marvel. 

Aidan Wall - Stuxrunner Resin (Unreleased) Aidan stuck this banger on their SoundCloud and kindly shared it with me. 

Greyhouse - New Beats The House (Dark Entries)  Squawking acid that I heard Call Super play to great effect last weekend, even if I spent its duration at the bar. 

DJ Haram - Body Count (Self-released) Gunshots and drums, the perfect combination. Not everyone can pull it off, but Haram is a pro. 

Chekhov - Rotlicht (Peach)  Peach is really growing as a label, and Chekhov is a great new talent. Call Super played this one too! 

Paul Woolford - Pterygota (Unreleased)   Taken from a SoundCloud (that preceded the announcement of his latest Special Request album), this is emotive yet powerful. 

Flora FM - Drain Age (Acid Gate 2 Heaven) (Unreleased)   My man Taylor is going down a new road as Flora FM, and this is a true acid banger. 

Violet - Silver Lining (Naive)   More fun breaks, this time from Portugal’s Violet on her own label, due soon. 

Primitive Trust - Day One (Shanti Celeste Remix) (Aus Music)   This floral and fruity arrangement from Shanti is perfectly emblematic of her wonderful style. Playful and fun, airy, utterly delightful.

Arnaldo - Urgent Soul 100 (Naturist Recordings) Squelchy and bouncy house from Arnaldo. 

P Diddy Ft Kelis - Let’s Get Ill (Deep Dish Illicit Remix) (Bad Boy) More silliness with this ‘I Feel Love’-aping remix of Diddy’s foray into house music. 

Ikonika - Shovel (Nervous Horizon) From a comp on this London label, it’s a rattling banger. 

Mudwise - Plastic Models (Enklav) This new track from Chevel’s label is hypnotically aquatic and leads nicely into strange zones. 

Solid Blake - Mario (Outer Zone) BANGING techno from Solid Blake on this new label. Outer Zone is affiliated with La Cheetah in Glasgow, a wonderfully intimate spot for sweaty parties. 

SW - Untitled (Sued Records Via Apollo) One of many incredible tracks from SW’s album, now released digitally, it’s a perfect bridge track between modes. 

Body In The Thames - Loverboy Idiom (Self-released) BITT is a wonderfully talented artist who knows his way around a synth or two. Like with SW above this is just one of a load of great tracks on his self-released album. Great guy too. 

Daniel Karlsson - Gaining Traction With The Local Branches (Conditional Records) Conditional love to get wonky, and this is as wonky as it gets. 

Orlando Ft Nemesis - Cyaa Done (Gobstopper) Orlando’s been through various guises over the years, pop-dancehall producer is my favourite of late. Wake de neighbours indeed. 

M/M - Welcome To The Rain Season (Spring Break Tapes) Bandcloud guest mixer M/M just released this album on Spring Break Tapes, and this one is a beautiful taste of his international approach. 

Swim Platførm - Surface 3 (Kit Records) This is a bit old but deserved some airtime. Beautiful stuff as ever from Kit. 

Assel - Fitness Talk (Where To Now?) (Unreleased)  New stuff on Where To Now?, I’m not sure who it is but the whole album is weird and intriguing. This is a jolt of straightforwardness by comparison. 

Fes - Airyle (Fuck Off I'm Not Done Yet) (Patrúin) Fuzzy weirdness from a brilliant Irish compilation. 

Rhucle - York (Otherworldly Mystics) Gentle, blissful ambience to end things. At least until I had other plans. 

JEM - K3M (Unreleased)  Big up Joe, who sent me this strange workout.

Yamaneko - Hydrokinesis (Unreleased)

A beautiful track that reminds me of Morricone's Ecstasy of Gold, albeit through a modern, aquatic lens.

Juan Jose Calarco & Alma Laprida - Curva (Pakapi Records)

A musty crank of a track from a huge compilation of music from throughout the Americas.

Zwei Kreise - Inexorable (Quanta Records)

Dark modern IDM. 

Blend Architect - Cloud 1.1 (Groovement)

A moment of light from a release that is built on the bones of frenetic, driving techno.

Em Som - You Said That (Jheri Tracks)

Floaty, airy electro-folk.

Lanark Artefax - Flickering Debris (Whities)

Glossy electronics that belong in the shiniest of sci-fi anime.

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Delerium - Silence (Sanctuary Mix By Fade) (Nettwerk)

It's amazing what a remix can do. What started life as an overwrought trip-hop-meets-grunge meltdown becomes a dank and spiritual journey.

ATB - 9pm (Till I Come) (Kontor Records)

The simplest, most beautiful riff.

Three Drives On A Vinyl - Greece 2000 (Hooj Choons)

I will never forget hearing a DJ say "summer of 98 is what it reminds you of" about this tune. Perhaps it was his backwards way of speaking, who knows. This is a beautifully melancholic piece of work.

Nalin & Kane - Beachball (Urban)

This is wonderful because it marries a fun riff with a basic human desire (having fun at the beach!) with quite mournful chords. 

Tilt - Invisible (Lost Tribe Vocal Mix) (Hooj Choons)

Swirling, cavernous synth sounds that jump and build and grow into a bizarre vocal that I've never understood. Still got radio play.

Humate - Love Stimulation (Paul Van Dyk's Love-Club-Mix) (Deviant)

This one has a haunting bass line, wailing vocals, shuffling percussion and piano riffs that are just the right side of cheesy. Perfection.

Darude - Sandstorm (Neo)

I remember hearing this on radio and just thinking WOW this will be a smash. Still bangs. 

System F - Out Of The Blue (Essential Recordings)

This is the big one. Without this one I would never have gone down the rabbit hole. I still remember this one Friday night on the computer listening to a rare dance show on national radio and hearing the 12" version, it was on a tape I rinsed for months. I'd borrow compilations just to hear this mixed with other tunes and always be disappointed, the mixes in my head better than anything reality could offer. The main intro section is silly and goofy and it explodes into this gargantuan mess of trance heaven. Epic.

Gouryella - Gouryella (Tsunami)

Kind of like the weird cousin of Out of The Blue.

B.B.E. - Seven Days And One Week (Triangle)

This was on the radio and on MTV before I knew what trance was. It's weird and bleepy and then that breakdown gives you this gated sound that's just terrifying.  

Energy 52 - Cafe Del Mar (Original Three'N'One Mix) (Hooj Choons)

Stupendous. Someone tweeted me "truly, if there is a piece of music more viscerally thrilling than the arpeggios in 'cafe del mar' then i've yet to hear it." Hard to follow that.

Art Of Trance - Madagascar (Ferry Corsten Remix) (Platipus)

This is a bit simple but really plays of silence and tension. The rolling percussion with that building synth line is incredible.

Veracocha - Carte Blanche (Positiva)

One of Ferry's few minor key tracks, this also really works with contrast, from nothing to everything in a moment.

Paul Van Dyk - For An Angel (Pvd E-Werk Club Mix) (Deviant)

Another classic, a highlight among highlights. Dreamily euphoric, mournful and uplifting, the titular angel forever out of reach. 

Chicane - Saltwater ft Maire Brennan (The Thrillseekers Remix) (Xtravaganza)

I played the original when I was on SubCity and wanted to close with this gorgeous retake. Out to Yamaneko, who's a big fan of the Brennans. 

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Calcium Club - Y Columba (Major Problems)

The label calls this "trance induction techno" and that's hard to top. 

Beta Librae - Whisper Game (Allergy Season)

This whole release is a marvel, tough, smooth, whole. Earthy?

Kemback - Carduelis (DBA Dubs)

A delightfully flavourful track that continues the run of stellar grooves on this sublabel.

Bb Bitflower - Wood Run (Jheri Tracks)

Floral techno. 

Ursa's Reef - Love Cult (One Eyed Jacks)

Jam & Spoon-indebted chuggy trance techno. Tugs at the heartstrings.

Lumigraph - Smelly Rockers At The Gypsy Rose (Jheri Tracks)

Similar in spirit to last year's Spectacular Times, this one rattles and jerks with aplomb.

Run The Jewels - Angel Duster (Mass Appeal) 

I've been doing the shows on Dublin Digital Radio for some time, and I've now decided to write a bit about the music I play, and where possible share purchase links. If a track has featured in the mail, I'll quote what I said about it before.

Strict Face - The Calm [Blacklink] BC137: "Strict Face knocks out bangers and jams all the time, but this EP is such a well rounded affair that it's warmed my heart. It's full of his own personal take on grime, but it's just that: personal. The artwork sees him sitting on his car bonnet in the rain, paper flying around him. 'White Rovers' has Asian flutes, Timbaland-esque kicks and tonnes of empty space making it a contemplative banger. 'Honour Avenue' jacks head-noddingly but feels like it's the track to soundtrack joyous tears on the floor. Meanwhile 'Rainfall' and 'The Calm' are just wistful odes to whatever you feel. Such a good release."   

Talbot Fade - Alone There Now In Our Special Place [New Atlantis] Forthcoming on a New Atlantis comp, details when we have them! 

Billie Ray Martin - Hearts (Instrumental) [Apollo] BC16: "...originally released on the R&S 'ambient' sublabel Apollo in 1993. Soft and ethereal tones underneath her really quite unique vocals, it's like a dream. The gorgeous instrumentals are here to boot." 

G.S. Schray - One Sad Touch [Last Resort] A gorgeous release driven by wistful guitar, not usually my kind of thing but this is full of heart and emotion.

Black Thread - Seeping Pitch [Invisible City] Beautiful drifting sad tape loop music. 

Gurdonark - The Image In The Pool [Self-Released] Somehow never featured this in the mails but it's a lovely weird ambient piece, from an album of similarly ethereal and dainty numbers.

Deadboy - Caballero [Local Action] Forthcoming on Local Action, this is a bold new step for Deadboy. It's an emotional banger, blending Silent Hill vibes with Kanye levels of effected vocal harmonies. I wasn't keen on those at first but after repeated listens it's a winner.

Sissel Wincent - As If [Peder Mannerfelt] BC123: "Swedish artist Sissel Wincent is the latest on Peder Mannerfelt's label, with five tracks of gloopy, strange techno on this 12". Great title, right?" 

Fred - Loverman [Peach Discs] Friendly, bouncy house from Bristol, forthcoming on Shanti Celeste's label. 

DJ Nori - Happy Sunday (Maurice Fulton Remix) [Running Back] An absolute banger, a total earworm that's just incredibly fun. 

Tom Churchill - Blue In Grey [Huntleys + Palmers] Bright and shiny modern funk. 

The Beloved - The Sun Rising (Mark's Deep House Mix) [EastWest] Classic deep house from one half of Global Communication. 

Linkwood - Dirty Love [Prime Numbers] This killed me. There's a moment where what sounds like an iPhone notification pops up and I lost it for a sec. It's in the track though. I checked on YouTube. 

Juju & Jordash - Loosey Goosey [Dekmantel] A modern classic. 

Local Group - A Basement, A Red Light, And A Free Line (Violet & Elles' In The Red Remix) [Get Up] Bright and fun dance music, what's not to love

Frak - Synthfrilla [Dark Entries] I could listen to this slice of robotic techno for all eternity.

Minor Science - Hapless [The Trilogy Tapes] From 2014, this one deserved a runout. Sounds very different from what he's at now, but this is where it started.

Headman - It Rough (Chicken Lips Remix) [Gomma] Banger from the 00s that I discovered in an Erol Alkan mix. Still sounds futuristic.

Indira Paganotto - Kashmir (Ian Pooley Remix) Forthcoming housey techno stuff. The release comes with two originals and two Pooley remixes. Each one a solid groover.

Pendle Watkins - Deal With It [Super Rhythm Trax] Totally mind-melting drum machine business.

Ryan James Ford - Rohmie Sinkt [SHUT] Exuberant modern techno. 

Scottie B - Niggaz Fightin (Exclusivo Unruly Classic) [Money Lotion] Some classic bmore.

Ramadanman & Appleblim - Void 23 (Carl Craig Re-Edit) [Aus] Another older track that I felt deserved a run-out. A perennial groove. 

Pearson Sound - Robin Chasing Butterflies [Pearson Sound] The latest from Pearson Sound - choppy and bass heavy, it's nonetheless driven by gloriously beautiful melodies. 

Lenka - Unbeaten Paths [Sound Warrior US] A slightly hypnotic groover to take down the mood slightly. Available soon on a wonderful compilation in honour of the late Cherushii.

Actress - Untitled 7 [Ninja Tune] Man like Actress. This is one of the most straightforward cuts on new album AZD, but what does that say, really

SLEAZY - Que Calor [Tagout] New on Tagout. It's spicy, gnarly, HOT HOT HOT.

Demen - Mea [Kranky] Goth Enya, I call her.

Nothing Natural - Scorched [Self-Released] Haunting electronics.

Félicia Atkinson - I'm Following You [Shelter Press] Beautiful ambience from Félicia Atkinson. The album is peppered with strange spoken word, this is a rare instrumental piece.

OkyDoky - Queen Of The Locusts (Liliane Chlela Remix) [Bandora] Floating, hovering synths wobble and flail in this remix of Lebanese-inspired hip-hop. Kara-Lis Coverdale - Grafts [Boomkat Editions] A brief excerpt from a wonderful piece that's too long to play on one show.

Jenn Kirby - Future Badminton [Self-Released] BC91: "This is a real soundtrack to a real show, albeit a stage show from a few years back. Mirror Mirror seems to have been some sort of balletic take on Sleeping Beauty, and the accompanying music is appropriately ominous (in all honesty I found it by searching for #dank on Bandcamp)."

Here's almost a day's worth of music from women across the globe working in a variety of modes, a lot of which has featured in Bandcloud previously, some of which has appeared since these artists originally featured in the mails, and some of which is just new to me too. Club bangers, field recordings, sound art, experimental drone, all this and more. 

On a personal note, today in Ireland women are holding a non-traditional strike day, demanding that the government call a referendum on abortion, specifically to repeal the 8th amendment, which states that: 

"The State acknowledges the right to life of the unborn and, with due regard to the equal right to life of the mother, guarantees in its laws to respect, and, as far as practicable, by its laws to defend and vindicate that right." 

Listen/purchase: Gift : live, 2001 by Jorge Velez

(Different Circles)

(Beats In Space)