Favorite and Free Ambient Albums
On September 26th of this year, Pitchfork posted a controversial list of albums. Now, there will always be controversy when it comes to rating music. As all art forms do, music relies on emotional impact, and that is inherently going to be different for everyone. As an ardent music fan, I feel that some music is inherently better than other music. To my ears a song by Autolux will always sound better than anything Madonna has put out. Chance the Rapper will always be more appealing than most other Chicago artists to me. And those points are valid to me. At the same point, someone else could say just the opposite and be just as right as I am.
The list I first mentioned is Pitchfork’s 50 Best Ambient Albums of All Time. I saw at least two rebuttals of that list, and I am sure others are out there too. The reason for all the controversy is this: ambient music is a much more personal journey than most other mediums of music. Ambient music, if you’re not familiar, is music that can fade into the background. As Brian Eno famously first defined it in the liner notes to his Ambient 1, “it must be as ignorable as it is interesting.” It is quiet music. While popular music makes impressions through grand gestures and catchy melodies, ambient music is characterized by its subtlety. It’s music for solitude. It’s music for late nights. It’s music for sunrise and sunset. Ambient music is about mood and texture. As Rafael Anton Irisarri notes in his own rebuttal of the Pitchfork list, it’s music for those with patience.
So here I am, creating a list of my own. I’ve complied a list of some of my favorite ambient albums that I have received at one time or another for free. They may still be free for download, and they may not, but they are all most definitely worth paying for. I encourage you to take some time and delve into these albums. I beg of you, expose yourself to something that you may never have heard before. All of these albums (and many others) deserve to be heard!
The list is hardly exhaustive and if you desire to hear more, reach out and I will be happy to give you recommendations because this list is meant to be an introduction. It is only a fraction of the great ambient work that exists out there in the world.
Elsewhere by Asfandyar Khan
This album explores the more post-rock side of ambient music. It’s wonderfully serene and exceptionally beautiful. It’s fantastic music from a Pakistani musician.
L'histoire by Chubby Wolf
All music by Chubby Wolf (aka Danielle Banquet-Long) is tainted with tragedy as she died far too early. Her works all beautifully minimal. It’s built on a slowly changing texture and provides a rewarding listen for those with the patience for such things.
Constellate by Eluder
Eluder is great example of warm drone. It’s music that drifts. He creates some really beautiful moods and textures.
Music For Quiet Mornings by Endless Melancholy
The first album from Endless Melancholy is also my favorite. This is fantastic quiet piano music (and embodies some of the neoclassical side of ambient music). If you think a name like Endless Melancholy is misleading, you’re wrong.
chapter by Hirotaka Shirotsubaki
Hirotaka is one of my favorite ambient artists. He creates pastoral washes of sound. When he uses piano it’s amazing, and creates excellent moods using field recordings.
A Forgetting Place by Ian William Craig
This is without a doubt my favorite album on this list. It is, in my opinion, Craig’s opus. He creates incredible beauty in frailty and darkness.
Dusk by Man Watching the Stars
This is an incredibly intricate album. It sounds to be made by one man, a loop pedal, and a violin. It’s a really beautiful and desolate album.
Through / Out by Moonshine Blues
Technically, this is another relate from Endless Melancholy, but he’s using a different moniker. These are beautiful compositions. There are elements of tragedy and depression in these pieces that are hard to compete with.
A Start On Such A Night Is Full Of Promise by The Mountaineering Club Orchestra
This is, I believe, the only concept album included in the list. It is a series of pieces about the first crossing of Greenland. It is a really fascinating, orchestral release.
Please Stop Loving Me by Nicholas Szczepanik
This is without a doubt the longest and only single track on the list. While it might seem daunting, the listen is well worth the time investment. This is a complex and incredibly beautiful composition.
Hiraeth by Olan Mill
Olan Mill probably offers more sonic variety than any of the other artists above. These are amazing compositions. It’s probably some of the most emotionally moving music on this list. Great neoclassical works.
Heather Spa by 36
This is the only release that is no longer available. It is more of a single than an album or an EP and included two versions of the title track. It’s the best musical representation of waves washing up on shore that I have ever heard and is incredibly beautiful at the same time. I’ve linked to album that the track is included on. I believe that you can still get the single by subscribing.


















