lost in a sea of sound

When the the world falls into shambles and the new breed of nomadic rovers rule the land, The Sheen is what they will be listening to. Why has music taken this form? Maybe there is no love left for soft jazz, pop sounds and country jangle, or all has been lost. From what was once known, to what has come to be, continual pounding and saw like strings slicing and separating, building sonic splendor in the antithesis of order. Constructed from a demolished society, this is the new emotion, shaped and welded together, forming a jagged medium to probe terra firma. The wastelands are a formidable place and The Sheen is establishing their ground.

Seven tracks in just under half and hour, all amazingly recorded live at the Unknown in June of 2018. Fueled by two drum kits, bass, guitars and synthesizer, Trash Hazard forms an extensive sonic road block on Hwy 108. Entangled beats and rhythms waiting to ambush all venturing forth for food and water. An impassable wall of noise, defying all heavy…

Comfort Food, Already Dead and Darko the Super all gather at some street light lit New York City crossroads. Just up the side walk, a stack of boxes and clutter has accumulated from an adjacent building. Within this debris, all look to see a faint glittering ray of light break the darkness as distant headlights cause a reflection. Upon closer inspection, this unwanted refuse is the last remaining collection of music discs that shimmy before their eyes. Everyone fills their arms and walks away Grunting a MacGyver tune.

Reaching haven, a whisper permeates the room, "lights out everybody", Comfort Food is going to play music. It is much later than you think and the most ominous enigma is Falling Up A Down Escalator. This is extremely hard to describe, each jolt and bounce, smoothly conveyed back to it's origin. A similar awkward occurrence happened once before in 2017 under the dome, it is still a mystery. The music has been playing now, a gang of four people are huddled ar…

Test the sound waters before sinking in, Ebauche lurks in the depths with the alien creation of Formic Syntax. Droning wash reaching beyond both audible and visible thresholds. Beats and rhythms cruising these vast spaces, like prehistoric predators in a world only fossils can give hint to. In this paradoxical environment, where the whole of life flourishes over eons and individual life randomly ends in the surprise of a second, Formic Syntax is the soundtrack. Beautiful ambient density, sonic pressure measured precisely, consciousnesses balanced in some ethereal buoyancy. These lengthy pieces are interrupted by digital charges, exploding with angular notes. Ebauche creating both serenity and disruption.

Ebauche is musician Alex Leonard, currently residing in Berlin, with sounds dating back to 2001. Formic Syntax joins another 2018 release title Mutable, making these Ebauche's first outputs since 2015. With seven tracks spanning roughly forty five minutes, this Cosmic Winnetou cas…

Finally the explanation surfaces on the creepy clown issue. And how simple, someone just needed to go up and talk to a clown. Thank you Budokan Boys, just wanted to say this straight off because this was something of a mystery. The amazing thing is, clowns are recruiting, an unknown fact. Posing a new question... is this Tymbal Tapes release a subtle promotion for joining this edge of town society?
There was a catchy tune back from 1981 conveying the jingly join us vibe. Not that these songs are comparable, but That's How You Become a Clown and John Carpenter's Halloween II theme song both have a subversive electronic wizardry. Together asking or entrancing listeners for the donning of some sort of mask and butcher knives. Fortunately held off back then, but Budokan Boys level up with their sincere dialogue, above the captivating synthesizer and beats. What to do...

Most pertinent task is to finish describing the four other tracks on this release. All seem to tell a story or d…

A.M. Stations, unmitigated exuberance from first note to last. Channeling rhythms and beats from past decades, Nonsense blurs into the roots of sound. Each track on fire, on the threshold of liquefied metal. Headbangers feel A.M. Station's presence, but this is not that kind of record. Amazingly Nonsense cruises the main drag with a consistent speed, but continues to morph vehicular appearance. Listen for a second or a sample, reveals just a fraction of the total talent. Take the full tour from start to finish, then listen again to see how much was missed.

After flipping this tape a dozen times or so, the elusive comparison that just nagged at thoughts finally surfaced. Maybe it was forced, a last attempt at trying to make A.M. Stations sit down. There is a lot on this composition, so any tackle pining down these sounds really only slows them for a few seconds. Going to throw the mid eighties band Scratch Acid out there.... Touch & Go Records, Chicago, Austin Texas.... All maj…

In the depths of the forest, shadows extend in infinite directions, looming over any remaining strands of light. Foot paths and trails blur into the undergrowth, tangible directions dissolving in a living solution of ancient flora. Small clearings do exist and become focal points, allowing radiant energy to gather. The sun like a flashlight against a whole in the wall, illuminating only the diameter of absence of trees. Within this glade, the only warming pardon the landscape will grant until night falls. And the creatures who dwell in thees farthest reaches, use these open spaces. Throughout the days until fires are lit for darkness' companion. Some spaces are used for rituals, others just for connective comroderie, all out pouring sounds for every spirit to enjoy.

Navel has captured the essence of both reflective and exuberant emotion. Very personal harmonies and ambiance. The Gnome's Pond blends a select sonic aura, sounds from special places the woodlands allow only few t…

Mortuus Auris & the Black Hand with one quarter of the new Tymbal Tapes September 2018 four tape release. The aural landscape extends beyond the horizon on cinjusti. Across this vast surface, rhythms expand then condense, like MAbH is in a synchronous connection of aphelion and perihelion. With fluctuating proximity to an energy source, this cyclic element rests in each track. As distance increases, small fires of beats and melodies warm spirits and comfort sonic journeyers. There is considerable closeness in this vastness, even when the underlying tones are shadowed or to far for radiation to reach. MAbH creating both the canvas of ambient tranquility and emotional points for thoughts to affix with.

There is far too much music on cinjusti to adequately encapsulate in words. Eight tracks in total, in a mixed division of over an hour. The longest track, Ancestor Vision clues in on the sentiment held for the course of this composition. There is a nostalgic undercurrent forcing sonic…

In the forests of Virginia, molecular density is being sliced with the seldom used four man cross cut saw. Teeth arranged bidirectionally, each two second pull shredding living layers decades took to create. The consciousness is arboreal in essence, age building concentric rings, time creating protective mental barriers. Thought structure behind years of experience, well adapted to prevent unfamiliar sensations direct access to the spirit. Nagual & Zach Rowden wield the equivalent four man cross cut saw in sonic form. Their collective sound finding the path straight through to listeners core.

Two side long tracks on this composition. Four talented artists, Nagual who are David Shapiro, Ian McColm, and Stefan Christensen, all playing guitar. And Zach Rowden playing the electric bass. The first side cuts the constructs mental fabric. Sustained notes and feedback at a pitch burrowing straight through the any tranquil hand holds. The entire side somehow epitomizing experienced laid ba…

Immense distances across space and time. So much detail, the consciousness begins to blur both peaks and valleys. This results in a droning conglomeration of fantastic features. The elements constructing this aural landscape have been sleekly converged, like disappearing ripples across water surfaces. The sound created, a cohesive force of sonic beauty, holding all unheard energy in comprehensible order.

Four tracks across forty minutes of sound. Endurance (Joshua Stefane), using creative spacial imagery with ties to the writings of Vladimir Nabokov's short story, Cloud, Castle, Lake. Three pristine features, each conveying their own magnitude of elements. Synthesized together and transitioning to a velvety colossal scope. The idea of individual aspects incorporating into complete ambient landscapes touches on all music of this genre. For Cloud, Castle, Lake, infinitely small eddies and vortexes, all part of the dense flow, each existing in the current they are generated from. Sin…

Hypnagogic thoughts or maybe they are hallucinations. Voices relaying a coalescence of affirmation underlined with ulterior motives. The consciousness, like an aperture slowly being rotated in opposite focal directions. What were constructive messages, "It's all about you", transition seamlessly to gentle chaos. More Eaze is selecting the settings, exchanging the droning insect world for a vivid sonic image of mutated beats, rhythms and sound samples. The entire experience accompanied by subliminal sleep recordings, whispering "relaxation, falling asleep".  And then, the continual click of possibly a lethal weapon? Hopefully reality will not be noticeably altered when awake again.

The opening paragraph describes All 4 U, track one, side A of the new More Eaze cassette titled a l4ngu4g3. Whew! Well worth every, hopefully, translucent description. A genius track that embodies the treasure of sounds. The second side follows suit with four shorter offerings. Zebra …

The world in sound moving overhead. A bridge crossing high above, tossing noise down like rocks being thrown from childhood's whimsy. Passing vehicles causing suspension cables to pop and shudder. Their motors in some symphonic harmony with the noise of tire tread on the smooth surface. Listeners can not see these aural causes, only rest in the cool shade and wonder of a civilization in motion above. African Ghost Valley (Childe Grangier and Gabba Boy) is the source of this sonic rain. A precipitation of echoing discordant sonic arrays, pleasantly turning imaginations for their origins.

With compilations on labels across the globe, the Athens, Georgia label \\NULL|ZØNE// has given harbor to another world traveler. UNT is a really short stay, the complete event captured on a sixteen minute cassette. Deep reverberating bass tones brushed with electronic splatter. African Ghost Valley maintains their complete unpredictability, like a radio dial changing frequencies emitted by distant…

The Last Ambient Hero has been working diligently over a three month period. Recently Lost in a Sea of Sound described the beautiful cassette Cassini • Trappist​-​1. Now, under the same sky has arrived. The information given indicates this new composition is a project based in tape loops, a dedication to artists with roots in subtle sound manipulation. And for cassette enthusiasts, a real time recording with three extra tracks not on the digital.

The quality of ambient recordings has always been a rather mute point. There could be differences from a live session, field recordings, something done in a studio, albeit analog or digital might be a controversial factor. For most compositions, sounds are directly fed into the collecting sources. The Last Ambient Hero has accounted for this, rendering twenty cassettes dubbed at real time speed. There might not be a grandiose determinable result from fast or slow dubbing, but these attentions should be noted and reflect the underlying love go…

Betwixt & Between 2 is a beautiful foray across multiple styles of sound. From the opening improvisation using a bow to play the banjo, to the final track, a course in deep meditation, theses sounds will be sure to find porous entry into all consciousnesses. With this great diversity in an aural landscape, the temperament remains perfectly constant. This group of artists creates a micro radio show which you hope the turn of the dial will find.

One the first side, Jacken Elswyth charms her banjo, evoking mesmerizing sounds for all listeners. Four tracks in total, one traditional, titled Arkansas Traveler. The other three, similar improvisational tracks with accompaniment by a shruti box for a drone component. On Jacken's fourth and longest track, she uses an amplifier and feed back as well, adding another layer to an already entrancing euphony. Interesting Arkansas Traveler was selected, since this is a more popular fiddle tune than a pickin' melody, and this was played wit…