Ambient

Redrot

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Jan 11, 2022
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Northern California
Didn't see a thread devoted to ambient, only ambient trance, so I'm starting one now. I'm gonna focus on electronic-specific ambient because that's mostly what I know (unless you count some neoclassical as ambient) but I'm open to whatever.

Bandcamp recently posted a feature showcasing some pre-2000s electronic ambient (much like trance around 2000, the 90s were the turning point for ambient from obscurity and raw experimentation to mild popularity), the only one of these I'd ever heard of before is Woob and the Virtual Dreams comp (Pete Namlook's label is mentioned but he's so famous already it's probably not worth putting him on a list like this).



The Kenniff duo puts out a ton of music and not all of is my cup of tea (worth checking though!) but I really like this one, depicting nature in winter-ey rural America. Gave it a whirl on a trip day during a weeklong canoe trip in northern Ontario and it synergized perfectly with the surrounding landscape and cloudy foreboding weather.


I like the overpowering or foreboding wall-of-sound style of ambient as well, not sure if there's a proper name for it or not. Tim Hecker is a prime example, but here are some lesser known ones:



Worth noting hecq is Ben Lukas Boysen, who has a good career as a contemporary classical artist. hecq is the moniker for his glitchier, more experimental work, and is probably the more well-recognized of the two but I like them both.

Finally here's something fun and weird that I can't get enough of (especially with horses)

 
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Daysleeper

Lost in Trancelation
Jul 13, 2020
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Sweden
Worth noting hecq is also Ben Lukas Boysen, who has a good career as a contemporary classical artist, and was also parts of the psy group Green Nuns of The Revolution. Dude is a master IMO, no matter what alias it is.
Love that Hecq tune. But i dont think he never was part of that psygroup, where did you hear that?

Btw, there is a ambient thread already, lumped in with psybient and chill. Anyways. I¨ll post my favourite rare ambient albums here otherwise, later. Been a ambient connosieur since 2007.
 
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Daysleeper

Lost in Trancelation
Jul 13, 2020
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Oh shit I'm thinking of Neil Cowley :poop: another guy who transitioned into neoclassical. Editing now, I'm sick right now so I'm a little dumber atm.
It just felt very odd when im thinking of him as part of a "wacky" psy group. Just doesnt feel right haha.
 

Redrot

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Jan 11, 2022
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Northern California
They've worked together a number of times and both have alter egos so I conflate the two in my head, see:


And Ben did a wonderful ambient remix from Neil's debut artist album which definitely belongs in this thread:

 
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TRANCEBLASTER

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Jul 21, 2020
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collectors item, now freshly reissued on vinyl:

Virtual Dreams: Ambient Explorations In The House & Techno Age, 1993-1997
The first in a series of various artist compilations, alongside more in-depth artist focused releases, Virtual Dreams will delve into music produced during the 1990’s that redefined the boundaries of ‘Ambient’. This was music that explored the possibilities of Ambient within a new setting, created often by House and Techno producers for a world beyond dance floors but made very much with the pre-clubbing and post-clubbing listener in mind.

When House and Techno exploded out of America in the mid 1980s a whole generation was transformed not only musically but also culturally and chemically speaking. Peaking, quite literally, with a second ‘Summer of Love’ in 1988, millions of young people would experience the life-changing ups of a new world but with it of course came the downs; enter the concept of a ‘Chill-out’ room. Whilst early Chill-out rooms lacked a specific sound and were often sound-tracked by music such as reggae and soul, slowly young Techno and House producers themselves became increasingly interested in developing a futuristic ‘Ambient’ soundtrack to a world beyond the thud of the main room.

‘Ambient’ in this new age now though had sharper teeth than in Brian Eno's key text for ‘Music for Airports’, instead here the sounds were the mode of transport rather than the backdrop. While the melodies were pretty, the soundscapes steered away from the pastoral, often dreaming of outer-space and technology as opening up transformative new dimensions. Much like in the first Summer of Love; the musicians were again exploring psychedelic, mind-altering and transcendental possibilities of music. And also, much as in the first Summer of Love, a psychedelic visual language would accompany the music. Now though the tracks would be accompanied by music videos, often utilising early CGI techniques, and they would look almost entirely to the future: envisioning technology, nature and humanity intertwined in a new Utopia. These were the Virtual Dreams of a new world.

From Ambient and early Chill-out classics, to lesser known one-off projects, as well as Ambient deviations by some of House and Techno’s leading producers, Volume One of Virtual Dreams features tracks by Bedouin Ascent, David Moufang, LA Synthesis, LFO, Marc Hollander, Mark Pritchard & Kirsty Hawkshaw, Richard H. Kirk and more.

01. MLO - Birds And Flutes
02. Pulusha - Isolation (Part Two)
03. MDA Analog - Rainful Memories
04. Space Time Continuum - Fluresence
05. David Moufang - Sergio Leone's Wet Dream
06. LA Synthesis - Frozen Tundra Dub
07. Richard H. Kirk - Oneski
08. A Positive Life - The Calling (Loved'Ub Mix)
09. Sideral - Mare Nostrum
10. The Primitive Painter - Levitation
11. Sun Electric - Love 2 Love
12. LFO - Helen
13. Dubtribe Sound System - Sunshine's Theme (Sunshine's Remix)
14. Human Mesh Dance - ∞
15. Link - Arcadian (Global Communication Remix)
16. The Arc - Orphic Mysteries
17. Bedouin Ascent - Joyriding III
 

Redrot

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Jan 11, 2022
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Northern California
I'm not sure calling this "ambient" is quite the right thing to do but so be it. The followup album from Rachika Nayar whose first album I enjoyed a ton - this one feels like it's taking a lot of inspiration from anthem trance here and there but with considerably more tact than generic uplifting. Feels like a soundtrack for a nonexistent movie, maybe a bit campy at times but still a nice listen.

 

Magdelayna

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Jul 13, 2020
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If theres one Ambient artist id tell everyone to listen to - its Owsey.

Whenever i listen to his music it puts me in a totally different place...melancholic,thoughtful,reminiscent - not sure what id call it.

That Gotye remix is so much better than the original.






 
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Hensmon

Admin
TranceFix Crew
Jun 27, 2020
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Will never stop coming back to these from Global Communication. Where are the guys like this today?

Natural High (Global Communication Remix)

Incidental Harmony

Btw we can make this the ambient thread from now, on and I'll turn the other one into psybient/psychil only.
 

Archon

Gagi
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Jun 27, 2020
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An absolutely fantastic share from @Daysleeper. I love you man. 🫀

Edit: Not really ambient all the way through, but those are the vibes I'm getting.

 
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LostLegend

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Dec 5, 2020
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www.beatport.com

The whole album is out now called ÁTTA

This is probably my fav track at the moment from it called 'Skel'
If you like this or the previous one, then definitely check it out as it is an incredibly beautiful album. I've been pushing it on everyone! :LOL:
A proper 'put on your headphones, dim the lights and travel to another world' type vibe.
 

Progrez

Elite Member
Jun 17, 2022
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Will never stop coming back to these from Global Communication. Where are the guys like this today?

Natural High (Global Communication Remix)

Incidental Harmony

Btw we can make this the ambient thread from now, on and I'll turn the other one into psybient/psychil only.
Tom is making very nice & Mark Pritchard is making fusion between different styles

https://soundcloud.com/tommiddleton%2Fthe-shimmering-sea
https://soundcloud.com/tommiddleton%2Fthe-piano-room
https://soundcloud.com/tommiddleton%2Fthe-sound-of-angels
The Purple Twighlight

The Sea Meets The Sky

The Cosmic Connection

The Fading

The Belt Of Orion
 
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