Monument Waves 002 : ASIP

A new mix for the brilliant Monument platform, and their new series ‘Waves’ which looks to feature more of the ambient side of things, rather than the deep techno world they are known for, if the first of the series by Chris SSG is any indication.

After our label showcase mix I did for them a few years back, I was extremely pleased to return to Monument again and decided on a new approach for #2.

Taking inspiration from the podcast series’ title, I aimed to create a mix that focused on repetition and layers, as if staring out to sea watching blankets of waves roll in from miles out; changing in intensity, but forever calming in their unbound repetition.

The result is reflective of the many adjacent styles I enjoy from ambient, to IDM and deeper techno and some of the seconds of tracks that stand out to me, or I forever wished to be looped in my head - be it a texture, vocal or beat pattern.

Thank you Monument for the support over the years, and for inviting me to what I am sure will become a very special series.

MONUMENT · Monument Waves 002 : ASIP

Listen on Soundcloud or the ASIP Podcast

Download MP3

Tracklist:

01. Mikkel Rev - Evocation  [Unreleased / A Strangely Isolated Place] (Loop/edit)
02. Chronovalve - Almost There [Home Normal] (Loop/edit)
03 . Yumi Iwaki - Nocturnal[Kankyō Records]  (Loop/edit)
04. DJ Healer - Great Escape [All Possible Worlds] (Loop/edit)
05. Susumu Yokota - No Kaori [Leaf Label] (Loop/edit)
06. The National Pool - Through The Beach [Infraction] (Loop/edit)
07. Bana Haffar - Lifter [Touch] (Loop/edit)
08. Pontiac Streator - Stuck In A Cave [Motion Ward] (Loop/edit)
09. TSR - 01 [Record Union] (Loop/edit)
10. Christina Chatfield - Sutro [Mysteries of the Deep] (Loop/edit)
11. Oneohtrix Point Never - Format & Journey North [Arbor] (Loop/edit)
12. Gi Gi - Montjuic Feat. Mi Mi [Quiet Time] (Loop/edit)
13. Jonny Nash - All I Ever Need [Melody As Truth] (Loop/edit)
14. Saphileaum - Elegant Voyage [Mysteries of The Deep] (Loop/edit)
15. RQ - Hounds (Sam KDC remix) [Auxiliary] (Loop/edit)
16. Michael Stearns - In The Beginning [Continuum Montage] (Loop/edit)
17. Solar Quest - Flying Spirals [Crammed Discs] (Loop/edit)
18. Zodiac Childs - Kepler Track Two (Zodiac Wax) (Loop/edit)
19. Central Industrial - After Image [Auxiliary] (Loop/edit)
20. Intrepid Soul - Under The Sun (The Gods Planet) (Loop/edit) 
21. Anatolian Weapons - Teachings In Stone [Self] (Loop/edit)
22. Theef - Sun & Smoke  (Unreleased / A Strangely Isolated Place) (Loop/edit)
23. Quiet Places - Side B (A Strangely Isolated Place) (Loop/edit)
24. Courtesy - You're Not Alone [Kulør] (feat. Erika de Casier & August Rosenbaum) (Loop/edit)
25. Maxime Denuc - Ouverture [Vlek] (Loop/edit)
26. µ-Ziq - Whale Soup [Self] (Loop/edit)
27. Adam Johnson - Version 02 [Merck] (Loop/edit)
28. Autechre - Bronchusevernmx24 + Aphex Twin - On + Aleksi Perala - UK74R1406070 (edit)
29. Pub - Summer [Vertical Form] (Loop/edit)
30. Loess - Sofar [Toytronic] (edit)
31. Biosphere - Monju 1 [Touch] (Loop/edit)
32. Salvatore Mercatante - Classical [Unreleased]
33. OKRAA - La Gran Corriente [Unreleased / A Strangely Isolated Place]
34. Lihla - Becoming Human [A Strangely Isolated Place] (Loop/edit)
35. Ylia - Drifting Off into The Waves  [Balmat] (Loop/edit)
36. The Eightsome Reel - A Stranger Landing  [Self] (Loop/edit)
37. Terre Thaemlitz - Music is Controllable Desire You Can Own [Self]
38. Echospace - Love Always Lives [Self] 
39. Bill Laswell & Pete Namlook - Telepathy II [FAX] (Loop/edit)

ASIP - Reflection on 2020

As with all past ‘Reflection’ year-end mixes, I start with a collection of albums I have enjoyed over the year. Through the process of compiling a mix that flows well, songs are whittled down and selected from this collection. This means many of my favorite tracks and albums are often omitted in the process, due to the need for them to fit in a mix that comes together as organically as possible. As I say every year, this isn’t a definitive ‘best-of’ list, but a selection of some of my favorite music from the year in one easily listenable format. It’s the most enjoyable way for me to boil down music I’ve loved from the year using these self-imposed restrictions, for you to then enjoy and discover more. I encourage you to use the mix to jump off and explore each artist, album and label (and check the Buy Music Club list).

~

This year was different. Well, of course, in an obvious mask-over-the-face-lock-down kinda way, but all that aside, the amount of music made and consumed by all accounts was like no other year. No doubt, because everyone is locked-up inside, encouraged by platforms like Bandcamp and the now regular ‘Bandcamp Fridays’. As a result, this years Reflection mix started as a daunting effort and took me to developing a slightly new process to get it over the line.

Listening behaviors were forcibly changed for all of us. In addition to the crazy Bandcamp Friday release rampages, Live streams became the weekend plans and we had a brilliant year over on 9128.live hosting five weekend takeovers, which, by all accounts provided some amazing respite as we all hunkered down inside. We never would’ve guessed in August 2019 when we launched 9128.live, that online streaming events would be such a focus for the entire year ahead. As a result of the takeovers; the DJs; live acts; labels, and a bunch of listeners ID’ing music in the chat, music discovery accelerated even further (for me atleast) during these takeovers. An example track ID list from the last takeover can be found here.

This seems to be the first year I haven’t been able to keep up syncing purchases on my hard-drive (which is primed for mix prep due to my playlist organization OCD). I still listened to it all, but I listened even more through the Bandcamp app, so haven’t felt the need to obsessively download it all throughout the year. That was a problem if I was going to start compiling the mix in my usual way with digital files…

As a result, I decided to create even more self-imposed-restrictions (always needed given the enormity of choice) and began by mixing some vinyl from the past year.

I got about an hours worth of a good mix which I was happy with enough to exist online for eternity - just cherry-picking records from my 2020 collection, recording until I had a mix that sounded a bit shoddy. At that point, I was a little relieved, as a direction and vibe had already been set and would pave the way for the rest of the mix to be built. (It also gave me the opportunity to swap out the first track post recording, which began with some bad static for some reason). So the mix ended up being about an hours worth of vinyl, followed by digital. I know some people really don’t give a crap how a mix was made, but this helped with my overall curation process and ensured it actually got done!

Upon reflection, the mix manages to hit on my 2020 music spectrum and gives a good idea of what I’ve had on rotation. Lots of deep textured ambient (LOG, Slow Reels, KMRU, Patricia Wolf, Chronovalve etc - this part could go on forever), abstract beat driven atmospheres (Evan Caminiti, Daniel Avery, Space Afrika, Tomas Jirku etc) and the more joyous, playful, euphoric side of electronic music (Ian Boddy, Pub, DJ Lostboi, Rone etc). My rave roots rarely disappear it seems and muscle memory still finds a way through via Sophia Loizou and later on in full force with Wardown. Maybe in a desperate desire to return to events listening to DJs and Live acts, I wanted to end the mix on a high-note, and hopefully lift-up the terrible year it’s been for everyone.

This year’s mix; vinyl or not, every track is available on Bandcamp. Score any of them below using the Buy Music Club list and for even more music I’ve been enjoying this this year, see my Bandcamp collection.

Thank you for reading, listening, supporting in 2020, before and beyond. I hope you can escape for a few hours with this mix, as it ending up being a joy to piece together and reflect on the great music from the year, not only included in the mix, but also the many other albums I simply could not fit in but had fun revisiting during the process.

Listen on Soundcloud, Mixcloud, or the ASIP Podcast.

Download

astrangelyisolatedplace · ASIP - Reflection on 2020

Tracklist:

000.00. Yumiko Moriaka - 銀の船 (Métron Records)
004.41. LOG - Log 9 (Experiences Ltd)
008.19. Úlfur (Ft. Cellist Gyda Valtýsdóttir) - Feathered (Touch The Plants)
011.13. Yumi Iwaki - Initial Tidings (Mystery Circles)
015.00. Slow Reels - Miya (Morr Music)
016.45. Rafael Anton Irisarri - Arduous Clarity (Dais)
020.13. Ian Boddy - Omicron (Behind The Sky)
025.00. Jonathan Fitoussi - Oceans (Transversales Disques)
028.00. Evan Caminiti - Plume (Dust Editions)
031.20. LF58 - Iniziazione (Astral Industries)
034.45. Night Sea - This Will Take Time (Silent Season)
039.25. Neel - Alchemy (Ido)
043.20. Sophia Loizou - Vestal Waters (Houndstooth)
047.06. Tomas Jirku - Entropy 8 (Silent Season)
051.05. Daniel Avery - Into The Arms of Stillness (Phantasy Sound)
056.32. Abfahrt Hinwil - Phase4 (Lapsus Records)
059.00. Pub - Fragile Root (Ampoule)
1.03.10. Space Africa - Self (Self)
1.04.45. DJ Lostboi - Ordinary People (Queeste)
1.07.09. Lucy Gooch - We Carry (Looking Glass)
1.10.15. Robert Lippock - With Tomorrow (7K!)
1.12.30. HVL - newenslo (Self)
1.20.00 KMRU - ulmma (Seil)
1.23.10. Patricia Wolf - All Things Change (Beacon Sound)
1.25.17. Perila & Ulla - Every something is an echo of nothing (Silence)
1.27.53. Awakened Souls & Pepo Galán - Center of the Sea (Hush Hush)
1.30.25 Chronovalve - Breathing Space (Home Normal)
1.34.39. Adam Wiltzie - How to Disappear inside a thirty-piece Orchestra (7K!)
1.37.37. Epic 45 - Sidings (Wayside & Woodland)
1.39.24. Ocoeur - Ascent (n5MD)
1.43.47. nthng - With You (Lobster Theremin)
1.50.10. Wardown - Culverhouse (Blu Mar Ten)
1.53.17. Rone - Human (InFiné)
1.58.55. Malibu - Lost At Sea (Kelly Moran remix) (Uno NYC)
2.02.34. Il Quadro di Troisi - Real (Raster)
RIP Harold Budd, Pauline Anna Strom & José Padilla.