ASIP - Subtempo Guest Mix 012

Last year we featured one of the first releases from the Subtempo crew; this lovely Alejandro Bento album and its accompanying remixes. Fast-forward a year and Subtempo have some ambitious plans with both the label and their new website/blog, and they’ve invited me to help kick-off the newly refreshed design by contributing to their ongoing guest mix series. There’s also a little Q&A with yours truly should you be interested!

For full background on the mix and to read the interview, head over to Subtempo here.

Big thanks to Rocco and Subtempo for the support, invite and the great feature.

Tracklist

01. Tongues of Light - Healing Side [Pre-Cert]
02. DJ Healer - At Last (Becoming The Storm) [All Possible Worlds]
03. DJ Richard - Dissolving World [Dial]
04. Lori Scacco - Other Flowers [Mysteries Of The Deep]
05. Sonae - Soul Eater [Monika Enterprise]
06. Sophia Loizou - Order Of Elements [Kathexis]
07. Strië - Capsule [Serein]
08. Christoph De Babalon - High Life (Theme) [DHR]
09. Abul Mogard - Quiet Dreams [Ecstatic]
10. Hands - Beelitz Heilstatten Pt6 [Ecstatic]
11. Suzanne Ciani - Quadrophonic Part One [Atmospheric]
12. M Geddes Gangras - Kalapana [Umor Rex]
13. DJ Healer - Hopes And Fears [All Possible Worlds]
14. 747 - Cretaceous (edit) [Aquaregia]
15. Hotel Neon - Roke [Archives]
16. 36 - Soul Boundary [A Strangely Isolated Place - forthcoming]

Sonae - Far Away Remixed

It was a special time releasing ASIP's first digital series a few years back. The Places Series played home to many ambient artists first 'release'; went on to define the wider ASIP community; and in many instances helped some of the artists get a little more exposure for their great work. The fact I'm writing this post about Sonae, makes me proud to have started it, and proud of where the artists have pushed themselves to in the past few years.

Sonae is one of those unique sounding artists whose work grabbed me from the start. An experimental mixture of close sounds, piano and subtle electronics, which gracefully came together in her debut album last year titled Far Away Is Right Around The Corner, on Monika Enterprise. Now, Sonae returns with a remix EP, enlisting another ASIP steward in Markus Guentner, alongside Mimicof, Dirk Markham, and Cétieu.  

Dirk Markham transforms the calm of Überwindung into a sparkling and energetic experimental piece. The underlaying pulses of Not The Moon may be an obvious choice for Guentner, but as with all great remixes, it's the respect for the subtleties that make the biggest impact. Cétieu takes a page from Sonae's detailed sculpturing to transform the bulbous, glistening I Know A Fish, into a microscopic dive, living on the surface of the harmonic, shimmering metallics. And lastly, composer and sound sculpter Midori Hirano (Mimicof) treats us to a dramatic and dynamic take on Hot Summerday, rounding out a superb sound-detail-oriented remix EP. 

There's no doubt this release features a finely curated roster, obviously chosen to accentuate, not disrupt, with their takes on Sonae's vivid sound designs.

We're lucky to bring you the video for Mimicof's remix below, created by Alisa Berger. 

Sonae - Far Away Remixed is now available digitally on iTunes/Beatport/Bleep etc.

Sonae - Far Away Remixed tracklist:
1. Überwindung - Dirk Markham Remix
2. Hot Summerday - Mimicof Remix
3. Not The Moon-Markus Guentner Remix
4. I Know A Fish - Cétieu Remix

Passing by: Sonae, Levi Patel, Leandro Fresco

Sonae – Far Away Is Right Around The Corner

Sonae’s hard-work and dedication have never been in doubt alongside her brimming talent. The Cologne-based producer’s Places Series EP was just a taster of what to expect for when an inevitable full-length came to fruition.

Far Away Is Right Around The Corner is Sonae’s debut on Monika Enterprise and a natural extension to her Places Series Cologne EP. I’ve enjoyed the unexpectedness and variety of Sonae’s productions (and even her mixes) to date, and her album finally depicts the many courses, battles and emotions she considers when taking to the studio.

A pounding beginning echo-ing with static is followed by the title piece; a shining ambient drone juxtaposed with a piercing synth. Wanderingis another play on Sonae’s explorations of her city no doubt, with eery radio samples, static and decay. The piano has long been Sonae’s weapon of choice and her differing approaches show between the heavy drones in Song Of Hate And Anger and  the uplifting keys in Hot Summerday. My favourite track I Know A Fish, is Sonae’s most balanced piece to date and a defining piece for the album.

Within each track lies hidden meanings, a hidden emotion and a confusion of sorts, that only becomes apparent as a whole. Skip through the tracks and you’d miss it. Listen as a whole and you’ll be engrossed until the end – a story with highs, lows, twist and turns. Available on LP / digital download.

Listen and download Sonae’s Places Series release Cologne here.

Levi Patel – Of Sleep and Time

After his big step with Forms on Dado Records, Levi Patel has returned with a mini EP, which he recognises as a different approach to his earlier material. But let me make this clear – this is probably only a different approach to a musical genius like him… sure it focuses more on the piano, and is definitely less Soundtrack, but to us mere mortals, the pure emotion and melancholy still remain. You’d be quick to draw comparisons with Nils Frahm’s early days, but it’s Olafur Arnalds and Otto A.Totland who’ll be witnessing a similar young prodigy tread in the same, gentle footsteps. Available on Bandcamp.

Listen and download Levi’s Places Series release, Dissociation, here.

Leandro Fresco – El Reino Invisible

Leandro’s latest, El Reino Invisible, is the first in a new Pop Ambient album series, which follows the acclaimed compilation series – a move that was to many of us inevitable given the quality of output so far. Kompakt have always ‘released’ ambient albums, but only now have they decided to position them under the successful Pop Ambient guise.

Expect nothing unexpected from Leandro and everything you’ve come to love from the Pop Ambient mainstay – his beautiful, warm synth-sound wrapped in subtle melodies is a perfect start to the series. As Leandro quotes, “I do not associate this album with feelings of sadness, but with hope, light and the summer heat, full of cyan and orange colors”, much like a summer trip to Buenos Aires accompanied by the man himself. El Reino Invisible is the equivalent of putting your music on auto-play when watching a superb sunset – a warm, slowly evolving and colourful attack on the senses. Just as the first track translates, we’re hoping it’s A Golden Age for Pop ambient after this signature release.

Available to preview/listen and pre-order on Kompakt.

Passing by: Markus Guentner, Odd Shapes, Audioglider, enh, Sonae and Mr Frankie

A few treats from ASIP regulars in this Passing By feature.

Markus Guentner – Our Home

A little gem released by Markus Guentner a few weeks back now; not to be missed and a free download. Dark, subdued and industrial with a reverberating bassline. Download on Soundcloud.

Odd Shapes – Ice Cream Cathedral’s ‘The Ranger’ remix

A superb EP all-round by Ice Cream Cathedral and a rare remix by Odd Shapes. You’d probably expect Asger to take the drums on this piece to another level, going by his remix duties on Uncharted Places, but instead he opts for a stripped back version, letting the beautiful vocal swirl and the melody shine. The Debut LP will be released March 4th through Oh!My Collective (ohm014).

Audioglider – Mixtape 14 (mix)

Audioglider always manages to come up with these mix tapes at the right time of my life, and as you’d expect from Roberto, it’s a dreamy, melodic and a perfect companion to lazy, hazy days. Featuring a bunch of great tracks from enh, Message To Bears, Bass Kittens and XSpance – the latter of which has a rather good album called ‘Night Echoes‘ up on Bandcamp. Download the mix on Soundcloud.

enh – So Zero (mix)

Continuing the ASIP contingent, enh‘s also been busy preparing his latest mix and it’s packed full of ASIP related goodies. From Roger Martinez’s Horizontal Excursions to Parks, Stray Theories, and Markus Guentner remixes from Uncharted Places. I can’t be biased all the time, but this one’s bound to be good with this lot involved! Download on Soundcloud.

Sonae – Winter (mix)

You may remember many moons ago, it was through Sonae’s mixtapes that she came to release her Places Series EP on ASIP. The mixes are quite the legend round these parts and we’ve been void of them for far too long now. Sonia’s back, with tracks from Loscil, Fieldhead, Jon Hopkins, Apparat and Peter Broderick. Play on Mixcloud.

Mr.Frankie – After The Bliss (mix)

I found myself enveloped in this mix by Mr Frankie – a beautiful blend of textures, dub and deep voids of techno. Some superb track choices including: DFRNT, Edanticonf, Voices from the Lake, Minilogue and Adam Michalak.

Image – Suddenly The Trees Are Giving Way (@astrangelyisolatedplace)

ASIP017 Sonae - Cologne

 

Finding beauty doesn’t always come easy. It’s a search, and concept, guided by bias and perception; subjectivity and selectivity. For the optimists, it can be seen in anything. For the pessimists, it’s a long-term battle to find inspiration in anything but the superlative. That search seems to be an extensive one for Sonae when it comes to her current place in Cologne. 

“Cologne has no beauty,” Sonae states. “It’s grey and full of cement and the asphalt ugliness doesn’t even stop at Cologne's biggest park. It’s a barely green area named Grüngürtel that sometimes feels like it’s been oppressed.” 

It’s a damning assessment but underpins the melancholic atmosphere of ‘Traurigtag’ and ‘Urban Cruising’. Twin tracks that carry a grey burden, the white noise hints at a discord and frustration, characterising Sonae’s struggle with the monotony of her surroundings. Frail piano lines and fallible melody struggle in their battle in the pool of acerbic static, the harmony painstakingly trying to emerge, only to slip back into the abyss.  

It’s forced Sonae to look deeper into the city and her surroundings, cherish the intermittent oases, and appreciate how the bleakest outlooks can also inspire the smallest victories. 

“Cologne definitely has its colourful spots on its grey mapping,” she explains “In the Südstadt, early century buildings frame the streets, there’s the old trees of Friedenspark and Volksgarten's rose-garden, and last but not least, the Rheinufer allows you to leave everything behind while cruising along the riverside to the small beach of Rodenkirchen.” 

Perhaps the beauty is in the struggle.