Tag: Biosphere

DOWNLOAD THIS NOW: Biosphere’s Vinyl Mix of Electronic Music From 1979-1981, Featuring Throbbing Gristle, OMD and More

January 24th, 2013 | File Under: Download This Now | 2 comments

As influential as Pete Namlook is in the scheme of all things ambient, diving into his bottomless discography—the producer has more than 135 albums—can be daunting. Here’s the next best thing, then: a Secret Thirteen-curated tribute to Namlook’s music that mixes similarly minded records from 1979-1981, including the softer transmissions of Throbbing Gristle, the knob-twiddling experiments of Wire frontman Colin Newman, and the early synth-pop of the Human League. All weaved together by another ambient icon, Biosphere…

Posted in: Download This Now

SPOTIFY PLAYLIST: Decibel Festival 2012

September 26th, 2012 | File Under: Spotify Playlist | One comment

Now in its ninth year, Seattle’s Decibel Festival is easily one of the country’s leading epicenters of EDM-free electronic music and all things experimental. Here are some of this year’s headliners to give you an idea of what we mean: Carl Craig, Orbital, a DJ set from one of the world’s leading crate diggers (DJ Shadow), and not one but two sides of the ever-evolving Erykah Badu, a live set with her Cannabinoids crew and a rare appearance by the one and only DJ Lo Down Loretta.

Sample all of the above and a whole lot more in our Spotify playlist below (subscribe to it here), which we’ll be adding to and subtracting from according to your suggestions in the comments section, on Facebook, and on Twitter. Be honest; what’d we miss/mess up?

Posted in: Spotify Playlist

Touch Music Celebrates 30th Anniversary With Rare ISSUE Project Room Sets From Eleh, Philip Jeck, Chris Watson and More

September 13th, 2012 | File Under: Download This Now, News | Leave A Comment

Experimental music mainstay Touch Music launches the New York portion of its 30th anniversary festivities tonight with a rare set from turntablist Philip Jeck and guitarist/lathe cutter Ted Riederer. ISSUE Project Room have a complete breakdown of Touch’s special programming here, from a festival-closing ensemble performance on Sunday night to the live U.S. debut of the ever-reclusive Eleh tomorrow.

In the meantime, here’s a special collection of ‘radio’ sessions from Fennesz, Biosphere, Phil Niblock, Peter Rehberg and more…

Posted in: Download This Now, News

Tim Hecker and Oneohtrix Point Never Confirm Unsound Collaboration, Help Launch New Software Label Series

June 12th, 2012 | File Under: News | One comment

Tim Hecker and Oneohtrix Point Never have lined up a special collaborative performance at the 10th annual installment of Unsound’s Krakow festival. Also among the first round of confirmations are Julia Holter, Lustmord and Biosphere’s TRINITY project, and a rare “swan song” set from Leyland Kirby’s reclusive, art-damaged pop alias V/VM.

Oh, and if you’re wondering why Hecker’s holding a saxophone in the studio shot above, the pair apparently cut a record together this spring as part of a new Software Label series called SSTUDIOS. Co-curated by Daniel Lopatin and experimental music mainstay C Spencer Yeh, it’s meant to highlight the kind of one-off collabs that get Wire readers—and us—all out and bothered. More details on that front once we’ve got ‘em…

Posted in: News

LONG PLAYER OF THE DAY: Biosphere, ‘N-Plants’

September 18th, 2011 | File Under: Long Player of the Day | Leave A Comment

The Artist/Album: Biosphere, N-Plants (Touch, 2011)

The Reason(s) We Can’t Stop Listening: The story behind the steam-pressed, ambient-prone beats of Biosphere’s latest album is a chilling one—after stumbling upon an old nuclear power plant photo from an area just outside Tokyo, the producer decided to “make a soundtrack to some of [Japan's plants], concentrating on the architecture, design and localizations, but also questioning the potential radiation danger…Are they safe when it comes to earthquakes and tsunamis?”

A month after N-Plants was finished, the country suffered one of its most devastating natural disasters, an earthquake/tsunami pairing that left many people wondering about the long term effects of the nuclear power plant damage nearby. Not that any of this back story is necessary to appreciate Biosphere’s winding passages and lattice-like loops. They’re compelling with or without any context.

Available At: Amazon · Insound · iTunes · Spotify

Posted in: Long Player of the Day

PRIMER: Belong On … Essential Electronic Records From the ’90s (That Weren’t Released On Warp)

March 25th, 2011 | File Under: Primer | 15 comments

Words by Turk Dietrich of Belong

Exploring the landscape of electronic music from the ’90s can be an extremely daunting task. A tangle of coexisting genres and micro-genres proves a starting point to be an obstacle. But after beginning the task, one will soon encounter Warp Records. Founded in Sheffield in 1989, the British label released some of the most influential electronic music of the decade, from LFO and Forgemasters to the Artificial Intelligence compilations that introduced the sounds of Aphex Twin, Autechre, Fuse, and Black Dog.

While Warp provides an excellent starting point for examining this specific era in music, a number of other key electronic records emerged around the same time. The following Primer is not definitive, but I have attempted to cover a wide range of styles, genres, and years. In addition to 14 main albums, I’ve included a couple more suggestions under each selection. All 42 records get the highest endorsement, and from here, the discoveries are endless…

Posted in: Primer

Tag: Biosphere

DOWNLOAD THIS NOW: Biosphere’s Vinyl Mix of Electronic Music From 1979-1981, Featuring Throbbing Gristle, OMD and More

SPOTIFY PLAYLIST: Decibel Festival 2012

Touch Music Celebrates 30th Anniversary With Rare ISSUE Project Room Sets From Eleh, Philip Jeck, Chris Watson and More

Tim Hecker and Oneohtrix Point Never Confirm Unsound Collaboration, Help Launch New Software Label Series

LONG PLAYER OF THE DAY: Biosphere, ‘N-Plants’

PRIMER: Belong On … Essential Electronic Records From the ’90s (That Weren’t Released On Warp)

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