A CLOSER LISTEN weekly #41

Fall Music Previews! (part i)

Dear Listeners, I know I promised the start of a new feature (Out of the Box, highlighting a different 7” from my collection each edition), but I’d forgotten just how extensive Richard’s Fall Music Previews would be. So this week, and an off-cycle newsletter next week, will be dedicated entirely to Previews. In fact, the Ambient & Drone preview alone has already surpassed the word limit for this to be sent by email! So enjoy the most extensive music previews anywhere on the web. This newsletter features Ambient & Drone, Electronic, and Experimental, while next week will see Field Recording & Soundscapes, Modern Composition, and Rock, Post-Rock, Folk, & Jazz. Until then, happy listening!

FALL MUSIC PREVIEWS

Could this be the best fall slate we’ve ever heard?  We started to get this impression in mid-summer, as the autumn announcements gained momentum.  While summer may be the biggest season for movies, fall is the biggest season for music.  More than half of ACL’s Albums of the Year were released in autumn, which means there’s a better-than-even chance that 2023’s best album is still to come.

This week we’ll be covering nearly 500 releases with premiere dates of September to December, every one of them hyperlinked for your convenience, beginning with Ambient and Drone.  We hope you’ll enjoy this sneak peek at the fall music slate, and find many reasons to embrace the new season!

AMBIENT

ACL’s seasonal previews take some liberties with the calendar.  Our Winter Music Preview is published at the beginning of the year, because the official beginning of winter is tied up with the holidays.  Our Spring Music Preview coincides with the astronomical season, while our Fall Music Preview follows the meteorological season.  The Ceremony of Seasons series, when paired with VISUALS Wine’s Ritual of Senses Wine Club selections, provides a feast for the senses, no matter when one pops the cork on autumn.  Dark Sines‘ The Space Time Paradox addresses the cosmic angle, noting our lessened proximity to our favorite star.  And for the first time, the label is set to release a standalone album, Ross Gentry‘s House as a Person, which uses music to reassess the past, and as such pairs well with the above.  Both are released on September 22.

Södermalm In Autumn is another season-friendly release, a calm project from Wil Bolton whose first single is the evocative “Spectres of Parks” (Home Normal, October 6).  This is the companion piece to Red to Orange, Blue to Black, released September 1 on the same label.  The most autumnal title: “October.”  Home Normal also goes back in time this fall with Summer Chronicles from David Cordero & Rhucle, looking back on the summer of ’22 (November 3).  The schedule continues with Anthéne & David Cordero‘s Lost Under the Sea, a mournful yet enveloping album that includes a tribute to “Forgotten Sailors” (November 4) and Far away Nebraska‘s Il vento mi parla di te, an ode to the sea written while ensconced in a winter cabin (November 28).  Kirk Barley‘s Verdant may seem a bit out of season, but in the Southern Hemisphere, spring starts now (Odda, September 1).

Mary Lattimore‘s Goodbye, Hotel Arkada uses the renovation of a Croatian hotel as a metaphor for the ephemeral nature of life.  The harpist mixes humor in with the melancholy, expanding her horizons.  Roy Montgomery is one of the special guests, along with members of Slowdive and The Cure (Ghostly International, October 6).  Past Palms has always had an ambient side, though until now he’s appeared in our Electronic section; prior projects have focused on spring and summer, while Portraits coincides with the autumnal equinox.  The EP celebrates the little things in life, such as open windows and sunlight through stained glass (September 22).

Tatsuro Murakami‘s An Imaginary Autumn is released just as real autumn begins; seven tracks recalling eight years of autumns in which the artist was unable to return to Japan (Whitelabrecs, September 1, pictured above).  The label is also preparing Interpretations, a compilation of reworked glacis pieces from Last Days, The Humble Bee and more (September 9).

The constently reliable 12k label returns with four releases this September.  First up is the perfectly-timed Drift of Autumn, an EP from Ohio recorded on the Nord Lead 1 synthesizer.  The next comes from Will Samson, who was inspired by Indian devotional music and the peacefulness of the river flowing outside his studio.  Harp Swells also includes a guest appearance from Bell Orchestre’s Michael Feuerstack and Irish performance artist Maia Nunes on “And Yet” (September 8).  Next up is Illuha, now a trio after welcoming percussionist Tatsuhisa Yamamoto.  Tobira is pointillist and precise, tonal passages alternating with percussive (September 22).  On the same day. Zimoun‘s Modular Guitar Passages I-VI does what the title suggests with Tenor Baritone Guitar and modular synth.  The music is minimalistic, progressing through incremental changes in nuance and tone.

Sometimes the kitchen is being cleaned, sometimes there’s conversation, and sometimes Shela is playing piano.  The WhatsApp TV Songs are miniature and peripheral, the very definition of ambience (Discrepant, September 15).  Everyone brings something to the table on Refract: piano, drums, loops.  The album is a team-up between BlankFor.ms, Jason Moran and Marcus Gilmore, and is out September 1 on Red Hook Records.  Billed as a “maximalist take on minimalism,” Chris Abrahams / Oren Ambarchi / Robbie Avenaim‘s Placelessness is ambient and experimental, the influence of The Necks clearly present.  The piece began as one, is now two, yet flows as a single work (Ideologic Organ, September 8).  Forget everything that you think you know about circus music; Rutger Zuydervelt‘s Kaleiding (music for a performance by Lily&Janick) is exciting and variety-packed without between maudlin or twee.  The show will premiere at Korzo, The Hague a day after the album release of September 22.  Multiple remixers tackle the work of Kenneth James Gibson on Further Translations, nudging his work into ambient, drone and modern composition (Meadow Heavy Recorders, November 10).

The cover of Always Beautiful is so lovely we’re not surprised it is also available as an A3 print.  Anna Papij‘s delicate, piano-based EP is also offered as a “mini-zine, with a micro story,” while the music is available in regular and binaural versions (September 29).  Cello, piano, harp, violin, sax and more feature strongly on How to Unravel, which thankfully offers guidance on how to be stitched back together on Side B.  Kilometre Club‘s album is out September 29 on We Are Busy Bodies.  Laurel Halo offers rich hues of ambient jazz on Atlas, with sax, strings, vibraphone and more.  The cover is fuzzy, while the music is smeared: a perfect match (Awe, September 22).  Tape music dominates Nightshade, unspooling alongside the music, which is ironically on vinyl.  Tom James Scott‘s album is out September 1 on A L T E R.  Time Released Sound doesn’t do anything halfway, and their latest release is another over-the-top presentation.  Official Report on The Intransitionalist Chronotopologies of Kenji Siratori: Appendix 8.2.3 includes a 163-page, A.I.-generated paperback novel by Kenji Siratori with a score from Wormwood, in collaboration with the Ministry Of Transrational Research Into Anastrophic Manifolds and mysterious throughout.  A regular edition is also available, but why choose that over the special edition? (September 1).

Oh No Noh | Jenny Berger Myrrh | FS Blumm collaborated on Interstitial last year, and continue their friendship with a new album of the same name, but with different tracks.  Oh No Noh’s video presence has been strong in recent years; we’re hoping for a visual element (Teleskop, September 29).  The cover of Habitat II may look like an egg slicer cup holder frisbee, but it’s actually a sculpture of a water spigot.  In the same manner, little is as it seems on the album, which addresses liminal habitats, like hallways and grounds, rather than the rooms of its predecessor.  J Foerster / N Kramer‘s album is out September 15 on Leaving Records, with a tangerine splatter vinyl option.  CV & Jab (Christina Vantzou and John Also Bennett) return with Κλίμα (Klima), using piano, flute, synth, percussion, field recordings and more to reflect the various landscapes of international locations.  The album even travels underwater, and sounds as intimate as a postcard (Basilic, September 29).  The EVI (Electronic Valve Instrument) is Justin Walker‘s weapon of choice, although pump organ also appears on Destroyer, a set that shares a name with a classic Kiss LP but sounds like its diametrical opposite (kranky, 13 October).  There’s no reason pots and pans and elastic bands can’t be used on an album, as Kim David Botts proves on Oostwestkruisbest, whose title combines the phrases “home sweet home” and “home has its troubles” (South of North, September 11).

Droneroom turns out to be more ambient than drone, concentrating on guitar and banjo.  The Best of My Love quotes a famous R&B song yet stays instrumental (Somewherecold, September 22).  “A few more vocals than usual” appear on Ben McElroy‘s Beacons of the Universe, but that’s okay as he’s trying to warn people about climate change while wondering how much it will take.  Folk guitar, flute and dialogue are but three of the instruments in his arsenal (September 29).  A decade after Sketches from Afar, the volume settings folder releases Sketches from Afar II, a sequel of sorts containing a decade worth of loop-based work (September 1).  Ferric Expeditions is another tape-based work, this one revolving around the compact cassette.  Loneward‘s album is released September 1 on Ambient Soundscapes.

Carbon in Prose turns his attention to the oceans on Salt Water Blood, lamenting the damage humanity has inflicted.  Water permeates every track, a constant reminder threaded through layers of piano and synth (Dragon’s Eye Recordings, September 29).  Also on September 29, the label will release Dorian Wood‘s Excesiva, a study of inherent contradictions, recorded with a microphone in a milk jar.  Field recordings and synthesizer play in the mangroves of Zoltan Fesco‘s Other Air, which includes a quiet pulse so listeners know it’s alive (Oxtail Recordings, September 22).  Howard Stelzer is releasing two albums on September 1.  Euclid Is a Dead Sponge (Suburban Observances Volume Three) was released out of order, but that’s okay because we love CD3″s; it’s a combination of cassettes and collages, often sounding like field recordings (Oxidation).  Hard/Rainbow is recorded with Brian Grainger as Extra, a single 36-minute piece that continues to delve into micro music and hidden sounds (Mileau Music).

Inner Islands is expecting triplets on September 8.  Channelers‘ Generation / Harvest is a lovely organic offering, featuring piano, guitar and strings.  Sawyer G‘s It’ll Be Gone For A Little While is jazzier and more pensive, with a soupçon of sax.  Golden Brown‘s Wide Ranging Rider exudes a Western tinge, honoring its title and cover, with folk guitar weaving an ambient tale, backed by keyboard and cello.

Robert Hakalski splits the difference between ambient and modern composition on Twelve Planes for the Paper Pilot, which includes copious use of organic instrumentation along with crackle and crescendo.  The album is out September 1 on the artist’s imprint Singularity (pictured left).

Sadly the war in Ukraine continues; in contrast, Igor Yalivec continues to make peaceful music.  If Etudes is suffused with sadness, the reasons are obvious (Whited Sepulchre, November 3).  Broadcast Silence extends the ambient superhero saga of Grant Outerbridge, who started to record as Memorybell after a 2014 accident left him with transient global amnesia, a condition that hinders the brain’s ability to make new memories.  Thankfully, he is still able to make new music, connecting neural pathways through nostalgia (Hidden Shoal, October 13).  One would not expect to find a CRB Elettronica Ancona – Model: Diamond 708 E Electric Keyboard at the local recycling centre, but when Natalia Baylis did, she was overjoyed, and used her new toy to write the nostalgic, memory-tinged Mermaids (Touch Sensitive, September 1).

This season’s Slow Tone Collage bundle is released September 1 and includes Retrograde Amnesia, a soft set from Xu & Oberlin; Nattens Hvide Sten from øjeRum, each disc with a different collaged image; and Tomosia‘s Moor Thoughts, an album-length track representing the musings of friends.

The Shimmering Moods September Package Deal includes five albums: Unearth Noise‘s The Dream of Life is a colorful set that comes in five different colors and includes sitar and infinity harp (no relation to Infinity Stones); Lunar Corp.‘s Shape, Sound & Colours extends the synaesthetic feeling while offering a rare “climate optimism;” Nekomachi‘s Left Behind 201 was inspired by a debris-filled highway on which objects appear and disappear; the similarly-named musician Nemokai‘s Endless Deadlines bemoans the daily life of the downtrodden worker; and Yamako‘s Blurry Photo uses analogue equipment to recall a simpler world (September 15).

Do you love sine waves?  We’ve got the release for you.  MIZI‘s Watch Paint Dry contains “256 gliding pure tones,” and the physical edition is encased in silicon.  Listeners can connect them to their sound systems or use headphones. We’re not exactly sure how this is going to work, but we trust them!  (Abstand, September 1, pictured left).

The quiet details label has been doing everything right ever since their launch in February of this year, releasing one quality album each month.  Their eighth release is anthéne‘s balance, which will be unveiled on September 13.  Marja Ahti‘s Tender Membrane is patient and tone-heavy, an exercise in nuance.  Even organic instruments become layers of texture (Black Truffle, September 28).  Wind and waves mingle with vintage synthesizers on Golden Apples of the Sun, a gently undulating set from Suzanne Ciani and Jonathan Fitoussi (Transversales Disques, October 3).  Ciani is also offering Improvisations on Four Sequences, a live recording that traverses the history of synth (Week-End, September 15).  MIDI and FM synthesis meet on Eso Es, a bathtub of bubbles from Gregg Kowalsky (Mexican Summer, October 27).  Sign Libra‘s vocals are usually wordless, languishing atop layers of synth; but Hidden Beauty includes a Eurhythmics cover (RVNG Intl., November 3).

LINE has announced a pair of releases for September 8.  TU M’s Monochromes is peaceful and blue, like its cover image, an archival release appearing for the first time.  Cole Peters‘ Four Unbindings is field recording-based, building to walls of drone.  The original sources have been “removed from external context,” allowing listeners to muse on the conditions of their genesis.

Guitar, reverb and amp are the only sources on Erik K Skodvin‘s Nothing left but silence, easily the artist’s quietest album to date.  Released on Sonic Pieces, the CD may forever be known as “the grey one” for more than physical reasons.  A risoprint art book is also available (September 15).  Andrew Pekler uses only guitar and effects pedals on For Lovers Only/Rain Suite, a gentle set on Faitische released under the same SG (October 5).  Guitarist Raphael Rogiński  steps out from the Shofar Trio to release his own moody solo work.   Talán appears September 7 on Instant Classic, preceded by the single Cliffs and the Sea.  Solo electric guitar with a languid beach vibe is found on Michael Varverakis‘ Blue Dawn, fittingly released on Sonata Blue Music (September 15).  Leo Takami plays jazz guitar, piano and more on Next Door, tackling subjects of “time, seasons and consciousness.”  The mood is relaxing, suffused with calm curiosity (Unseen Worlds, October 6). Guitar is also one of the main ingredients of Late Horizon, a psyche-tinged effort from Michael C. Sharp (MCS), due October 20 on SFI Recordings.

A Strangely Isolated Place is preparing for a busy autumn.  We’re looking forward to the vinyl reveal for the fall slate, which should include one pink, one silver and one rainbow.  One Million Eyes offers gorgeous synth textures on Iris, which should be the first out of the block; Salvatore Mercatante extends the vibe on Ø, a neat name for an ambient album as it implies the minuscule; and Lapsed Pacifist throws us off with the name, as the music of Hypatia is still quite calm, a noid to Greek philosophy.  Vaagner has a pair of intriguing releases scheduled for the first two days of September.  The first is a compilation called A Communion, which gathers a quartet of artists from this year’s Warm Winters Ltd. Showcase.  The second is an expanded version of KMRU‘s Drawing Water, with an entirely new Side B, reimagined by Abul Mogard.  Capping the month, KMRU will unveil Dissolution, the inaugural release on his own brand new imprint OFNOT.  The new record includes two side-long synth excursions plus a digital bonus track (September 29). But wait, there’s more!  On October 20, Other Power will release KMRU’s Stupor preceded on October 13 by Islaja‘s otherworldly, choral-infused Angel Tape, the first offerings from this sub-label of We Jazz Records. And somewhere in the midst of all this, KMRU had the time to make a guest appearance on “Skevr,” a track from BOLT RUIN‘s False Awakening Loops on Infinite Machine.  The EP is a score to the artist’s struggles with parasomnia (September 22).

Atte Elias Kantonen places poetic markers in a path with no name to keep listeners acclimated.  While traversing coast and sea, the artist pauses to admire a snail in love with a moth.  In this “auditive diorama,” the songs are miniatures within miniatures (Students of Decay, September 15).  Bass, synth and light glitch populate R Abacus Lndr, a colorful collaboration between Pulse Mandala & Distant Fires Burning.  The resulting sound is both spacious and concise (Audiobulb, September 9).  If Barbados Wild Horses sounds more like summer than fall, it may be because it was recorded in the Canary Islands.  Spencer Clark, as Monopoly Child Star Searchers, fills the set with blissful synth, along with a guest spot from Sun Araw (Discrepant, September 8).  Loris Cericola calls upon vintage synth, keyboards and loops to construct the aptly-titled Memory Hole, which sounds like a time capsule despite being new (September 11).  Vocabulary alert!  An Isolarion is “a type of 15th Century map that describes areas in great detail, but not necessarily how they are related.”  Dai Watts turns the idea into a sonic adventure, folding in field recordings from his travels.  The album contains spoken word, piano, electronics and an exploratory tone (September 22).

We love the idea that DJ Gonubie took on a new moniker to produce ambient music.  This makes us think of the genre as somewhat subversive, even if its nature is to remain unobtrusive.  Signals at Both Ears also bears the curious tag “green-house,” which is open to interpretation but with any luck could catch on (Métron Records, September 6).   One man’s trash is another man’s treasure, and Joshua Marquez uses discarded instruments and field recordings of refuse workers to produce Recycled Soundscapes.  The end result is surprisingly sedate, a loving tribute.  Even the vinyl is made out of recycled materials (September 1).

One would be challenged to get any more ambient than an album whose sounds were transcribed from photographs of clouds, accompanied by a video of said clouds.  Michael Klubertanz is holding down the fort, as Music from Clouds continues in the grand tradition of “Little Fluffy Clouds,” without narration (September 30).  Happy 50th Release to the Handstiched* label, who celebrates with a split set from Robin Saville and the Leaf Library.  Given space, each track begins as one thing and ends as another.  Siphonophore/Versatile Clouds, co-released with Japan’s Tobira Records, is out September 1 with handmade collaged designs.  Chihei Hatakeyama folds field recordings of Hachirōgata Lake into the album of the same name, highlighting the ecological changes that have occurred since the lake was 80% drained, becoming a haven for new wildlife (White Paddy Mountain, September 1).

Random digital sequences promote healing vibes on Excogitation, a calm tonal experiment from One of Them.  On this album, there’s virtually no distinguishing Digitone from chimes (Artificial Owl, September 28).  mayforest  utilizes both bell and accordion sequences on hebrarium.  The organic sources are reflected in the nature theme, with track titles such as “biodegradable” and “phototropism” (September 22).  After a breakdown, Nick Norton found solace and inspiration in vintage gear and sound design.  Music for Sunsets is the sound of his recovery, and perhaps the listener’s as well (people | places | records, September 15).  The next project on Past Inside the Present is Tyresta‘s Small Hours, a “sonic haven” sparking healing and growth (September 11).  comfortLevel7 is an inviting name, prompting images of a space healing center.  Mercurial is midway between ambient and drone, with a sprinkling of piano (Simulacra, September 8).  We really like the title “Latika’s Grace (it’s not what you go through, it’s how you go through it),” from Wayne Phoenix‘s soaring wyyne phoenix story the earth and sky.  First conceived as a multi-media project, the album still retains its unifying concept (RVNG Intl., September 15).

New healing music is forthcoming from Pauline Anna Strom, whose Oceans of Tears is being released along with three remastered reissues as Echoes, Spaces, Lines.  The first single Quiet Joy is a perfect summation of the artist’s sedate sound (RVNG Intl., November 10).  The PCM trio (which turns into PCMTT on the final track) presents Dreamland, a synth-led excursion that travels from insomnia to astral walks to nightmares and awakenings (n5MD, September 15).  The label will follow this with Nouveau Départ, a mindful set from Ocoeur (October 6).  Toki Fuko offers a split decision on the mystical Spirit Medicine. One side is tempo-driven at 146 bpm, while the other is Orb-like at 108 bpm (Astral Industries, September 1).  Still having trouble falling asleep?  Try Max Richter‘s SLEEP: Tranquility Base, a slightly more electronic take on his ongoing Sleep project (Deutsche Grammofon, October 27).

We’ve missed Constellation Tatsu, who didn’t have a spring or summer batch this year but is coming back strong with their autumn batch.  Pictured left, Yui Onodera and Takashi Kokubo offer A Thousand Bells, a meditative exercise that does indeed hold a multitude of bells and chimes; Monokle‘s Ultraflowers is percussive and danceable, while retaining an ambient undercurrent; Brandon Mueller‘s Pathways fuses ambience and restrained techno.  All are released September 26, plus a vinyl edition of Loris S. Sarid‘s Music for Tomato Plants.

On October 13, we welcome new label Vast Habitat.  Leaving nothing to chance, the label is starting with VHS 001, the first entry in an ongoing Vast Habitat Series.  The album contains multiple collaborations and is a fine introduction to the label’s ambient-electronic core.  For those ready to delve deeper, the label offers albums from two of the compilation artists; Daniel Lea‘s Entheogen is dense and dreamlike, while Michael Deragon‘s Dawn plunges listeners into the depths of the sea.  Purelink calls Signs ambient techno, but we also detect a serving of jazz.  The music is eminently relaxing, either despite or because of the beats (September 15).

Geometric Lullaby has two releases scheduled for September 1, representing opposite sides of the ambient spectrum.  PJS‘ Praxis is pure, undulating synth, while desert sand feels warm at night & MindSpring Memories (the latter an alias of Angel Margold of Fire-Toolz) offers Desert Memories, an exercise in the micro-genre of pitched-down vocals known as slushwave.  It’s difficult to make a new word catch on, but Jeffrey Hall gives it a shot with Earmovie II. The sci-fi-tinged synth album is released September 22 on Ravello.

Minor Science‘s Absent Friends Vol. III is the studio version of a live performance that plays with concepts of time.  On the surface, it’s like a “negative” of a club record, but little rhythms surface throughout the set (Balmat, September 8).  Dasha Rush‘s ambient-electronic Contemplating is almost danceable, stopping just short of club tones.  The set celebrates stillness while remaining in motion (raster, September 29).  Kjartan Holm has been releasing sumptuous club singles with Sin Fang and Fischersund all summer, but his album Horizon is pure ambient bliss.  All of these projects are available on Iceland’s lovely INNI label (October 13).  Sonic Ablutions is a split album from autodealer and The Corrupting Sea, who also record one track together as Transverse, splitting the difference between their ambient and electronic sounds (Somewherecold, September 1).  Loops and automatons populate Baba Soirée, a mesmerizing collaboration between Pierre Bastien and Michel Banabila.  The prepared cornet of Slow Dance makes it seem like lounge noir (Pingipung, October 27).

Dark Ambient, Drone and Noise

Dark ambience is represented by Enclosed and Silent Order, who embed violin, trumpet, organ and more in deep synthetic atmospheres.  Entrainment, pictured left, is out September 1 on Hypostatic Union.  Oliver Ho discards his techno guise as Veil, concentrating instead on mood and abstraction.  A Circle in Stone is often dark, drawing on the influences of Druids and 70s horror, with frightening drones and rattling percussion (Other Facts, September 8).  France’s dark ambient/drone label Kalamine is the host for John Reidar Holmes‘ The Lord of Shades Decides, which offers an ususual blend of modular synth and tongue drum, mysterious throughout (September 2).

Sweden’s Sinke Dûs continues in the Cyclic Law tradition with Modus Vivendi, a dark ambient set perfect for early sunsets and cold temps (September 22).  Echoes from the Distance is a scary album with a scary cover, but don’t worry, a collage can’t hurt you; although Augurio Drama‘s music may produce a sense of unease (Subsist & Faith Disciplines, September 1).

Sarah Davachi calls Selected Works I & II “something for everyone,” as they draw from every period in her career, collecting rarities and miscellanies from across her oeuvre, all appearing on vinyl for the first time (Disciples, September 8).  The Inward Circles, a classic guise from Richard Skelton, makes its long-awaited return with Before We Lay Down in Darkness.  Amazingly, the entire album comes from “a 50-year-old, 6-second sample of a Baroque recorder” (Corbel Stone Press, October).

The ever-changing Marc Richter (Black to Comm) returns with the elaborate At Zeenath Parallel Heavens, which blurs the line between organic and electronic while displaying a related and even more disturbing image on the cover: the artist as sculpture, pieces appearing where they should not be (Thrill Jockey, October 20).

After enjoying some well-deserved rest, Lost Tribe Sound returns with not one, but two worthwhile series.  The Therianthrope Series, a massive four-album undertaking from Arrowounds, is already underway, with the second installment, The Slow Boiling Amphibian Dreamstate, released September 1.  All four discs will eventually be collected into a bespoke set.  Now there is also the eleven-album Maps to Where the Poison Grows Subscription Series, with samples of each already streaming.  The series crosses over from ambient to drone to modern composition and more, so we’ll start here with Kaya North‘s immersive Myths, a dark drone album that matches the monster on the cover (September 15, pictured right) and Drawing Virtual Gardens‘ 22:22, which is somewhat lighter yet still mystical, with touches of brass (September 22), and cover the next two albums in Modern Composition on Thursday.

Lisa Lerkenfeldt kicks of the Room40 slate with Shell of a City, an album that reflects its title through forlorn recordings of a highway’s substructure.  This is the sound of deserted roads and abandoned detours (September 1).  A reissue of Annea Lockwood‘s Glass World follows, the 1970 recording concentrating of permutations of single sources such as a deep water gong or vibrating plane (September 8).  Ulrich Krieger‘s Aphotic II – Abysmal is an aural reflection of the “midnight” water layers, which teems with activity despite the absence of light (September 29).  Brad E. Rose recorded I’m Scared of Dying when he was having trouble sleeping; the fear may have inspired him, counter-intuitively curing his insomnia (October 6).  After this, we would recommend that Rose not listen to Beatriz Ferraya‘s collection UFO Forest +, because it might give him nightmares; otherwise, it’s perfect for fall (November 3).  On the same day, Room40 releases Eugene Carchesio + Adam Betts‘ Circle Drum Music, every track named for a letter of the alphabet, the last five letters missing.  Another Lisa Lerkenfeldt album, Halos of Perceptions, is released concurrently on Shelter Press November 3.  And Zimoun, whose first Guitar Studies album appeared on Room40, switches to 12k for a second installment, due September 22.

The cover of Dronal‘s Whilst We Fall looks like a beautiful sunset, but it’s not – unless one considers the sunset of the planet as a whole to be beautiful.  The image is a NASA graph of temperature anomalies over time – cool to hot from top to bottom – while the music is a reflection on climate change (Supple 9, September 28).  Fans of minerals and chemicals, time to rejoice!  blackbody_radiation‘s Ultra-Materials includes tracks inspired by rhyolite, silica and magnesia.  Be sure to bring the Geiger counter (Faitiche, September 8).  Jason Calhoun‘s project small circle folds in field recordings like eggs: rain, trains, birds and more.  This his third album with Dear Life Records, continuing a healthy relationship.  Faithful readers may also know the artist from his work with Hour (September 29).  Miguel A. García launches Eraginie with the sounds of “a hypothetical space junk video game,” and then proceeds to find awe in detritus and debris (Crónica, September 5).  Church bells, fireworks and trains coexist on The Slowest Urgency, a work that stretches from ambient to drone, with quieter passages offset by bouts of feedback.  KUTIN‘s work debuts October 20 on Ventil.  Got time to listen to a new song?  Warning: it’s 77 minutes long.  Rupert Clervaux & Dania‘s Acción y Destino is more like putting on a mood, its taffy-thin notes passing like the aforementioned clouds (OOH-Sounds, September 15).  Remember Saåad?  We sure do.  The artist has been quiet for five years, but returns strong with A Crimson Shore on Hands in the Dark (September 22).  One week later, the label releases Razen‘s jazzier and more percussive Hier l’An 4000, inspired by reincarnation hypnosis, scoring a dystopian future (September 29).

Ah! Kosmos & Hainbach join forces for Blast of Sirens, which alternates between electronic and drone.  An incredible vintage setup can be seen in the video on the release page (FUU, October 20).  Ironically, Throwing Snow’s Ross Tones teams with Otto Lindholm to form a group and record an album called Everything Falls Apart.  Inspired by Mark Z. Danielewski’s House of Leaves, the set is a cavernous excursion, rich in unexpected turns (Totalism, October 13).  Áhkká, called the “queen mountain” of Lapland, gets her due from Pauline Hogstrand.  The mystical vibe that permeates the set promises more than an aural encounter (Warm Winters Ltd., September 8).  ChiaraObscura exudes a gothic sensibility on Rancor:Succor, with operatic vocals splitting the difference between divination and divinity (Nefarious Industries, September 29).  The Chinabot label, normally known for its percussive ventures, throws us a curveball with In Furnace.  This dark album features the organ and suona, and sounds like an overheating world (September 29).  Most of GhOst is drone, but there’s one surprising dance track (“Lanesplitter”) hiding deep in the set.  fatalism‘s album is as bleak as the encroaching night (Bedouin, October 17).

S A R R A M‘s Pàthei Màthos is thick and ritualistic, attempting to glean what might be learned from suffering.  Guest vocalists serve as hooded cult members (Subsound, September 1).  Field of Fear‘s Beyond the Reach of Light runs from cold ambience to hot industrial noise, a score to the cyclical nature of depression.  It’s not easy listening, but honest and raw (Whited Sepuchre, September 29).  Lapsteel feedback, drone and noise populate Michel Henritz‘ Flowers of romance, which sounds anything but romantic.; it’s a man alone in his room, raging against the machine (Bruit Direct Disques, October 13).   Richie Culver‘s Alive in the living room – على قيد الحياة في غرفة القعدة = serves as a soundtrack to sleep paralysis, with a poem in an accompanying book meant to be read while listening – a nod to the fact that the paralyzed are unable to speak (Drowned by Locals, September 22).  Harsh noise, radio samples and extreme volumes make Static Momentum a speaker-blowing affair.  cdg noir suggests it be played on high volume, but we fear that could be dangerous (September 16).  Finally, we’re giving our Scariest Album of Autumn award to SATØRI.  Bleak from beginning to end, The Woods is noise, whisper and scream-riddled, inspired by the life of the lone wolf.  The liner notes warn it may be so dark listeners will “lose their very soul” (Cold Spring, September 8).

ELECTRONIC

Does any genre ever truly die?  Everything old is new again this fall, as the slate reads like a classic DJ Mag list: trip-hop, breakbeat, electro, psychedelic trance, drum ‘n’ bass.  The 80s and 90s continue to cast long shadows.

At the other end of the spectrum, musicians continue to push beyond boundaries and definitions.  New sub-genres are constantly being invented, multitudes yet unnamed.  We’re glad to be here on the ground level, listening as they appear.

Our cover image is taken from the single release of Lusine’s “Transonic,” from the album Long Light, covered below.

The brainchild of Aho Ssan, Rhizomes is a series of collaborations with an incredible array of cutting edge artists, which include KMRU, Resina, 9T Antiope, Nyokabi Kariũki, Rắn Cạp Đuôi and many, many more.  Those who purchase the 160-page book will also encounter the visual element through illustrations that accompany the music; this edition also contains bonus tracks, extended versions, and exclusive originals by some of the artists involved.  Simply put, this project cannot fail (Other People, October 6).

Not only is Le jour et la nuit du réel Colleen‘s first instrumental album in sixteen years, it’s her first double album.  A master study in classic synth, the album uses a minimal setup to maximal effect (Thrill Jockey, September 22).  Xingu Hill‘s Grigri Pavilion has an unsettling, Swamp Thing-like cover, but the sounds are relatively benign.  While clearly inspired by 90s British and Belgian electronic music, the album manages to establish its own path (Subexotic, September 15).  Metro Riders‘ Lost in Reality is a tribute to 80s horror synth.  Yet like much music of that era, it’s more evocative than scary, perhaps more sci-fi in tone (Possible Motive, September 29).  Contemporary DJ’s of the Past is a fun title that epitomizes the season’s electronic trends.  Lavelle‘s album even has roller skates on the cover (Somewherecold, October 6).  Speaking even directly from the past, Dieter Mobius‘ Aspirin finally sees release after languishing for nearly two decades.  It’s great to hear new music from the Kluster/Harmonia innovator, long after we’d given up all hope (Curious Music, October 6).  Gentleforce attempts to resurrect the feelings of childhood on Life Anthems, a mindful set of synth, beats and loops (Oxtail Recordings, September 15).  Jeremiah Chiu seems as happy as a kid in a candy store as he plays with the vintage synth of L.A.’s Vintage Synthesizer Museum.  The results are captured on In Electric Time (International Anthem, September 29). Not only does VC 118A use vintage analogue synthesizer, the artist samples his parents!  We hope they like Winds of Change, whose very existence underlines its title (Delsin, September 22).

Not everything released on Friday the 13th seems fitting, but Venera‘s self-titled debut fits the bill.  The music is dark and unsettling with a sci-fi tinge and visuals to match; premiere video “Swarm” even dropped without details or description, a taunt to the usual manner of promotion.  Multiple guests make this debut a memorable effort (Ipecac Recordings).  Similarly shadowy in tone is Stromboli‘s Drang, a “post-human” made by humans while they are still here.  Industrial timbres and hypnotic percussion proliferate (Random Numbers, September 25).

Has hauntology ever been this catchy?  Hidden Horse‘s Incorporeal is dark enough to gloom to and bright enough to dance to, a powerful combination (Holuzam, September 14).  Speaker Music‘s intense Techxodus is wildly futuristic, a follow-up to the book Assembling a Black Counter Culture.  Author and artist DeForrest Brown Jr. describes it as “Black music that sounds technological,” embedding jazz, gospel and even African warriors (Planet Mu, September 8).  While sampling “Coptic, Syriac, Maronite, Greek Orthodox and Catholic choirs,” ABADIR creates a fictional, intercultural mass in which chants mingle with beats and all are one.  Ison is released September 8 on SVBKVLT.

Infinity Plus One is a hopeful album about fleeing the earth, which reflects current fears while maintaining a positive attitude.  Even the name of the artist, Buildings and Food, implies that the future is secure.  The well-rounded beats serve as a solace in dark times (September 22).  Flood Province is more pessimistic on Spacecraft, underlining the dangers to our biosphere through samples, textures and beats.  The tracks address marine destruction, media consumption and finally the image of our planet as “a spacecraft and life raft” (REALMOREREAL, September 1).

A Model Kit‘s Sirens makes great use of samples from radio and speech to convey a message of solidarity with those under siege.  The word of a Russian in exile, Sirens is also a benefit for Ukrainian refugees (September 1).  Breakbeat collides with funky sax on Siema Ziemia‘s partially improvised Second, an album that tips its hat to jazz while remaining firmly in the electronic vein (Byrd Out, September 8).  Pushing even further into jazz is Kamaal Williams, who combines the organic appeal of piano, sax and violin with electronic beats.  Williams throws a curve ball into the mix by including rap on the inaugural single from Stings but leaving it off the physical edition (Black Focus Records, September 27).  Shuta Hasunuma blends ambient, jazz, techno and a bit of IDM on unpeople, which will be accompanied by an exhibition of the same name (October 6).

We think there should be more instrumental hip-hop, as evidenced by Borka‘s Places.  One can rap over it, or let if flow (September 15).  A little hip-hop, a little synth, some vocals and some violin; Ayjay Nils‘ diverse Okay, wait wait wait has a bit of everything, so no single track is representative.  The overall tone is as fun as the fish on “Tea Fla” (Làtension/Schweiger Music, September 29).  Gross Motor‘s self-titled debut is described as containing “mostly non-danceable rhythms,” but we find ourselves moving to “Zoetrope” and “Project Restart.”  Other tracks are less linear (September 1).  But perhaps the artist meant “non-club tracks.”  A prime example: Nicholas Thayer‘s music is scored for ballet.  His third Infinite EP concludes a trilogy released over the past few months, in which insects, angels and robots vie for space in a crowded room already stuffed with glockenspiel and beats (Oscillations, September 8).

Jlin‘s mini-LP Perspective includes one track written for Third Coast Percussion, but the real surprise arrives at the end.  After serving five club-ready tracks, the composer shifts gears on “Duality,” presenting a bright-toned exercise in chimes (Planet Mu, September 29).  Brass and woodwinds expand the tonal palette of Diagonal Musik II, the latest effort from Prins Emanuel.  If only we could remember what the last album was called (Music for Dreams, November 3).  In the same manner, Markus Floats‘ Fourth Album follows Third Album, the new set graced with mbira, sax and violin, closing with words from poet Fred Moten (Constellation, October 20).  If one were to remove the electronics from Akusmi‘s Lines, one might find a jazz album; but the synth brings the sax, clarinet and piano to an even higher level (Tonal Union, October 6).  COH has a brand new Silhouette Eins synthesizer, and he’s not afraid to use it; Radiant Faults is a work of curiosity, like getting to know a new friend.  The multicolored records are already flying off the shelves (Dais, October 20).

Puissante Vulnérabilité (Powerful Vulnerability) is the debut album for Odalie, heavy on strings and laden with meaning.  Occasional vocals underline the theme championed by the title (Mesh, September 29, art for single “We Are Nature” pictured left).  A slew of guest vocalists are featured on Lusine‘s Long Light, often as texture.  The beats are crisp and the phrases potential earworms (Ghostly International, September 15).  Detuned piano, mangled vocals and trippy beats coalesce on stay, temporary home, the debut album from Arthur Clees.  The tracks dance just beyond the reach of radio, but “Afterdance” may make it through (Macro, October 13).

Adding an orchestra is almost always a good thing, and it definitely works for ESKMO, now recording under his own name as Brendan Angelides.  Oxygen melds his electronic sensibilities with the dramatic strings of the London Symphony Orchestra.  The album is released September 29 on his Ancestor imprint, and will be followed by his score for Assassin’s Creed: Mirage.  Chants, field recordings and Georgian folk songs lend a global vibe to SUPRA, a travel-inspired set from Dijf Sanders.  Water of Chailuri is the first single (Unday, November 24).

“You wanna get nuts?” asks Michael Keaton.  “Let’s get nuts!”  This challenge could become the catchphrase for Hausu Mountain, who spring into action with two animated albums on September 22.  Mukqs leads the charge with Stonewasher, a blast of pure Roland energy.  MrDougDoug chases with SOS Forks AI REM II, louder and more psychedelic, the yin to Mukqs’ yang.  Long time Hausu Mountain fans know the pair as the leaders of the pack, Max and Doug, sometimes known as Doug and Max.  A HausMo Honcho Patch is also available!  After these, Hausu Mountain’s next releases will be Quicksails‘ Surface, an exploratory set with choir and percussive vibes and Tiger Village‘s pun-happy, experimental The Celebration, both on October 27.

Everything Is So Beautiful, I need To Lie Down is more active than its title indicates, sporting dance beats and a soupçon of rock.  Stereo Minus One describes it as “music for a freaky chill-out room” (Machine Records, September 22). The similarly-titled, yet differently toned I Don’t Wanna Hurt, I Just Wanna Lay Here is one of the early singles from Bon-Psy‘s Chaos EP, which naturally follows his Order EP.  But while the artist may want to stay prone, listeners may want to get up and dance (Folded Music, September 1).  Simone de Kunovich‘s Flow My Tears EP is straight up club music, with a retro vibe.  The title track is also the first single (Public Possession, September 15).  Max Cooper aims straight for the dance floor with Motif, which features vocalist Kathrin de Boer on half of the tracks.  We’re looking forward to some amazing visuals, as the multi-media artist has always impressed on that front as well (Mesh, October 6).  We are very pleased to learn that DJ Shadow has decided to head in the opposite direction, as 13 of the 14 tracks on Action Adventure are instrumental.  Welcome back!  The first single, heard below, is a retro-80s dance piece, creating a buzz of curiosity about the rest (October 27).

On the heels on the wondrous “Inheritance,” Lord of the Isles & Ellen Renton unveil the full-length My Noise Is Nothing, a sumptuous blend of Scottish poetry and warm beats.  Who says poetry and clubs don’t mix?  (AD 93, September 29).  The piano and beats of Keifer‘s It’s Ok, B U make it sound summery, and we loved hearing “August Again” in August, but the album is out September 22.  It’s okay, summer will come around again (Stones Throw).  In similar fashion, Bibio returns with Sunbursting, another release to extend the summer; the EP, a mixture of instrumental and vocal cuts, drops on the eve of the autumn equinox (Warp, September 22).  Prolonging the vibe, Shine Grooves‘ Watching the Breeze even looks like summer; a decade of house and techno cuts are collected here for maximal Ibiza impact (100% Silk, September 1).  Utilizing Maloya music and beats, Labelle brings an international sound to the masses.  Noir Amina is upbeat and ebullient, perfect for late summer beach nights (InFiné, October 13).

Although out of order, we love the languid, leftfield flavor of “End Melody,” the first song on Lukid‘s first album in eleven years.  The rest of Tilt promises to explore other areas, including IDM (Glum, October 6).  Lee Gamble produces “illusory anthems” on Models, stretching vocals into wordless taffy.  The album is ethereal and enveloping, reminiscent at times of Bvdub (Hyperdub, October 20).  Public Service Broadcasting‘s mid-career was a bit wobbly, but The New Noise should restore their respectability.  It’s hard to go wrong with the entire BBC Symphony Orchestra super-sizing the arrangements, with Jules Buckley playing a prominent role (September 8).  With timbres ranging from warm and bubbly to dark and stormy, The Delay in the Universal Loop is in a constant state of flux.  Video album Ninne Nanne is released September 15.

“Acid never dies,” according to former vaporwave producer Auragraph.  Turning his attention to the dance floor, he proposes a New Standard while using classic samples, including the infamous Lynn Collins yelp (Dais, November 17).  Verraco lands with a punchy gopher-decorated EP called Escándaloo (Scandalous).  Cue “Caddyshack” reference (Voam, September 15).  Trap beats meet tales of legend on Simo Cell‘s intricate yet pounding Cuspide Des Sirènes, out September 14 on TEMET, including four “sped-up versions.”  If you think you know Celtic music, think again.  Ana Quiroga‘s Azabache is as far from Enya as one can imagine, with hard beats and a creative use of voice (Houndstooth, September 8).  Similarly aggressive is failsafe, from the Iranian duo Temp-Illusion.  The cover art may be tongue-in-cheek, but the duo references comedy as a relief from outside pressures (PTP, September 1).

Volume 2 of Alva Noto‘s HYbr:ID series arrives on October 13, flecked with ambience, dub and light IDM.  The music is the score to Richard Siegel’s Ectopia (NOTON).  An IDM lacquer coats the Coordinates EP, which has a sci-fi vibe and makes the most of its running time.  Phase4our‘s set is out September 8 on Machine Records.  Kabuki Dream‘s Sense of Natural Confusion continues in this vein, drawing on the influence of classic electronic acts to score a not-so distant future (Veidt, October 12).  IDM is only one of the genres represented on SPINE.IM‘s Grey Line, which explores the grey areas between genres, a metaphor for those in society.  We doubt that any other album features a track in which an A.I. “incorporates hip-hop screamo vocals” (~OUS, September 8).  Esplendor Geométrico and AtomTM join forces as ASA, and their hybrid sound makes Radial more than the sum of their parts (raster, September 1).  Fragments of sound tumble to glitch on Tomatsugo Nakamura‘s Antenna, which splits the difference between ambient and dance (Audiobulb, October 7).

Sitar is key on Koinonia, an album of Indian grooves from “Belgian beatmakers” Up High Collective.  The cultural infusion is a welcome example of different perspectives sharing a singular vision (San-kofa Rhythms, October 13).  David August‘s ambitious VĪS offers an attempt to trace the history of humankind through sound.  The album proceeds in chronological order, from humble percussive origins through tribal rituals and beyond (99CHANTS, October 6).  Dub, funk, jazz and Asian groove coalesce on the aptly-titled Maelström, preceded by the playful single “Sheep Party.”  azmari‘s album is out October 20 on Sdban Records.  Polyrhythms, Middle Eastern timbres and an international collaboration between a pair of Iranian-Canadian brothers and an Irish artist make Chasing Stateless a match for its title.  This hard-hitting set comes from St. Abdullah & Eomac drops October 20 on Planet Mu (pictured above).  There’s some fun stuff going on in the teaser video for Deena Abdelwahed‘s Jbal Rrsas جبل الرصاص., seen below; an international flavor with a unifying sound (InFiné, September 8).

The delightfully weird WaqWaq Kingdom returns with Hot Pot Totto, fervently dancing on a collapsing planet.  The collective cares deeply about ecological armageddon, but milks the remaining days with verve and aplomb, almost daring people to dance (Phantom Limb, September 22).  Async Figure calls It’s Pulling My Strings “club hymns for a dying earth.”  We’re sensing a topical trend here, the down side being that the trend won’t continue long if everyone is dead.  The electro-tinged set is not all bleak; the upbeat closer is “Optimist Settings” (Sea Cucumber, September 15).

Two percussionists and a pianist form Pathos Trio, who cross from modern composition to electronic with Polarity.  The trio performs six commissioned works by a septet of artists, accompanied by matching videos (Imaginary Animals, September 15).  Percussionist RRUCCULLA offers intense workouts on Zeru Freq., without ever losing her sense of fun.  The album is described as “the sound of shapes, figures and strokes,” and one can feel a sense of geometry in the art (Lapsus, September 7).  We’re calling the Coma World album Coma Wong “the coma is coming,” as half of the duo is also in The Comet Is Coming.  The music is psychedelic, dreamlike and jazzy (Byrd Out, October 13).  A new Niholoxica album is in the works, offering Bugandan drumming in a techno frame.  Source of Denial is released September 29 on Crammed Discs.  Duduk is a selling point for Kick Up the Dust, the upcoming EP from Stavroz.  The set won’t drop until December 1, but until then we can enjoy the trumpet-happy title track (Stavros Sounds).  Sax and Bulgarian Tambura make TAPAN‘s Inner Voice / High Road a unique effort; the two-track EP is out September 1.

Tabla meets techno on Tomorrow Comes the Harvest‘s Evolution, a project that teams Jeff Mills with friends, including the sadly deceased Tony Allen (Axis, September 8).  Boston 168 injects some classic psychedelic trance into their techno on the booming Giganta EP, with a room-filling sound that reflects its title (BPitch Berlin, September 1).  More psy-trance can be found on The Cosmic Egg, a club-ready EP that in classic style will only be available on vinyl, with no digital option.  E-Talking just wants clubbers to dance (Love on the Rocks, September 14). Techno/trance DJ Oman Breaker fled Kyiv for Berlin after the invasion, and channels his emotions into the taut Compromat.  Phase Fatale makes a guest appearance on single “Augmentation” (BITE, September 29, pictured left).  Chilean psych band Föllakzoid returns with V, a ready-made club set on Sacred Bones.  Each track is so long it requires its own side of vinyl, the opening piece alone approaching 18 minutes in length.  Thankfully there’s a briefer, remixed teaser video to get us in the mood (September 22).  Friday Dunard‘s Rhenus Aeternus may look like a magazine, but it’s not a magazine; it’s on Magazine.  This pure trance production will have listeners searching for their lost glowsticks (September 1).  Closet Yi‘s Wire Broke EP is another trance production, obvious from the psychedelic cover art (Hotflush Recordings, September 8).

When an electronic artist breaks both of his legs, will he still want to make dance music?  In Lewis Fautzi‘s case, the answer is yes.  Manner of Death may have a dour title, but the overall effect is life-affirming, a treatise of survival (Faut, September 15).  We love when artists have a sense of humor about themselves, so the one-minute teaser video for Oneohtrix Point Never’s Again (seen below) makes us want to buy the album, even without hearing it (Warp, September 29).  For hard-hitting electro, turn to Reduction, a dance floor stormer from Fobos Hailey (Tripalium, September 29).  dgoHn & Badun offers muscular drum ‘n’ bass on the Talk to the Planets EP, honoring the title with a sci-fi twist (Love Love, September 29).  The beats of Superabundance‘s Extrasolar are fast-fast-fast, like a rocket ship leaving the atmosphere.  Techno and synthpop are companions on the voyage (Future Times, October 6).  A healthy serving of guest artists, including Laraaji, make Seb Wildwood‘s separation anxiety a lot warmer than its title implies.  This techno album mixes vocal and instrumental tracks while yielding a hint of jazz (All My Thoughts, September 13).

Oliver Deutschmann celebrates fifteen years in the business with Best of Oliver Deutschmann 2007-2022.  The teaser video is a reminder of the hard-hitting techno tracks the producer has released over the years (September 8).  Amniote Editions and Mala Junta present The Collective Capsule Vol. 2, a pounding, hi-energy set that captures the sweat and excitement of the Berlin experience (September 15).  fabric presents Helena Hauff ventures beyond the techno arena to incorporate breakbeat, electro and industrial rhythms; the non-strop 77-minute set is a concise representation of the DJ’s power (fabric, September 22).  Yokel makes classic techno-industrial rhythms with vintage synthesizers; Grackle is out September 1 on Dummy Hand.  Repackaged, remastered, remixed and still raving, the original score to classic video racing game wipE’out” is presented in a brand new edition.  CoLD SToRAGE‘s triple vinyl wipE’out – The Zero Gravity Soundtrack can also be bought with a jumper and/or t-shirt (November 17).

EXPERIMENTAL

This season’s experimental albums showcase an incredible wealth of sounds, including tap dancing, suitcases, buckets, scaffolding, woodblock, lemurs and a variety of homemade instruments.  One album is based on the alphabet, while another is inspired by a series of glass negatives.  Timely releases address incarceration, abortion rights and climate change.  This umbrella genre is teeming with creativity and life, and those looking for something a bit out of the ordinary – in some cases, way out of the ordinary – are certain to find it here.  Fasten those wireless earbuds and get ready for a wild ride!

Our cover image is taken from Caroline Davis’ Alula: Captivity, covered below.

Outsiders and Outliers

While A Closer Listen concentrates on instrumental music, it also loves avid experimentation.  Over the years, Matana Roberts‘ Coin Coin series has enraptured our staff, and every new installment is seen as an event.  Coin Coin Chapter Five: In the Garden … digs into the artist’s ancestral chain to memorialize a woman who died during an illegal abortion.  Given recent judicial rulings, the issue could not be more timely.  A potpourri of sound is present, including roots music, blues, synth and of course, an abundance of saxophone (Constellation, September 29).

Erik Enocksson‘s Räkna evighet som intet is described as an incantation, which seems apt.  The composition starts humbly before crashing headfirst into a wall of drone.  Spoken word and choir serve as spiritual tethers to prevent listeners from falling into despair (IRRLICHT, September 1).  Rick Reed‘s The Symmetry of Telemetry starts as drone before heading into territories unseen.  Radio waves, choirs and orchestras haunt these grooves like spectral homeowners (Elevator Bath, October 6).  Formerly known as S/QU/NC/R, the rebranded squncr presents … drowned out …, a study of colonialism built around samples of a Catholic mass written by a Belgian priest and sung by Congolese musicians in 1956.  The effect is haunting, especially given the likelihood that many, if not all of the original musicians are gone (Elli Records, September 29).

The return of Paarvoharju has been highly anticipated, and does not disappoint.  The Finnish collective has come back strong, inspired by a set of abraded glass negatives.  Now revising their history, they call Yön mustia kukkia (Black Flowers of the Night) the completion of a trilogy that began with the first two albums (Fonal, September 8).  With so much attention given to the movie Oppenheimer, the Japanese perspective is now addressed by Heiwa, the first taste of Meitei‘s fall album Kofu III (Kitchen Label).  Madhuvanti Pal‘s The Holy Mother – Madhuvanti Pal Plays The Rudra Veena is a newsworthy release, billed as the first vinyl record to feature a woman playing the traditional Indian instrument.  Ironically, many Western ears may have never heard it at all, which may result in a delightful victory: after all the prior prejudices and restrictions, a woman may be the one who introduces many to the Rudra Veena (Sublime Frequencies, October 13).

Ultra-theatrical prog is splayed across the self-titled debut from Salò, which addresses demon possession  September 8 seems a little early for the release, but that gives people more time to find it by Halloween (Kuboraum).  Guitar and feedback feature strongly on Gagi Petrovic‘s Unfold Yourself, which is about “an overwhelming, seemingly endless darkness.”  In all this the artist has kept going, urging his others to follow suit (Moving Furniture, September 8).

Natasha Barrett provides “remixes” of sound installations on Reconfiguring the Landscape, a warm collection of field recordings that begin and end in Venice, yet seem at times otherworldly (Persistence of Sound, September 1).  Recond players, percussion and sound effects I is exactly what it sounds like, an experiment in textures produced by Kjetil Brandsdal & Thore Warland (Drid Machine / Hærverk Industrier, September 15).  Ten countries, ten hotels, ten radio dials: on Transmissions from the Radio Midnight, Aki Onda captures the sleepless wonder of tuning in to unfamiliar stations and languages, attempting to make sense of it all while slowly drifting off to sleep (Dinzu Artefacts, September 15).

Belgium’s B.A.A.D.M. is releasing two records on September 1.  Celestial Shores is beguiling and calm, nudging at times into gentle drone, the result of a collaboration between Maria W Horn & Mats Erlandsson.  The self-titled album from Continuity is called “a narrative of seven intense cityscapes,” reflecting fictional locations in East Asia.  The field recording aspect makes the cities seem real, while the musical aspect lends drama.  A quartet of artists converge on the Lisboa Soa festival to delve deeper into aspects of sound.  Lisboa Soa, Sounds Within Sounds ranges from field recording to drone to improvisation, often within a single track (Cronica, September 26).

The always reliable Recital imprint is releasing two completely different recordings on September 8.  Noel Meek & Mattin‘s  Homage to Annea Lockwood is exactly as described, with interview snippets, burning laptop and choir, accompanied by a limited edition hardback book.  Sydney Spann‘s Sending Up A Spiral Of is half-vocal, half-instrumental, an expose of “care work,” including that of female therapists, nurses and sex workers: at times uncomfortable, but unflinching.

Brachliegen Tapes is releasing two cassettes on September 1.  Tom White‘s Medina Vibrations is a work of musique concréte: installation works inspired by a scaffold-covered building, gravel in motion, an inebriated football fan and much, much more.  Opal X‘s Environments is more dronelike in nature, the Prophet 8 tracks recorded during a subzero stretch in London while imagining Arctic landscapes.  Dub and illbient appear on Outta, the new project from the brothers Brutter.  The album cover looks like a download symbol, which may soon get confusing (Susanna Sonata, September 22).

Tap dance receives a modern update on Movements for Listening, which has been released one track each month over the course of the year and is almost complete.  Each piece is accompanied by a video, and showcases Janne Eraker tapping on bubble wrap and in the water, accompanied by percussion, strings and more (esc.rec., October 6).  Another creative combo is woodblocks and banjo, which is offered by Poor Isa on dissolution of the other, including a foray into drone on Side B (Aspen Editions, September 1).  13 years of vocal pyrotechnics populate tuuljamuud, the debut album from eleOnora.  With such distinctive music, calendars don’t count (Cruel Nature, October 4).  Vocals and viola are the hallmarks of Azure, a devotional, minimalist album from Jessika Kenney & Eyvind Kang.  At times the vocals are clear, while at other times they fall apart and double over (Ideologic Organ, October 27, pictured above).  Oud is highlighted on the devotional Wishah, which incorporates Arabic syllables and is described as “a farewell to home.”  Youmna Saba may have left Beirut for Paris, but her heart still aches for her former land (Touch, October 6).

Looking for real heavy metal?  Válek / Merta / Tarnovsky play “kinetic sculptures, homemade synthesisers, ball bearings, kitchen utensils and suitcases” on Metal, which may inspire a whole new generation of home musicians (Flaming Pines, September 29).  Various artists play everyday objects on Longform Visions for Earminded People, a 7″ souvenir from a Rotterdam event (Futura Resistenza, September 11).

Jazz and Improvisation

When it comes to advance notice, Brooklyn’s 577 Records continues to be the industry leader.  Their autumn slate includes Fathom from John Butcher, Pat Thomas, Dominic Lash, Steve Noble (September 15); the self-titled album from Playfield, which includes samples of cicadas and ice cream trucks (September 19); Eduardo Elia‘s piano-led Una Pregunta, Tres Respuestas (September 22); Kenneth Jimenez, Michaël Attias, Francisco Mela‘s NYC subway-linked and cross-cultural Caribú (September 29); Heikki Ruokangas‘ pensive guitar album Karu on turquoise vinyl (October 3); Daniel Carter, Patrick Holmes, Matthew Putman, Hilliard Greene, Federico Ughi‘s Electric Telepathy, Vol. 2 (October 6); Francisco Mela & Jonathan Reisin‘s saxophone-and-drums Earthquake (October 20) and Daniel Carter, Adriana Camacho, Francisco Ughi‘s Trabajadores De Energia (October 27).  More are sure to follow!

Fall’s Astral Spirits slate begins with the September 8 release of Vertical Motion, by the trio Anthony Davis / Kyle Motl / Kjell Nordeson on piano, bass and drums.  Weston Olencki / Anna Webber follow September 22 with Several, a sax and trombone combo with a fun opener titled “champion donut” (Yum!).  On October 6, Jordan Martin presents Fogery Nagles, a quieter, even beach appropriate set for pedal steel and more.  Nicole Mitchell and Alexander Hawkins are next with At Earth School, a playful album for flute, piano and voice (October 10), followed by Mike Reed‘s The Separatist Party, which includes poetry, spoken word and a clear love for the Chicago scene (October 27).

Helen Svoboda‘s The Odd River is both album and film, but it is not billed as a soundtrack.  The bassist-vocalist expresses her love for “uncustomary sounds,” recruiting a variety of eclectic Australian collaborators to produce a playfully avant document (Earshift Music, September 22).  Orlando Furioso‘s self-titled album is similarly populated and adventurous, the “Mad Max” reference a signal of wild abandon (September 9).  The great outdoors is the star of With Weather Volume 2.  Various avian, amphibian and human noises vie for sonic space along with active water and wind, while Jim Denley, billed as Jim Denley and the eternally orchestrating sonoverse, plays flute (Splitrec, September 8).

Experimental violinist Hsinwei Chiang will complete his seasonal quartet on September 29 with the release of Black Spring: Autumn, just in time for the falling of the first leaves.  Jessica Pavone‘s Clamor is written for string sextet and soloists, and addresses “women’s work,” in particular global restrictions in clothing and travel (Out of Your Head, October 6).

Free jazz pianist Matthew Shipp celebrates 35 years of recording with a new solo album, The Intrinsic Nature of Shipp.  At the same time, Mahakala Music will begin to issue seminal works from his oeuvre, beginning with Circular Temple (September 15).

Saxophonist Caroline Davis assembles a variety of collaborators on turntable, bass, drums and more to shine a spotlight on the injustices of incarceration and the prison system.  Alula: Captivity is released October 13 on Ropeadope, and hopes to raise awareness of an underreported issue.  An unusual setup of turntable, cello and percussion animates Glossolalia, an album from Hearsay that holds as much DJ culture as jazz (Amalgam, September 29).  Keyboardist Kris Davis unveils Diatom Ribbons Live at the Village Vanguard on September 1, another fall release to showcase turntable to indelible effect (Pyroclastic Records).  Eric Hofbauer / The Five Agents offer a musical transcription of Greta Thunberg’s “How Dare You” speech, beginning with moody abstraction and moving toward be-bop.  Waking Up is the follow-up to Book of Water, another environmentally conscious release (CNM, September 15).

The sax-led trio of Jessica Ackerley, Yuma Uesaka, Colin Hinton invites listeners to a Petting Zoo in which the animals are wild without being dangerous.  The playful set contains a track titled “Bear, Penguin, Horse” ~ we’re pretty sure two of these should not be petted, but it’s all hypothetical (Waveform Alphabet, September 23).  The ambient jazz of Piotr Kurek is fleshed out by guest stars on harp, clarinet, sax, flute and bass.  Smartwoods is colorful and alluring, a benign fantasy into which it is easy to sink (Unsound, September 15).  Nick Dunston‘s Skultura is wild and wooly, a free jazz excursion too large to restrict to a single label.  The album is co-released by Tripticks Tapes and Fun in the Church September 29.  On the same day, Tripticks Tapes will also release Daniel Fishkin‘s Dark Listening, which features homebuilt “The Lady’s Harp,” 20 feet of piano strings activated by mixer feedback; and Hollow Deck‘s Over East, a unique duo of voice/violin and woodwinds/tapes.  O//F‘s REV is quieter than one might expect, but it still has some rough edges; the combination of sax and voice is an exploration of breath in all its guises (Caterpillar, September 1).

When saxophonist Alexander DePlume says, Come With Fierce Grace, he gets a great response: twenty additional singers and instrumentalists appear on the album.  The preview tracks all include vocalists, but the majority of the album is instrumentally centered  (International Anthem, September 8).  Rintaro Mikami‘s First Fish is a collaborative album inspired by the sea.  The lead track includes vocals, setting the stage for an instrumental journey (September 15).

Trombone is the featured instrument in Homegrown, but the focus of Andrew Danforth‘s album is the city of Indianapolis.  The album is a love letter to the city, although it doesn’t shy away from the darker aspects of its history, including the circumstances that led to the decline of a once-vibrant jazz scene (September 8).  Malagasy Breath is likely the only jazz album this semester to feature lemurs.  The animals flolic obliviously while Rajesh Mehta Sky Cage Quartet plays trumpet and other instruments, opening the bars of the zoo (Subcontinental, September 5).  Trumpeter Eddie Henderson celebrates the 50th anniversary of his debut album with a new set titled Witness to History.  A documentary about the musician’s life is slated for release in 2024 (Smoke Sessions, September 15).  Clarinetist Joris Rühl presents the slow, studied Feuilles, which unfolds in increments and features restrained work on accordion and percussion (Umlaut, September 30).

The All Sky label makes its debut on September 1 with a pair of experimental releases, each accompanied by a healthy-sized booklet of photos and ephemera.  Label boss Noah Ophoven-Baldwin offers 0 Oktas for field recordings and cornet, with photos of clouds and sky, while Luke Martin‘s by our faint shadows going before us includes soft meditations for quartet, dedicated to Dorothy Wordsworth.  Solo double bass rules the roost on Moonutatud Muundused / Distorted Conversions, an album that probably doesn’t sound like what most people would expect from the instrument.  Kris Kuldkepp mingles bass and electronics and stretches the timbres as far as they can push them (zeromoon, September 7).  Sara Serpa and André Matos present the languid and lovely Night Birds, showcasing guitar and wordless voice with drums (September 28).  Raucous drums and guitar make Embrace a bracing listen.  Dogs of Pleasure‘s album is packed with unbridled energy, unbelievable the work of only two performers (Isthmus, September 15).

Sam Gendel and Marcella Cytrynowicz pair up for AUDIOBOOK, an instantly appealing project that combines Gendel’s synthesizer and electronics with Cytrynowicz’ colorful art.  Each piece is based on two letters of the alphabet and accompanied by a playful illustration.  Thankfully, an artbook option is available so the illustrations can be seen large (Psychic Hotline, October 6).  Catherine Christer Hennix makes her own keyboard interfaces and shows them off on Solo for Tamburium, which uses 88 tambura recordings and occasionally ventures into drone (Blank Forms, September 8).  The tonal experiments of Martina Berther and Philipp Schlotter also venture into drone.  On Matt, a Swiss church is the home for bass, synth and organ (Hallow Ground, September 29).

Drummer Tomas Fujiwara adds a cellist and a vibraphonist on Pith, but names them the 7 Poets Trio.  The timbres are warm and welcoming, although we do miss the felt sculptures of the last two covers (Out of Your Head, September 15).  Spinet and Drums is a series of “pitch collections” that makes great use of silence and interval.  The Christoph Schiller & Carlo Costa collaboration is out September 7 on Neither/Nor.  Tina Raymond plays the drums on Divinations, leading a tight trio while looking very much like an earth mother in the cover illustration (Imani, October 6).  Double bass and drums make a fun racket on Uxorious, a untied effort from veterans Marco Serrato & Borja Díaz (Sentencia, September 1).

Percussionist Valentina Magaletti returns with La Tempesta Colorata, a live solo album recorded at Cafe Oto (A Colorful Storm, September 29).  Pidgins “speaks percussive languages” on Refrains of the Day, with a bit of vocoder.  Each video is comprised of stock image collages (October 27).  fLuXkit Vancouver (i̶t̶s̶ suite but sacred) is the latest percussive effort from Darius Jones.  First single Zubot is accompanied by an animated score (Northern Spy, September 29).  IThinkIMEmpty|D4D is a pair of improvised duets on pots and pans, buckets and cans (which sounds like a Dr. Suess rhyme), with a few traditional instruments thrown in for good measure.  moody alien & co.‘s album is out September 1 on Thirsty Leaves.  Nate Wooley‘s ambitious four-disc set Four Experiments is designed for “any number of players with any level of background,” and as a result the tonal variety is wide.  Originally inspired by a book of poetry, it has become a tone poem (Pleasure of the Text, September 26).

Folk, classical and jazz meet on Dance of the Elders, a richly-hued set from guitarist Wolfgang Muthspiel on ECM.  While most of the album is original, Bach and Joni Mitchell each find space (September 29).  Also on ECM: saxophonist Maciej Obara Quartet‘s Frozen Silence, an exercise in rainy day jazz (September 8).  NMC is releasing two experimental classical album on September.  Thomas Simaku: Solo highlights the virtuosity of the clarinet, while Zubin Kanga‘s Cyborg Pianist imagines the future of the instrument through a septet of creative composers.

skvíry&spoje is a pair of improvising duos who get together to jam and play each other’s instruments.  Hotel Spojár looks back on their career and offers highlights (September 1).  Triio‘s Magnetic Dreaming often veers into abstract, even psychedelic territory, an apt reflection of its trippy cover art (September 26).  Jazz rock is represented by bassist Eric Nachtrab, who leads a quartet on Bastard Ideals, containing a fun track titled “Valentine for a Goth Girl” (Spiritual Slop, September 29).  The 13-piece Swedish jazz rock ensemble led by Vilhelm Bromander is releasing the energetic, raga-dipped In this forever unfolding moment on Thanatos September 29, with dhrupad vocals by Marianne Svašek.

Dirty Electronics and Oliver Torr delve into abstract electronics and noise on piu hiway (Mille Plateaux, September 2).  The improvisational thrashings of international trio Sult are meant to evoke “landslides, lightning and tectonic friction.”  Always I Gnaw is an album of extreme sound, with screaming, grinding, howling, sawing and all manner of dissonance: not for all tastes, but a great representation of the deep end (Thin Wrist, September 1), while THSHLT‘s IN THE OFFING sounds like an electrical storm frying all circuits while a hornet’s nest falls from the trees (peig, September 15).