The Moon and the Melodies was a collaborative 4AD effort with the late minimalist Harold Budd. Featuring the three central figures behind the Cocteau Twins and Richard Thomas […]
1986
The followup to her 1983 pastoral folk classic From Gardens Where We Feel Secure, Hope in a Darkened Heart is the nostalgic winter counterpart to Virginia Astley’s summertime countryside […]
“If Surround can be listened to as music that’s as close to air itself, allowing us to enter each listener’s sound scenery, or as something that exists within […]
A French oddity from multi-instrumentalist / underground icon Luc Marianni, Six Synthetic Suites combines a modern classical composition approach with experimental and avant-garde electronic production. Each of the […]
A prodigious cello player, Hajime Mizoguchi’s early studio work was not in classical music but the pioneering experimental, ambient, and techno pop music of artists like Seigén Ono, […]
Tri Atma was a German-Indian new age/fusion group dedicated to combining Eastern musical elements with Western electronic pop. Founded by guitar player Jens Fischer and percussionist Asim Saha, […]
Featured on Test Pressing’s excellent Dubwise Vinyl column, Colourbox’s “Baby I Love You So” is a mesmerizingly original take on an Augustus Pablo production first sung by Jacob […]
Produced by On-U Sound’s Adrian Sherwood, Ministry’s sophomore album Twitch moves away from the synth-pop sound of the group’s debut and into the heavy, industrial sound they would […]
Anita Baker is pure elegance and a powerhouse vocalist best known for her quiet storm work in the ’80s. Her path to stardom wasn’t exactly smooth… At 16, […]
One of the great electronic bands, The Art of Noise was formed by engineer/producer Gary Langan and programmer J. J. Jeczalik, along with keyboardist/arranger Anne Dudley, producer Trevor […]
Lyle Mays’ self-titled debut album followed a string of excellent collaborations with ECM mainstays Pat Metheny, Eberhard Weber, Steve Swallow, and John Abercrombie, as well as Windham Hill’s […]
Meditative, ambient minimalism from influential new age composer Steve Roach… “Floating like the breath of a sleeping child, Steve Roach’s third recording of quiet music evokes the high, […]
A timeless record that continues to find new audiences today, Keyboard Fantasies by transgender musician Beverly Glenn-Copeland combines meditative new age and folk songwriting with a Detroit style […]
Ethereal electronic minimalism from the great Italian architect / music installation & soundtrack master Piero Milesi. The Nuclear Observatory Of Mr. Nanof is a collection of soundtrack compositions […]
An absolute gem of a record revived by Portland’s Musique Plastique, Daedalus is the score to a deeply moving avant-garde production of the Greek myth that toured the […]
Featured in Numero Group’s Nu Leaf smooth jazz compilation, George Shaw’s Encounters is an underrated jazz album that you probably wouldn’t pick out of the stacks based on […]
Featured in the “Organic” section of Chee Shimizu’s Obscure Sound disc guide, Life Line by Michael Bierylo is a simple but gorgeous new age guitar album that seems […]
Featured in the “Experimental” section of Chee Shimizu’s Obscure Sound disc guide, Desert Equations: Azax Attra was released in 1986 on legendary Belgium label Crammed Disc’s “Made to […]
Brenda Fassie and “The Big Dudes” from South Africa quickly rose to fame with their 1983 hit debut “Weekend Special.” The single became the best selling record in […]
French-catalan composer Pascal Comelade presents 18 minimal compositions featuring his signature “Bel Canto” sound, which is characterized by mixing cheap toy instruments (plastic guitars and accordions, toy pianos, […]
An interesting one to be listening to now that it’s firmly Fall, but there’s no wrong time for balearic music right? On the Beach is a yacht rock […]
David Sylvain’s first taste of international acclaim came by way of his band Japan. Struggling to win over fans in the mid 70’s UK punk era, Japan ironically […]
The Go-Betweens were formed in Brisbane, Australia in 1977 by friends Grant McLennan and Robert Forster. The two would share songwriting duties throughout the band’s existence, developing an […]
Bip Redon, Dominique Lentin, his sister Isabelle Lentin (of Virgule IV), and a few other unknown musicians make up the mysterious L’Empire des Sons. Not much is known […]
Featured in the “Floating” section of Chee Shimizu’s Obscure Sound disc guide, Universal Ave is the sole album by Double Fantasy, a project by German duo Robert Schroeder […]
A collaboration between English jazz vocalist Dianne Ford and German fretless bassist Manfred Lins, Lonely Shadow is the one and only record made by the low-profile duo. Mostly […]
