astrangelyisolatedplace · Interview: The making of Gadi Sassoon's 'Multiverse', with Andy GillhamListen to a track-by-track behind the scenes with Gadi Sassoon as he and interviewer, Andy Gillham (VLSI / Echaskech) discuss the making of Gadi's new album 'Multiverse'; the supercomputer process; and some of the wild inspirations behind each track. Also below, some shots taken throughout the making of the album as mentioned by Gadi in the interview. Buy/listen to Multiverse on digital and 2LP here. DownloadPhotos by Giulia Ghedini and sketches by Gadi Sassoon View fullsize View fullsize View fullsize View fullsize View fullsize View fullsize View fullsize View fullsize View fullsize View fullsize View fullsize View fullsize View fullsize  

  It’s not often that we get ASIP artists to contribute with isolatedmixes, but Ludvig’s journey with his Illuvia alias revives a love for the Drum and Bass genre in all of us electronic music fans, triggering the emotion, highs, and nostalgia that so often comes hand-in-hand with the atmospheric side of DnB. Ludvig’s upcoming LP as Illuvia (Iridescence Of Clouds) sits at the apex of both ambient and Drum and Bass - somehow quenching the thirst of both sides whilst inciting something new and exciting. After being a part of this journey with Ludvig over the past few years, we got talking about the many inspirations behind the album and I urged him to put together this mix for us all by way of further insight into the album. I will leave the rest of the introduction to Ludvig, as he has taken the time to pen an intro to the mix; the inspiration behind it, and how it connects to his upcoming release. What I will say, however, is the exact same as the comment I left on the original Illuvia album on Bandcamp back in 2017… “LTJ Bukem, eat your heart out”! “I’m not too big on genre definitions per se – I prefer to describe music in terms of its emotion and energy, its flavors and colors. But when talking about music it is also helpful if we use these definitions to simplify the description process. If I say atmospheric drum & bass (or ambient jungle if you like), everyone who has an interest in electronic music knows what I’m talking about. Genres are funny though – they seem to gather their own momentum and become these overarching stylistic markers that many artists (myself included) then allow to color or even define their own unique expression, making it fit within these imaginary boundaries defined by the ones that came before – the ones who broke new ground. I’m all for staying true to one’s inner vision, and I’m also particularly fond of the aesthetics of atmospheric drum & bass, which have influenced my work from a young age. There are probably many reasons why.During my teenage years, I was experiencing perpetual anxiety and slipping deeper and deeper into depressive states of mind. Few things had the power to reach me and lift me out of such states (at the time; being alone in nature, getting lost in music, or complete physical exhaustion basically). I remember one time in particular when I was experiencing deep anxiety, staying in an apartment with friends who lived in the city. We had been drinking and getting high, and this only exacerbated my anxiety. I always carried my portable CD-player and had brought with me a couple of newly purchased Good Looking Records compilations. I went to lie down on the floor somewhere, put my headphones on, and slipped into another world.Gently I was lifted out of the panic that was gripping my heart and into a world full of wonder. The contrast to my previous state was extreme. The body was relaxing while I was traveling in astral realms defined by emotion and color. The senses merged, the music became visual. Of course, this experience was enabled in part by a chemically induced altered state, but I have later traveled in similar ways without that component, and I would definitely say that the experience is even more profound when you learn to just use the focus of your mind. The music becomes a bridge, letting you cross over from your present, often very limited state (such as believing that you are a person in a body), into greater awareness of the limitless nature of existence. Why do people love these experiences? Because they are natural.Back to atmospheric drum & bass in particular, and those qualities embodied within it that my heart will always stay warm to (and, by the way, all of this is naturally my subjective interpretation and rather fluid as such).Primarily, it is the lightness, playfulness and childlike wonder that I gravitate to so deeply. There are drum & bass tracks that are nothing but pure, distilled joy and wonderment (a few by Artemis come to m

  Ever since Lennard van der Last’s defining album on the infamous Sending Orbs in 2005 - Tryshasla; output as Secede has been rare. You’re probably (like me) very happy to see Lennard is still active. Our last treat within the interesting and vivid worlds that Secede creates was alongside Kettel, in 2012, with another brilliant outing on Sending Orbs, and enough to keep his cult fanbase ticking over with a glimmer of hope that an album may arrive say… every five, six, or even seven years. For some artists, sure that’s normal, and it’s often noted on his releases that he prefers to remain elusive and focused in the studio. A renewed, ‘deluxe’ vinyl edition of the Tryshasla came around in early 2019, but alas, no new material came with it.Tryshasla by SecedeWhen Can by Kettel & SecedeIt’s been roughly nine years since Lennard’s last album now, and despite some small signs appearing in compositions on Soundcloud alongside Kettel once again, it has been very quiet on the Secede front. It goes without saying, as a fan for years and one of those above hoping for new material one day, this mix is a lovely way to end the year. The obvious omission of a tracklist for this mix should give us all hope… It’s clear Lennard is a storyteller and a pioneer at blending the weird and wonderful. A magician of world-building; this mix is no different. Try and define or categorize his music, or this mix, if you dare, but to any Secede fan, it’s screamingly obvious who is behind it. I have it on good faith that new Secede music is being made but I have no idea just yet if some of it is included in this mix. It’s up to us to do the digging. However, if you’re a Secede hopeful needing that fix then this will definitely get you by. If mixes were unique fingerprints, there would be no escaping for Secede and we hope to see him back again soon. Listen on Soundcloud, Mixcloud, or the ASIP Podcast.Download.astrangelyisolatedplace · isolatedmix 106 - Secede(No tracklist provided)Secede | Bandcamp | Discogs |  

   As with all past ‘Reflection’ year-end mixes, I start with a collection of albums I have enjoyed over the year. Through the process of compiling a mix that flows well, songs are whittled down and selected from this collection. This means many of my favorite tracks and albums are often omitted in the process, due to the need for them to fit in a mix that comes together as organically as possible. As I say every year, this isn’t a definitive ‘best-of’ list, but a selection of some of my favorite music from the year in one easily listenable format. It’s the most enjoyable way for me to boil down music I’ve loved from the year using these self-imposed restrictions, for you to then enjoy and discover more. I encourage you to use the mix to jump off and explore each artist, album and label (and check the Buy Music Club list). ~This year was different. Well, of course, in an obvious mask-over-the-face-lock-down kinda way, but all that aside, the amount of music made and consumed by all accounts was like no other year. No doubt, because everyone is locked-up inside, encouraged by platforms like Bandcamp and the now regular ‘Bandcamp Fridays’. As a result, this years Reflection mix started as a daunting effort and took me to developing a slightly new process to get it over the line. Listening behaviors were forcibly changed for all of us. In addition to the crazy Bandcamp Friday release rampages, Live streams became the weekend plans and we had a brilliant year over on 9128.live hosting five weekend takeovers, which, by all accounts provided some amazing respite as we all hunkered down inside. We never would’ve guessed in August 2019 when we launched 9128.live, that online streaming events would be such a focus for the entire year ahead. As a result of the takeovers; the DJs; live acts; labels, and a bunch of listeners ID’ing music in the chat, music discovery accelerated even further (for me atleast) during these takeovers. An example track ID list from the last takeover can be found here.This seems to be the first year I haven’t been able to keep up syncing purchases on my hard-drive (which is primed for mix prep due to my playlist organization OCD). I still listened to it all, but I listened even more through the Bandcamp app, so haven’t felt the need to obsessively download it all throughout the year. That was a problem if I was going to start compiling the mix in my usual way with digital files…As a result, I decided to create even more self-imposed-restrictions (always needed given the enormity of choice) and began by mixing some vinyl from the past year. I got about an hours worth of a good mix which I was happy with enough to exist online for eternity - just cherry-picking records from my 2020 collection, recording until I had a mix that sounded a bit shoddy. At that point, I was a little relieved, as a direction and vibe had already been set and would pave the way for the rest of the mix to be built. (It also gave me the opportunity to swap out the first track post recording, which began with some bad static for some reason). So the mix ended up being about an hours worth of vinyl, followed by digital. I know some people really don’t give a crap how a mix was made, but this helped with my overall curation process and ensured it actually got done!Upon reflection, the mix manages to hit on my 2020 music spectrum and gives a good idea of what I’ve had on rotation. Lots of deep textured ambient (LOG, Slow Reels, KMRU, Patricia Wolf, Chronovalve etc - this part could go on forever), abstract beat driven atmospheres (Evan Caminiti, Daniel Avery, Space Afrika, Tomas Jirku etc) and the more joyous, playful, euphoric side of electronic music (Ian Boddy, Pub, DJ Lostboi, Rone etc). My rave roots rarely disappear it seems and muscle memory still finds a way through via Sophia Loizou and later on in full force with Wardown. Maybe in a desperate desire to return to events listening to DJs and Live acts, I wanted to end the mix

  After a string of powerful albums with the Denovali label, Eugenio Caria is quickly becoming synonymous with the more epic and intense side of ambient music. Often introducing beats or IDM influences, amongst classical elements and big swells of atmospheric textures, with albums normally built upon strong, vivid concepts, SaffronKeira’s music draws you in for the full, immersive, storytelling experience. Eugenio’s 2019 album ‘Automatism’, sat with many of my faves of the year, and with the new album ‘In Origine: The Field Of Repentance’ released just a few months ago, it’s clear that SaffronKeira has a lot to give. We sat down with Eugenio to ask a few questions to accompany his suitably powerful isolatedmix.In Origine: The Field Of Repentance by Saffronkeira with Paolo Fresu~Hi Eugenio, thank you for the isolatedmix and for the brilliant new album. Hi Ryan! Thanks to you! Many will undoubtedly know you as a producer in your own right, but some keen eyes may have spotted you on the credits of our recent Blinkar från Norr record. Can you tell us about that experience? Yes, working with Andrea it was a really good experience, also because here in Sardinia we are very few who produce this kind of music ... when I meet Andrea he showed me his knowledge and passion of “that kind of music” and I see again myself at his age…Andrea in the beginning, was a student of mine, studying production and some skills started to appear from his mind pretty soon… he’s shy but with a lot of intelligence and musical culture from such a young age. In the few years he has been producing music I have seen him embark on a beautiful musical journey. I think ‘Metaphors For Things’ is a great album! Working in my studio at ‘Suvitas’ was a pleasure with lots of good times and shared comparisons and choices together with him.Metaphors For Things by Blinkar från NorrWhat do you try and bring to a new production relationship like this? Can you describe the process with Andrea?I try to take the production to a higher level - trying to fill some gaps and give a continuous mood/color. But I always respect the philosophy and the will of the artist and look for a compromise through a comparison between us, trying to establish a long-term relationship and trust. It is very difficult to get your hands on work of others without compromising their vision sometimes, as it is still something intimate and personal. From my point of view the additional production is a different example from mastering (for example). Mastering is an art undoubtedly, and in many cases it gives high value to potentially dull work, but a mix for example, can drastically change a piece of music.  Regarding the process with Andrea, we worked on the original material to create new drone layering through the use of echo tapes such as Roland Space echo, Chorus Echo and different vintage outboards. We also used different delay and reverbs trying to better understand the spaces by finding the right balance and also trying to remove - in some cases - that digital touch, trying to make it warmer and more alive. Then we moved on to the arrangement. Your new album, ‘In Origine: The Field Of Repentence’ incorporates Jazz artist Paolo Fresu - what was the idea behind this collaboration? I already released an album - ‘Cause and effect’ in 2013 with another Sardinia Trumpeter and I was astonished of the power and soul of this instrument. Paolo Fresu is one of the best trumpet players in the world, and he has worked with other heroes such Jon Hassell, Nils Petter Molvaer and many others. Here in Sardinia he’s an institution and a legend and I’ve know him as an artist since when I was kid… It was one of my goals to make a record with him, so I started some years ago to write draft/landscape sounds thinking about his projection with his great instruments on top of my music, even before I knew he would accept this collaboration. It may have also came about from the relationship we have with our magi

  **Continually updated post with the latest mix in the series**Kilchurn Session XVII debuted on our 9128.live radio platform last week and immediately garnered todos more deserved admirers for his crafted mixes. Episode 17 is an expansive and euphoric addition to the series, with clear ups-and-downs to hold the listeners attention amongst some lovely more melodic retrospective moments. As always, todos paints a spectrum of electronic music with his mixes, intertwining almost all elements in a creative and seamless construct. ~A staple of ASIP since the site's inception, todos' mixes have become legendary with many of us. Spanning ambient, electronica, techno and everything in-between, todos spends months cultivating each mix, layering in samples and perfecting each transition. The over-used term, journey is often said to describe epic mixes like these, but todos has defined the very meaning of it across the expansive Kilchurn Sessions series.These mixes should live forever, so I've taken the individual posts from the old ASIP site and combined them into this Todos super-post, along with his very latests sessions. I'll run out of superlatives soon when it comes to his mixes, so I'll stop short of describing how epic these things are, and just let you digest the latest and greatest all below. You can also jump straight in on this Soundcloud playlistSession XVIItodos · Kilchurn Session XVIITracklist:Anna Morley - ‘Amygdala’ Aes Dana - ‘The Gradual District’ Lorn - ‘Through The Fire’ Marc Romboy - ‘Voyage De La Planète’ (Ocoeur Remix) Holden & Zimpel - ‘Saturday’ Lena Deen - ‘Lateral’ Jonas Munk - ‘Resonance’ Pass Into Silence - ‘Voices’ State Azure - ‘Celestial Ghost’ Lewis James - ‘No Team’ (feat Lorn) Shasta Cults - ‘Hazel1’ Lorn - ‘The Slow Blade’ OKADA - ‘Killing Myself For Your Love’ Cliff Martinez - ‘They Broke His Pelvis’ Lorn - ‘Timesink’ Negative Neutron - ‘(spiral)’ Suumhow - ‘Cabin’~Session XVItodos · Kilchurn Session XVITracklist:How To Disappear Completely - ‘Seraph VI’ Donnacha Costello - ‘Leeway Drift’ Blanck Mass - ‘Sifted Gold’ Substan - ‘Generated Memories’ Apart - ‘Encantamento’ Ryyba & Stephan Hinz - ‘The Echo Within’ Konchord - ‘Freedom Is’ Julianna Barwick - ‘Big Hollow’ Still Life - ‘Dancing / New Phases’ Woob - ‘Earlier’ / Olan Mill - ‘Ntr hs hr sy’ Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross - ‘Under The Midnight Sun’ Rosa Anschütz - ‘Diopter’ Pallas Kat - ‘Leirelva’ Philipp Otterbach - ‘The Roamer, Pt. 1 / Placid Angles - ‘1700’ Symphocat - ‘Fljuga Yfir Jokulsarlon’ Amotik - ‘Chatis’ Shasta Cults - ‘Looks Frozen’ ZHI16 - ‘Ocean’ How To Disappear Completely - ’Seraph II’ Brambles - ‘Spirits’~Session XV - Read the full ASIP blog feature heretodos · Kilchurn Session XVTracklist:01. Inon Zur - ‘Liberty Lives’ 02. Norwell - ‘TWB’ (Morning Edit) 03. Steve Hauschildt - ‘Same River Twice’ / Cut Copy - ‘January Tape Part 1’ Edit 04. Jonathan Fitoussi - ‘Oiseau de Paradis’ / Genesis - ‘The Fountain of Salmacis’ Edit 05. Scott Monteith - ‘Ghazal 7’ 06. ADR - ‘King David’ Edit / VC-118A - ‘Specter’ / Barker & Baumecker - ‘Technogate’ 07. 36 - ‘Expanse’ Edit / Norwell - ‘Brighter Days’ 08. Barker & Baumecker - ‘Turnhalle’ Edit / Contrastate - ‘The True Believer’ Edit / Max Cooper & Tom Hodge - ’Symmetry’ 09. FINK - ’Shakespeare’ (Nachbarn39) / Yann Tiersen - ‘Hurricane’ (Reprise) 10. Rain Dog - ‘Eyes On the Aether’ / Mike Luck - ‘Felt’ 11. Barker & Baumecker - ‘Nocturnal’ 12. Triames - ‘Closed Shell’ / Ian Boddy - ‘Quantum Of Memory’ 13. Karnivool - ‘Om’ 14. Lav & Purl - ‘Beyond Suffering’ (buy) 15. Lungwah - ‘Fond Embers’ 16. Space Scavengers - ‘Sound Asleep’ / Grand Volume - ‘Fucker’ Edit 17. Shrine - ‘The Burden of Knowledge’ 18. Negative Neutron - ‘Marked' ~Session XIV - Read the full ASIP blog feature heretodos · Kilchurn Session XIVTracklist:1. KRTS - ‘Sealed’ (Intro) 2. Danny Scrilla - ‘Cryosphere’ 3. Darshan Atmosphere - ‘Vishuddha’ 4. Frostbite - ‘The Spirit Stirs’ 5. Des

  I feel a sense of nostalgia for this isolatedmix, for several reasons: Firstly, Mike Jedlicka (Optic Echo) and I go back for some time now after initially meeting in Portland (Oregon) amongst the amazing ambient scene at the time. We would often find ourselves at the same shows in what is a small city, and both of us would make the trip up to Seattle for Rafael Anton Irisarri’s Substrata Festival (with one such memory being a field recording trip where I must’ve been the only one not knowing what the hell I was doing at the time). Second, the artwork chosen by Mike for the captures the heart of Oregon, a place I still admire and go back to often. The shot of the Colombia River Gorge is synonymous with the good feelings of summer hikes amongst nature’s finest and ending the day at a brewery.And lastly, the mix. Not only is Mike an avid-vinyl enthusiast, spinning vinyl-only for his Optic Echo Presents radio show mixes and applauded end of year lists, but his isolatedmix continues this theme with what I can only describe as some essential ASIP-loved vinyl. Many of the artists featured in the mix evoke memories of early ASIP blog days; such as Night Sequels, 36, Eluvium, and of course Wanderwelle all contributing isolatedmixes in the past at the very least - the tracklist strikes at the heart of the ASIP ethos. Enough of my sentimental musings. To go into a bit more detail with Mike and his mix, I sent over a few questions:Hi Mike, let’s start with how some people here may know you - making some great year-end mixes and hosting them with our friends at Headphone Commute - how do you go about choosing your favorite vinyl of the year?Hi Ryan, we miss you here in Portland! I have been trying to be mindful of new artists and non-mainstream records that I have enjoyed / been intrigued by over the year. I start by compiling a list of possible albums, usually 50+ records. It's helpful that I can look over my OEP playlists to see if I missed anything. In December I whittle it down a bit, pull all the records, and sort them into genres. I start experimenting with them, mapping out the mix around mid Dec. I'm usually receiving records till late December that I want to give a good listen, so I usually don't record the mix till the very end of the year or on NYD. I am thankful for Mike of Headphone Commute for giving me the opportunity every year!Like me you now have a little one running (crawling?) about the house. How has having a child impacted your music life? Are you still buying as many records!?It has been a monumental change in my life when he joined our family, and mostly positive. I had to restructure my priorities, as I haven't written my own music in a couple years. But I've kept up with my weekly 2-hour radio show on XRAY. I also attended way less live shows (pre-COVID-19) after he was born.I had to slim down on buying physical records (my wife may disagree) by maybe 20%, which I really needed to do and probably should do more. I don't have nearly as much money to throw around.As I mentioned above, I still miss the Portland ambient scene from a few years back. How has it changed over recent years? I feel that I have not had my finger on the PDX ambient music pulse for the past 2-5 years as I used to, so I'd be better at telling my story. I was deep in it back when I threw the Aleatoric monthly starting ~2007. That merged into different monthlies with Coco Madrid and side shows with Tim Westcott (wndfrm) at Leaven and different churches around town. I've learned through experience to choose different venues (art studios, churches, community spots, outdoor events, etc.) instead of bars for ambient gigs, as people would listen more instead of talking while drinking.My last show that I curated was Marcus Fischer, Simon Scott (of Slowdive), and Rafael Anton Irisarri. Tim had a contact that could get large venue speakers for a decent price, and we got a great deal for a nice Meyer system with a HUGE sub. That led to getting shut

  Just finished up a lovely session with the Modern Therapy crew who hosted a massive 24+hr Halloween takeover on Twitch also featuring Mr C, Bunny from Rabbit in the Moon, Jon Charnis, Tara Brooks + more. I prepared a 2hr trip into the woods - dark, weird, trippy and storied to bring in Sunday morning, scare the beats off, and raise the… living. It features a few upcoming ASIP releases too for good measure. Halloween may be over but everyone likes a trip to the dark side every now and then.Downloadastrangelyisolatedplace · ASIP - Cabin In The WoodsTracklist (Buy Music Club list here + embedded below):1. Patricia Wolf - Sauvie Island Wilderness Area (pitched) 2. Secret Pyramid - Ceremony I 3. Tomas Jirku - A Warm Place 4. (Forthcoming on ASIP) 5. Higher Intelligence Agency + Biosphere - Meltwater 6. (Excerpt) (Forthcoming on ASIP) 7. FRKTL - Sól tér sortna, sígr fold í mar (pitched) 8. Faith Coloccia - Voice II Imprint 9. ASC - Cycle 9 (Subroutine) 10. (Forthcoming on ASIP) 11. Berangere Maxim - Free Verse 12. Quiet Places - Track 7 13. Max Würden - 00.00.00.00 14. Seth Cooke - In The Air Tonight (Snared 1000 Cuts remix) 15. Aphex Twin - Matchsticks 16. Berangere Maxim - Wax Melody 17. Gadi Sassoon - Black Hole Fanfare (Forthcoming on ASIP) 18. Wanderwelle - The Becoming (+ Sample) 19. Mount Shrine - Foggy Deck 20. qebrµs - ฌฎ๒๓๔ญ°°°° 21. William Basinski - O, My Daughter, O, My Sorrow. 22. DJ Healer - Hopes and Fears 23. (House on Haunted Hill Post Credit Scene) 24. Vernal Equinox - Autumn Sunset  

  For our 9128.live guest takeovers that some of you may have experienced this past year, we invite other great labels to curate a lineup that is completely on their own terms. What I enjoy the most about this, is that I get to listen to new artists and DJ’s through it, many for the first time (in real time) and it becomes a discovery tool for me just as much as it does to all the listeners. One of those artists who really jumped out (and was new to me at the time) was GiGi FM. An NTS radio regular DJ and event curator, GiGi was playing as part of the 9128.live Midgar Records takeover at the time. Her set was transcendent, flawless in execution and above all, completely original from anything we had during the multi-hour listening session (available here to listen back); taking us from deep mystical ambient, to tribal and spiritual rhythms all the way through to hypnotic techno. It had those special moments that make you turn to a friend in a club or a field and smile, knowing the journey is taking a new twist; that you’re all in this together on the same level; and it’s only just getting started. Of course, we were just sat at home listening in that example and not dancing under the stars, unfortunately, so I made a point to ask GiGi for an isolatedmix so that we could hear another side and take her storytelling with us whenever and wherever in the future here on ASIP. GiGi was lovely enough to oblige, and even took the time to match the moment with the Full Moon (today, Thursday October 1st) for an extra special dimension, taking us once again, on another very special, spiritual journey under the stars. Here’s what GiGi had to say about the mix:~ Inner Mycelia Voyage is a ritual for the full Hunter's moon coming on October 1st. Since the beginning of time humankind has always taken communal rituals in dancing as the best attempt to tune into the underlying essence of the universe, which was born out of sound and constant intense vibrating atoms.Mycelia or mycelium literally means “more than one". Mycelium is one of the oldest living organisms and has helped shape lifeforms on earth. It is the guardian of the earth, the underground internet network of mother nature, making sure nutrients are redistributed to all.The Full Hunter's Moon in Aries is the first of two Full Moons for the month with a Blue Moon at the month’s end. Having two Full Moons in the same month indicates a theme of clearing and purging.The shadows are coming to the surface to be birthed into a new light.Channeling the ancestral earth forces and holding the light of hope is key.We must remember the wisdom of the numerology code of 2020 offered to us, like mycelia ~ Infinite potential when we work together - GiGi FM. ~astrangelyisolatedplace · isolatedmix 103 - GiGi FM ~ Inner Mycelia Voyage (Full Hunters Moon Ritual)Listen on Soundcloud, Mixcloud, or the ASIP Podcast.DownloadTracklist01. GiGi Fm ~ Live Intro Full Hunters Moon Ritual 02. Susumu Yokota ~ Spectrum of Love 03. Azu Tiwaline ft Cinna Peyghamy ~ Violet Curves 04. Unknown Artist ~ Forgotten Constellation 05. Black Merlin ~ Totek and Tim 06. Dino Sabatini ~ Prophecy 07. Trevor Morris ~ Vikings Attack Paris Ntogns Bootleg Version 08. Cassegrain ~ Hexagon Fifteen 09. Eduardo De La Calle ~ Forthcoming 10. VC-118A ~ Forthcoming 11. Donato Dozzy, Lerosa ~ Neon Snake 12. The Martinez Brothers ~ Ibadan Tool 13. T5UMUT5UMU ~ Artificial Blossoms 14. Wata Igarashi ~ Spirits In The Rain 15. Unknown Artist ~ I Become OverwhelmedMix artwork photo by Giacomo MarinsaltaGiGi FM Soundcloud | Instagram | Facebook 

  If you’re following our label output, you would have noticed a debut album by Quiet Places released last month. Alongside Dennis White and Dave Gardner, the UK-based production trio is yet another milestone in the esteemed Charlie May’s career - one that has brought us some of the most revered and innovative music of the past thirty(!) or so years, through the likes of the duo, Spooky, as Sasha’s engineer and producer, or more recently on stage with Sasha, Dave and Dennis as part of the Refracted Live Shows. To say I’m honored to have Charlie a part of the label alongside Dennis and Dave is an understatement, let alone having him provide us with this stunning isolatedmix.Of course, by me holding back any potential royalty payments until he agreed ;-) I was able to persuade Charlie to go deep with this one - taking the time to answer a few questions, provide a meticulously detailed track list (for the diggers) and a journey that will battle for your very favorite mix of the entire 100+ series so far. Charlie warned me at the beginning of this; his mixes are rare in this shape and form and if he’s doing it, he’s going to put everything into it. He didn’t disappoint. Thank you Charlie for the time and effort gone into this one. You can grab the last few copies of the Quiet Places record here, (or digital) featuring one third of the man himself. Interview with Charlie MayASIP: You're no stranger to production partnerships over the years, of course, but how did Quiet Places come about? CM: Dave Gardner, Dennis White and myself were an integral part of the Sasha Refracted Live shows. I think we spent 6 months building this technical monster with 16 musicians on stage and over 2hrs of material all of which had to be meticulously planned and executed. It was like putting a man into space. No room for error and of course we wanted to do it the hard way... without laptops on stage. It was a beast. So Quiet Places came about by necessary accident. The three of us were programming and rehearsing all the time and of course we would continually come up with these little jams which we always recorded one way or another. As an antidote to the stress and structure we were under the Quiet Places project fell together very loosely, and that looseness and need to relax musically became a template for the album. Only 2 rules : no beats and no grid. Once you step away from those two constraints you are in a different world sonically. It's a very loose jam with laptops .. playing all the weird and wonderful nuggets we've each been hoarding over the past months. So what began as purely therapeutic became a rewarding record making experience. Pictured - behind the scenes with some of the Refracted Live crew What do each of you bring to the studio and process when making a Quiet Places record? CM: Whisky, plenty of sci-fi both new and old, books and movies and a particular strain of humour that few can grasp / tolerate ... Dennis is a first rate engineer as well as an accomplished drummer. He's about the only one who can play anything in time and also remember what to play immediately. Plus he gets saddled with a lot of the arranging and mixing .. all the grunt work which on a seamless ambient record can get fairly hefty.Dave is a bit of an encyclopedia of just about anything as long as it's weird and no one makes a sandwich quite like he does, so we always eat well. He has this amazing knowledge of electronic music and its production .. who did what when and how. He's the one who will turn around and say 'that's shit' or 'take half of that out and it's great'. He gives me crap for liking Def Leppard but it's only because he hasn't seen the light yet.I have no idea what I do .. play some bits and find weird sounds and samples .. bitch and moan about everything and try to understand their contraband humour. We'll probably hate each other by album 3 and throw in the towel for good.  “I couldn’t live without the d