Free Sounds - 2010

[D_Davis]

If anyone would like to join me on my quest for great, free, mostly CC Licensed music during this year, here is the place to do so.

I'll be updating with interesting things, and I encourage everyone into good music to check out the recordings. I will also make an effort to include many more releases outside of my normal ambient/electronic/experiment niche. I know of a few solid hip hop and indie-rock netlabels, so I will be sure to mention the good stuff from these.

Indexed in this first post will be links to the all of the various netlabels I review. I'll probably just populate the list as a good release becomes available.


Netlabels

Phantom Channel
BFW Recordings
Circles and Lines
Skrowmedia
Kahvi
Inglorious Ocean
Passage
Thinner

[D_Davis]

Language of Landscape - Memories Fade Under a Shallow Autumn Snow



Language of Landscape includes Chris Tenz, whose album Forlorn Memories was one of the best albums I heard in 2009. This release is the first I've heard in 2010, and it sets the tone perfectly. I've listened to it 2 times already this morning.

Tenz, along with his partner Cory Zaradur, elevate subtlety and nuance to a new level. Or you could say, they take it down a few notches. This album is very, very quiet, and minimal. The three compositions are made of little more than treated piano and guitar swells. The softly ambling melodies and harmonies drift along like snow flakes in a windless environment.

[D_Davis]

Hollydrift - Wreath Of Algoma



Wow. Awesome.

Fans of Dalek, Robert Loop, Medicine, shoegazer, noise...check this out. Very cool. It's electronic-shoegazer with spoken word, a ton of loops, fuzz, drum machine, and some very dense synth work. This is a totally new netlabel discovery for me, so I am really looking forward to diving into their back-catalog. But if this first release for 2010 is any indication, it's going to be a very good year of musical discoveries.

"Royal Academy of Summer"
"Great Northern Day"

[D_Davis]

So I think that Language of Landscape album will be one of my favorites this year. It's stunningly beautiful.

[D_Davis]

Fans of Spacemen 3 et al. check these out.

2 newly remastered EPs from The Sirago 17. Recorded on 4-track many years ago, Chris Reid has finally (thank god) seen fit to release these in digital form.

Bedspins EP 1


Bedspins EP 2

[D_Davis]

The CC Community has made Mondays into something special - Free Music Mondays.

For those of you on Twitter, look for the hashtag: #MusicMonday, and follow the links to great discoveries.

[D_Davis]

Woah, dude. I'm totally trippin'....



I'm surprised that I haven't found more good dub released on the net. This album, from Dub Engine, is the second release for a new netlabel - Irie on Air. It's a very good album of modern dub. From what I can tell these are original compositions recorded in a dub-style, as opposed to more traditional dub in which old classic reggae songs are remixed and mastered.

"Dubcat is Coming To Town" is a really cool tune. Check it out.

[D_Davis]

Some dude called Carl Sagan's Ghost put out a new album today.

The Colonial Spa EP





This is the first in a series of EPs focusing on music as place.

Enjoy.

[D_Davis]

Ellipse/Saffron Slumber - Split EP - Translucence



Saffron Slumber is a musician with whom I've developed an on-line friendship. His music is very good; it's dense, exquisitely textured, and extremely moody. This EP showcases these qualities in great detail, and it has also introduced me to the droned-out sounds of Ellipse - an artist I hope to learn more about.

The opening track - Drifting Endless Ethereal - comes from Ellipse. Like the title suggests, the music here drifts and ambles along, slowly metamorphosing as it ebbs and flows from form to form. As it fades away into the distance, Saffron Slumber's first piece - Viscosity - fades into the stereofield. The moment created by this long transition is one of pure ambient brilliance.

[D_Davis]

What a great day for music.

First, a new EP from Saffron Slumber. And then, a new one from Doyeq. To tell you the truth, I'll be happy this year if I hear another album this good. A full write up is coming soon, but if you like minimal electronic/ambient at all, just get this album. An absolute masterpiece - minimal electronica with perfectly selected violin, piano, and upright bass samples. It's like Doyeq heard everything else released in the last 6 months and said, "Oh yeah? Big deal."

Doyeq - Eyelashes Of Lanterns

[D_Davis]

Vidasm - Good Night EP



It's been a little bit of a slow week on my part, but I'm back with an excellent find - and what do you know? It's a Russian electronic artist. Seems like there are a ton of interesting and worthwhile electronic releases hailing from Russia lately. It must be something about that somewhat harsh, stark environment. I don't know, but whatever it is I'm glad it's working, because in addition to the amazing stuff from the Electronica RU label, this small outfit, Circles and Lines, is releasing some cool stuff.

This release comes from Vidasm, and it comes highly recommended.
It's a bubbly mix of minimal techno, ambient dub, and lounge music, complete with breathy female vocals, half talking, half singing. The music has a sticky quality to it; it sounds gooey, sucking you into its quirky electronic rhythms. It's all very playful, but not too whimsical or cloy. The third track "Salia" is a real standout. Definitely worthy of your time.

[D_Davis]

Pelican Daughters - Fishbones and Wishbones



Fans of strange music...check this out. Reminds me a bit of early Brian Eno mixed with some Wolfgang Press, Colourbox, and other oddball '80s new wave. Totally cool, a little creepy, and highly inventive.

from archive.org:

"Between 1986 and 1988, using Portastudio technology, the Pelican Daughters were birthed with a collection of atmospheric and moody tracks at odds with the popular culture around them, but definitely pointing to the future. Some of those tracks were released on cassette in 1988 on the Cosmic Conspiracy Productions label and was then picked up by Kim Cascone's Silent Records for release on CD in 1991 with added tracks - the format found here. Long out of print and almost impossible to find, 4-4-2 Music is proud to put the album back into circulation - this time completely free and in .wav format."

[D_Davis]

Bi-Polar Bear - Today I found Happy



Not CC-licensed, but a free album none-the-less. Pretty good hip-hop. A little more mainstream sounding than the stuff I am usually interested in, but I dig it. Except for the 1st track. It's a very odd way to start out the album, and it doesn't represent what is to come at all.

[D_Davis]

Vlantis - Super Battlestation Robot



A fun, quirky, catchy romp into SF-anime land. It's the Zambonies meets Ween and early Trans Am, energized by a punk-Jpop-new wave aesthetic. The final track, "The Last Flight Home" is a real standout here, and it is simply a superb little electro-indie tune.

[D_Davis]

Durlin Lurt - Him Jenson



A superb deejay-centric album. 26 tracks, one for each letter of the alphabet, and each one comprised of mixed-up samples, quirky one-liners, broken break beats, groovy rhythms, and a ton of style.

This is one remarkable trip from beginning to end. Not to be missed.

[D_Davis]

Henrik Jose - The Little Things EP



Synth-pop. Electro-acoustic. Whatever you call it, one thing is clear: this is good music. I've been listening to it all morning, and it's turned one bummer of a day into something far, far better. It's incredibly well produced, and the songs are interesting, complete with infectious rhythms, catchy melodies, shimmering textures, and creative arrangements.

"We Own This Thing"
"Magnet in My Mouth"

[Dead & Messed Up]

DD, thanks so much for posting all of these. I've only listened to two so far.

"Languages of Landscape" is inviting stuff, surprisingly lush since, as you point out, it's little more than piano and occasionally guitar. But the sonic space created is inviting. While you compare it to snow falling, it feels a bit to me like a soft, noiseless fire: warm and cozy.

"Colonial Spa" is great. It sometimes echoes "Behind Clouds," but there's also that sense of location that you're striving for (and achieve nicely).

Both have been getting heavy rotation in my iTunes.

[D_Davis]

DD, thanks so much for posting all of these. I've only listened to two so far.

"Languages of Landscape" is inviting stuff, surprisingly lush since, as you point out, it's little more than piano and occasionally guitar. But the sonic space created is inviting. While you compare it to snow falling, it feels a bit to me like a soft, noiseless fire: warm and cozy.

"Colonial Spa" is great. It sometimes echoes "Behind Clouds," but there's also that sense of location that you're striving for (and achieve nicely).

Both have been getting heavy rotation in my iTunes.

Thanks. Glad you're finding some stuff you like.

I imagine that Language of Landscapes will end up on my year-end top 10. I love that album.

Given what you've liked so far, I highly recommend the Doyeq EP mentioned above, "Eyelashes of Lanterns." It's the best thing I've heard so far this year.

[D_Davis]

Polaski - 37 Ways



Polaski's 37 Ways is a atmospheric and somewhat cold EP of electronic ambiance. The cover perfectly captures the mood - it feels blue, stark, and somewhat sterile, and yet, strangely, still inviting. The opening track, "Prodigal Son," is the best on the album; it is stunningly beautiful. "The Rabbit Hole," the third track, almost feels out of place here, and yet the more upbeat rhythms and nearly-synth-pop feel adds a welcome amount of levity to the album's concept.

[D_Davis]

Peterloo Massacre - s/t



A very interesting album. The vocals may take some time to get used to. The singer's name is KiN, sometimes she sounds like she's in pain, or being squeezed, or quivering. It works though. The music, too, is atypical. The arrangements are creative, and the instrumentation is minimal without being dull. It's quite a bit different than the stuff I've mentioned thus far in this thread.

[D_Davis]

Emerald Park - For Tomorrow



Fans of Asobi Seksu, Yatsura, The Swirlies, Radial Spangle, and Teenage Fan Club looking for their next fix of pop-infused, semi-shoegazer, indie rock can stop looking. Emerald Park's For Tomorrow is here to answer the call. This is a free re-release of the album that includes a few bonus tracks - yes, you get more, and you get it for free. It's a really nice record, and while it may not be remarkable or outstanding in any one area, it is an album that does what it sets out to do with effortless skill. Catchy guitar-based songs punctuated with driving bass-lines and sweet vocals, you've probably heard it before, and already know if you like it or not.

[D_Davis]

Clem Leek - Snow Tales



Clem Leek's Snow Tales is an album birthed of winter and snow. It was recorded in only a few days during the recent blizzard-like conditions in the Eastern United States. Like an expertly-written haiku, Snow Tales deftly captures the essence of its natural surroundings. Each of the 4 compositions, or "Tales," (the album also includes a remix of Tale 3) reflects a different emotion, each stemming from a different kind of snow fall. It is at times playful, somber, and introspective, and would make a perfect combination with the first album mentioned in this thread, The Language of Landscapes.

[D_Davis]

Milhaven - s/t



The nice thing about post rock is that if you like some of it, chances are you will probably like all (or most) of it. Much like ambient music albums, post rock albums can blend seamlessly from one to the next, without a lot of variation between them (especially to the more unfamiliar ears). There are definite sounds, motifs, effects, and certain arrangements that define a lot of what post rock has to offer, and Milhaven expertly recreates each of these on its self-titled release. And, since most post rock tends to sound the same, or at least similar enough, why not gravitate towards the stuff that's released for free? Check it out. Chances are you already know if you will like this.

[D_Davis]

Myth of the Near Future EP - Saffron Slumber, Specta Ciera, and Carl Sagan's Ghost



A new split EP from Saffron Slumber, Specta Ciera, and Carl Sagan's Ghost. One ~20 minute track comprised of three separately recorded parts.

[D_Davis]

2% - Nowcast



Ambient drone-hop.
Drones, ambling soundscapes, delicate melodies, and pleasant atmospheres, all wrapped up with some head-bobbing beats and grooves. Very nice.