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AV's
Q&A
With Forest
Articles Around
the web
New Age Music
Made Simple
by Stephen Hill
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A
Journey into Sound and Spirit |
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Matthew McDonough
Frequency Response |
Frequency Response AV talks to Matthew McDonough aka MjDawn MjDawn is an artist devoted to his work bridging acoustic drums with the
possibilities of the world of electronics. In the scope of contemporary
popular music, as Matthew McDonough, he is most widely known for his
membership in the hard rock band Mudvayne. Mudvayne has enjoyed
international acclaim with three gold albums, an MTV award and a Grammy
nomination. He is the drummer and contributing writer/co-producer of
Mudvayne along with the bands other three members. His early electronic
music efforts can be heard on several Mudvayne releases. He composed,
recorded, mixed and mastered the electronic interludes on the album
“L.D.50” and the mixed piece “L.D.50” on the album “The Beginning Of All
Things To End”. Other Artist Interviews on Ambient Visions |
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John Koch-Northrup
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Relaxed Machinery: AV talks with John Koch-Northrup Relaxed Machinery grows organic ambient and techno music from scratch
with only the purest of ingredients. Our artists care deeply about
their music and Relaxed Machinery provides the nurturing and environment
to allow them to harvest the finest of musical crops.
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Relax Your Ears
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AV's Spotlight Review Relax Your Ears by Joel Styzens AV Spotlight CD Review The one thing that I love about running Ambient Visions is the chance to discover new music and to have some of that new music find its way into a regular rotation in my daily listening habits. I'm just like everyone else as I choose music to go onto my portable player to listen to throughout the day or what I choose to put on my stereo system to relax to at the end of a stressful day which means that I have music that I gravitate towards more often than not. I'm sure in the coming months Joel Styzens' CD Relax Your Ears will end up being played long after this review has been written and I am on to the next new discovery. |
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Radiant Sky
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AV's Spotlight Review Radiant Sky by Scott August AV Spotlight CD Review There are times that after you have heard enough music you start to think that you know what a certain album by a certain artist is going to sound like before you even start playing the music. You build up perceptions of a given artist based on what you have heard in the past from them and you have vague ideas based on the particular instrument that the artist plays as to what you think a release by them is supposed to sound like. If you had any preconceptions as to what you think Radiant Sky might or should sound like you should toss them out and approach Scott's new album with open ears because you will find that it isn't what you might have thought and it will definitely make you a fan of Scott August's talent as a musician if yoMcu weren't one already. |
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New Reviews on Ambient Visions
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Scott August
Lost Canyons |
Lost Canyons AV talks with Scott August Native American Music Award winner, and three time nominee, Scott August is a nationally acclaimed composer, producer, keyboardist and Native American flute player know for his forays into World Music. His music has been featured on the nationally syndicated radio shows “Hearts of Space” and “Echoes” as well as receiving airplay on the the digital networks XM, Sirius and DirecTV. One of the nation’s most influential Native American flute players, August was a headline performer at the 2006 and 2007 Zion Canyon Flute Festival and the 2007 Central Coast Flute Festival. He is known for both his award winning music and knowledge of the Native American flute. In July 2005 he opened for Dr. Wayne Dyer at the International New Age Trade Show and he was a musical guest at the 2005 TED conference. Echoes radio says "August has always been a cut or two above most native flute players... He layers guitars, keyboards and all kinds of percussion into his compositions, moving from world fusion to airy ambiences." August has also composed music and sound design for hundreds of films, commercials and video projects, for clients such as NASA, The Discovery Channel, Lexus, Chevrolet, HBO, Nabisco, and Minolta. The Los Angeles Times has called his music "shimmering and luminous." Other AV's CD Focus Features available on Ambient Visions |
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AV's Ambient Video Spotlight Pegasus by Michio Ogawa
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Vir Unis
Stand Still Like the Hummingbird |
Artist Spotlight on Vir Unis I began music in the early to mid 80's as a drummer and occasional keyboardist for a couple bands heavily under the influence of the new wave/new romantic music that was mainly coming out of England those days; most notably bands like Japan, (early) Duran Duran, Adam & The Ants, Gary Numan, The Human League, Modern English, Talk Talk, and Tears for Fears. Going into the late 80's and early 90's (and quite disullusioned with the big hair/eyeliner bands) I began searching for a yet even more atmospheric sound beyond what 4AD and other more ethereal labels were producing at the time. Heavily influenced by the studio isolationist and cerebral works of Brian Eno and the more sensual quality of David Sylvian's instrumental albums, I started on a quest to make my own music for inner reflective spaces and something entirely new. After spending nearly 7 years in the studio with a very small analog recording setup and minimalist sound devices, I delved into the world of digital/computer audio in the spring of 1996. My studio expanded with more synthesizers and drum machines added. I began to forge a stronger sound and began a deeper work into sound organization and manipulation, but always striving to keep it entertaining, visceral, and not fall into the alluring trap of experimenting for its own sake, which I always found way too repetitive. From there I had a quite fortutious meeting a fellow artist and pioneer of Ambient/Tribal music, Steve Roach. At this time I was also working with Ma Ja Le a duo from Wisconsin. We recorded an album called "Imaginarium", which was produced by Steve Roach and released on Mirage, a division of Oasis Music in Canada. Spending nearly 8 weeks as the number one album on The New Age Voice playlist, "Imaginarium" introduced myself and Ma Ja Le to the broader ambient music community around the globe and brought many more opportunities to meet and work with some very talented musicians. The next several years were spent working on a more rhythmically driven sound, going back to the source as a drummer, and fusing elements of all the past and present influences in an electronic and ambient atmosphere. The subsequent beat driven tribal/electronic albums were "Body Electric" (with Steve Roach, released on Projekt), "Light Fantastic" (with Steve Roach, released on Fathom/Hearts of Space), "Blood Machine" (with Steve Roach, released on GreenHouse Music), "Pulse n Atmo" (released on Groove Unlimited), "Thermal Transfer" (with Saul Stokes, released on Binary/Hypnos), "Live at Gathering 23" (released on Space for Music). "Mercury and Plastic", "Symbology", "Book of Mutations", "2012" (with The Elf Machine), "Tokyo Highway" (with the Elf Machine), "I/O" (with the Elf Machine), "Live at the Miramar" (with Interstitial), the Perimeter series (with James Johnson), and The Live Transmissions series (with James Johnson) were all released on AtmoWorks Music, which is a small artist owned label that I co-founded with James Johnson in late 2001. In between these more rhythmically charged albums, I also focused on the meditational and ethereal work with albums like "The Drift Inside", "Aeonian Glow" (both released on GreenHouse Music), "The Yellow House" (with Chris Short), "Live at Lakeview Planetarium", "Everything Seeks Balance", "Dreamers at the Edge of Decaying Light (early works vol.1)", "Primary Space (early works vol. 2)", "The Endless Days of The Mono Gods (early works vol. 3)", "A Flame That Leaves No Ashes", "Lumen", "Aquaculture" (with James Johnson & Chris Short), and "Not Even The Rain". I've also contributed as a guest artist for Steve Roach and have contributed to some compilations and label samplers. In addition to my own work, I've also done commercial work Sony Music/Sonic Foundry for the past 8 years. I've produced three loop libraries with them, "Infusion: Fractalized Grooves & Atmospheres", "Bug Report", and "Rhythmicronics". These loop libraries were specifically designed for Sony's music program, Acid and contain a lot of beats and grooves which were typical of the solo and collaborative music I was working on. They also contained a lot of atmospheric washes and other electronic odds and ends. I've also contributed loops and themes for their latest program, Cinescore, which is a music generation program for filmmakers. These days I am working on a number of ongoing collaborations with fellow artists and a few solo efforts. I am also focusing on my label AtmoWorks as a source to release music at will, without the possible impediment of a third party's agenda and occasionally host our online radio program, AtmoStreams. I am more inspired by paintings, drawings, films, and books, for creating music than I am by other's music. I consider myself a painter, primarily, using audio as a form of "paint" and the mind/ear as the "canvas". However, I do enjoy quite an eclectic array of music from many other composers, but I realize that I get more ideas for sound out of other things that occur in life, which I think keeps me from being too derivative of other's work. Music doesn't exit in a vacuum, I know, so I'm sure I could be compared to others, and generally find that i visit similar worlds of other musicians, but hopefully, have left my own mark. |
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Following the Call
The Color of Light
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04-05-2010 New Reviews featuring First Day Back by Lenny Kaplan |
Sounds
to
Listen For
I Remain
by The Glimmer Room
Starlight Vol. 3
by Robert Carty
The Nature of Light
by Lea Atherton
Travel Bug
by Hesius Dome
Cromo
(piano & drones)
by Bruno Sanfillippo & Mathias Grassow
Circo Divino
by Alio Die and
Parallel Worlds
The Lost Tracks:
A Retrospective
Album Trilogy
by Quantum Leap
Serenity
by Kuutana
Krakatoa
by Robert A. Wolf
Joyfully Creeping
by Insomnious Noise
Voices of the Ancients
by Chad Kettering
Nothing, But Death
by Stray Ghost
Impressions Vol. 1
by Valdi Sabev
Ylang
by Robert Rich
Sun Tracer
by Phillip Wilkerson
Get your copy here
Monjour
by Anawaty/Russell
Relax Your Ears
by Joel Styzens
Hope
by Kendra Springer
In Flow of Light
by Julian Ray
Circular Scriptures
by Steve Brand
Imaginary Friends
by Various Artists
Hanging Masses
by Cell
The Ghosts of
Hanton Village
by Richard Bone
Virga
by Jeff Greinke
Destination Beyond
by Steve Roach
Between Worlds
by Deborah Martin
and Erik Wollo
Journey Through an Electric Garden
by Lemonchill
Listen on Lala
Inside the Voice Inside
by Pete Ardron
Wanderlust
by Terra Ambient
Divine Invasion
by Bluetech
Southampton Sunset
by Jane Leslie
The Edge of a Fairytale
by Between Interval
Early Works
by Phillip Wilkerson
The Twins
by Sky
Shade
by Parallel Worlds
Spirit Dome - Live Archive
by Steve Roach and vidna Obmana