Pax Titania/Family Battle Snake (Soundholes)

"Pax Titania is Christopher Cprek. He creates oscillators, audio processing effects, synthesizer modules, sequencers and uses them in conjunction with samplers and no input feedback to make songs. It's part folk art, part black art." (from his myspace site)

Family Battle Snake also fill up their side with progressive synth music.

8/10

Gitche-Anahmi-Bezheu - Mahpiya Ska In: Guide To Nowhere Plateau (cs, Rotifer Cassettes)

Meditative drones.

7.5/10

Knit Prism - Amaranth (2 cs, House of sun)

Knit Prism is the project of Mike Pouw, label head of House of sun. On these two tapes full of synth/guitar drones and field recordings he displays his talent to take the listener on a journey to another reality. I expect many great things from Mike in the future.

9/10

Matrix Metals - Flamingo Breeze (Not Not Fun)

Sam Meringue's project is a prime example of hypnagogic pop. Electro/synth tunes inspired by cheesy 80's tv themes. This tape makes me happy. If you excuse me know, I'm going to put on my spandex and sweatbands, do some aerobics, take a shower and watch a knight rider episode.

8.5/10

Fielded - The lord reigns, let the people tremble (Catholic tapes)

Fielded is the project of Lindsay Anne Powell. Her music is driven by haunting vocals over layers of drones. Grouper is an obvious comparison. Again stunning packaging by Catholic tapes.

8/10

KGB MAN / Oneohtrix Point Never - KGB Nights / Blue Drive (Catholic tapes)

Daniel Lopatin is best known as Oneohtrix Point Never. Under this monniker he released the essential double cd Rifts (a collection of three vinyl releases and some tapes) which I consider to be one of the best albums of 2009. The two ten minute compositions on the Oneothrix Point Never tape are another prime example of his analogue synth excursions of stellar beauty. The other tape lets us meet KGB Man, the new alter ego of Lopatin, who likes it a bit more spacey electro/synth style. The tapes come housed in a beautiful cardboard box with 2 transparent inserts. The cover art is amazing.

8.5/10

Kane Pour - Cat On A Paisley Shawl (Housecraft)

Kane Pour records with Housecraft label boss as Tricorn And Queue. Cat On A Paisley Shawl, his first solo tape, is pure bliss. Meandering synths/guitar and some lost, hazy voices bring you in another state of mind.

8/10

Mirror to mirror - Safety and comfort (cs, Jugular Forest)

Slow synth moves create epic meditative ambient music.
Absolutely beautiful.

9/10

Mirror to mirror - Rerest (cs, Jugular Forest)

Slow synth moves create epic meditative ambient music.
Absolutely beautiful.

9/10

Dolphins into the future - Spinning with the Hawaiian spinner dolphins (Cetacean Nation Cassettes)

Field recordings of the Hawaiian spinner dolphins.

7/10

Dolphins into the future - Voyage (Cetacean Nation Cassettes)

Lieven Martens, the man behind Dolphins into the future, uses dolphin sounds to create new new age music. His ... On Sea-Faring Isolation tape got the vinyl treatment on Not Not Fun records last year and got rave reviews. This release is a compilation of the two previously released Voyage tapes. Tracks A1 - A4 were originally released on Skulls Of Heaven. Tracks A5 - B6 on Pacific City.
Early 2010 brings a cd release, coming soon on Release the Bats. Also, Dolphins into the future will perform on the fantastic Kraak festival in march.

7/10

High Wolf - Supermodern Temple (Krayon Recordings)

After tapes on Not Not Fun, Stunned and some self-released tapes/cdr's High Wolf return with this 28 minute tape on Krayon Recordings (the label's first tape). Again they provide sun bleached tropical drones : totally trance inducing.

8/10

Sean McCann - Frame of mind (Stunned Records)

Sean McCann is one of the more profilic artists in the current drone/noise scene sprawling releases of consistent high quality on labels such as Digitalis limited, Anathema Sound, Housecraft, Cloudvalley and his own Roll Over Rover. All the ingredients are here: drones, synths, (chamber) strings, oriental influences, disfigured Animal Collective psychedelica, ...

7/10

Beru- What Would I Do Without You (Thor's Rubber Hammer)

Pastoral folk mixed with noise/electronica. Grouper is the obvious comparison.

8/10

Robe- Remains Of A Burning World (Thor's Rubber Hammer)

Dark ambient bringing to mind desolated industrial landscapes.

6/10

Thoughts On Air / Peat Raamur - Split (Rotifer Cassettes)

Dronefolk vs murky ambient.

8/10

Jeffry Astin - Stray Dreams Zodiac (cs, Housecraft)

Meandering ambient drones. Stellar.

9/10

Deep Magic - Solar Meditations (Not Not Fun)

More deep magic meditations.

8/10

Gnod - Science & industry (Not Not Fun)

Slow burning, heavy, psychedelic rituals. Earth on acid. Hawkwind tuned down, distorted and on valium.

8.5/10

Brother Raven - ITCZ (cs, Gift Tapes)

Last year's tape Nellie on Digitalis limited was one of my favorites of the year. Now the Seattle-based synth duo formed in 2008 by Jamie Potter & Jason E Anderson delivers again with their new tape on Gift Tapes. 30 minutes of cosmic synth excursions.

8.5/10

Knit Prism - Perception (cs, Digitalis Limited)

"Some feedback laden synth cuts from the summer which feel rather cold and fitting for a winter release."

7.5/10

Niggas With Guitars - Continent Gods (cs, Digitalis Limited)

Absolutely stunning psychedelic synth melodies.

9/10

Air Rings Vol 1. - 4 way split (2 cs, Digitalis Limited)

4-way split of synth goodness featuring Spare Death Icon, Charlatan, Sovetskaya Gone and Million Mists. The Spare Death Icon side is especially beautiful.

8/10

Emuul - Egeiro (cs, Digitalis Limited)

Minimal, repititive washes of synth drones/feedback.

7/10

Black Eagle Child - Under Our Feet (cs, Gold Soundz)

Improvised and manipulated guitars combined with field recordings.

7/10

Ignatz - Some Of Them Are Funny Songs (cs, Bennifer editions)

Distorted and psychedelic folk/blues.

7/10

Tricorn and Queue - Ashes Wander (cs, Stunned)

Lo-fi haze.

8/10

Hammer of Hathor - False Teef (cs, Stunned)

Total freak out. Folk, noise, feedback, noise, ...

7/10

Connector - STEEL/RUST (cs, Stunned)

Experimental percussion.

6.5/10

Ossining/Afterlife - Split (cs, Stunned Records)

Ossining is Kevin Danchisko (Sovetskaya Gone) and Brad Rose (Digitalis/The North Sea). Afterlife is Ryan McGill (Bones of Seabirds / Cliffsides) and Franklin Teagle (Anathema Sound / Meditations). Spaced out analog synths.

7.5/10

M. Geddes Gengras/A.M. Shiner — The Blue Push/The Red Kush (cs, Stunned)

Stoned emissions from planet sativa.

7.5/10

Prehistoric blackout/ no fun acid / keith fullerton whitman / oneohtrix point never - Synth night (cs box, Protracted View)

Live recordings from an all synth night.

7.5/10

Stefan Kushima - Backyard Mirrors (cs, Gold Soundz)

20 minutes of psychedelic noise.

7/10

Ashley Paul - If only goodnight (cs, Wagtail)

Experimental compositions using banjo, bowed strings, guitars & percussion, voice ...

7/10

Zerfallt - To know the love of young witches (cs, Semata Productions)

Degrading synth noise, analog apocalypse ... get lost in the dark woods.

8.5/10

Easy Rider - The Golden Fairest I & II (cs, Rotifer Cassettes)

aka Stefan Kushima. "Airy two part pilgrimage through lulling soils."

7/10

Field Of Hats - Myriad Features (cs,,The Trilogy Tapes)

Droney guitar/synth excursions for fans of Emeralds et al.

9/10

Reuben Son - Glowing Departure (cs, Private Chronology)

Fingerpicking guitar combined with drone/sound manipulations.

9/10

Excavacations - s/t (cs, Stunned)

The offices of Moore & Moore label heads of have put out some impressive work on their label. Their own work under the Excavacations monniker is equally impressive. Using elements of dreamy pop/psychedelica/kraut/shoegaze and so much more they are able to create a truly unique atmosphere.

8.5/10

( ) - non serviam (cs, The offices of moore & moore)

Outsider folk jams with small bursts of hardcore/punk, freejazz, noise and ... a Leonard Cohen cover.

7.5/10

Tricorn & Queue - Perennial Language (cs, The offices of moore & moore)

Contact-microphoned ambient lulls.

7.5/10

Spare Death Icon - Highlander Seahorse (cs, The offices of moore & moore)

Sketchy trance inducing synth excursions. It doesn't get much better than this.

9/10

Nasa - High Cube (cs, Baked Tapes)

Damaged stonerblues, drone, psychedelica.

7/10

Driphouse - Romati & Gains (cs, Baked Tapes)

New new age electrosynth explorations.

8/10

Expo 70 - Woolgather Visions (cs, Gold Soundz)

Another psychedelic neokraut dronestar in the ever expanding Expo 70 universe.

8/10