Lp/ Release data: Michael Hoenig – Xcept One LP/CD, Cinema Records/Capitol Records, 1987 Anyone expecting something like his classic “Departure from the Northern Wasteland” will be disappointed as “Xcept One” presents an assortment of noisy, driving progressive electronics with digital drums/rhythmic percussion matched with melodic synth lines. In particular, the sound of Synclavier and Oberheim synthesizers is featured throughout. “Xcept…
Release data: Rogue Element – Premonition CD/Digital Download, Acoustic Wave Records, 2004 What I got here is the first release on Brendan Pollard’s own Acoustic Wave label, a recording he made with Jerome Ramsey using the Rogue Element moniker. Having released “Storm Passage” earlier on, this fine release is breathing the sound of vintage electronics through all its veins. Great…
Release data: Detlef Keller – 2025 Live CD/Digital Download, Manikin Records, 2026 This release sees the light of day some 10 years after “The Breakfast Event”, which I’m still enjoying quite a bit. “2025 Live” comprises a 53-minute set Detlef played at the EC festival in Lemgo, as well as a 20-minute recording made at a presentation in Münster. The…
Release data: Software – FragrancE CD/Digital Download, IC/DigIt, 1990 With this album (part of the exhibition “Digital Art”), the Software formulae moves straight into New Age music territory while integrating some further money-making tricks Mr. Weisser & co. were good at back in those days: dabbling with catchy concepts and so on. This one says it offers musical translations of…
Release data: Axess – The Power of Love CD/Digital Download, Private Release, 2026 The content of this album -which comes with a rather kitschy cover in my opinion- sees a continuation and slight extension of the emotive yet compelling and profound sound palette musician Axel Stupplich displayed on the subdued-sounding “Resurrection” and “Sea Shore”. Released on April 10, 2026, it…
Release data: Simon Lomax – Together, We Are Never Far From Home CD/Digital Download, Council of Nine, 2026 What I got here is Simon Lomax’s 15th album to date, which the artist refers to as another passage through time and emotion. To the outcome of the 48-minute “Together, We Are Never Far From Home”, Simon elaborates that it explores enduring…
Release data: Lisa Bella Donna – Odyssey CD/Digital Download, Private Release in collaboration with Omnia / Live Acts, 2020 Those who have seen this remarkable woman play live at E-Day 2026 have experienced a very talented, extraordinary and above all profoundly skilled musician who’s very much at home in the analogue gear domain. She has actually been composing and recording…
Release data: Erren – Fleissig – Schöttler – Steffen – Mosselbank Digital file, Private Release, 2016 The outcome of this album was created by Jörg Erren, Bert Fleißig, Jochen Schöttler, and Christian Steffen during jam sessions and lots of improvising while staying at a holiday lot in Ouddorp, Zeeland, in 2016. Same as “Tidal Shift”, the music (split into Part…
Release data: Ice Planet 9000 – How to bottle a Star CD/Digital Download, Private Release, 2026 Their fourth album, “How to Bottle a Star”, sees the duo Brent Zius and Karl Learmont take the next step in what they pinpoint as a retro‑futuristic, dark‑ambient voyage built around luminous melodies and vast, galactic chord progressions. Furthermore, Karl elaborates that he was…
Release data: Loneward – Paradox of Silken Stars Digital Download, Altus Music, 2026 A display of emotions has always been one of the pillars of Mike Carss’s music, a stronghold for aural journeys for the mind’s eye. March 2026 saw the release of the 55-minute, 7-track “Paradox of Silken Stars”, an album pairing varied emotive currents beautifully with broadening, deep,…
Release data: Boduf Songs – Selected Instrumental Works Mc/Digital Download, Bluesanct, 2026 Those looking for some quiet, reflective as well as intimate electronics in these restless, troubled times should check out this release comprising 14 instrumental tracks by Mathew Sweet, aka Boduf Songs. It’s solitary, sparse music without overt song structure, with intimacy always found at the core of the…
Release data: Hollan Holmes – The Sanctity of Rust CD/Digital Download, Spotted Peccary Music, 2026 As we humans grow older, a sense of patience and extended moments of reflection may surface more often from time to time. The captivating music making up the deeply personal “The Sanctity Of Rust” (featuring the greatest abundance of piano and Rhodes electric piano on…
Release data: Max Corbacho – The Gentle Continuum CD-r/Digital Download, Silentsun, 2026 After a (creative?) pause, Mr Corbacho returns to the ambient-electronic scene with the 73-minute “The Gentle Continuum”, another steady, but also familiar-sounding soundscape recording. B ack are the calm, highly atmospheric textural spaces without any rhythm, all spiralling smoothly but surely into infinite distances. As before, there’s a…
Release data: Various Artists – The Wending Works I MC, Private Release, 1989 At the end of the ‘80’s, the Belgian EM scene produced a new but short-lived magazine: De Wending. At that time, I was not able to become a member, but I kept an eye on it while I continued reading as well as contributing to the Dutch…
Release data: Redshift – Wild 2 CD/Digital Download, Distant Sun Production, 2006 As the Redshift site says, following the constant demand for extra print runs of the first “Wild” album, Redshift decided to create a full, commercial, and factory-pressed CD of the next set of previously unreleased tracks, all recorded at different times during the band’s existence. More specifically, the…
Release data: Redshift – Wild CD-r/Digital Download, Private Release, 2002 The nearly 35-minute “Wild” by Mark Shreeve’s Redshift was physically released in a limited run of 100 hand-numbered CD-Rs and sold as an exclusive to the attendees at the Hampshire Jam 2002 concert. The recording comprises the live tracks “Red 1” (from KLEM-dag 1995, The Netherlands) and “subEther” (from the…
Release data: Ash Ra Tempel – Friendship CD, Manikin Records, 2000 In the year 2000, Manikin label-owner Mario Schönwälder released this fine, fully instrumental album. Klaus Schulze and his Ashra Tempel bandmate Manuel Göttsching go back a long way, belonging to the league that started the so-called Kosmische, Kraut, and Prog-Rock wave in Germany. Three long, slowly evolving tracks are…
Release data: Suzanne Ciani – History of my Heart CD/Lp, Private Music, 1989 The gentle, melodic, and classical arrangements found on Ciani’s album “The Velocity of Love” continue on this album. Aside from stronger New Age flavors, this time the electronics are paired further with a piano approach and various classical instruments, delivering inspired pieces like “Anthem”, “Inverness”, “Eagle”, “Mozart”,…
Release data: Brian Eno – Neroli CD, All Saints Records, 1993/2014 The single 57-minute track (alternatively entitled Thinking Music Part IV) featured on this album sees Brian Eno execute another profound minimalist and most quiet work of ambient that exists “at the edge of music”. Named after the precious sensual oil derived from the flowers of the Seville orange, it…
Release data: Between Heaven and Sky – The Quiet Geometry of Light EP Digital Download, Private Release, 2026 The free-floating ambient music captured on this 5-track EP creates a beautiful place of harmony and calm where one could pause and relax for a while. It’s the first fruit from the collaboration between Indian composer Rishi Bhatia (aka Spacecraft) and UK…
Release data: Forrest Fang – The Oort Cloud MeditationsCD/Digital Download, Projekt Records, 2023 Contrary to Mr. Fang’s previous releases, this ambient-space album is a pure electronic affair without any acoustic instrumentation whatsoever. Instead, the 69-minute “The Oort Cloud Meditations” features expansive, brighter-lit drone soundscapes and open-ended textures all moving, evolving, and shapeshifting at an almost glacial pace. Mr. Fang…
Release data: Erik Wøllo – Snow Tides CD/Digital Download, Projekt Records, 2026 Capturing cold weather conditions and the beauty of frozen landscapes and transforming them into captivating sonic scenery has always been one of the strongholds of Erik Wøllo’s work. On the 10-track/55-minute “Snow Tides”, the sounds of synthesizers and guitar shake hands in a beautiful and complementary manner, painting…
Release data: Steve Roach – One Day of Forever CD/Digital Download, Projekt Records, 2024 One can’t have missed the big as well as too frequent amount of releases this musician has put out in the last 2 decades, which had a significant negative impact on their quality and impact of many of them in my opinion. Fortunately, the etheric textural…
Release data: Owann – Saga CD-r/Digital Download, Private Release, 2021 The calm yet tender unfolding music making up Owann’s “Saga” seems kind of observations to my ears, they make the listener’s mind drift into imaginary, distant lands. Composer Johan De Paepe refers to the outcome as stories where music meets environmental sounds. The spacious ambient created here is an attentively…
Release data: TiRa – Space Symphony USB Stick / Digital Download, Groove Unlimited, 2026 Ralf Gülpen’s 127-minute “Space Symphony” is an ambient project through space and time. His friend Wilfried Schüller narrated the prologue in English, and the texts for the prologue and the planets were written by him. The planets and moons were then narrated by an AI. Here,…
Release data: Three-Six (36) – Night LanguageLp/Mc/Digital Download, Pure Life Records, 2026 I was a bit disappointed by Mr. Huddleston’s previous release, “A Warm Static Sphere”, due to a veil of dissonance. The 6-track “Night Language” -inspired by Berlin School era electronic music, by artists such as Tangerine Dream and Klaus Schulze- is a different story of contemporary ambient, delivering…
Release data: Phobos – Cydonia Plain Digital Download, Private Release, 2005 This release contains two 30-minute tracks, live and improvised studio recordings to be exact, which synthesist David Thompson really enjoys doing nowadays, along with two shorter, composed pieces. On the opening title piece, slow enveloping dark textures are scattered all over the place, with a low sequence surfacing in…
Release data: Harold Budd & Brian Eno – The Pearl LP/CD, EG Records, 1984 The lovely ambient poetry featured on Budd & Eno’s classic album “The Pearl” (of which a good portion was recorded at Daniel Lanois’ studio in Ontario) is one of the works I keep returning to when I’m in need of something to ease the mind. It’s…
Release data: Pete Bardens – Seen One Earth CD/Lp, Capitol Records, 1987 Known as a founding member and keyboard player of symphonic/prog-rock band Camel, Pete Bardens released a few solo releases after he left. The 33-minute “Seen One Earth” is an accessible, moody, and overall mellow-sounding album with a clean electronic sound. I guess some might characterize the atmospheric as…
Release data: Ashra – Sauce Hollandaise CD, Manikin Records, 1997 Ok, please journey back with me to October 1997 when Ashra played at “KLEMdag 1997” in Nijmegen, a still memorable event. “Sauce Hollandaise” contains 3 lengthy tracks live on stage by the quartet Manuel Göttsching, Lutz Ulbrich, Harald Grosskopf, and Steve Baltes on that occasion. What’s featured here is a…
Release data: Altus – Symphony for the Sullen Digital Download, Altus Music, 2025 With this release, Altus’s music swerves away from his usual “ambient” self: the 48-minute “Symphony for the Sullen” is a completely orchestral work inspired by 20th-century composers. Mike Carss actually composed it in the wake of Donald Trump’s inauguration. As Mike further comments, across nine pieces, its…
Release data: Sam KDC – Cycles of Perspective CD-r/Digital Download, Auxiliary, 2016 A rather sombre, dystopia-esque cover graces Samuel Woods’ second ambient release, “Cycles of Perspective”. Here, the listener awaits an 8-track/47-minute sonic canvas of different emotions all frozen in time. The opening track “Inflow Cycle” isn’t easy due to its grainy, clouded sound design, but this changes after the…
Release data: Optical Image – Back to Basics CD, SoundArt Productions, 1996 For “Back to Basics”, Dutch synthesist Tom Habes decided on a long piece of music lasting 55 minutes, in which he audibly looks back to his early style but also blends it with the spirit of his current musical style. The whole is divided into eight separate parts…
Release data: Psychetropic – 23 CD-r/Digital Download, Microrelease, 2025 Psychetropic is one of the projects of Arizona-based musician Todd Fletcher, in which he focuses on more ambient techno-style music. The main thing Mr Fletcher remembers about making that album was his 3 kids (all under 10 at the time) went nuts when he played the track “The Space Age”: they’d…
Release data: Symbian meets Venja – Floating Silence CD/Digital Download, IC/DigIt Music, 1996 Back in the day, Michael Weisser was a master at coming up with new concepts when he was working at the Innovative Communications label, and this release sure is one of them. For this 78-minute release, various appropriate tracks from the Symbian catalogue were selected, along with…
Release data: Numina & Stephen Philips – From within the Abyss CD-r/Digital Download, Dark Duck Records, 2002 This is the first collaborative project between label owner Philips and Jesse Sola (aka Numina). The duo presents a typical example of fluid ambient space music, in which the nine tracks (totalling around 73 minutes) remarkably do not flow into each other, as…
Release data: Syn – Sonus CD-r, SynGate Records, 2004 This album by self-taught, studio-based musician David T. Dewdney, aka Syn, consists (again) of older tracks all created through improvisation, applying mostly analogue equipment. Assorted vintage Berlin School electronics, sequences, and mellotron textures make up all six parts on the album, seeing the artist’s cosmic sound move between classic TD and…
Release data: Stefan Erbe – The Enemey Inside CD/Digital Download, Erbe Music, 2026 The aural, rather imaginary stories Stefan Erbe presents on the 10-track “The Enemy Inside” deal with and are inspired by the constant turmoil, multiple issues, and pressure points found in today’s world. The mostly rhythmic and beat-driven music, still carrying Mr Erbe’s signature style and some soft…
Release data: Deep Sky Divers – Incandescent CD/Digital Download, Any Robin Hood, 2004 This is the final CD of the duo Jon Short and David Jones from Northern England (of which Jon has written & performed most of the tracks), who still impresses me with their album “Highlands and Skylands”. The album kicks off with the beautiful, typical DSD-sounding “Skylander”,…
Release data: Ryuichi Sugimoto – The Arctic CD, Polydor Japan, 1989 Here’s another trip down memory lane. I personally recall that Wim van Putten played parts of it on his legendary “LP and CD show” on Dutch radio when the album hit the streets. “The Arctic” contains 37 minutes of elegant music composed by Japanese soundtrack composer and producer Ryuichi…
Release data: Three-Six (36) & Duenn – Distance as Power Lp/Digital Download, Past Inside The Present, 2021 On lots of 36’s albums, a profound, melancholic, and highly emotive vibe is present to grace the listener’s ears. “Distance as Power”, created between April and May 2020 when our globe was under lockdown, sees Mr Huddleston team up with Japanese sound artist…
Release data: Bruno Sanfilippo – Colours Bloom Digital Download EP, ad21 Music, 2026 In a world full of turmoil, it’s nice to sit back, find ease, and contemplate a bit. T Bruno Sanfilippo’s neo-classical works from the last decade tick a lot of boxes for that, which also applies to the piano-based “Colours Bloom”. There’s a relaxed, positive vibe embedded…
Release data: Amin Bhatia – The Interstellar SuiteLP/MC/CD, Cinema-Capitol/Private Release, 1987/2003/2021 What I have here is a classic Em-release by Toronto-based composer Amin Bhatia, mixing classical styles with space and orchestral film music with obvious spacy effects on top. Its orchestral sound was created without the use of sound libraries or any sampled sounds, this as a gesture to…
Release data: Nautic Depths – Siberian Winter CD-r/Digital Download, Musical Philosophy, 2010 When it comes to deeper soundscape ambient, the duo Thomas Weiss and Mathias Grassow has something special to offer. “Siberian Winter” -deep winter emotions on land, a tribute to the ultimate force of nature- is a six-track sonic travelogue drawing us into the haunting environment of desolate, ghostly…
Release data: Däcker & Skoulaman – Saudade CD/Digital Download, Deserted Island Music, 2025 The last few years, Hans van Kroonenburg has been involved in various successful collaborations. “Saudade” -a selection of the best parts created during three days of recording sessions with the idea to make some music around the classic Yamaha CS-60- sees him join his fine talents with Peter…
Release data: Spacecraft – JVPD Night Skies Digital Download, Private Release, 2025 Due to time constraints, I had to skip quite a few previous releases by India-based composer Rishi Bhatia, aka Spacecraft. The 45-minute “JVPD Night Skies” is a(nother) release expressing his love for ambient-space music. It offers ten 4-minute soundscape tracks depicting the enchanting, gracious nature when looking up…
Release data: Distant Waves – Stones from the River CD-r, Private Release, 2003 “Stones from the River” is the second release by father Roger and his son Justin Foote. Essentially, it was created using MIDI, E4XT, Matrix 1000, Nord Lead, Nord Modular, FS1R, and other equipment, including a Mac G4 Graphite running Digital Performer 3.6 and Bias Peak. From the…
Release data: Davol – Open Book CD, Gira Sound & Audio, 2025 While strolling through the collection, I stumbled upon “Open Book”, the fourth release by Denver, Colorado-based musician Davol Tedder, whose intriguing album “Mystic Waters” I came across in the late ‘80s. This debut album was followed by “Paradox”(1991) and “Nature of the Beast” (1992) on the same Silver…
Release data: Audioasis – Audioasis CD, Private Release, 1995 Here’s another obscure CD I rediscovered in my collection recently. I remember I ran into it on James Johnson’s Zero Music website, which took care of distribution for it back in the day. Audioasis turns out to be the Australian duo Peter Beeby (synths and sax) and Shaun Pilkinton (guitar and…
Release data: David Michael Matuch – Masquerade CD, Infinite Monkey Productions, 1995 Debut album by this Illinois-based American with a beautiful art cover. David’s ambient music on this disc is largely interspersed with ethnic and xylophone-like sounds that are very reminiscent of Indonesia. A notable exception to this style is the 14-minute title track, which also serves as the album’s…
Release data: Tony Gerber – Blue Western Sky CD/Digital Download, Lektronik Soundscapes, 1994 Tony Gerber is an American who has been making music for years prior to this debut release. Among other things, he played keyboards on Giles Reaves’ great album, “Sea of Glass”, who in turn contributed to this album, along with a number of other electronic composers unknown…
Release data: Rüdiger Gleisberg – Elysium CD, Prudence, 1999 With “Elysium”, the likeable German ex-Solitaire musician Rüdiger Gleisberg has arrived at his fourth solo album, in which his typical classical background is once again audible. The hour-long album contains 13 pieces, in which the symphonic character is more prominent than before. In addition to the characteristic light minimalist structures from…
Release data: The Amnis Initiative – Other WorldsCD/Digital Download, Private Release, 2025 I missed out quite a bit on the music of Dutchman Dennis Lodewijks in the last few years. With “Other Worlds”, he shows he made a big step forward, still staying close to Vangelis’ sound and his way of composing. Over two hours of music make up…
Release data: Redshift – Toll CD/Digital Download, Distant Sun, 2006 I have no clue why Mark Shreeve waited almost two years to release this album, which contains the almost complete set they played live on stage at E-Live 2004 (an event) that, together with E-Day, proves electronic music is still alive and kicking to this very day. Redshift doesn’t need…
Release data: Rüdiger Gleisberg – Damiana CD, Prudence, 1997 It has been about four years since Rüdiger’s previous retrospective CD “Chronicle”, was released. With the concept album “Damiana” (Plant of Love), however, Rüdiger proves once again that he is in a class of his own within contemporary electronic music. The first string-like tracks have a slightly minimalist feel to them…
Release data: Dystopia – The Second Dawn CD/Digital Download, Origo Sound, 1998 Electronic music that addresses worldly/philosophical issues along with the status of science and technology in modern society, is usually something special. “Second Dawn” by Finnish duo Pertti Gronhölm and Ismo Virta, alias Dystopia. This politically charged concept album focuses on a sombre but no less interesting form of…
Release data: dreamSTATE – Between Realities CD, E-Space Recordings, 1998 What I got here is a long soundscape recording of smooth, ethereal electronic washes that’s part of my collection since it came out. “Between Realities” is a live-recorded deep ambient album by Canadian duo Scott McGregor Moore and Jamie Todd, alias dreamSTATE. It contains a 60-minute woven ambient soundscape (without…
Release data: Colin Rayment – Optical Perceptions CD/Digital Download, Groove Unlimited, 2025 When it comes to contemporary electronic music, the works of Colin Rayment fit in there for sure. The outcome found on “Optical Perceptions” is a thoughtfully made set of music with an occasional edge of modern Tangerine Dream, featuring some various nice pairs of interlocking, quite complex sequences…
Release data: Peter Mergener – Chip Meditation 2025 CD/Digital Download, Spheric Music, 2025 One might as well ask what the purpose of all those anniversary and special editions coming out of classic albums is, which also applies to our niche EM-genre. Does it contribute anything substantial? In this case, the answer to that is yes, as accomplished classic EM composer…
Release data: Redshift – Oblivion CD/Digital Download, Distant Sun, 2004 By the time Mark Shreeve started making up his mind for and shaping the outcome of the studio release “Oblivion”, the overall sound of the vintage Berlin School project had grown occasionally darker and more ominous. A pleasant organic flow can be discerned throughout the full album, which presents all…