audio-thumbnail
02 italian ambient part 2
0:00
/6510.936

In the mid 1990s, digital recording overtakes analog. The implications of nonlinear production are tectonic. Layering becomes a simple function of compute, facilitating a profusion of designer drones. This leads sometimes to cul de sacs of 'vastness,' but at their best the results are arresting.

Sampling, untethered from analog substrates, becomes a mature artform in the aughts. Those early to relinquish the skeuomorphs of tape and traditional studio processes become renegotiators of the possible. Among them are Tu M', Giuseppe Ielasi, and Gigi Masin, the latter of whom re-approaches music after decades of retreat working as a radio operator for the port of Venice.

All the while, the realtime candor of physical media and embodied soundmaking persist in e.g. the cave recordings of Mariolina Zitta and the analog hermiticism of My Cat Is An Alien. Such artists provide a countervailing narrative to the digital turn. Of course, the real treasure is often found where these ostensibly opposing threads interact.

โ€“ AF

(PS, add Listening Group to your podcast player with this RSS link, and join RB to be notified of future mixes)

Artist Song Album Year Label
Aquarello Aspect of Green To Cover The Dark 1993 Deep Wave
Mariolina Zitta & Patricia Meyer Il Giardino Delle Stelle Nel Ventre Della Terra 1995 Musicanima
Oophoi Wajad (The Sacred Ecstasy) The Spirals of Time 1998 Aurora
Alio Die Time In Absence Suspended Feathers 1996 Aqua
My Cat Is An Alien You Went Through The Ocean (part two) The Rest Is Silence 2003 Eclipse Records
Gigi Masin Valerie Loop Lontano 2001 Ants
Gigi Masin Lontano Lontano 2001 Ants
Tu M' 02 .02 (for Andrea Gabriele) 2001 N/A
Retina.it Plinius Observer Volcano Waves 1-8 2001 Hefty Records
Tu M' In The Car And The Magical Mystery Orchestra 2003 Aesova
Tu M' Bye (edit) And The Magical Mystery Orchestra 2003 Aesova
Gigi Masin & Giuseppe Caprioli Density Moltitudine in labirinto 2003 Ants
Gigi Masin & Giuseppe Caprioli Coral Moltitudine in labirinto 2003 Ants
Oophoi The Dreaming Lilith Mare Tranquilitatis 2004 Due Acque
ร˜kapi Trabocca e naso Where's the beef? 2005 Inflatabl Labl
Tu M' Something Sweet In The Coffee Pop Involved [Ver. 3.0] 2004 Fรคllt
My Cat Is An Alien There's A Flame ___ Sometimes Pt. 2 There's A Flame ___ Sometimes 2005 Rococo Records
Tu M' Wake Up, Wake Up Just One Night 2005 Dekorder
Tu M' Fragile Touch Of The Coincidence Fragile Touch Of The Coincidence 2006 ex-po
Tu M' Ear Guard Pink Shark 2004 Phthalo
Steno We Second-Hand Furniture 2007 Mr. Mutt
Steno Pass Second-Hand Furniture 2007 Mr. Mutt
Tu M' 04 Rain EP 2006 Mr. Mutt
My Cat Is An Alien Secret Of The Dancing Snow The Secret Of The Dancing Snow 2006 Ikuisuus
Fabio Orsi Part 2 Find Electronica 2007 A Silent Place
Mariolina Zitta Moth Concert For Bats, Voices And Natural Sounds 2007 Earth Ear
Mariolina Zitta Twilight Hunting Concert For Bats, Voices And Natural Sounds 2007 Earth Ear
Giuseppe Ielasi 03 August 2007 12k
My Cat Is An Alien Where Lines Go To Sleep Alienology: Selected Works 1998โ€‹-โ€‹2008 2007 Elliptical Noise
Tu M' 24 Monochromes Vol. 2 2008 LINE
Andrea Belfi & Machinefabriek Pulses & Places I Pulses & Places 2009 Korm Plastics
Claudio Rocchetti Mendelssohn The Carpenter 2010 Presto!?
ร˜kapi Noisy Beat Where's the beef? 2005 Inflatabl Labl
Giuseppe Ielasi 05 Aix 2009 12k
Donato Dozzy K2 K 2010 Further Records
Aqua Dorsa Daylight Fading Into Evening Silence Cloudlands 2009 Glacial Movements Records