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Mindblowing sounds at a level we've never heard before – a really unique combination of electronics and Persian music, done in a way that's quite different from any other recording of its nature! The electronics are used in a way that's relatively spare, but which definitely sets a sonic texture next to the acoustic sounds from sehtar and tar – not this moogy way of interfering with them, but more in terms of waves of sound that augment their qualities and deepen the overall feel of the music in really special ways. This is hardly any sort of gimmicky "world meets moog" record – and instead has an ethereal feel that's all its own – and this pulse that comes from the really modal use of all elements! Titles include "Zahab", "Razm", "Shabistan", and "Sama". CD

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A modern minimalist watershed – and maybe one of the first indications that Brian Eno was moving onto higher ideas in his music! The album's an important release on the Obscure series from Island Records – a special imprint that was curated by Eno, as a way of giving showcase to new ideas in British music that were neither free jazz, punk, prog, or any of the styles that were getting more play on the bigger labels! Instead, Eno and Obscure was to the British avant composition world what Lovely or CRI were to the US – although maybe had the bigger role of some of the Columbia Records releases by Philip Glass, Steve Reich, and Terry Riley. The album features the beautiful title piece – "Discreet Music", a long work that relies on a simple system of delay and recall, with slight variations occurring over the space of time, due to slight occasional interference from the composer. Side two features "Three Variations On The Cannon In D Major By Johann Pachelbel" – a great reworking of the baroque music classic – which works along similar lines, taking this very familiar classical theme, and breaking it down into simple components, which are then interwoven and played in repetition, creating a strange little bit of romantic minimalism. That second piece is performed by the Cockpit Ensemble, conducted by Gavin Bryars – who also got some great early releases on the Obscure label too! (Rock, Out Sound) LP, Vinyl record album

Beautiful sounds from the Entourage ensemble – a record that's got a really meditative blend of acoustic elements with a few electric touches – used in ways that start in jazz, then move way beyond! Instrumentation includes guitar, flute, keyboards, violin, and mbira – coming together with really unusual inflections that are partly borrowed from Eastern sources – like Noh theater, or Balinese music – but which unfurl with a more freewheeling, American underground vibe as well! No sounds are ever too sharp, and there's almost a hint of the instrumental experiments in the 80s underground – such as work by Penguin Cafe Orchestra or Soft Verdict – but with an earthier feel overall. Titles include "Jattle Boxes", "Giraffes", "Solo For Electric Viola", "Michael's Song", "Silver Drum", and "Percussion Dance". CD

Warmly experimental music from the 70s Folkways scene – music that's a mixture of jazz, folk, electronics, and improvised styles – played with an open, honest sort of feel! The Entourage Music & Theater Ensemble features four composer/musicians – Joe Clark, Wall Matthews, Rusti Clark, and Michael Smith – all individuals with a nicely subdued sensibility, despite the "theater" in the group's name. The work here is hardly performative – at least not in an aggressive sense – and instead is a beautiful matrix of sounds from instruments that include keyboards, acoustic guitar, soprano sax, viola, gong, and percussion – all used lightly, with an approach that's almost a folksier take on early 70s spiritual jazz – especially given the way the acoustic guitar is used. Titles include "Nature Spirits", "Incantation For The Death Of Self", "Space Needle Suicide", "Tar Box Poltergeist", and "Druid Dance". CD

(Classical, Out Sound) LP, Vinyl record album

Remi Gassman and Oskar Sala each present pieces of modern electronic music in this hard to find LP for Westminster, very much in the style that was in vogue in New York in the 50s and early 60s. Gassman performs his "Electronic Music For the Ballet Electronics", which has a spare spooky sound, and Sala gives us "Five Improvisations On Magnetic Tape" – which are a bunch of short electronic tracks with a fragile, yet noisy feel to them. As the back of the record says "If anyone cares, this record has a dynamic range of 51 dB. Its lowest frequency is 15.4 cycles per second, its highest fundamental 3951 cps, the highest harmonis or overtone 15806 cps. It can blow out speakers, traumatize cats and arouse the landlord." LP, Vinyl record album

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A really cool little package – one that brings space age sounds from both the world of mainstream pop, and the farther reaches of electronic music composition in the postwar years! The core of CD1 is the groundbreaking album I Hear A New World by Joe Meek – presented here both in the "restored" version that was first issued by RPM in 1991, and the original unreleased tapes from 1960. The whole record is like The Ventures meeting space aliens – and Joe Meek composed and conceived the incredible 60s session of strange space-age instrumentals – one that mixes instrumental surf-flavored guitars with crazy sound effects and production techniques, for an out-of-this-world batch of tracks that's like nothing else we can think of! Tracks include "Glob Waterfall", "I Hear A New World", "Orbit Around The Moon", "March Of The Dribcots", and "Valley Of The Saroos". CD1 also features 11 more weird electronic tracks from the BBC Radiophonic Workshop – and from Ray Cathode. Then CD2 and CD3 move into the darker corners of experimental electronics and musique concrete – with works that include "Dripsody" by Hugh Le Caine, "Syncopation" by Tom Dissevelt, "Timbres Durees" by Olivier Messiaen, "Poeme Electronique" by Edgard Varese, "The Innocents" by Daphne Oram, "Fontana Mix" by John Cage, "Visage V (parts 1, 2, & 3)" by Luc Ferrari, "Musica Su Due Dimensioni" by Bruno Maderna, "Deux Etudes De Musique Concrete For Magnetic Tape" by Pierre Boulez, "Fantasy In Space" by Otto Luening, and "Piece For Tape Recorder" by Vladimir Ussachevsky. (Rock, Out Sound) CD

A fantastic little record, and one that definitely lives up to its promise – as Vaclav Nelhybel uses piano and electronics with a lot of echo and effects – all to create the sort of music you'd imagine if you were careening through space at the end of the 50s! The songs are relatively spare, but in a great way – a style that lets you focus on key elements in the music, as Nelhybel spins out short songs that often have a core cosmic melody, but with a very offbeat vibe – almost as if Vaclav is trying to claim a role here as the Moondog of outer space! Titles include "Space Meteors", "Sun Lava", "Dark Cosmic Clouds", "Cosmic Dawn", "Space Spirals", "Vibrations From Outer Space", "Cosmic Cycle", "Nebulae", and "Mars Craters". CD

(Classical, Out Sound) LP, Vinyl record album

... LP, Vinyl record album

(Classical, Out Sound) LP, Vinyl record album

Landmark music from Steve Reich – a set that takes his previous experiments in minimalism and phase shifting, and moves them into a highly percussive mode! The rhythms here become melodies – the sorts that you'd hear on other Reich keyboard albums, but played live with incredible dexterity – as each player puts together their passage in ways that interlocks with the other – than slowly moves in space over time – and letting in marimba, voice, piccolo, and glockenspiel to the mix as well. The shift over time is amazing – something that so many others have copied over the years, but never done this well again – and the set not only features the extended "Drumming", in four parts – but also includes "Six Pianos", for six acoustic keyboards – plus "Music For Mallet Instruments, Voices, & Organ" – which is every bit as haunting as you'd guess! CD

A groundbreaking set of modal minimal tracks that stands as one of Reich's most popular and accessable works. The music is extremely subtle, and features 18 musicians playing a variety of violins, cellos, clarinets, pianos, marimbas, and vibes – all in short cyclic passages that move in and out in ways that perfectly illustrate Reich's fascination with phase progressions in modern music. CD

Classic mid-period Reich – with an approach that's a lot more sophisticated than the earlier works, but a sound that's still filled with whimsey and surprise! The winner here is Music For A Large Ensemble, which features some excellent interplay between marimbas, vibes, and xylophone – all backed by some additional strings. CD

A great entry in the "intro to electronic music" style that was popular at the end of the 60s – and like others in the genre, a set that seems to use each new track to demonstrate certain aspects of electronic music! Techniques include tape echoes, moogy passages, and even stereo separation effects – and lots of wonderful analogue electronics from JD Robb! The date of the work is 1970, but the approach is a bit older – almost abstract, and very concerned with sonic textures and space – but also playfully assembled, at a level that's fairly tuneful for most of the set – even though there's not really that many "songs" to speak of. Titles include "Collage No 2", "Spatial Serenade (excerpt)", "Green Mansions", "Analogies", "Les Ondes Martenot", and "Transmutations For Orchestra". CD

(Classical, Out Sound) CD

Nice extended suite of early electronic music, written and performed by Andrew Rudin of the Electronic Music Center of the Philadelphia Music Academy. The sound is similar to some of the other Nonesuch electronic albums from the time, like works by Morton Subotnick and Kenneth Gaburo. The piece is divided into 4 movements, with varying moods, and the electronics are cool and spare in the best parts. LP, Vinyl record album

A very unique project from musician/filmmaker/theorist Michael Snow – not sounds of his own creation, but more of a collage of unusual music from around the globe – presented in a spirit that definitely fits the title! Oddly, when the record was created in the 80s, it was also seen as a swan song to the vinyl LP too – something that never came to pass – and, as well, efforts like this have only continued more strongly in recent years – maybe making Snow's efforts here more of a "beginning", than any sort of document of the end! Still, the whole thing's a fascinating audio document – of the sort that's very different than familiar ethnographic or world music albums – with an array of sounds from Brazil, South Korea, India, Angola, Siberia, Bhutan, and other points global. CD

A very unique project from musician/filmmaker/theorist Michael Snow – not sounds of his own creation, but more of a collage of unusual music from around the globe – presented in a spirit that definitely fits the title! Oddly, when the record was created in the 80s, it was also seen as a swan song to the vinyl LP too – something that never came to pass – and, as well, efforts like this have only continued more strongly in recent years – maybe making Snow's efforts here more of a "beginning", than any sort of document of the end! Still, the whole thing's a fascinating audio document – of the sort that's very different than familiar ethnographic or world music albums – with an array of sounds from Brazil, South Korea, India, Angola, Siberia, Bhutan, and other points global. LP, Vinyl record album

(Classical, Out Sound) CD

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(Classical, Out Sound) CD

(Classical, Out Sound) CD

Three very different slices of the genius of Edgar Varese – presented here on a set of classic Columbia recordings from the early 60s! "Arcana" is perhaps the most ambitious work here – structured for an orchestra of 120 musicians, 70 of whom are string players – although the core energy of the piece seems to come from the 8 percussionists who handle a wide variety of instruments – creating those stark sounds that mark some of Varese's most important compositions – which the strings, brass, and woodwinds cluster around in equally powerful ways! "Deserts" is a piece that's more subtle, and much longer – mixing a variety of electronic sounds and instrumental moments, with shifting sonic spaces and volumes throughout – all to make up a side-long recording filled with moody moments and more powerful electronic bursts. "Offrandes" is a selection of two songs – in a haunting blend of woodwind instruments, percussion, and trumpet – plus vocals from soprano Dona Precht. LP, Vinyl record album

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(Classical, Out Sound) CD

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Great collection of early electronic music compositions – which are (in our humble opinion) still some of the best. Dark moody soundscapes by some of the early masters of the technology: Buloent Arel "Stereo Electronic Music No 2", Milton Babbitt "Ensembles For Synthesizer", Mario Davidovsky "Electronic Study No 3", Alice Shields "Farewell To A Hill", and Vladimir Ussachevsky "A Piece For Tape Recorder". LP, Vinyl record album

A wonderful collection of early electronic music – issued by the less-high tech Folkways label, but every bit as compelling as similar collections from bigger labels at the time! Most of the work was composed in the 50s and early 60s, and is from the Electronic Music Studio at the University of Toronto – one of the key academic outposts for the style in its pre-commercial years. Composers include Myron Schaffer, Arnold Walter, Harvey Olnick, and Hugh Le Caine – all working in weird tones and sounds that remind us a lot of the best early work of Pierre Henry. There's some great tracks, including "The Orgasmic Opus", "Dripsody", "Inferno", "Noesis", "Summer Idyll", "Collage", and "Pinball" – which features only sounds from pinball machines! CD

A double-length set of experimental electronics from Folkways – music recorded a bit later than some of the early analogue sides on the label, but done with a similarly spare and spooky feel! There's a nice maturation going on here – a move away from some of the more academic electronics of the immediat postwar years, into that more art-oriented space the music hit at the end of the 70s – a somewhat freer, more open, and almost more playful mode at times – although not in the manner of late 60s crossover pop electronic records. Most tracks are pretty long, and often introduced by the composers – and titles include "Heavy Music For Four Crowbars" and "The Sorcerer Revisited" by Barton McLean, "Nova" by Reed Holmes, "Through To The End Of The Tunnel" by Kevin Hanlon, and "Invisible Chariots" by Priscilla McLean. CD

Noise galore from the British scene of the punk and post-punk years – a fantastic exploration of the deeper sonic riches of the world of records at the time – and one that effortlessly moves between art, academic, and more popular-based recordings! You'll recognize some of these artists from later, straighter work – or from earlier, more progressive sides – and together with the rest, the package presents a beautifully bleak British musical landscape – sounds that maybe provide the breeding ground for the later industrial scene, but without any of its cliches – or which maybe help the earlier art rock generation to find a bit more edge and relevance in the punk generation! As always with Cherry Red, the notes and package are as great as the music – and the set features dozens of tracks by artists who include Robert Wyatt, Test Dept, Robert Rental, Alterations, Art Bears, A Tent, Gavin Bryars, Hula, Nocturnal Emissions, Robert Fripp, Faction, Zos Kia, Eyeless In Gaza, David Cunningham, Clock DVA, Will Sergeant, Swell Maps, Soft Machine, Pop Group, This Heat, Blancmange, Throbbing Gristle, and many more! (Rock, Out Sound) CD

A very cool set of music – originally recorded as part of a mixed sound/image experiment shown at the San Francisco Planetarium in the late 50s! There's definitely a lot of early analogue electronics going on here – but the presentation is also sometimes a bit more playful, and almost earthy, too – a great change from some of the more avant or academic records of this nature – and an illustration that even early on, there were poetically creative folks who found a lot of ways to work with a personal approach to the new medium! Titles include "Notes On The History Of A World Part 3" by Gordon Longfellow, "Rhythm Study No 8" by Henry Jacobs, "Trilogy" by David Talcott, "Electronic Kabuki Mambo" by Henry Jacobs, "For The Big Horn" by William Loughborough, and "Loop No 3" by David Talcott. CD