Released in 2012, the first ASC & Sam KDC collaborative LP - Decayed Society was part of the beginning of a stretching of each artists musical output. ASC had just released his debut Ambient LP for Canadian label Silent Season to a warm reception, and Sam KDC had commenced his ambient music journey on Auxiliary in 2011 with Marine Light and Symbol 3 so the stage was set.
To say it went well would be an understatement. 8 years later, after a large amount of CD’s sold and a recent vinyl press that quickly sold out the pair have reconvened and created a follow up.
Somewhat warmer than Decayed Society in subject matter and feel, A Restless Mind explores the depths of melancholy, providing a soundtrack to the minds transient drift. With their differing styles complimenting each other aptly, there is a sense of temperance from both that enables the hovering clouds of ambience and defining elements each has created to melt into each other and build a mesmerising motif that binds the entirety of the LP.
A Restless Mind is a soundtrack for contemplation and introspection, something we could all do with in 2020.
First release of 2020 for Auxiliary comes in the form of a six-track EP of slower grooves by ASC. The emphasis is purely on analog synth sequences and drum machines. Cryogenic opens proceedings, with a heavy kick drum, backed with a weighty bass for maximum effect. Monomachine arpeggios are the order of the day here and are used to devastating effect. Following on is the laid back synth swells of Erosion Of Time, which leads into the more pronounced hits of Anthe, which tops off side A with a heavier crescendo. Meridian starts off the flip side in melancholic fashion, with it's half-time beats and pads that pluck at the heart strings. The final two excursions up the sci-fi notch a little, while ASC demonstrates his prowess with film score-like textures and sound design.
Realm Of The Void is the second instalment in ASC's recently launched 'Realm' series, and once again the format remains the same; 8 tracks spread over two pieces of vinyl. From the opening densely spaced-out Dyad, to the bubbling synth tones of Uracil, the vibe is a little darker and abstract when compared to Realm Of The Infinite. There's a lot to digest in terms of sound design, with something new seemingly appearing around every corner. The Grey Area template has been expanded upon, showing what is possible with the tempo and time signatures contained in the album, and paving the way for future ASC experiments.
I recently discovered a bunch of atmospheric drum & bass I had written around 2006-2008 on an old backup drive that I thought was long gone. Upon discovering the contents, I found a group of tracks that I had totally forgot about, so it almost felt like hearing them for the first time. Clear Skies was due to be released on vinyl around 2007 (I think?), but for reasons I cannot recall, it never happened. Instantly, the thought of putting this out on vinyl came to me and here we are. I felt that out of this specific batch of tracks, Nimbus was the one that complimented Clear Skies the most, which is also a nice dichotomy between having a clear sky and having one full of nimbus clouds. This marks the fourth white label release for the series, and something that might open the way for more releases in a similar vein. - ASC
Auxiliary debut release for UK artist, Sciama. Featuring 9 tracks of tense atmospheric ambience and subtle slow percussion, Broken Circle ticks all the boxes for deep experimental music. Submerge yourself.
ASC & Sam KDC’s seminal ambient masterpiece from 2012 finally gets the wax treatment. There has been high demand for a vinyl reissue of Decayed Society, so without further delay, the time is now.
This is the first ambient release from ASC on Auxiliary, since 2011's collaborative album with Sam KDC - Decayed Society. As with the majority of ASC's recent work, this release continues the theme of his fascination with space. The term 'Trans-Neptunian Objects' refers to dwarf planets and asteroids that lay beyond Neptune, and are usually found in the Kuiper Belt. With that being said, you can fathom a guess that this album is seriously deep space ambient, and you wouldn't be wrong. A total of eight tracks spanning 73, which take you to the deepest regions of our solar system.
Trans-Neptunian Objects 2 sees ASC pick up the baton from the end of the first album and continue proceedings in a similar fashion. Featuring another 7 astral excursions into deep space and beyond and spanning just short of 70 minutes, Trans-Neptunian Objects 2 is the final journey in the series.
The Outer Limits sees ASC returning to further exploration, featuring four in-depth aural excursions to the deepest recesses of space and beyond. All four tracks feature the hallmarks of ASC productions, encompassing rich atmospherics, emotional key changes, multi-tempo percussive elements, and an overall grandiose feel to proceedings. If you’ve been waiting for more tracks that are cut from the same cloth that The Farthest Reaches were, then wait no more.
Artefacts of Rotation is ASC at his experimental best. Once again, the theme is one of deep space exploration, showing a natural progression from Return of the Emissary, and sitting somewhere between that and the recent album, Astral Projection. Hypnotic drum programming, spiralling atmospheric elements, layers of sublime pads, plus the usual healthy dose of bass - it's all here in abundance, ready for the listener to don their space suit and dive in head first.
Synthek is quite simply a master of deep hypnotic abstract techno. The Berlin based Italian has made plenty of waves since his first vinyl releases back in 2010 and has gone on to secure residencies at Tresor. The Hidden Dimension sees Luca retrace his account of entering hidden dimensions in musical form. Breathe and Surrender starts off proceedings in ambient bliss, setting the tone perfectly for Process Recall to introduce percussion and bass into the flow, before Duality takes centre stage and shows off Synthek's impeccable production skills in creating a serious deep slice of hypnotism. Harmony then takes things back down to earth and wraps up the story with a calming presence.
Listening to Unknown Path's Pathfinder for the first time is a claustrophobic experience. It's as if the tracks had been recorded to tape and left to decompose for 10 or so years, then dug up and re-recorded. A thick layer of grunge and an overall murky feel sets the tone for Path 0.1 and continues throughout the EP. Paths 0.2 and 0.3 add a more upbeat feel to proceedings, as the beats get scattered around like they were in a pinball machine. Path 0.4 finishes off the experience by bringing the tempo back down, while all the time keeping the uneasy atmospherics that make this EP a unique and rewarding listen.
Saturne is the new project from ASC & Sam KDC. It came to life a few years back, as a non-specific genre approach to writing music. The first outing from the pair under this guise focuses on Grey Area compatible deep hypnotic techno cuts. 'Trace Elements' shows the pairs intent to deliver intricate, atmospheric, genre-fusing tracks of a standard that has come to be expected for their output over the years.
Sam KDC's latest offering for Auxiliary takes the listener on a deep and spiritual journey. "Of Myth & Mercury" consists of four intricate pieces that tell a ritualistic tale drenched in a mystical atmosphere. All four tracks flow are Grey Area in design, and set about proving what can be done with the template. Atmospheric pressure from one of electronic musics unsung heroes.
For anyone with their pulse on cutting edge music, Neel is synonymous with quality. He's one half of the critically acclaimed duo, Voices From The Lake (with Donato Dozzy), and here he teams up with his studio partner, Filippo Scorcucchi. The pair present a project called LF58 (named after Neel's mastering/recording studio in Rome) for our latest instalment in the Late Night Innominate series. Three untitled ambient tracks all created with modular synthesizers, full of emotion and technical brilliance. Also worth noting, side A is over 16 minutes of pure bliss!
Auxiliary celebrates it's tenth CD album release with an LP of epic proportions from Sam KDC. 'Cycles Of Perspective' is Sam's second solo ambient LP to date, following on from the success of 'Late Night Innominate, Volume One'. Eight tracks in total that span the gamut of emotion. From the dark, brooding, lonely, sombre of Lowest Elevation, to the uplifting, ethereal cascades of Cycle Of Loss. An album that demands your attention from start to finish, and something you will want to submerge yourself into time and time again.
A1 – Atonement: Sam KDC has a great talent for creating deep and intriguing works that have a magical quality to them. This is obvious yet again in another outing on Auxiliary with his Law of the Trapezoid EP. The first track has a very mechanical and engineered feel to it. Think whirling metallic objects and your getting into the right ball park so to speak. The cold other worldly synth sounds set the backdrop of a futuristic vista, tapping percussions that loop and transfix the listener into an almost hypnotised state all add up to a quite unique experience. There is a lot of energy here and its distributed in a way as not to be overpowering but to make a firm point musically.
A2 – Summoned: continues down that mechanised road but this one really feels like it could be used in a sci-fi classic, something along the lines of Mad Max. The warped feeling here is one of drifting space sounds meeting harsh bass tones with a vibrant beat structure. The chords used have a dramatic urgency to them and really give this tune visual quality. The groove of the beats is really interesting and they have a stuttering arrangement that shuffles the track along in a positive manner. The overall arrangement is well thought out, and each part of the track seems to bed well with all of the others, the overall end product is superb.
B1 – Vertex: The flip side kicks off with Vertex. This track has more of an industrial quality to it. The deep oscillating low end synth sound is so deep you may need breathing equipment to fully appreciate its depth. This is complimented with very alien sounding pads and effect noises. The rising leads really stand out and cuts through the mix like a spatial timing device tapping out a sequential rhythm counting down to some event. The Lower end of the track is held together with a subbed out kick drum that just plods along in a supporting role. A great track with an eerie feeling that has a massive stamp of originality.
B2 – Clairvoyance: Sam ends the EP with an acid infused piece entitled Clairvoyance. The track is obviously lead by the fierce 303 acid line that really has an aggressive and fore frontal stature. This really does give this track a huge boost of energy, its not for the feint of heart. The other elements that support this acidic beast come from the more industrial side of what Sam KDC produces. Wobbly percussive tapping noises add a groove to the track that does not require a more traditional kick, snare, hat structure. This really has to be commended as the overall uplifting sections of this tune are synth driven. It really does drive home the head nodding and wild dance outs that only something with more driving beats could equal.
Overall this is another great release from Sam KDC, his musical breadth can range from pure ambient to wild and crazy synth mayhem. Its all done with a touch of class and care, all you SKDC diehards this is a no brainer. Auxiliary again releases another EP of pure originality and this is what makes it stand out as a label in the modern age.
A1 – Untitled 1: The first track on this wonderfully blissed out LP is something that can only really be described as beautiful. The sounds are coming from the deepest realms of space, with haunting pads and otherworldly soundscapes. The frequency ranges used within the overall atmosphere span a vast tonal range, and create an almost tranquil breathing feeling.
A2 – Untitled 2: keeps the deep vibes going with another superbly crafted slice of ambiance. The focal sound on this piece is a piano that takes the lead. This is supported with very hypnotic soft stabs that really are soothing to the ear. The use of very cool sci-fi FX sounds adds overall depth and quality to the whole atmosphere of the tune.
A3 – Untitled 3: Floating in water inside of a cave is probably the best way to describe the feelings that Untitled 3 is providing here. Each sound has a liquid fluidity that really melts into your brain. The dripping FX sounds have a cavernous and spatial vibe with the lush warm pads that just draw you in.
B1 – Untitled 4: This tune has got a massive sense of suspense and drama about it. The drone pad atmosphere is so out there that you may have to leave a do not disturb sign somewhere on your person when listening to this. There are little vox and FX hints that are so delicately placed and timed to perfection. This is a great piece of music that will drift you into the deepest reaches of your mind.
B2 – Untitled 5, has a trippy hippy feeling that sounds like its been beamed from the past straight into the future. The guitar sounds in this track are superb and really hypnotizing. The atmosphere is intensified with far out pads and intergalactic synths sounds. The arrangement on this piece is very structured, with elements of drums that are used to subtle effect and add to the overall groove to the track.
B3 – Untitled 6: The closing track on the Late Night Innominate LP wraps up this wonderful LP with another helping of deep ambient feeling. The main drone sound holds your attention and has a great sense of space to it. The supporting sounds that pan and sweep across the main drone are inspired with a very delicate almost glacial quality to them.
What Sam KDC has achieved here is nothing short of genius. This is a very filmic visual LP and will take you away to another world. This also shows that Sam’s production skills are very thoughtful and mindful of the potential listeners that should flock on mass to this chilled out and wonderfully crafted LP. If you like the deeper side of music and all things ambient, then this is a no brainer, it’s from the top drawer of the quality cupboard. If you just want something mellow as an alternative then this is the one for you.
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