Sequences Magazine

Always like to give you a rundown of new artists appearing on Sequences, starting with Timo Kaukolampi, with a throbbing and pulsating ambient piece, exploring the modular side of electronics, two US female musicians, Ann Annie’s self-exploration of dreams, textures, rhythms & uplifting, transportive and meditational sounds of Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith, played on a Buchla Music Easel modular synth, colorful and detailed sequences of Curved Light, electronic manipulations of the cello, processed into unrecognizable textures from Julie Kent. Husband & wife duo Milosz & Magdelena Pekala, playing percussion instruments with the use of the vibraphone & marimba to great effect, accompanied by Asuna Arashi on synths & electro-acoustics devices. Hypnotic & warm modern grooves of Sine, the four-piece Texan band Thousand Foot Whale Claw, giving us a wall of sound Inspired by progressive 70’s German kraut-rock & finally Mikael Lind collaboration with the Tangs member Hoshiko Yamane, musically both have the knack for creat

G’day listeners, we are here to take you on another journey into oceans of atmospheric textures, expressive rhythmical dynamics and the unexplained dark tones, cast by our selection of talented musicians who take you on their journey into the sounds of this New Year. As always, featuring the female side of this genre, Danish synthesist Sofie Birch cosmic caresses & jazz dusting of reality departures, an exploration into the energies by An On Bast, second single from Stephanie Sante from her forth-coming album Dark Matter Evolution, hypnotic & mesmerizing organic ambiance by Panic Girl, & Jennifer Grais spirit-driven voice, teaming up with Byron Metcalf’s rich layering of indigenous instruments, percussive textures & ethereal voices, Exploring sonic improvisations using a range of portable modular synthesizers as well as a selection of analog keyboards, Nigel Mullaney on the Din label, the music of tomorrow created in a retro manner from Cyberwalker & Walter Christian Rothe chords and melodies straight from

As we start a new decade we wish all our listeners, happy New Year. Ten new acts grace this first edition of 2020. On the Russian Zoharum label, one half of Konstruktivists, Cathedra, a 2 CD set focusing on ritual, industrial & classical soundtrack pieces, for TXT, Midnat, Spuntic & Beta Consciousness, taken from Nagual Series, a 5 CD box set with 15 artists contributing almost 6hrs of music. Winter-Light label gives us Atomine’s ‘The Antikythera Mechanism’, delving deep into the intricacies and finely tuned mechanics of this mysterious all-encompassing machine. Ylang, Ylang, a.k.a. Catherine Debard’s ‘Interplays’, some of her most mature orchestration, she describes it as the final installment in a trilogy focused on relationships, 80s style retro electronica with PPG Moog & Roland, from Cornel Hecht, the duo of Hydra Coil, creating outstandingly beautiful music that invites the listener into a world of yearning dreams and otherworldly realities, DJ producer & composer C-Jay, completing with a stunning

It’s been another exceptional year of music on Sequences, from not only our regulars but many of the new artists we’ve promoted throughout the last twelve months. We would like to thank all the musicians, labels and listeners who have supported us in 2019. Happy Christmas, roll on the new year. Now we come to our last edition before we enter 2020: Since his very first CD release in 1993, Andy Pickford has been one of the pioneers of the British Electronic Music scene, who has developed a distinct style that is instantly recognizable from the quality and power of his numerous albums and concert appearances, all of which have led to his international acclaim in the field of Electronic Music. Andy Pickfords playlist 01.36 ‘No-one Can Hear You’ (album Replicant 1993) 06.55 ‘Get Dyson’ (album Terraforma 1994) 13.23 Ian Boddy & Andy Pickford ‘Enigmagic’ (album Symbiont 1995) 22.47 ‘Voyager’ (album Maelstrom 1995) 28.54 ‘Night Of The Long Knives’ (album Xenomorph 1996) 36.06 Andy Pick

This will be our last edition of the year, but wait, we have another one of those specials, to come before Christmas. More new names to add to the list appearing on Sequences. Frank Tischer a German keyboardist & singer, who ventures out into different genres besides electronic music. The luminous ritual and the cosmic soundscapes of Starburst Galaxy, twin guitar experimental improvisations by TEAR, Chase Dobson who focuses foremost on texture & atmospheres, world sounds of Monica Williams incorporating hybrid flutes, a single synth, a piano and some effects by Jonny Bull, a.k.a Audioraft, breaking boundaries both musical and geographical cellist, composer and multilingual vocalist Ian Maksin from Russia & Benedict Roff-Marsh collaborative musical project with Adrian Earnshaw. Welcome, return from Chuck Van Zyl on the live improvised set from E-Day 2018. The eighteenth album from veteran Bay Area multi-instrumentalist Forrest Fang, two live long-form ambient soundscapes by Jim Ottaway, another re-release alb

Well! Christmas is nearly upon us, although here in Oz with summer only a few weeks away, it’s not the same for Mick, having fond memories of time spent in the UK with family & friends. You can call him a humbug, but there’s always some musician or label in our genre who must bring out a yuletide record, for him it just doesn’t work. You will be pleased or not, to note our lineup, as it is always been, to cover as much ground in so many different styles in electronic music, disregarding the more modern approach of house, techno, DJ, mixes, drum & bass, etc. After the strong showing of female artists in our last edition, it’s back with the boys, although Elizabeth Joan Kelly returns with her experimental songs. The ambient side, dark & atmospheric is quite dominant with, Eric -The -Taylor, Marconi Union, Phobos, Steve Roach & RNGMNN. Always good to have two of our well respected UK musicians here, Ian Boddy with Nigel Mullaney, improvising live with modular gear & the sheer diversity that Ivan Black brings t

The girls are certainly making their impact on this edition, together there are five solo & two collaborative projects. There’s experimentation & passion in the music which ranges from chill-out to abstract ambient, hazy downtempo to cavernous drone spaces, with a special mention to classical reinterpretations by Murcof & Vanessa Wagner, especially on the beautiful moving Valentina Silvestrov work, ‘Farewell O World, O Earth’. Sequencer lovers can drool over the latest Cosmic Ground album, number 5 & the duo Joorg Erren and Christian Steffen new outing, going by the name of Grobek. It’s been awhile to see Frank Makowski of Ramp, offering a new solo concept album ‘Canon O Eclipses’, inspired by Austrian astronomer Oppolzer, in the genre of experimental neo -classical music. Another musician who we don’t hear enough of, New Zealander Rudy Adrian, brings us his new release, ‘Woodlands’, slow evolving melodies, harmonically rich textures, subtle ambiences & otherworldly vocal effects. Having a short sabbatical fr

We are in our seventh year of starting Sequences podcasts, beginning with easy accessible electronic music, i.e. sequential, Berlin school, ambient & more, but steadily over the years expanded our range to include strange & varied electronics, even the weird & experimental. Sometimes asked why don’t the podcasts be more like DJ mixes, that flow easier on the ear, but that’s not us, not only do we like to feature new releases most of the time, but also here to educate your musical listening, delving deeper into the genre. This issue has many of our favourite artists with new albums, including David Wright, Andy Pickford, Robert Otto, Bouvetoya, Marconi Union etc. Representing the female side and not for the first time, Oliviaway, Polly Fae & Enlia, all erring on the minimalist ambient side. Just a mention on the few newcomers, Bart Hawkins distinctive world of modular synthesis & pure electronic sound shaping, Corp & Telepath who are no strangers to the vapourware,(what ever that means), & the ambient scene,

Welcome back, hope you all enjoyed our special edition on Erik Wollo, more to come later in the year. Lets now continue our look at more new releases, with some info on the new musicians to appear on Sequences. The deep drones embedded in neoclassic arrangements, of strings, interweaved with field recording by Imaginary Landscapes. Off Land’s beat-less, seamless, ambient kaleidoscope. Hypnotic patterns weaved around drifting synth scapes from Motionfield. Winter Light label gives us Sysselmann, employing more organic field recordings and uses these in combination with acoustic instruments. The Kahvi Collective, always comes up with interesting acts, Weldroid being one of them, a multifaceted foray of chilled electronics that spans through ambient synthesizer and abstract IDM fissures. The Ambient Zone, includes three more artists, Warmth a Spanish producer focusing on ambient techno, Chris CoCo’s tunes based around the Buddhist day of the week & the comical named Stanleystanley, pairing saturated electronic

Erik Wollo Special Edition: When it comes to the electric guitar in Electronic Music one name that is always at the forefront, Norwegian professional musician Erik Wollo. After over 30 years of innovative writing and recording, he has developed his own style, playing and composing not only very expressive synthesiser parts, but also blending it with his own guitar style. With this special edition we’ve concentrated on Erik’s solo releases to date, a catalog of over 30 albums including EP’s & mini albums, starting with his latest release, ’Sources’, earlier music from 1986 to 1992, taken from previously unheard tapes, to his first offical album aptly titled, ‘Where It All Begins’. Near Future’ (album Sources ) https://erik-wollo.bandcamp.com 2019 07.20 ‘Infinite Moments Part 4’ (album Infinite Moments) wwwprojekt.com 2019 12.38 ‘Ravel Peak’ (album Threshold Point) www.projekt.com 2018 16.22 ‘Motion Blue’ (album Different Spaces) www.projekt.com 2017 21.46 ‘Crescent Moon’ (album

With this edition it’s another interesting mix, pushing the boundaries of electronic music. It’s always good to have the female side of the genre, speaking of which, two grace our airways, Angelina Yershova exploration of evocative textures, synthesized with the experimental explorations of the piano & the minimalistic ambient side to Jodie Lowther. Expressive ambient music of Giest, Neil Foster & Bengalfuel, promoted by The Ambient Zone. Chill-out to Glint’s Incisive rhythms and intense melodies. Touching on the Berlin School influence on Syngate, Dask. Uplifting, beautiful, ambient styles with mesmerizing soundscapes from Daniel Dorobantu, Obukhovaudio, Kelly David and from Tang's current bandleader, Thorsten Quaeschning, a live solo outing at the Ambient Wave Festival in Munich 2019, are some of the musicians appearing in our second show of this month. The vintage track comes from the acclaimed 1986 album “Time Waves”, by the highly regarded music creator, Robert Schroeder enjoy. Playlist No 156 01.55 An

The adventure continues, with some of the latest releases in our world of electronic music. Melodic sequential tunes from Johan Tronestam & Moonbooter. Michael Neil teams up with Kristoff Beckerunique, going under the name of RKM, a brand of live improvised electro, experimental, chill out soundtracks. Rich, melodic, rhythmical, interlocking sequencer driven sounds, from the master Steve Roach. The Ambient Zone, showcasing three acts from the UK ,Germany & Japan, they are supporting. Alpha Wave Movement’s organic connection, that balances human & machine electronic instruments, a musical concept of the sleep cycle. New to Sequences, Russian label Zhelezobeton, featuring all sorts of experimental, electro acoustic, post industrial and unconventional music. Daniel Dorobantu & Peter Ionutescu, form of electronic jazz with modern ambient & modern classical influences. If you after sensitive, emotional, relaxing, dreamy sounds, look no further than sound designer,Thomas Lemmer, with Andreas Bach, for some cool ch

Hope you all enjoyed our split edition of Sequences. Strangely on one of the music sites the ambient side had more hits, which I didn’t expect, anyway, back to our usual mix of EM. We welcome Robert Scott Thompson with a preview of his up and coming albums ‘Pluviophilia’ 1 & 2, combining his mastery of electro acoustic contemporary instrumental & advance grade genres. Louis Sterling from Mick’s original hometown in the UK, showing capacious acoustics, washed with soft reverb and distant voices, creating a dream-like atmosphere. “Linear A” by zZyzx, electro-acoustic compositions featuring harp & cello. The overlapping overtone textures and the sounds created by the piano’s intricate mechanism, by Jan Wagner, another majestic score from Andy Pickford, with a ton more sequencers & arpeggiator sounds. New to Syngate, Japanese musician Shinpal, with the track we chose ‘Boundary Of Nature’ which has roots in the music of Manuel Gottsching, just a few of the players to show a wealth of diverse electronics, not to e

Welcome to part two of our latest podcast, no 153, Devoted to the ambient side of Electronic music. We start with the more rich ambient atmospheres with Johan AgeBjorn and the stunning vocals of Lisa Barra, Anzio Green creating fluid & evolving sounds, including guitar loops and the occasional beats, the cinematic touch of Indonesian K-Mal, calming beautiful and relaxing music from Markus Reuter, Nick Shadow’s viola giving a textural ambient score on The Gesture Of History by Sam Rosenthal, with synths & enhancements from Steve Roach, are some of more accessible tracks as we approach the darker side. Large synth sweeps and low fi bass are the backdrop for Kloob, sculpting soundscapes through the use of vocals background noises & ethereal drones, deep mysterious and experimental body of work from Romerium, finishing with Polish musician Saure Adler, cavernous onslaught of disturbing atmospheres. 02.03Johan Agebjorn feat: Lisa Barra ‘Dulciter Somni’ (album Mossebo, Remastered) www.spottedpeccary.com 08.36 J

Due to Mick having a very busy month, we are bit late with our second June edition. With so many promos coming in, we decided with the up and coming podcasts, to have two editions of our latest one, no153. Part 1 featuring the more sequential, melodic and the slightly off beat electronic styles with some experimentations. In part two, the ambient side, sometimes dark, unpredictable with spacial choral & neo-classical sounds. Part one is definitely another diverse collection of tracks, Keith Richie’s crunchy baselines and echoing riffs on C.T.F.O, the live nature of Paul Nagle’s sequencing, chill out to Murinsel Vol 2 by Stan Dart, expanded piano looping of Celia Hollander, Gunter Schickert’s pioneering work of the echo guitar sound, the hallmarks of Kraut rock, intricate, multi-layered, pattern based structures, with more abstract, improvisatory, textures on the album. ‘One twenty’, six years in the making by Daniel Biro, Rhinoceros inspired by the industrial sound, influenced by Can, Kraftwerk Faust & A

Welcome to Sequences, hope you all enjoyed our special podcast on the music of John Dyson & Wavestar, more to come this year, with musicians who have had long careers in the scene. This edition features as usual, looks at many of the new album releases from well known names who have graced our airways over the years. The conceptual ambient musical project by Sveere Knut Johansen with soundscape pioneer Robert Rich, analog structures of live sequential sounds from Spyra, joined by the voice of soul mate Roksana Vikaluk. Neo-Classical synthesised uplifting compositions of Gunnar Spardel, the beating heart that brings David Gerard intrinsic sound structures, that are hypnotic, using strings piano and choirs in a dramatic complex setting. Ann Grace capturing mother earth in her subtle melodies, calm and emotional, second collaboration from Romerium & Martin Neuhold, reflecting on the season of winter. The chill-out beautiful & Intense album ‘Meerblick” by Thomas Lemmer & Christoph Sebastian Pabst. Kamarius myst

Welcome to another special edition, devoted to UK electronic music artist, John Dyson, whose musical career has spanned nearly 35 years, with his first band, Wavestar, formed with David Ward Hunt, (who sadly passed away in 1999), releasing 3 albums in the 80’s and going solo with 6 more over a 20 year period. In 2018 saw the formation of new Wavestar 2, accompanied by accomplished composers and studio-technicians Paul Ward and Stephan Whitlan, releasing the debut album “Nightwind’s. Once described as a "cheeky chappie" by none other than Sir Paul McCartney, John Dyson has been a leading light in the UK Electronic Music scene for many years. We also would like to add, that he is one of the kindest and friendliest people we know, with great stage presence. Do check out the bio on his musical career and photos on our website. We kick off with John’s all-time best-seller “Evolution”, his first solo release on the Surreal to Real label, set up by John with help from musician Anthony Thrasher, who played on his e

Already a third way into the New Year and the musicians we have featured are still producing some gems of high-quality sounds that are dynamic & fresh. Not always the conventional approach to electronic music, but nevertheless engaging & challenging. A few names to mention on this edition, the double live album "Altair", from Ian Boddy’s US show at The Gatherings 2018. Musicformessier collaborates with ambient guitar legend Dan Cain on "Timelessness", one of the best guitar driven atmospheric albums of the year. Rapoon’s deep industrial space ambiance and majestic choral bursts with emotive piano chords, spacious feel of Berlin School style sequencing & melodics from Thaneco. On Syngate records, dark tones & ambient sounds of Divided By Two. The re-release of Syndromeda’s 2006 album "Last Days Of Earth", containing powerful sequencing delving with a darker twist & new to Sequences Pulse Emitter expansive tapestries of sound. Vintage track from Sam Rosenthal 1986 release "Before The Buildings Fell", pioneering

Welcome to the new edition, hope all of you are enjoying the Easter break, especially our friends and family in the UK with some warm unseasonal weather there. Here in the Sunshine Coast, it’s very wet & warm. Quite a lineup we have that spans many aspects of electronic music, it certainly opens up a varied sound world. Mihail Doman’s second album, ‘Neptune’, delving deeper into contemporary orchestral music, with a minimalist string score, thoughtful, dark, experimental with light flourishes from John 3:16. Heart-centered sonic meditation from veteran transformative, shamanic practitioners Byron Metcalf and Mark Seelig. Elizabeth Joan Kelly, a New Orleans-based experimental, ambient/industrial, electronic composer, audio tone poems that explore darkness and light by Fabio Keiner, John Novak addictive ambiances, interspersed with addictive melodies., breathtaking, rich, complex and beautiful structured soundscapes of Tom Eaton. Michael Neil’s excursions into Berlin School retro music under the guise of

Shocked & sad to hear recently the passing of two fine musicians, Charles Thaxton & Gert Van Santen, who have graced our genre in electronic music over the years. Charles known as Char-el, was a California based synthesist and keyboardist/composer, performing in many bands and solo concerts for over 40 years, mixing in the progressive rock/symphonic new age territory. Gert Van Santen was a member of Wave World, a Dutch/Canadian multimedia project attracting quite a lot of attention for its fascinating music and enchanting shows. During live performances, their impressive music was blended with computer-generated graphics of a virtual world, projected on huge screens, both these musicians were very likable, creative human beings, with the legacy of their music, which will live on in our hearts & minds. You will hear on this edition, Andy Pickford’s new release Biosphere, which has a very filmic feel, full of strong rhythms, sequences, melodies, and symphonic themes. Syngate presents Colin Rayment’s new albu