From Middle Earth to Outer Space: The Phoenix Foundation - "Hitchcock"

One more lucky find. It was posted on the channel presenting short films, which it is indeed. But at the same time this is a video to a song by a New Zealandish band The Phoenix Foundation. I've never heard of them, but judging from this song, this is a mistake I have to correct as soon as possible. This is a truly brilliant video, combining very original animation with perfectly corresponding music. It was directed (or in this case rather "made") by Reuben Sutherland, a visual artist specialising in mixing up live action and animation. And the music is also original. I guess it could be labeled "post rock", but it wouldn't do justice to this great piece. This is a combination of atmospheric instrumental rock fueled by prominent guitars with electronic sounds straight out of Jean-Michel Jarre's most "cosmic" tunes. The result is something I would call "space rock". OK, enough talkingwriting. I have to book a ticket for a nightflight to Venus.

The Phoenix Foundation - "Hitchcock"

A higher quality version can be found here.

Bownik, Adam Certamen - "Magma"

Fine ambient electronica (8/10) Musical reflection of Mundus subterraneus. Fine ambient electronica. Especially fans of space music, the sound of 80s and such artists as Klaus Schulze or J.M. Jarre should be delighted. The only thing I didn't like is a track no. 2. It's a short piano miniature and while Adam is a skilled player, this piece lacks the power of his space-musical compositions. [mirror @ archive.org] | [Artist's Website] SUPPORT INDEPENDENT ARTISTS If you like this album and you can afford it, consider supporting the artist by making a donation on this page - use the button "Donate" in the upper left corner.

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Pan:core - "Memories (2001 - 2005)"

Piano + electronica + beautiful melodies (9/10) auf diesem album habe ich eine auswahl an tracks zusammengestellt, die ich im laufe der letzten jahre gemacht habe. jeder einzelne von ihnen hat für mich eine persönliche bedeutung. die klangqualität ist eher mittelmäszig und das mixing ist wirklich nicht so gut - und dennoch; ich mag es sehr. vielleicht kann euch das eine oder andere stück berühren. More classical album than other Pan:core's recordings. It mostly comprises of simple but beautiful melodies played on piano / keyboard with electronic background. A very melancholic album. And it includes another stunning electronic cover of a classical tune - this time a piece from Vivaldi's The Four Seasons (17 - spaetsommer). Pan:core's covers are masterpieces. As to the rest of the album, it is very good, but I prefer his more electronic and experimental side, as on No Way To Win. He's a true master of this genre. It becomes clear after listening this album to the end, because the last track is completely different from the rest - it's not a simple piano tune, but hard electronic experimental madness. ;-) I instantly felt sorry that not all 18 tracks were in this style. And a final remark - I like both sides of Pan:core - simple piano pieces and experimental electronic madness, so I don't mind mixing them on one album. But I'm afraid that for some listeners, who like only straightforward music, the ending of this album would be unbearable and could ruin all the fun they had from listening to this record.

Royalty-free music for professional licensing [mirror @ archive.org] [Artist's website]

Pan:core - "No Way To Win"

Brilliant diverse electronica (10/10) this is my first 'more than 8 tracks' album. the tracks are of different type. i think, i dont want to keep a style forever, if you know what i mean. the classical sample in 'cant stop' IS NOT ripped from try^d. track 4 is a little 'hello' to black era - an amazing triphop-combo from italy, which you can find also on jamendo. their track 'in front of the corner' inspired me somehow, as you can see at the name of my album :) enjoy. :) This is a very diverse recording. Each track is completely different from the others. Some are calm and hypnotic, some are noisy and aggressive, almost industrial. They have only two things in common. They all belong to the genre of electronica and they are all great. Each melody is very original and artful. The album is under half an hour but has more bright ideas than whole discographies of some other artists. ;-) You can also download this album for free directly from the artist at his website in .mp3 file format.

[mirror @ archive.org] [Artist's website]

Pan:core - "Kithara Kodex"

Brilliant dark experimental electronica (9/10) If you like my music, i would be happy to read some nice words on a postcard. just send it to maik sommer – hechtstr.47 – 01097 – dresden – germany enjoy. Brilliant dark experimental electronica. Thank you, pan:core. At first I didn't like the cover of "Moonlight Sonata", because of the hip-hop beats in the background. But the ending is so powerful and haunting that I had to revise my opinion. The only track I still don't like is "Intro" - it is just tiring, ugly and, in the first place, doesn't fit the rest of the album. It's like a mole on a beautiful face. [mirror @ archive.org] [Artist's website]

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Abogix (J.K.), the - "Friends"

Work of a genius - a feast for the ears (8/10) Dieses Album ist eine widmung an die Leute,die Freunde die sich jetzt seit längerer zeit auf Jamendo "rumtreiben" und immer schön fleissig mitschreiben in den foren. Das sind dann auch die Menschen die dafür sorgten dass endlich mal leben in die "Bude" kam und man(n) sich nicht mehr so einsam fühlte wie es ne lange zeit der fall war. Die idee zu diesem Album kam aber erst als mehrmals das thema eines treffen in Deutschland zu sprache kam...und noch immer im gespräch ist! Dauernd schwebten mir Bilder im Kopf wie denn ein solches treffen aussehen würde und während dem ich mein neues "Album" produzierte merkte ich zumindest dass schon der anfang meines stückes diese gedanken noch verstärkten...also war schnell ein titel und eine neue idee geboren. Eigentlich sollten da noch einige titel mehr zu hören sein,aber mir fiel auf dass diese titel nicht hier zu diesem Album passten. Also entschloss ich mich dass dieses Album nur zwei, ein sehr kurzer und ein langer titel haben wird...naja, wenigstens kein 1:22 Album LOL!!! Ich hoffe ihr könnt iergendwie meine gedanken beim zuhören dieser musik verstehen und raushören. Thank's for....everything! The Abogix (J.K.) alias Reznamor alias Jean Kops Abogix is a genius. Or he sold his soul to the devil. How else could you explain the fact that this man composes and records three perfect albums in half a year?

Royalty-free music for professional licensing [mirror @ archive.org] [Artist's Myspace]

This record is one of his best. It's a great mixture of electronica, rock, jazz, even some traces of industrial. All is perfectly blended and flawlessly produced. It's simply a true feast for the ears. The music is beautiful, intelligent, original, surprising - everything is perfect on this album. I have only two complaints: first of all - IT'S TOO SHORT!!!!! ;-). And secondly, I don't like long tracks. And this one could have been cut very easily, as it comprises of several different tunes. Of course I don't mean putting silence between them - they are perfectly combined and it is great, but each tune could be just put in his own track. It would be easy to find one's favourite part, repeat them, compare different melodies and so on. Oh, and I love the cover - very funny and perfectly corresponds with the mood of this album. But this is also usual with Abogix - covers of his albums are always great. PS. Why on earth I wrote all the above? I could just write: "Just another album from Abogix." and everything would be perfectly clear. ;-)

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Massia, Thierry de - "Shift"

Almost like Beethoven... (6/10) New age très mélodique, les différents morceaux sont tour à tour torturés, mélancoliques, doux ou apaisants. Casque sur les oreilles, yeux fermés, la musique invite à la rêverie. I have mixed feelings after listening to this album. Thierry de Massia is definitely a talented composer. In fact he even can be compared to Beethoven. Like his famous predecessor, he's talented but he must be completely deaf. These cheap synthetic sounds imitate real instruments so poorly that ugliness of the sound kills any fun one could have from listening to nice melodies. In my opinion, Mr. de Massia should limit himself to composing only and give his score to a real band or to a person who is properly equipped and knows how to use synthesizers. As for the tunes, some tracks bear classical influences ("Un signe", "Tales of mister frog", "Shift"). They have very simple melodies, as if composed for children, but could be quite nice if not for those synthetic sounds. In their current form they are practically unlistenable. The other half of songs sounds like transferred directly from the '80s ("La chanson de Julie", "RailRoad", "Jet Set"), straight from the recording session of Jean Michel Jarre. So these tracks are extremely unoriginal, but on the other hand, imitation is almost perfect. In fact "RailRoad" could be advertised as unpublished Jarre's tune from the '80s and I think everybody would believe it. And in these electronic tunes the artist does not try to imitate the classical orchestra and therefore ugly synthetic sounds can be tolerated (in fact they even give this "old '80s" feeling that can be treated as done on purpose). So this part of the album is quite nice if one is not bothered with lack of originality. SUPPORT INDEPENDENT ARTISTS If you like this album and you can afford it, consider supporting the artist by making a donation on this page - use the button "Donate" in the upper left corner.

Royalty-free music for professional licensing [mirror @ archive.org] [Twitter]

Sound-Ra - "In Your Face"

Good original techno (7/10) Dès ses débuts, milieu 90, ses compositions furent largement influencées par les sons techno de Détroit. Grande passionnée de hardtekno et du label primate entre autre. Ses productions aux allures parfois dures, proches d’un courant electronique mais aussi aux univers intimistes comme When I Was A Child et Délice interpellent un large public. Ses sets sur machines ont pris aujourd’hui l’ascendant et lui offre ce côté tactile qui fait la part belle à l’intuition et provoque l’envie de danser. Looking for good techno/electronica? Look no further. This album should appeal to people who like a bit more experimental side of techno. There are no simple beats, it's not a shallow record for disco fans. Many strange sounds connected in a clever and original way. Keep up the good work, Sound-Ra. Oh, and another great cover (I rate only music, but it's a nice addition). The only complaint that I have regards sound distribution between channels. A hi-hat banging constantly in the right ear can be really annoying (see the first track or no. 05 - Fever). [mirror @ archive.org] | [Myspace] | [Facebook] SUPPORT INDEPENDENT ARTISTS If you like this album and you can afford it, consider supporting the artist by making a donation on this page - use the button "Donate" in the upper left corner.

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Akusto, Ben - "Disturbance"

Great electronica (9/10) Rare "Golden Oldies" saved from c-casettes, dat-tapes and old harddrives. Just counterplay it very loud next time your neighbour downstairs is banging the roof with the broom. However, these are old and rusty songs made late 90's or in other words 10 years ago. About same time as the two previously published: TeddyBear Trilogee and Ambience Session. I just didn't dare to mix&master any track anyhow (except the Camel Boost just a little bit) - so don't expect too high quality and don't ruin your hi-fi stack. I still hope you like what you hear. It's not pure ambient. At least it's not so simple and quiet as typical ambient tunes are. Nevertheless it's a very very good album. It's not rusty at all, but colorful and brilliant. [mirror @ archive.org] | [Artist's Website] | [Myspace] SUPPORT INDEPENDENT ARTISTS If you like this album and you can afford it, consider supporting the artist by making a donation on this page - use the button "Donate" in the upper left corner.

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Nymphomania - "Unashamed"

Dark ambient of the highest quality (10/10) From the artist: Earthy meditation loops of processed voice, bass guitar and wind chime, which resound unceasing throughout my new home by the woods. An album for eating nectarines and grapefruits in the early morning. The sequel to "In Spiral Expression". From the label: This is a real trip into mind. The fractal image of the inner self. A kaleidoscope of visions that have a meaning, but you should be sure, because taking the wrong path leads you nowhere. The labyrinth built by one's mind may look confusing, but it gives the hints - just listen. And never touch that green switch! All instruments programmed and played, vocals, music written and arranged by Josh Landry. Artwork by Mike Winchester. Dark ambient of the highest quality. With long drones flowing slowly through time and space. Only sometimes strange sounds of ethnic instruments or tribal chants remind you that you are taking part in some kind of a primeval ritual. This record is hypnotic and repetitive, but never boring like so many bad ambient works. Highly recommended to both ambient fans and people looking for a good introduction to this genre. The album has been released by the artist himself through his Bandcamp store under the "name your price" scheme. You can download it there in a variety of formats, including a lossless FLAC version. This release is copyrighted. It has been also reissued by the Russian label USC (United Studios Corporation), under the Creative Commons BY-SA license. On their website you will find links for downloading the album for free from several file storage websites, but only in 320 kbit MP3 format. They inform that "By downloading our files from links below you directly support artists and label". By the way - they release music on physical CDs too. SUPPORT INDEPENDENT ARTISTS If you like this album and you can afford it, consider supporting the artist by making a donation through Bandcamp.

[Artist's Soundcloud]

Abogix (J.K.), the - "Welcome in my dreams!"

Just Abogix (8/10) Hier ist es nun...mein 5. Album! Wieder hat es mir sehr viel spass gemacht beim produzieren dieses Albums und hoffe es macht euch genau soviel freude beim zuhören!!! Dieses Album ist diesmal etwas fröhlichergeworden,nicht so dunkel. Es sollte gute laune verbreiten und hört sich auch teilweise lustig an. Es geht weiter Freunde...und es ist kein ende in sicht! Wer meine Musik liebt,der darf sich ruhig auf viele weitere Alben von mir freuen...denn in meiner fantasie...in meiner Welt...gibt's noch viel viel mehr zu entdecken! Das Cover zu diesem Album wurde von "ducadidoom" gemacht! Ich find's toll!...tausend dank!!! (Ach...muss das schön sein von Bergen umzingelt zu sein und gesunde Luft einzuatmen...seuftz!) Schönen gruss an meine Familie....Mom (Mi-Schops)...Dad (Pirat) (Sean Connery)... Jim (J.P.) & Sandra & Lou...Steve (MonChichi) & Cindy The Abogix (J.K.) Just Abogix. Anybody need more recommendations? For those who didn't listen to his other albums yet: electronic sounds arranged with talent. Very atmospheric tunes. However, I must say I prefer his darker compositions. "Tales of mystery and imagination" are the best. SUPPORT INDEPENDENT ARTISTS If you like this album and you can afford it, consider supporting the artist by making a donation on this page - use the button "Donate" in the upper left corner.

Royalty-free music for professional licensing [mirror @ archive.org] [Artist's Myspace]

Abogix (J.K.), the - "Fantasmagoria"

Good psychedelic electronica (8/10) Mein viertes Album. Hypnotized Part II und III sind die nachfolger von Hypnotized aus dem Album "Signs". Wiederum zwei stücke die extrem psychedelisch klingen und ...wer weiss, auch eine Hypnotisierende wirkung haben? Wake up!...bringt euch dann wieder zurück aus der Hypnose. ;-) Ich hoffe es wird euch gefallen! The Abogix (J.K.) Abogix doesn't drop below a certain level (a very high level for many others). However, I consider this album to be weaker than "Tales of mystery and imagination" and "Signs". I don't know why... Maybe there are too many elements that distract you and you cannot simply drift with a melody. Or maybe some of these elements just don't fit...? But still - 8 points. And of course I still recommend it to all fans of intelligent electronic music. SUPPORT INDEPENDENT ARTISTS If you like this album and you can afford it, consider supporting the artist by making a donation on this page - use the button "Donate" in the upper left corner.

Royalty-free music for professional licensing [mirror @ archive.org] [Artist's Myspace]

Bobywan - "Be My Boby"

Interesting electronic tunes (8/10) Interesting instrumental tunes, balancing on the border of electronica and rock. What a pity the album is only 5 minutes long. SUPPORT INDEPENDENT ARTISTS If you like this album and you can afford it, consider supporting the artist by making a donation on this page - use the button "Donate" in the upper left corner. [mirror @ archive.org]

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Placid - "Sound Lake City"

Very good techno (8/10) Schaut mal vorbei! mit placid versuche ich meine art von musikalischem experimentalismus auszuleben. es handelt sich vorwiegend um melodisch angehauchte elektronische musik, zu der aber auch getanzt werden darf. Mehr kann ich dazu erst mal nicht sagen! Hörs dir an und schreibe deine Meinung! Es handelt sich hier um frühe Werke, die ich mit einem Yamaha CS1X, Cubase, Rebirth und einer Roland TB303 gefertigt habe. Very good techno. Intelligent tunes, professional production. Keep up the good work. SUPPORT INDEPENDENT ARTISTS If you like this album and you can afford it, consider supporting the artist by making a donation on this page - use the button "Donate" in the upper left corner. [mirror @ archive.org] | [Artist's Website]

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Snakehips - "Minnow Johnson, the" [EP]

Bland RnB (5/10)

SNAKEHIPS is the music of Ollie Dickinson from North London. For live or DJ Bookings, Remixes, Collabs, a chat or hate mail: omdickinson@hotmail.com Soundcloud / Facebook / Twitter Rather bland, boring and repetitive minialbum by a British DJ, exploring the abyss of generic RnB and hip hop. It is available as a free download on mediafire.com, but really... just go somewhere else. There's too much good music everywhere to waste time on this. Of course, a truly dedicated fan of these genres may choose this over good music - everyone has a free will, after all.

Magnetar / Toltek Industries - "Liftoff"

Mixed feelings... (5/10) This is a collection of tracks dating from 2000-2004. I called the project Magnetar. I have plans on releasing another album of tracks from this period. Phineous I have mixed feelings after listening to this album. Some tracks are very good, some are rather boring for me. But overall, the album would earn maybe even 7 points, if not... two issues. Firstly, the sound volume variations. Some parts are so quiet, you must turn the volume up to the maximum. Then, you are attacked by sounds so loud that you cannot hear your own thoughts. So listening to this album requires constant struggle with a volume slider. It is a very stupid and annoying "feature" of some records, which on this one is pushed to extremes. Secondly, who in their right mind would name such song as no. 3 on this album "Elven Lore"? What these guitars, drums and dark mood have to do with elves? "Orcish pit" would be a much more appropriate name. If the dear author wants to hear music that fits a theme of elves, I will recommend albums of Enya or "Robin Hood" by Clannad. Of course I did not really lowered my rating because of the name of the track, but because of the sound volume problem. The album has been published under the Free Art License, which is more or less equivalent to the CC BY-SA license. SUPPORT INDEPENDENT ARTISTS If you like this album and you can afford it, consider supporting the artist by making a donation on this page - use the button "Donate" in the upper left corner.

Royalty-free music for professional licensing [mirror @ archive.org] | [Myspace]

Akusto, Ben - "Ambience Session"

Really great ambient (8/10) This album was kind of an experimental in 1997. It was never released until now. Some of you have maybe heard the Enharmon in some of my gigs. Once again, thanks to Al Cabaro being with me in these studio sessions as a mental help and co-drinker. And thanks to all my friends for just being there all the time. Please sit down in a peaceful corner, take a deep breath, relax and press play. This is a really great album. I recommend it to every fan of the darker side of ambient. I also recommend it to people who think this is a boring genre. It sometimes happen - with bad ambient albums. But Ambience Session definitely belongs to this genre and it is not boring even for one second. Boring ambient is just bad ambient. [mirror @ archive.org] | [Artist's Website] | [Myspace] SUPPORT INDEPENDENT ARTISTS If you like this album and you can afford it, consider supporting the artist by making a donation on this page - use the button "Donate" in the upper left corner.

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Subterrestrial - "Goddess of Atvatabar, the"

Interesting but too repetitive dark ambient (6/10) The debut album from this San Francisco Bay Area artist, The Goddess of Atvatabar is inspired by the 1891 hollow earth adventure novel by William R. Bradshaw and leans heavily on dark ambient, tribal ambient and middle eastern musical themes. The Goddess of Atvatabar is a self-released web album and is available as a free download. This is an interesting dark ambient recording, although too repetitive for my liking. I like experimenting with dark atmosphere and strange sounds. The drawbacks are the said repetitiveness and absurd sound volume differences, forcing a listener to adjust the level throughout the album. For me the best tracks are nos. 01, 02 and 07, because they are not overly repetitive. If you like highly repetitive type of ambient, you can safely add 2 or 3 points to my rating. I guess using a word "repetitive" in every sentence, when reviewing a repetitive album is somehow repetitive, I mean, is somehow OK, isn't it? Apart from Jamendo the album is available at archive.org on Subterrestrial's own "netlabel" channel - possibly in better quality, because Jamendo is notorious for very low quality of their mp3 files. Please note that this edition is governed by a different CC license: . I guess it means you can choose the one that better suits your needs. [Jamendo mirror @ archive.org] | [Artist's Website] | [Myspace]

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Akusto, Ben - "TeddyBear Trilogee"

Very good album (8/10) This single was originally published somewhere between 1996 ans 1997. Can't remember exactly when. Some of these songs were also made together with Al Cabaro alias Parametric. Thanks to AC and thanks to all my friends. Republished May 2007. Have fun! Very good album. Interesting electronic tunes plus one of the funniest parodies I've ever heard (07 - Sick Ted). It's completely crazy and I love it. [mirror @ archive.org] | [Artist's Website] | [Myspace] SUPPORT INDEPENDENT ARTISTS If you like this album and you can afford it, consider supporting the artist by making a donation on this page - use the button "Donate" in the upper left corner.

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DJ Blackwidow - "North Star"

Very good, creative electronica (9/10) This album was composed January 2006 - August 2006. I was on a creative high after finishing up the BlackJaq CD with my collaborator. I really went into this CD with an idea to create a more straightforward electronica sound. I kept some of the ethnic influences and added elements of space music and chanting (listen for Catholic and Ba'hai faith chants). If Leaving Town was a more personal album, then this one is more broad in it's mission. Some aspects are cold, while others seem personal, yet at a distant. The song, Jupiter, was originally composed in October 2005 and was originally written to be a new track on the original BlackJaq Cafe CD. The song, Again, features my BlackJaq collaborator, DJ Jax and this song is actually a special remix created exclusively for this release. The song 2012 was my highest and longest charting song on AcidPlanet. It was also the most reviewed and downloaded song I've ever released on the site. This is the first time this album has been released in its entirety. Thank you for your support of my music. This album is dedicated to my dad. He was the one who inspired the title song. Copyright 2007 BlackJaq Studios

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Straightforward electronica of superb quality. Calm downtempo tunes sit next door to nu jazz flavored tracks, followed by disturbing sounds of breakbeat. Despite the diversity of used styles and techniques, all these songs have one thing in common - the highest quality. Pure pleasure for ears - do not miss this one!

[mirror @ archive.org] | [Myspace]

SUPPORT INDEPENDENT ARTISTS If you like this album and you can afford it, consider supporting the artist by making a donation on this page - use the button "Donate" in the upper left corner.