The Ocean Inside

 

The follow-up album from the Seahawks offshoot Captain Sunshine & The Valley People was released in 2015, 2 years after the Balearic “Tomorrows never known”. “The Ocean inside” continued where the previous album left off and added further sound ideas, for example when Blade Runner references can clearly be heard in “Sunset Shadow”. The Valley People are lost on this voyage, and the captain steers the ship alone into a fitting sunset. What might not seem to be an advantage in other working models if it is not noticeable when half of the team is no longer on board actually doesn't matter here and listening to both albums in one go makes sense. Captain, is the bar open yet?

„Captain Sunshine is the alias of Jon Tye, one half of revered cosmic quakers Seahawks. The style shares many of Seahawks deep space aquatic vibes but is if anything even more salt washed and faded, spaced and misted. 

The Ocean Inside was recorded alone during a particularly long and dark winter voyage. A dose of flu helped create a deep dream state, sometimes unsettling at others blissfully narcotic. The analog tape recordings were later cut and spliced together with occasional overdubs of guitar and vocal to form a collection of celestial tone poems that at times recall early Eno, Vangelis, Joe Meek’s ‘I Hear A New World’ or even Aphex Twin’s selected ambient works. 

Deep and meditative, warm and enveloping, this is a great album to put on of a clear evening as you stare at the stars, watch the distant ships bobbing on the waves or simply zone out in your favourite place.“

-Bandcamp-

File under: Ambient I Balearic I New Age

Tomorrows never known

 

The Seahawks had me hooked with their 5th release “Aquadisco” (OM006), 10 Years ago.

To this day they consist of Lo Recordings label boss Jon Tye & Peter Fowler.

Here we had another band that I was able to discover retrospectively. Although I have to say that since “Aquadisco” they have gotten better and better for me. I think it's the normal way when you start a project and at the beginning it's not clear where the journey is going and then the path you're walking on begins to shine more and more.

“Tomorrows Never Known” came right into the middle of my new Seahawks relationship in 2013 and was released under the alias: Captain Sunshine & The Valley People. It quickly became clear that Jon Tye would be Captain Sunshine. Who was behind the Valley People, probably not. The credits only list the Seahawks as producers, so Pete Fowler probably takes on the role of the Valley People. A wonderful Balearic summer album. Unfortunately, I don't know of any MP3 releases yet. You can listen to 2 of the 6 tracks on Discogs.

Addendum: Courage to correct - I just listened to “Invisible Sunrise (OM002)” & “Tender Abyss (OM004)” again. Talking about better and better doesn't actually help. These are completely different albums, and each is exciting and good in its own right. We need more Seahawks.

„During the summer of 2012 before the rains came, the Captain headed for the interior and in a lost valley far from the world of men he jammed with a tribe of initiates…The Valley People. 

The results were channelled via ether waves to Ocean Moon Central aka The Centre Of Sound where Seahawks guided them to vinyl in their own sweet way. Echoes of Fern Kinney on helium, Nick Nicely on mogadon, Kraftwerk jamming in the jungle whilst aliens land their craft ready for a cosmic lounge party. Listen out for ethereal soul sounds, Island funk and dream wave….ghost vibrations from beyond the reef where they dream of sliver rivers and sleep under the stars.“

-phonica records-

„This is so good it's almost like my dream Seahawks album come true. "Did I commision this?", was my first reaction after I very eagerly and with high expectations unwrapped it and put it on. It's lush, melodic, ambient dubby dream-disco for those smoke filled, late night summer sessions of pure hedonism. I think I'll just stick to "ambient dream-disco" when I have my inevitable fan-boi rants about this in the future. Limited to 500 copies on purple vinyl.“

-co-existence-

https://www.discogs.com/release/4760615-Captain-Sunshine-The-Valley-People-Tomorrows-Never-Known

Adventures in the Rainbow Vortex

 

Inspired by some wonderful posts in the Bagging Area & Dubhead blogs, I've been listening to a lot of music from the years 1988-1994 again. You don't have to ask me twice about that. I always like to return to this time, always a little nostalgic and wistful. The posts gave me the idea that this was a really crazy time. I'm a child of the East, but thanks to the proximity to Berlin and the right radio stations, I was always well informed and, if necessary, I spent half the night in front of the radio recording John Peel on BFBS or Monika Dietl with her acid House shows on SFB. Then the wall came down and suddenly you had access to all the wonderful records, all the fantastic books, culture overkill. And during this time, from 1989, 1990 - 1994, so many great albums were released, it seems to me that it's no wonder that this time was one of the most formative of my life. They laid the foundation for much that came after. However, I also think that the time afterwards was never as intense again.

Jon Tye is the label boss of Lo recordings, where many impressive albums have been released since 1995. Their catalog of over 50 releases includes recordings by Aphex Twin, Blur, Mike Flowers and Squarepusher to name but a few. But it was Rothko who introduced me to John Peel. Rothko are a London based mainly instrumental group. The group mainly used 3 (!) Bass Guitars and keyboards to create their soundscapes. The first album “Negative for Francis” couldn't be found in Berlin at the time, so I had to order it from WOM - world of music. When it was finally available, I was in bed with a fever of 40, but that didn't stop me from dragging myself to Berlin and picking up the album. To immediately put it on tape at home and disappear back into bed with the tape and confide my fever dreams to Rothko. This is hard to imagine today, when many things are available at the click of a button. I've lost sight of Rothko a bit in recent years, but not Jon Tye. I didn't know it back then, but in my world today, with his many projects, whether Ocean Moon, Seahawks, Captain Sunshine, MLO, he is a daily companion.

“Adventures in the Rainbow Vortex” was released in 2021 on Aural Canyon, home to many wonderful ambient gems, and is one of them itself. For a wonderful, magical New Age meditation in which the Seahawks can also be found, listen to “Energy Mosaic,” for example.

In Jon‘s own Words: 

„All the ‘Adventures' material was recorded 2017-2018 at The Centre of Sound Maker Heights Cornwall. 

I always really liked the basic tracks but I could never get the mixes sounding as I wanted them to. When I came back to the tracks in 2021 all was clear and the new mixes came together really swiftly. 

I feel that the material is very different to the ‘World of Light’ album, more visceral and multi-faceted. With ‘World of Light’ I really wanted to create a sense of peace, a safe place. 

‘Adventures’ is more about journeys that can at times be turbulent and that go beyond the everyday. There is a shamanistic intensity to some of the tracks that can induce visions and although many of these visions may be beautiful others may invoke a sense of awe and of being engulfed. 

I can’t recall which keyboards were used other than the Roland Juno 6 and Yamaha SY-77, I also played zither, xylophone and bamboo wind chimes, Dan Hillman played a Moog on some tracks and saxophone on others. The field recordings were made on the deck in Millbrook. 

I hope this album takes you places you’ve never been before and that it takes you on adventures that are enriching and empowering.“

Ocean Moon

Adventures in the Rainbow Vortex

Label: Aural Canyon

2021

file under : Ambient I New Age I Kosmische