Ways to the Deep Meadow

 

Double-digit temperatures in the plus range are forecast for the weekend. At the moment we still have frosty temperatures and it's hard to imagine something like spring. Of course, comments about the weather are never appropriate given the state of the world and the discomfort in which we constantly find ourselves. At the same time, it gives the illusion of a normality that we may never achieve again, or at least not in the near future.

Music has always been my medicine for the burden on my soul, especially since it is available without a prescription.

In the last few weeks of last year, an incredible amount of and incredibly good music appeared for my ears, perhaps the chance for me to reconcile myself a little with the old year. 

One who is always at the forefront and tries to help the world to a better version in his own way is Cornwell man Jon Tye, who lets us look mildly at the old year with two albums (as Seahawks & with the Ocean Moon Group).

And because there is no time to waste away, Jon is releasing his ambient dream “Ways to the Deep Meadow” on the always great Music from Memory via Amsterdam in the first month of the new year as Ocean Moon.

In the mid-1990s, Jon Tye was relentlessly focused on electronic music’s most extreme possibilities. That was the title of the inaugural compilation from his label, Lo Recordings, which aimed to map the fringes of post-rave electronic music in category-smashing experiments from artists like 

Scanner, Omni Trio, and Luke Vibert’s Wagon Christ project. Lo Recordings spent the next few years pushing outward, breaking down distinctions between genres and modes of listening on comps like 

United Mutations and Further Mutations, enlisting a provocatively motley crew— Aphex Twin, Tortoise, Hood, Thurston Moore, Squarepusher, Stereolab - in their demolition work.

Most extreme of all was the music Tye released under his own Twisted Science alias by turns erratic and overdriven or dusty and dissonant. But he also had other, mellower projects, and as time has gone by, the dulcet side of his music has come to the fore. In 2021, the ambient historians at Music From Memory curated a star-gazing selection of the ambient and ambient techno he produced in the early 1990s in MLO, a duo with fellow Brit Peter Smith; now the label turns its attention to his ambient project Ocean Moon. Ways to the Deep Meadow’s seven atmospheric tracks are all new productions, but their billowing pads, gently pulsing arpeggios, and general air of wide-eyed wonder sound so classic, it would be easy to mistake the album for an archival release.

The mood throughout bobs somewhere between tranquil and hypnotic, beginning with the prayer bowl and rainfall that open “Ways to the Deep Meadow.” That song—inspired by a poem by Angus MacLise, who played in the Velvet Underground an La Monte Young’s Theatre of Eternal Music before moving to Nepal—is led by gently cycling synth arpeggios whose curious rises and falls remind me of one of M.C. Escher’s staircases. “Souls Fall Away” is a buoyant froth of beatific, if indecipherable, vocals, and “Angel Falls,” a few tracks later, evokes similar heavenliness. Things really only come down to earth twice: “Day of the Voyage” is a blissed-out procession led by a halting electronic drum pattern evocative of Indian music; “Plains of Paradise” is a Balearic devotional driven by rippling congas.

Per label press materials, portions of the album were apparently inspired by artificial intelligence, as Tye sought alternatives—theoretical, philosophical, and even spiritual—to what he saw as more pessimistic or critical perspectives. It’s unclear, however, whether he actually used A.I. tools in generating or organizing his sounds, or simply took inspiration, like any science-fiction writer, from the idea of the technology. In the angelic choirs and electronic pulses of “Ways to the Deep Meadow,” it’s certainly possible to perceive a sense of optimism about technology, and press materials say that Holly Hernandon‘s Holly+ app was used to process text from Janine Rook’s Made in Dreams the exhibition that Ocean Moon’s song of the same name was created to soundtrack. But no words are detectable in that song, and fortunately nothing on Ways to the Deep Meadow bears traces of low-fidelity artifacts or other telltale marks of A.I. slop.

Those hallmarks, in fact, seem like the kind of thing that Tye might happily have worked into his music as Twisted Science, a project that often seemed guided by the desire to use new technologies in ways not originally intended. Ways to the Deep Meadow, in contrast, is a far more conventional affair; for fans of classic ambient and new age, even a nostalgic one. That fealty to familiar sounds and modes of beauty—consonant harmonies, glistening timbres, gentle symmetries—is one of its strengths. It’s a radiant tribute to the tradition that inspired it.

-Pitchfork-

Lo Recordings boss Jon Tye harks back to his time with UK ambient group MLO on 'Ways to the Deep Meadow', proposing an optimistic, immersive alternative to the perpetual doom and gloom.

It's no surprise that Tye's latest solo jaunt has ended up on Music For Memory, given that the label reissued a retrospective of MLO's work ('Oumaumua') back in 2021. And 'Ways to the Deep Meadow' is in good company next to releases from Gigi Masin and Gaussian Curve. Tye's approach is thoughtful, but never dark - the title of the album is a reference to Angus Maclise's poem 'Universal Solar Calendar', and on the first side, he takes a surprisingly upbeat look at the possibilities of AI. Inspired by the Buddhist perspective that AI could be an integral step in the evolution of consciousness, and texts from Frank J. Tippler, Jeanette Winterson and James Lovelock, Tye crafts a sequence of gently evolving nu-new age lullabies, using faded pads and animated, woodblock-like percussive cycles. 

On the title track, we can hear traces of Hiroshi Yoshimura's iconic 'Green', while 'Day of the Voyage' sounds more like early ISAN, all slo-mo beatbox pulses and sugary melodies. And on the flip, Tye presents two long-form compositions, the first of which was composed for Janine Rook's 'Made In Dreams' exhibition using text from the catalogue that Tye processed using Holly Herndon's Holly + app. Written for Vix Hill Ryder's 'Wild Edges' film, 'An Ending Full of Light' finishes things off with charming musicbox melodies that wash into warm, billowing ambience.

-Boomkat-

released January 31, 2025

File under Ambient

Electric Meadows

 

I'm afraid there aren't enough Barmy Army releases to help the German team have a completely successful performance at the 2024 European Championship. Yesterday, for the first time, I didn't post anything from On-U Sounds supergroup in the run-up to the game and it almost went wrong: the equalizer was only in the 2nd minute of stoppage time. 1:1 against Switzerland. The German team will go into the round of 16 as group winners. But whether that is an advantage remains to be seen. I suspect that the trip to the home European Championship will be over in the quarter-finals at the latest, when we face the Spaniards, who have been outstanding so far. But first you have to get there. After yesterday, that's not even so certain. Nevertheless: the European Championship with the many peacefully celebrating fans is a huge joy. 

I haven't posted any music for a few days, which will probably be the norm in the future. But of course I continue to listen to music these days, albeit less due to up to 3 games per day. 

If you discover unknown music by revered artists, where you thought you already had everything on your music shelf or on your hard drive, the excitement is usually quite great. A few days ago I re-read an interview with Lo Recordings boss Jon Tye (Seahawks, Captain Sunshine, Ocean Moon) on the famous Ban Ban Ton Ton:

https://banbantonton.com/2020/12/15/interview-jon-tye-ocean-moon/

„Did KPM approach you for a solo record? I love the Seahawks one.“

„From the outset there was talk of a series or releases…after Island Visions it seemed natural to progress to Crystal Harmonics and from there to Astral Vibrations – a deeply psychedelic vision featuring members of Stereolab, Peaking Lights and The Horrors. There’s also an album with Jon Brooks called Electric Meadows.“

I had already read it a few times and suddenly my ears pricked up: “Electric Meadows”?

I couldn't find anything on Bandcamp or Discogs. Surprisingly, the album was available on Apple Music and I found a site where you could download the album.

You can't really find anything else about it on the Internet.

Well, here we have another wonderful New Age-esque ambient music from Ocean Moon, which is great to curl up in the hammock to and think about your life. There is always something to reflect on and the weather is very inviting for that right now.

A large part of the Ocean Moon release is created in the probably wonderful surroundings of Cornwall.

A reason to take a closer look at the area.

Now I just have to find out what the aforementioned “Astral Vibrations“ is all about.

Ideas?

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

A Continual Search of Origins

 

I am fond of reading, whether novels, non-fiction books, the daily newspaper, magazines or music reviews. How empty life would be without being able to read (of course the same applies to listening and music). However, I never managed to convert what I read into my own, pleasing language. I lack the imagination, the feeling, the stamina... I've been writing a diary for years and have now started doing it again digitally, but mostly there are only a few short sentences. I prefer to let the pictures do the talking, or found passages from books and newspapers that encourage me to think about things. And yet, through regular writing, here too, I hope one day to find a way to express myself appropriately. As long as I will quote a lot here in this blog and share what others have expressed much better before me.

The last post about Jon Tye and Ocean Moon / Lo Recordings also brought the memories of Rothko back to my consciousness a little more. If you enter the name Rothko into Google, you will first find entries with the well-known Russian-American painter. A detailed entry can simplify things. Founded by Mark Beazley in 1997 with a changing line-up, the band came into the living room at home two years later through plays with John Peel.

A new listening experience because the band initially had 3 (!) bass players to give their sound an incredible amount of substance. The period around Millennium was also the end of a musical drought period. While the years 1989-1994 were characterized by an incredible diversity, so much music to be discovered that was created precisely during this time, the following 4-5 years were more of a disorientated time when it came to music. I tried to find what I was looking for in many genres and to find the feeling of the first years since my arrival in the “West”. In 1995 & 1996 I partially managed this when I first threw myself into the Neo Dub scene with Zion Train, Disciples, Bush Chemists and others and subsequently into the original old Dub albums from the seventies. But then I don't remember anything that left a lasting impression, until suddenly there was exciting music again like Piano Magic, Isan, Labradford or Rothko and many others. I described how I came across their first album in the last post.

After three albums on Lo recordings (& two others), “A Continual Search of Origins” was the first (& only) album for Too Pure. The album was released in 2002 and 15 (!) years later I exchanged some thoughts on Facebook with Mark, who is a very approachable and thoughtful musician. The album is based on field recordings that he made on a trip to Switzerland in a small, enchanted and little-known place called Origlio. At the time of our exchange, he had visited this place again after a long time. The band's music is usually described as post rock, for me “Continual Search ....” was a special ambient album. An assessment that Mark didn't necessarily want to follow:

„I'm not sure if it's ambient or not, I had the recordings I made in Switzerland and the album grew around that. I never start any record considering what genre it will be, I generally don't like to put things in boxes, but everyone has their own idea of what the music is or what genre to apply, so, it's all ok either way. But, one thing is certain, and that is I hope my music doesn't fit comfortably into any box. I started going to Switzerland, and Origlio in particular, when I was 29 or 30...so, 24 years ago, and in fact, I have just recently returned from their again. It is a magical and peaceful place, no one really knows anything about it or where it is, so, it's perfect in that way. I count myself to be incredibly fortunate to be able to stay there once every few years.“

The album was described quite well by Olga Sladeckova from Pennyblackmusic:

„Look back into your past and think. Lots of things happen in our lives. Every little thing can change something for good or bad. I have personally found that we tend to not to see the good things that happen to us and take them for granted a lot of the time. Bad things seem much easier to see somehow. Sometimes they can be devastating.

But bad things happening can also end up in something good evolving from them. Everything that happens influences our future. Sometimes we don't know how we come to something that

has changed our lives and then we look back and realize that something very little had done that. You can look back at those things and just be grateful that they happened. I certainly do.

‚Continual Search For Origins’ is Rothko, the London based band's 6th album, and the first one to be released by the group on Too Pure records. The band features Mark Beazley (bass guitar and other instruments) as its core musician, who has  on this album collaborated with musicians from the avant-garde group Delicate AWOL. 

For the main theme of 'Continual Search for Origins', Mark has used the memories of his holidays in the small village of Origlio in Switzerland, and capturing some of the original sounds that he recorded there including rain, crickets, and church bells, has built music around them. 

The whole of this Swiss memories trip is started with ‘On The Day We Said Goodbye’ upon which guest vocalist Caroline Ross's voice is backed by cautious but passionate strums of Mark's bass guitar. In the background of the song you can also hear voices of some of the Origlio villagers that Mark had the chance to record. 

‘St. Georgio’, named after the church in Origlio village, features the ringing of bells. The following ‘Memories Of Zurich’ is  darker in tone and combines the  mysterious sound of Mark's bass with a piano. It feels like night time by the time you get to the next track ‘I Sense You Fading Away’ upon which a trumpet spreading across the darkness is broken up by the noise of a helicopter. 

Rothko’s music is full of various sounds and noises laid one over another to create a music collage. Every single one is then exposed to your attention and gives the sound its own characteristic intensity before the following one crosses it. 

The last song titled ‘Words Melt Away’ closes the album , as it was opened, with Ross's vocals. The music, however, already does the talking more then well enough across the whole album. 

I taped the CD very shortly after I got hold of it and played it on a walkman. Walking down a busy road in the rain and listening to it, I became lost in it. I was amazed at how convincing the music was and how it took me away from that road and out of my surroundings. I believe that it can  help you to find an escape as well.“

Listen and enjoy!

(Unfortunately the album is missing from the Rothko Bandcamp page, but it's worth discovering!)

https://www.discogs.com/master/48682-Rothko-A-Continual-Search-For-Origins

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