Presenting ... Spring Chimes (waag_159) by Fabio Keiner

 

Spring is finally here in Scotland ... the May blossom has come and gone, leaving pink and white confetti in the streets ... and the sun doesn’t set until after 9pm.

With this in mind I present the latest release from Fabio Keiner, “Spring Chimes (waag_rel159) ... a four-part ep that brings to mind the intoxicating sound of wind chimes swaying and making their music in the wind.

The short opening track, “Morning Chimes”, captures the scattered random nature of chimes ... an entrancing sound that distills the nature of chimes.

We then have “Spring Chimes I” ... a truly entrancing longform ambient track that presents a soundscape of ethereal beauty and otherworldliness where musical notes dance off on the horizon.

The penultimate track, “Storm Warning”, has a mysterious Lovecraftian air about it ... there is a sense of cyclopian vistas and being in places that have not been visited in aeons ... think Dyer and Danforth in Kadath in the Cold Waste. It is utterly intoxicating.

The last track, “Spring Chimes II”, is another longer-form piece, this time with an atmospheric feel that is very much in keeping with “Storm Warning”.

All in, I really enjoyed this ep from Fabio Keiner and hope you will too.

- Thomas

Presenting ... My Tribute to Jeanne (waag_rel158)

There are those among us who show what giving is. Jeanne gave of her heart, mind, and spirit. I am forever grateful.
- Allen Pitts

"My Tribute to Jeanne (waag_rel158)" is a reflective EP that allows Allen Pitts to document his feelings towards his dear friend and provide some sense of closure after her untimely passing. It is a very personal recording for Allen and one I am proud to share here on weareallghosts.

The opening track “Into The Light” is a melodic synth and piano piece ... a gentle, introspective number that delights me as a listener with its warmth.

We then move to the irresistibly titled “Jeanne's Jam” with its infectious instrumentation and catchy rhythm that had me thinking of the title to “Thirty-something” (a soundtrack I love and listen to regularly). The guitar on this piece is so wonderfully upbeat and, dare I say it, jolly ... it is a joyful recollection of Jeanne and all the good times that Allen has simply jamming away with her.

“Free” moves in another direction altogether from the joyful upbeat to a more reflective, almost sacred, synth-driven otherworldliness that gives way to melancholic piano before a rhythm section bursts in to ground the piece. You can almost sense Jeanne going ... “what’s this, Allen? I want upbeat!” ... and Allen delivers whilst still retaining a sense of his sadness in her passing. It is a longer, more complex track but one that has a sense of freedom to it ... a celebratory track for a life well lived.

The EP then ends with “Signs and Wonders” with its gentle synths and melancholic piano before more vibrant rhythms burst forth to ground the piece. This is a fitting end to the EP with its passionate playing and inventive soundscaping ... it leaves you wanting more.

I hope you enjoy it as much as I have.

- Thomas

Presenting ... Old Stones (waag_rel157) by Cousin Silas

“Old Stones (waag_rel157)” by Cousin Silas is an album of immense beauty that is inspired by the old stones of Scotland and the myths and legends that surround them.

The album consists of two longform tracks that have an ethereal magic about them:

The first track, “Sunrise on Clach an Trushal”, captures that liminal period between what was and what is to become ... it conveys this misty twilight otherworldliness in a manner that enthralled and captivated me when I first listened to it.

The second track, “Sunset on Tomnaverie”, whilst also capturing a period of change, is a more measured piece of ambient brilliance ... it so eloquently articulates a day that is nearly over with the anticipation of period of rest.

Within both tracks Cousin Silas has sought to bring forward sonic elements inspired by old stones: the suggestion of Celtic vocals in “Sunrise ...” and gentle strings and vocals in “Sunset ...” and does so with grace and ease ... nothing feels forced, everything is as it should be.

And that is this album in a nutshell: everything is as it should be ... especially Cousin Silas who is back at WAAG, his second home.

I am honoured to release “Old Stones (waag_rel157)” by Cousin Silas and hope you find the joy I have found in escaping the here and now for places of immense, awe-inspiring beauty.

- Thomas

Presenting ... Dronescape 050 (waag_drs050) by Cousin Silas

It is a bittersweet moment for today marks the release of the 50th and last dronescape from Cousin Silas.

And, as always, it is a fitting addition to his dronescape collection and the weareallghost canon.

But it is the last of the series.

We released the first one in January, 2013 ... and I have been guilty of eeeking them out, trying to make the last ... 049 was released a year ago in February, 2023.

And so, an 11-year series comes to an end ... and I am both delighted and gutted:

Delighted because Cousin Silas took an idea I proposed to him and made happen ... and that idea, to take longform ambient and make it “Silasy”, has been so well received throughout the eleven years that the series has been going. For some, the Dronescapes ARE their viewpoint of Cousin Silas’ music and that delights me because I make no secret of being a huge fan myself.

Gutted because we’ve reached the end of the road with the Dronescape series ... there was only ever going to be fifty.

But what a way to finish the series and what a series that we have been given!

Dronescape 050 is a wonderfully brooding affair ... one that feels like the soundscape to the exploration of a far-off world. It is a track alive with possibility that fills me, as the listener, with anticipation as I take each imagined step.

This is one for the imagination ... it isn’t really a track that can be passively consumed, rather it is to be enjoyed in all its otherworldly glory.

I have said it before and will say it again ... I really do hope you find enjoyment in this piece. This is because I do. From the first listen, I found this piece to be deliciously engaging ... it is one for the headphones and maybe one too many coffees.

Who knows what will come next ... Cousin Silas has hinted of something new in the skunkworks.

I cannot wait for what is to come but, for now, I am content with this and the other forty nine Dronescapes ... and marvel at the 60-plus hours of longform ambient music that Cousin Silas has produced.

Please Note:
weareallghosts is funded through the money we receive for albums and dronescapes such as this. For us to realistically continue we need to levy a small charge for some of our releases. Please help out by buying the dronescape.

Presenting ... all​|​is​|​bright_2023 (waag_COM006) by various artists

When I was dreaming out loud with Cousin Silas about the future of waag, back in November, I mentioned about curating another Christmas / Winter compilation. He loved the idea and was the first to provide a track. I asked a few others and their encouragement and their support for the idea was evident ... so I set the wheels in motion and here we are.

all|is|bright_2023 is inspired by the all|is|calm series that Brad used to curate over on his netlabel, FreeFloating, and features (for the most part) some gentle ambient music that is ideally suited for the Icelandic tradition of Jolabokaflod, or Christmas book flood, where people give each other books of Christmas Eve and spend the day reading.

We have 20 tracks featuring some old friends of WAAG like Colin Blake, Christopher Alvarado, George L Smyth, Jaime Munárriz, and everybody’s favourite cousin, Cousin Silas ... and new (to WAAG) voices too like Ali Kilpatrick, Lezet, In Vitro, Theofil Tsiolakakis aka Mean Flow all the way from Thessaloniki, Greece; and the wonderfully entitled WHΛLTHISИEY aka Fernando Cerqueira.

The majority of the tracks feature gentle ambient such as “Quiet Night” by Ambi Case, Coolambient’s “Untrodden Snow”, and an absolute beauty by Kevin Buckland entitled “031223”.

We have new music from Fabio Keiner with “Midwinter Song” and “Humbled” by Sergio Mariani, new and old friends of WAAG respectively ... along with tracks from Allen Pitts (“Moonlit Snow”) and Brian M Talgo (“Bliss”) that fit the bill perfectly.

We also have “Mimicked Notion #3” by The Next Commuter, which blew me away, if I can be honest? I hope to work more with Hans Thomas in the new year and would love to have some new music from him to present from WAAG ... that’s my Christmas wish anyway!

A few of the tracks provide some added sparkle to the compilation that may not fall within the definition of “gentle ambient” but who am I to gatekeep? Christopher Alvarado’s “Mend” is synthy gorgeousness and a long awaited return from him. Wilfried Hanrath, another old friend of WAAG, actually submitted three tracks but “Eternally” fit the bill albeit it may wake you up if you are starting to dose off ... and “The Flickering Glows Of Luminous Matter” by Jaime Munárriz is another wonderful piece of electronica that certainly got me listening when I heard it.

I shouldn’t have favourites ... and I don’t! But I will point you in the direction of “Coventry Carol Emmanuel” by Nicole Anderson & Scott Lawlor with my last mention. The combination of harp and Scott’s trademark gentle drones is exquisite ... it is the Angel on top of a beautifully dressed Christmas tree.

My huge thanks to Ali Kilpatrick, Christopher Alvarado, Lezet, Wilfried Hanrath, In Vitro, Ambi Case, George L Smyth, Jaime Munárriz, WHΛLTHISИEY, Coolambient, Fabio Keiner, The Next Commuter, Sergio Mariani, Nicole Anderson & Scott Lawlor, Mean Flow, Allen Pitts, Colin Blake, Brian M Talgo (for his track and for the cover image) Kevin Buckland, and Cousin Silas, who was there for me when I needed him ... and if that’s not what Christmas is all about then nothing is.

To keep the cheer going into the New Year ... all proceeds from this compilation will be donated to a local Scottish charity that works with the homeless. More details to follow.

However you celebrate this time of year ... may this album bring you some peace and hopefully some joy at this time.

Thank you.

- Thomas

Note: there are gaps between some of the tracks. I have deliberately left them in to enhance the peaceful nature of compilation.

Presenting ... Beyond Horizon (waag_rrl016) by Fabio Keiner

Fabio Keiner is a patient man. He first broached the idea of rereleasing “Beyond Horizon” a number of months ago and, with this and that, it is only now that I can proudly present to you his wonderfully gentle and intriguing opus.

“Beyond Horizon” features six disparate tracks that somehow make a cohesive whole ... these tracks are the kind of “space music” that got me into ambient music all those years ago. The kind of gentle, unhurried ambient music that feels vast and spacious ... music that paints vivid pictures in your mind of open spaces of the cyclopean kind that Lovecraft regularly spoke of.

I hope you enjoy this piece from Fabio as much as I do ... and, with any luck, we may hear more from him in the future.

Grazie mille Fabio!

- Thomas

Presenting ... Advent (waag_aa003) by Allen Pitts

We've done this kind of thing before ... back in 2015, with the help of Stephen Briggs, we released music to help you celebrate the run up to Christmas Day ... and it was my intention to do the same in 2023 with the help of Allen Pitts.

We were going to release one track in each of the four Sundays in December to give you something to mediate on during the Advent time as you focussed on Christmas Day ... if that was your sort of thing.

That was until I heard the music Allen had sent me.

Advent (waag_aa003) by Allen Pitts contains four gentle ambient pieces that are intended to give the listener a sense of peace, to provide a moment of rest in what can be an otherwise busy time. When I heard them, I just knew they had to be released together, rather than weekly.

Regardless of how you celebrate this period, I hope these pieces will give you a sense of that peace.

Please take some time out of your day over the next four weeks to listen to the music Allen has prepared and consider how you can bring light, your light, to the dark corners of this world.

Any monies raised from this release will be donated to charity.

- Thomas