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

Presenting ... Night Trek (waag_rel156) by Allen Pitts

For every season in one's life there is a journey to be made. Sometimes the journey is by choice, sometimes by chance. The music that is being shared in this collection is a representation of both the chances and the choices of the last two years.

We can look forward to the journey, though the way seems dark, for there are stars overhead and the hope of a new day ahead. Remember the promise: and it came to pass...

- Allen Pitts

When Allen explained the concept of his latest album, I was immediately onboard ... I had a field recording that would work and shared it with him.

But then he asked me to contribute further with some spoken word ... and I was "errr ok" ... we have extensive wooded areas near my home and I envisioned walking there.

It took me about ten takes to get it right but I think it works in the context of what Allen is trying to convey ... the preparation and the movement of the journey.

I welcome this album from Allen and hope it brings you joy.

- Thomas

Presenting ... Hymns Under An Open Sky (waag_rel155) by Allen Pitts

Several years ago, I had the opportunity to travel to Great Britain. The eleven days of dashing about and trying to visit the historic sites of three Countries became my "Castles and Cathedrals Tour". Upon returning to the US, I had time to think about the thousands of years of culture I was made deeply aware of.

This collection of music is inspired by thoughts of both the beginnings and enduring remnants of worship in Britannia. The places where land, sea, and sky inspired the sharing of faith. It is my hope that you find moments of peace and joy as you listen.

- Allen

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I'll be honest with you ... I've been harassing Allen Pitts for a while now to release an album with weareallghosts. I am a huge fan of his music, especially his collaborations with our Cousin Silas, and have been for a long time ... and felt that he needed to release an album ... he needed to get his music out into the world for everyone to hear.

"Hymns under an open sky (waag_rel155)" is an intriguing proposition ... a collection of ambient recordings that were inspired by a visit Allen made to various places and spaces in Great Britain ... these liminal spaces are associated with early Christianity with some ... Lindisfarne, Iona, Whitby ... earning their place as a title on the album.

Allen somehow manages to capture the magic of these places ... his tracks are infused with a sense of atmosphere and convey the feeling of being somewhere special ... the feeling of awe that we can all experience, whether we subscribe to a particular faith or not. And he has used this to create exceptional soundscapes that I easily found myself lost in.

That is my hope for you ... that you'll get lost in these tracks ... and you'll find something, some small part of the awe that Allen felt ... and it will bring you joy.

- Thomas

Presenting ... Silence Your Heart (waag_rrl015) by Brother Saturn

 

credits

Drew Brady aka Brother Saturn, one of the stalwarts of weareallghosts, is back on waag with a new album entitled "Silence Your Heart".

Featuring their easily recognisable deeply layered, looped and manipulated guitar, "Silence Your Heart" is another wonderful example of how Drew continues to grow as an ambient musician.

The soundscapes on this recording are an absolute delight, they are emotive and considered, and evidently crafted with care and intent by Drew.

The inspiration for the album came from an intensely emotional period for Drew ... as they said, when we were discussing the release, sometimes you need to silence your heart and listen to your brain to get through things.

"Silence Your Heart" has been near the top of my listening rotation since Drew released it on his own Bandcamp page - brothersaturn.bandcamp.com/album/silence-your-heart - on February 3rd ... and I am proud to release it here on waag with an exclusive bonus track, "A Story Of Storied Stories", a 9-minute opus that is very much in keeping with the sound of waag.

I am grateful to Drew for entrusting this album to waag and giving us a wee exclusive ... I hope you find this album as rewarding as I have.

- Thomas

PS: this album will not be released on our Archive page

Presenting ... Dronescape 049 (waag_drs049) by Cousin Silas

I am delighted to present the 49th dronescape from Cousin Silas ... another fitting addition to his dronescape collection and the weareallghost canon. 

Cousin Silas has been a true constant through the nearly eleven years waag has been in existence and it is always brilliant to receive one of his dronescapes "in the post". I get as excited now as I did back in the day when I received the first in what is a truly mammoth collection of longform audio. 

I have said it before and will say it again ... I really do hope you find solace in this piece. This is because I do. From the first listen, I found this piece to have a calming effect on my mind ... a delightfully harmonic oasis that gives me well needed respite from the busy-ness of my working day. 

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