Foxy Digitalis Daily is rolling over on Patreon today. Consider checking that out. Plus, a reminder that The Jewel Garden has two new releases out as of last Friday – Peak Eloquence and Wet Bear. Lots of fun over there. Smaller Capsule Garden today as it’s the last full week of summer vacation before my kid goes back to school, and it’s already been busy as hell. So I’ll keep this short and give you a few gems to ingest.
Yungwebster s/t (sferic)
Sometimes floating in a crystalline river of washed-out neon syrup is all that’s needed to fade into nothingness. Yungwebster’s debut fuses ambient electronics and rap in an utterly beguiling and hypnotic way. Auto-tuned vocals glide across lush pads and minimalist beats, feeling disembodied and fleeting. He splits the difference between sentimentality and innovation to create something that’s both future-forward and timeless. Melodies pop out from between laid-back cadence, Yungwebster’s drawing out his delivery and blending into the sonic clouds. Bliss lurks in every corner whether it’s hi-hats tip-toeing through transient synths or momentary joy. It’s an absolute killer and one I can’t stop listening to. Highest possible recommendation.
Maria W Horn & Vilhelm Bromander Earthward Arcs (Warm Winters Ltd.)
Earthward Arcs pulls us in multiple directions simultaneously, imbuing gravitational drones with changing textures and spirited emotional undercurrents. Bromander’s double bass technique is dissected and reformed through unseen matrices, growing from gentle harmonic blooms to massive, turbulent thunderheads on the title track. These algorithmically-generated vignettes are a reflective sonic painting morphed into oblivion. “Mycelial Bloom” has a concrete elegance, the immersive resonance feeling like an immovable force. The slow-motion movements of the piece increase its emotional impact, and each extended note is a world unto itself. An incredible and daunting piece of work.
UFOm Aliens Are Real (Moon Glyph)
Aliens Are Real is the perfect title for UFOm’s debut because this album is transitory and otherworldly. Complex synth patterns emerge from a hazy cloud, traveling both outward toward a distant horizon and inward, pulling our thoughts into some place more introspective. Emotive leads dance in the margins surrounded by lush harp arrangements and warm, resonating chord progressions. Layered movements drip through every sonic crevice and build on each other to create engaging, intricate spaces where colors count to infinity. A real sense of wonder permeates each melodic stretch, like an unerring belief in the healing magic of sound and the power of this music. Along lush, skyward paths, Aliens Are Real ascends. Wonderful.
DRAPIZDAT МИФ (Not Not Fun)
Fourth-world crystals fuse together with mirrored surfaces, creating an endless array of reality-bending aural imagery. Rhythmic progressions glide across opaque timbres. Imaginary landscapes hold the secrets to another astral plane, but DRAPIZDAT hollows out the ambient flow to reveal an immersive framework. Looping patterns skew the mood and add a whimsical air to the bouncing notes and ambient stretches. Aqueous gloss washes over a wild series of frenetic rhythms and tropic-infused percussion heightening the otherworldly feel of this album. МИФ gets lost in star signs and expressive harmonics, building maze after maze of transitory sonic wonder. It’s such an amazing trip.
Alina Sánchez Virus-Infection / Anti-virus-Dream Catcher (Engram)
Electronic patterns move in off-kilter rhythms, their alignment teetering on a shifting axis allowing melodies to sparkle and evaporate. Alina Sánchez stitches each component together with unexpected ephemerality. Her aim with this music is to explore “the dark side of cyberspace and computer viruses,” and through each cryptic pattern, unease grows. Constant movement and repetition fuel the hypnosis and keep listeners engaged. There’s a starkness to these sounds and the way they’re layered together that feels restless and exposed.
Mariano Rodriguez y Ezequiel Montivero Amigo Perro (Self-Released)
Dueling guitars trace the lines on a secret map, charting timeless melodies with a sense of ease and purpose. Mariano Rodriguez has such a calm spirit woven into his playing that it’s infectious, and joined by Ezequiel Montivero, a more expansive landscape opens. The duo holds their shape with a gentle cadence riding along the horizon line before disappearing. Added instrumentation adds whimsy, building different textures and rhythms from wind instruments, percussion, and shruti box. Amigo Perro lights an eternal sonic fire before waltzing into the distance. Beautiful.
Al Karpenter & CIA Debutante s/t (ever/never)
Sucked into a black hole and jettisoned into the underbelly of a decaying world, Al Karpenter and CIA Debutante pile bones in the corner and make them sing. Feedback shards slice Vega-ist vocals into ghosts while beats go caustic, evaporating into dust caked on broken scaffolding. Minimalist palettes laugh at the void, echoing desolation blues through a stochastic minefield. Slow-burning intensities fill the emptiness with electronic fuel, putting the guitar’s churning drones in a neverending chokehold. Plus, “Medieval Cocaine” is one of the best song titles ever.
harmash resonant scapes (Self-Released)
There is so much great music coming out of Lithuania right now and this collection of glassine, ambient miniatures is another example. Seven improvisations for modular synthesizer full of erratic, looping melodies and shades of whimsical exploration. Vitali Harmash concocts moments of buoyancy, joy, and reflection. Arpeggios throw sequenced blips into an ethereal soup, rippling sonic waves into the darkest corners. Our spirits effervesce and wander through flickering soundscapes tinted by buried disquiet, searching for points of rapture.
Foxy Digitalis depends on our awesome readers to keep things rolling. Pledge your support today via our Patreon or subscribe to The Jewel Garden.
