Hidden Shoal News
New Markus Mehr Track and Video – ‘Mount Devil’
Hidden Shoal is excited to present the first track lifted from Brief Conversations, the forthcoming ninth album by German experimental ambient artist Markus Mehr. ‘Mount Devil’ is available now to stream via SoundCloud with it’s accompanying video available on YouTube. Brief Conversations will see release on the 12th May 2020 in digital and cassette formats.
Brief Conversations is Markus Mehr’s ode to the acoustic properties of the spaces we listen within. High-resolution recordings of rooms acted as the source material, which Mehr then alchemically blended into mesmerising ambient environments, rich with reverberant details. As Mehr explains: “Rooms communicate with us, we can listen to them. Their vocabulary includes their interior, their architecture and their surroundings. The material and arrangement of the walls and their volume determine their resonances and the nature of their reverberation. Thus each room has its own articulation, its own acoustic fingerprint.”
As the mediator between the sounds and their spatial containers, Mehr has exposed a level of granularity we so often ignore, re-shaping the raw materials into immersive new experiences. Despite its challenging conceptual nature, the album is undeniably sensuous and hypnotic, giving up its secrets slowly but surely with repeat listens.
The music of Markus Mehr is available for licensing for film, tv, web, games and beyond via Hidden Shoal. Check here for more info.
New Rewilding Single and Music Video, Album Soon!
We’re excited to share the new single and accompanying music video from Rewilding. ‘Home Shore Highlights’ is lifted from the forthcoming Rewilding album Rain Patch, out April 10 2020 in digital and vinyl formats. Stream the track via SoundCloud, watch the video on YouTube and pre-order the album via Bandcamp,
Following on from 2017’s self-titled debut album, Rain Patch continues Rewilding’s exploration of the neglected, dusty spaces found between lo-fi indie-pop, post-rock and film soundtracks. While there are the obvious recent touchstones, such as Fridge, Beak and Olivia Tremor Control, and the less obvious, such as the soundtrack to cult 1980s sci-fi movie Liquid Sky, Rain Patch mines a primitive yet mesmerising vein of instrumental music in which process and result are intimately entwined. The songs on Rain Patch are their own ecosystems, requiring the listener to step inside to fully experience their vivid details.
This ecological analogy extends to the process of the album’s creation. In 2017 Jake McFee relocated to Glacier Bay, Alaska, where much of the album was conceived and recorded. Given the limitations of not being able to transport all the studio equipment he used on previous Rewilding music, he wrote and recorded many of the original ideas using small, portable instruments such as hand percussion, glockenspiel, acoustic guitar and mini Korg synths. The summers were spent at Glacier Bay, while winters were spent back in Philadelphia, where he was able to overdub drums and electric guitars. Between 2017 and 2019, the songs evolved into the forms heard on Rain Patch, as McFee reckoned with his experience of witnessing the pristine wilderness of Glacier Bay being transformed by climate change.
The music of Rewilding is available for licensing for film, tv, web, games and beyond via Hidden Shoal. Check here for more info.
Epic New Glanko Single Released from Forthcoming Album
Following on from his brilliant 2016 EP with Daniel Bailey, Isometrik, Glanko presents ‘Vague Hope’, the first single from his forthcoming album, Remission. ‘Vague Hope’ is an urgent and insistent piece of widescreen noir electronica, pulsing with the throb of the electrical grid. The track builds and surges throughout its 5:30 runtime, its brooding atmosphere building in intensity before ultimately reaching a moment of cathartic release. Stream the track via SoundCloud and YouTube.
“a masterclass in the use of space, poise and timing, a frail and fragile ghost light whose hypnotic lull comes teasingly shimmered in a sparse sleepy headed detailing” – The Sunday Experience on Glanko & Daniel Bailey’s ‘Isometrik’
Glanko is the musical moniker of Italian electronic composer Giuseppe Fallacara. For years, Fallacara played guitar in many bands, before beginning his explorations with electronic music in 2012. His debut album, Alset, was released in 2014. Isometrik, a joint EP with Daniel Bailey, was released on Hidden Shoal in 2016. Second solo album Osmosi was released in 2017. Remission is his third album – and his first full-length solo release for Hidden Shoal. On 22nd February 2020, Glanko will be opening for Janus Rasmussen (one half of Kiasmos with Ólafur Arnalds) at MAT Laboratorio Urbano in Terlizzi, Italy.
The music of Glanko is available for licensing for film, tv, web, games and beyond via Hidden Shoal. Check here for more info.
REW<< Twin EP Cassette Release
We’re very excited to announce the official release of Nagiere and Kuruvungna, two stunning new EPs from US artist REW<<. Both EPs are available as limited edition cassette and digital release through Katuktu Collective and Hidden Shoal.
REW<< (Ryan Weber) follows up the release of May’s Salix Babylonica EP with two further neo-classical EPs of exquisite poise. Like the sound of post-ambient duo A Winged Victory for the Sullen unfurling in time-lapse, each EP feels like a melancholic soundtrack to an unseen nature documentary, wistful, mesmeric and full of detail. Rather than aiming for expansiveness, the discreet and patient nature of each track makes its own subtle yet profound gestures, creating a set of miniature interconnected ecosystems that reward close listening.
REW<< is the solo moniker of Ryan E. Weber, who originally hails from the Western shores of Lake Michigan. His previous bands include Camden, The Promise Ring and Decibully, and he is one half of dream-pop duo Eric & Magill. Working on Eric & Magill releases while living in both Kenya and the Republic of Armenia, Weber collaborated over the internet with a host of notable contemporary indie artists, including members of Shearwater, The Dirty Projectors, Owen, Volcano Choir and The Delgados.
The music of REW<< is available for licensing for film, tv, web, games and beyond via Hidden Shoal. Check here for more info.
New REW<< Single + Music Video
We’re excited to present ‘Jonquil’, the first single from “Nageire”, one of two forthcoming EPs from REW<<. The track is available to stream via SoundCloud and it’s accompanying music video can be streamed via YouTube. The Nagiere and Kuruvungna EPs will see cassette and digital release on 3rd December 2019 through Katuktu Collective and Hidden Shoal with pre-orders available now.
REW<< (Ryan Weber) follows up the release of May’s Salix Babylonica EP with two further neo-classical EPs of exquisite poise. Like the sound of post-ambient duo A Winged Victory for the Sullen unfurling in time-lapse, each EP feels like a melancholic soundtrack to an unseen nature documentary, wistful, mesmeric and full of detail. Rather than aiming for expansiveness, the discreet and patient nature of each track makes its own subtle yet profound gestures, creating a set of miniature interconnected ecosystems that reward close listening.
“I definitely have a soft spot in my heart for artists releasing music on the Perth, Australia based label Hidden Shoal. They seem to find artists creating music on the periphery of ambient and neo-classical that melts with a certain kind of sweetness and gentleness. REW<< is certainly no exception, built around a looped piano line and vinyl, analog sounding drones -the main melodic through line of “Sonoran” is a beautiful piece of sepia-tinged nostalgia. Wonderful stuff from this artist and label.” – Tome to the Weather Machine
The music of REW<< is available for licensing for film, tv, web, games and beyond via Hidden Shoal. Check here for more info.
New Moonchy & Tobias Music Video
We’re excited to present the music video for ‘Lo Sguardo’ from Moonchy & Tobias. The track is lifted from Atmosfere, the stunning second album by the cross-continental art-rock duo. The video, produced by Budano Lino, is available now via YouTube. Atmosfere is out through Tiny Room Records and Hidden Shoal and is available via Bandcamp and all the usual suspects including Spotify.
“A journey through the most diverse, beautiful musical landscapes” – Dark Life Experience on Moonchy & Tobias
After the exhilarating psychedelic ride of their acclaimed debut, Moonchy & Tobias’s new album Atmosfere is more subdued and subtly intoxicating. Multi-instrumentalist Todd Tobias has crafted a series of bright, labyrinthine soundscapes within which vocalist Pat Moonchy luxuriantly weaves. While the songs on their debut were sung in an imaginary language, here Moonchy sings in her native Italian. Atmosfere feels like a sun-dappled morning after Moonchy & Tobias’s intoxicating dark night of the soul. It’s the perfect companion – but also a succinct and compelling stand-alone that is as beautiful as it is mysterious.
As always this music is available for licensing for film, tv, games and more through Hidden Shoal.
New REW<< Single, Twin EP Cassette Release in December
We’re excited to present ‘Sonoran’, the first single from Kuruvungna, one of two forthcoming EPs from US artist REW<<. The track can be streamed via SoundCloud and it’s accompanying video can be veiwed via YouTube. The Nagiere and Kuruvungna EPs will see cassette and digital release on 3rd December 2019 through Katuktu Collective and Hidden Shoal with pre-orders available now.
REW<< (Ryan Weber) follows up the release of May’s Salix Babylonica EP with two further neo-classical EPs of exquisite poise. Like the sound of post-ambient duo A Winged Victory for the Sullen unfurling in time-lapse, each EP feels like a melancholic soundtrack to an unseen nature documentary, wistful, mesmeric and full of detail. Rather than aiming for expansiveness, the discreet and patient nature of each track makes its own subtle yet profound gestures, creating a set of miniature interconnected ecosystems that reward close listening.
REW<< is the solo moniker of Ryan E. Weber, who originally hails from the Western shores of Lake Michigan. His previous bands include Camden, The Promise Ring and Decibully, and he is one half of dream-pop duo Eric & Magill. Working on Eric & Magill releases while living in both Kenya and the Republic of Armenia, Weber collaborated over the internet with a host of notable contemporary indie artists, including members of Shearwater, The Dirty Projectors, Owen, Volcano Choir and The Delgados.
The music of REW<< is available for licensing for film, tv, web, games and beyond via Hidden Shoal. Check here for more info.
Moonchy & Tobias “Atmosfere” Album and New Video Release
Atmosfere, the stunning second album by art-rock duo Moonchy & Tobias has now officially entered the world. The album is out now through Tiny Room Records and Hidden Shoal and is available via Bandcamp and all the usual suspects including Spotify. To coincide with the release we also have the wonderful new music video by Italian artist Alice Murace for the album track ‘Pioggia e sale’. Stream the video via YouTube.
“A journey through the most diverse, beautiful musical landscapes” – Dark Life Experience on Moonchy & Tobias
After the exhilarating psychedelic ride of their acclaimed debut, Moonchy & Tobias’s new album Atmosfere is more subdued and subtly intoxicating. Multi-instrumentalist Todd Tobias has crafted a series of bright, labyrinthine soundscapes within which vocalist Pat Moonchy luxuriantly weaves. While the songs on their debut were sung in an imaginary language, here Moonchy sings in her native Italian. Atmosfere feels like a sun-dappled morning after Moonchy & Tobias’s intoxicating dark night of the soul. It’s the perfect companion – but also a succinct and compelling stand-alone that is as beautiful as it is mysterious.
As always this music is available for licensing for film, tv, games and more through Hidden Shoal.
New Single And Japanese Tour for The World of Dust
In celebration of their upcoming tour in Japan, we’re excited to present the new single and music video from The World of Dust. The music video, produced by Stefan Breuer, is a whimsical montage of collages and landscape videos made in Norway & Sweden in the summer of 2019. The track is lifted from Samsara, available now via Tiny Room Records.
THE WORLD OF DUST JAPAN TOUR 2019:
05-oct-2019: Give Me Little More, 松本 Matsumoto
06-oct-2019: Space Eauuu, 神戸 Kobe
07-oct-2019: K.D.Japon, 名古屋 Nagoya
09-oct-2019: Hard Rain, 大阪 Osaka
10-oct-2019: Toonice, 高松 Takamatsu
11-oct-2019: Space O92, 広島 Hiroshima
12-oct-2019: Home, 渋谷 Shibuya, Tokyo
Samsara is effectively a full-length collaboration between The World of Dust’s Stefan Breuer and Todd Tobias (Guided by Voices, Robert Pollard, Circus Devils). Previously contributing keyboard arrangements for 2015’s World of Dust album Womb Realm, Tobias created all the instrumental backdrops for Samsara’s evocative songs. A shadowy universe of forlorn beauty, this lo-fi bedroom pop experiment is shrouded in elemental imagery and laden with ennui. Intimate and wistful, Samsara mines a similarly rich emotive seam to Norwegian slowcore legends The White Birch.
The process for Samsara saw Tobias send Breuer 26 instrumental ideas, from which Breuer chose those which resonated with him most. Over the course of nearly two years, Breuer wrote and refined an especially personal suite of lyrics, reflecting his struggles with his mental health and his experience of becoming a father. The result is World of Dust’s most fully realised and vivid album to date.
All tracks from Samsara as well as the music of Todd Tobias is available for licensing for film, tv, web, games and beyond via Hidden Shoal. Check here for more info.
“By any other Name” RTRFM Feature Album and Interview
The sublime new Hidden Shoal remix compilation, By any other name, is this week’s RTRFM local feature album! Tracks will be featured on a range of shows across the week so be sure to tune in. Be sure to also check out the wonderful interview at the station with Ben Da Cruz and Sue Summers on the processes and ideas behind the album. The album is available now as a free download via Bandcamp and to stream via Spotify and SoundCloud.
For By any other name, Hidden Shoal invited a number of emerging Perth artists to rework a selection of tracks from the label’s catalogue. With 11 artists reimagining tracks by Target Archery, Erik Nilsson, Glanko & Daniel Bailey, Summon the Birds, Chloe March and Isophene, what’s most striking about By any other name is both the expansive nature of the individual tracks, and the cohesiveness of the overall listening experience.
By any other name features remixes by Boy In Nature, Austy, Alexi, Michael Tyrie, Sue Summers, Ryan Jose, Daniel Zinetti, Crier, Cron, Shane Isard and JW. Boy In Nature infuses the languid tones of Target Archery’s ‘Opium Den’ with an effervescent buoyancy. On Michael Tyrie’s reimagining of Summon the Birds’ ‘Tactile Hallucination’, the structure of the song is inverted, with the epic climax acting as a cinematic scene-setter. Cron’s re-envisioning of Glanko & Bailey’s ambient masterpiece ‘Adiaphora’ injects the original with urgency without losing its sense of grandeur. And Daniel Zinetti’s brilliant deconstruction of Chloe March’s ‘Old Tree Mon Coeur’ breaks the original into a thousand pieces and then ejects them into space.
As always this music is available for licensing for film, tv, games and more through Hidden Shoal.