MIXTAPES
Ambient. Experimental. Soundscape. New Age. Chill Out. Nature Sounds. Neo Classical. Post Rock. Psychedelic. Drone. IDM. Acoustic Folk. Ambient Techno. Micro Sound. Spa. Indie Electronic. Ambient Dub. Noise. Dark Ambient. Sound Art. Trip Hop. SFX. Soundtrack. Jazz. Classic Rock. Beyond.
What began as a hobby in the winter of 2011 has continued to be one of my favorite ways to share the music I love. Back then my mixtapes were built simply with quick transitions, and they played out like a standard DJ mix. Slowly they evolved to contain more and more original field recordings and now more closely resemble a studio album. Scroll down to take a chronological tour of many of the mixes I have released over the last nine years. Each has a brief description, a link for streaming, info on genre/mood, and key tracks for further listening.
An Overview of Plant Life [2020]
Created while in COVID quarantine, this expansive mix is 60+ minutes of relaxing tones, drones, and hypnotic patterns to self isolate with. This project is geared for quiet reflection, and the track selection focuses on gentler pieces that play out like the soundtrack for a vintage nature documentary.
In addition to a mostly brand-new batch of experimental ambient favorites, I mixed in many unreleased field recordings of water sources, as well as audio of vintage nature docs.
Genres/Moods: Neo Classical, Drone, Soundtrack, Isolation, Vintage Documentary
Key Tracks: Brian Eno “Kites”, Stars of the Lid “Dust Breeding”, Woob “Odonna”
Streaming on Soundcloud.
Let Some Air In [2020]
Another “quarantine” mix, this one subtly incorporates more percussion and track diversity than “An Overview of Plant Life”. Whether curling up in front of a hi fi system with the world shut out, or deep inside a pair of good headphones - I would say nearly all of my long-form mixes are designed for isolated listening experiences. I try to bring the outside world into the layers of ambient drone by burying field recordings into all my works.
This mix is actually two separate practice sessions for my set at BAK DØR’s (now permanently postponed) 4YR Reunion party. Each section presents a slightly different mood and landscape (you can just make out the fade from one to the other around the 31 minute mark).
GenresMoods: Experimental Ambient, Ambient Dub, Post Rock, IDM, Isolation, Quarantine
Key Tracks: Boards of Canada “Slow This Bird Down”, Sun Electric “Every Now and Then”, Blondes ‘Spanish Fly”
Streaming on Soundcloud
A Vision I Once Had [2019]
This is one of a select few mixes I would classify as a “studio” mix. This classification means I spent several months editing every facet the listener hears, much like one may do with an album. I try to average roughly one of these a year, each examining ambient music through a different lens.
Brighter in mood and instrumentation than most recent projects, "A Vision I Once Had" soundtracks memories of California to nearly an hour of surf-soaked ambient piano. Right from the opening collage of sounds the listener is immersed in a subtly shifting landscape of relaxing drones atop layers of original field recordings.
Genres/Moods: Ambient Piano, Neo Classical, Minimalism, Nostalgia, Travelogue, Luxurious
Key Tracks: Wolfgang Voigt “Rückverzauberung 10 Nationalpark”, Markus Guentner “Das Vergessene”, Function + Vatican Shadow “Things Unknown”
Streaming on Soundcloud
Slow Dreaming [2019]
This was recorded in March 2019 as a rehearsal for the BAK DØR 3YR anniversary party in Detroit. I pulled tracks from a brand new folder of material assembled just for this performance. There is a blend of newer contemporary artists (Ant'lrd, Blondes, Bibio), influential mainstays (The KLF, Loscil), and icons (Eno, Aphex Twin). Tying everything together is the underlying procession of found and repurposed sound samples and original field recordings.
Genres/Moods: Experimental Ambient, Ambient House, Psychedelic, Daydreaming, Chill Out
Key Tracks: Loscil “Prairie Trains”, Cluster & Eno “Ho Renomo”, The KLF “3 AM Somewhere out of Beaumont”
Streaming on Mixcloud
Interviews with Astronauts [2018]
This “studio” mix was originally conceived and recorded in the fall and winter of 2017. I had recently seen really intense shows by artists like Lustmord, Aaron Dilloway (Wolf Eyes), and Alessandro Cortini. This exposure to more physical styles of ambient is definitely on display here. Also, autumn always make me think about creating Halloween soundtracks and drives me towards darker textures and creepy samples.
Conceptually, the mix picks up in the dark voids of deep space and is (so far) my darkest, bleakest release. Designed for good headphones, nearly every second is layered in a web of original field recordings or little bits I have repurposed.
Genres/Moods: Dark Ambient, Noise, Lo Fi Ambient, Ambient Techno, Scary, Nocturnal
Key Tracks: House in the Woods “Dark Lanterns”, GAS “Zauberberg IV”, Casino Versus Japan “Pan”
Streaming on Soundcloud
Metamorph Podcast 008 [2018]
This 81 minute mix was carefully constructed for Brooklyn based label/promoter Metamorph. A showcase for many of the influences who got me into field recordings and experimental ambient, the overall mood is dark & psychedelic. There are two independent components - a DJ-styled top layer pieced together from several rehearsal sessions - as well as an underlying bed of sounds including many of my own.
Genres/Moods: Dark Ambient, Downtempo, Chill Out, IDM, Ambient House
Key Tracks: Windy & Carl “Surfacing”, Grouper “Alien Observer”, The Orb “Plateau (Live Orb ‘93)”
Steaming via Metamorph’s Soundcloud
1YR Promo Mini Mix [2017]
In preparation for the 1YR reunion party at Grenadier Club I curated a promotional mini mix to preview my set for that evening. Picking right up where those unpredictable RØM2 sets left off, the soundscape molds several genres of downtempo music with original field recordings. The track selection hints at several different moods and directions without ever settling down. The mix has three separate levels: samples from some of my favorite ambient tracks, field recordings, and vocals sourced from youtube clips.
Lending the mix a subtle narrative reaching back to the early 20th century - I have edited in a constantly shifting layer of voices including Pearl Harbor radio updates, Titanic survivor interviews, and audio from the old Disney version of “Alice and Wonderland” (among others).
Genres/Moods: Experimental Soundtrack, Musique Concrete, Drone, Ambient House, Chill Out, Playful
Key Tracks: Steve Hauschildt “Same River Twice”, Huerco S. “Kraanvogel”, The Orb “Plateau”
Streaming on Soundcloud
Crater Mapping: Atlas of an Exoplanet Terrain [2016]
An eerie and desolate journey into an alien landscape, this was my first mix dedicated to the darker realms of ambient music. Through careful track selection, avant-garde mixing techniques, and a wealth of spacey sound effects, the mood is heavy, dense, and consistently evolving. No fewer than 53 separate artists are sampled and included in just over 61 minutes, resulting in a rich tapestry where at any moment 2-3 different tracks may be blended into one monolithic drone.
"Crater Mapping" is a sonic representation of the process of examining the surface of an exoplanet (a planet circling a star that is not our Sun, nearest ones suspected at 5-10 light-years away). Whereas most space soundtracks have followed the 2001: A Space Odyssey model of pairing classical music with graceful images of shuttles flying through space, this project focuses on the actual dirty work of wandering around dark craters & collecting data
Beneath the primary layer of dark ambient tracks sits a pool of sound sourced from my collection of recordings as well as clips from NASA's trove of electromagnetic vibration "sound" captured in space. To add to the otherworldly atmosphere, any sounds from Earth have all been dipped into a vat of liquid metal to distort their origins.
Genres/Moods: Dark Ambient, Soundscape, Soundtrack, Post Rock, Psych Rock, Anxiety
Key Tracks: Max Richter “Infra 3”, Lustmord “Heresy V”, Vladislav Delay “Viisari”
Streaming on Soundcloud
Last Glowing Embers [2014]
Without a specific theme or concept, this project has a much more open-ended disposition, lending itself to any listening environment you choose. With no set narrative to focus attention to, I instead dove inwards, burying layer after layer of sound into thick atmospheres before dissolving into the next movement (the continuous 49 minute piece is designed to slowly transform from one moment to the next, blurring the vanishing point of where any particular sample ends or begins).
There are moments that veer close to classical music, while other sections neatly summarize several sounds I had been chasing. Ranging from subliminal to loud-and-clear, nearly every moment contains field recordings captured on either a Tascam hand-held device or a Crown P-SASS stereo mic (this is noticeable from the opening seconds as a stone skips from the left to right side of the mix).
This project was edited for nearly 3 months towards lulling the listener into a false sense of calm before disrupting expectations with something like low bass rumbles or loud scrapes of Gregorian chanting.
Genres/Moods: Neo Classical, New Age, Post Rock, Introspection,
Key Tracks: Biosphere “The Seal and the Hydrophone, Daniel Kobialka "Blue Spirals", Sigur Ros “Staralflur”
Streaming on Soundcloud
5,000 Fathoms to the Bottom of the Sea [2013]
"5,000 Fathoms" was the first project where I saw the results of laboring for 2-3 months over a single mix. I also wanted this to be the biggest mix I had yet created - 90 minutes and no fewer than 40 unique ambient artists. There was also a set narrative (falling to the bottom of the ocean, losing your mind, and returning to the surface) and tons of nautically themed sound effects.
“The sounds of a harbor can be heard as you set out on a small boat and soon plunge overboard. The concept continues from there but I'll leave that for you to discover” proclaimed the release. Throughout the journey, underwater sounds are interwoven, including actual recordings of humpback whales and scuba breathing (unfortunately not mine).
Genres/Moods: Bright Ambient, Experimental, Ambient Dub, Underwater, Surreal
Key Tracks: Brian Eno “Deep Blue Day”, William Basinski “D|P 2.1”, Jurgen Muller “Coral Fantasy”
Streaming on Soundcloud
Winter Weather Advisory [2013]
"Winter Weather Advisory" is a 39 minute journey into a frostbitten landscape of ambient clouds, stately swells of piano and strings, and of course, theme-specific field recordings. The mix is bookended with the sound of boots crunching on snow and was somewhat intended as a soundtrack for a night time walk into a blizzard. Tracks were chosen that fit this cinematic, somewhat gloomy atmosphere - everything complimenting the tundra vibe.
Genres/Moods: Ambient Techno, Dream Pop, Dub Techno, Ambient Dub, Soundscape, Winter, Cold, Desolate
Key Tracks: Voices from the Lake “Circe”, Cocteau Twins “Fluffy Tufts”, Yagya “Snowflake 6”
Streaming on Soundcloud
Drive Away the Dream Parade [2013]
Commissioned for an ill-fated experimental mix series, "Drive Away the Dream Parade" is a long-form journey mixing ambient and non-ambient sound sources into a psychedelic soundtrack. This project marks the first time I field recorded another musician and edited in their contribution: August Hodge provides viola to the intro and outro of the mix. Helping the soundtrack vibe of the mix are actual clips of dialogue taken from Stanley Kubrick's "2001 A Space Odyssey". The cover art was taken from a photo by Robert Guzman.
Genres/Moods: Experimental Soundtrack, Ambient Techno, Dub Techno, Downtempo
Key Tracks: Arms & Sleepers “This Place Was Our Own”, Rhythm & Sound “Smile”, Biosphere ‘When I Leave”
Streaming on Soundcloud
Buried Reefs [2012]
Taking cues from the Boards of Canada school of warped-VHS psychedelia, "Buried Reefs" offers a meditative retreat from the chaos of everyday life, layering twinkling synths and drones over brief field recordings and actual narration from vintage nature doc shorts. These 28 minutes slowly unfold and blend the genres of bright/dark ambient, soundscape, psychedelic, and indie electronic to form a unique journey.
Genres/Moods: Bright Ambient, Nature Soundtrack, IDM, Psychedelic, Isolation
Key Tracks: Atlas Sound “Christmas Synths”, Blondes “Amber” (Variation in Cm by Rene Hell), Bibio “The Clothesline and the Silver Birch”
Streaming on Soundcloud
Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun [2012]
This was my tenth mixtape originally released through my tumblr via a mediafire link (how I put out everything for the first year and a half). It took the psychedelic thread running throughout all my work thus far and focused on these intense, spacey atmospheres. I always enjoy the mix of older material (Pink Floyd) with newer pieces (Emeralds). I think the result can be an interesting play on influences and eras - as long as its trippy it made the cut for this mix.
This definitely lends itself to altered or out of body voyages, but I’ve also been told its also great for soundtracking sci fi reading. The project has a circular arc to it, with the very end bringing you back to the start of your audio journey. Like all of my mixes, I worked very hard to seamlessly employ field recordings as a way to keep the whole project moving in a linear motion.
Genres/Moods: Space Rock, Psychedelic, Indie Rock, Indie Electronic, IDM, Trippy, Space Travel
Key Tracks: Pink Floyd “Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun”, Animal Collective “What Would I Want? Sky”, Boards of Canada “Smokes Quantity”
Streaming on Soundcloud
In Another Time, In Another Place [2011]
Breaking from the use of electronic music in a DJ style mixtape, this project focuses on acoustic folk music with layers of found sound drenching the background and coloring the transitions. With this mix I began to treat my own recordings as integral parts of the mix, starting with a few specific "scenes" of pure sound and then adding in bits of acoustic folk into that framework.
As a result, this project was my most labor intensive yet, with most of the runtime featuring layers of sounds found in Romeo, MI (yet I would still not classify this as a studio mix as there are several passages I feel I could improve on).
As I was traveling between Hamtramck and Romeo at the time, I wanted to focus on a "small town" vibe. Not to mention the variety of folk spanning nearly four decades (from Van Morrison and Pink Floyd to Sufjan Stevens and Fleet Foxes).
Genres/Moods: Folk, Acoustic Folk, Classic Rock, Indie Rock, Small Town, Rural, Camping
Key Tracks: Nick Drake “Place to Be”, Pink Floyd “Grandchester Meadows”, Van Morrison “Astral Weeks”
Streaming on Soundcloud
Anchor States [2011]
“Anchor States” was my eighth overall mix from the first string in 2011 - and second devoted to ambient music and crafting a soundtrack to sleep to. Unlike “Mini Anthology..”, however, this project does use some beats but in only a few sections. There is also a more orchestral tone, even though many of these warm drones were made with laptops. This was named for a Stars of the Lid track that appears here, and is also influenced by the now-annual “Pop Ambient” compilation from Kompakt Records.
From the production, I recall being thrilled I finally beat matched something with my antiquated software (Gas “Konigsforst 3” into The Sight Below), and I recall falling asleep while working on it. Which is always a good sign when working on a sleep mix.
Genres/Moods: Sleep, Ambient Techno, Introspection, Relaxation
Key Tracks: H.I.A. & Biosphere “Cannon Hill”, Andrew Thomas “I Am Here Where Are You”, Stars of the Lid “Requiem for Dying Mothers”
Streaming on Soundcloud
Mini Anthology of Ambient [2011]
After experimenting with a few indie electronic mixes, I created my debut ambient mix. This was originally made for my newborn nephew as a soundtrack to help him sleep. With that in mind, I did not include any percussion and kept the mood very tranquil. I also wanted the tracklisting to represent a wide spectrum from the history of ambient music.
This mix was also the first to use my now-trademarked habit of not only burying layers of found sounds into the transitions, but also creating new, original collages to open and close with. So, in the first few minutes here we are presented with fragments of Biosphere’s “From a Solid to a Liquid” and Sigur Ros’ “Takk” atop two separate water recordings. These four layers simply swirl around each other for about four minutes until Brian Eno’s “1/1” rushes in with swells of piano.
Genres/Moods: Sleep, Relaxation, Drone, New Age, Music for Babies, Beatless
Key Tracks: Radiohead “Treefingers”, Aphex Twin “Rhubarb”, Brian Eno “1/1”
Streaming on Soundcloud