Jeff Oster has taken his trumpet and flugelhorn into New Age and ambient directions over the years. On his new album, Next, he explores some ambient jazz. He talks about tone, funk and ambience on Echoes.
Philip Selway is best known as the drummer for Radiohead, but he’s also a singer-songwriter whose last solo albums , Weatherhouse, flowed on lush textures, seductive melodies and probing lyrics. He draws on gentle psychedelic sounds that have echoes of The Zombies and the Moody Blues, tempered with the artful rhythmic turns and electronic textures that mark Radiohead’s’ music.
Hearing Air performing on Jean-Michel Jarre’s forthcoming album, E-Project, reminded me of the great performance they played for us back in 2004. We first interviewed Air back in 1998 when their first album, Moon Safari came out. They’ve been on since then in 2007 with a Blindfold Test in the Echoes Chamber and again in 2012 when we talked about their last album, Le Voyage Dans La Lune. Here’s a couple of pictures from their 2014 session.
It’s an eclectic Echoes Top 25 for July with Heather Woods Broderick’s gorgeous album, Glider, our CD of the Month, at the top. Jean-Michel Jarre’s E-Project is also there and that album doesn’t even come out until October. I’m very excited to see Silencio in there at #3. This band includes former members of The Mandrake Project out of Pittsburgh. With Silencio, they create music inspired by director David Lynch and composer Angelo Badalamenti of Twin Peaks and other fame. Go down to #10 and you’ll see our Echoes CD of the Month for August, sure to be the future number one album.
The Tide is high, the stars shine bright and the sun is rising in this edition of an all-instrumental Slow Flow Echoes with new music form Chronotope Project, Erik Wollo and a flute duet with Sherry Finzer & Mark Holland.
On the next Echoes, keyboardist Ryan Farish takes a more rhythmic, driving approach on a new release called Spectrum while the European trio Broekhuis, Keller and Schoenwalder go retro-space.
The Hang Drum is an instrument that looks like a flying saucer or two woks tuck together. With tuned indentations and/or bumps it makes the warmest most serene sound that’s found a following among world music players, jazz bands and New Age artists.
James Hood played drums with The Pretenders and recorded tripped out electronica as Moodswings, but his new passion is the Hang drum which looks like a flying saucer. He has a new double CD of Hang drum music called Pure Ceremony.
On the next Echoes it’s film music siren, Lisbeth Scott in singer-songwriter mode and trumpeter Jeff Oster’s ambient jazz.
John Diliberto brings us another Slow Flow Echoes, an all instrumental soundscape to put you into your dreams.