Mastodawn

mcc May 19, 2025

For three full years now I've been semi-daily posting a music recommendation in a big long thread, but it turns out 300-post threads kinda break Mastodon, so I have to restart the thread every so often.

This post is a placeholder. I normally make a YouTube playlist for the previous year to put at the top of the thread, but I've had an awful month and haven't finished that yet.

But if you want to see year three's *posts*, they're here: https://mastodon.social/@mcc/112356066616688565

And here's year four:

mcc May 19, 2025

What I'm listening to today: "Adder (version)", Blackbird Raum

The original of this song is slow and wrenching and sung by a woman who sounds on the verge of tears. This version is just screaming, bagpipes and screaming. It is very much The Mood.

Were I a bird a bull would step on me
Were I a bull a butcher I would see
And if I were a butcher, my apron would be clean
Were I a bird a bull would step on me

https://blackbirdraum.bandcamp.com/track/adder-version

Adder Version, by Blackbird Raum

from the album Nevermind the Ballads

Blackbird Raum

mcc May 20, 2025

What I'm listening to today: "The Scene is Dead", Dubmood

Sandblast-your-brain FastTracker2 chiptune electronica track. Just refuses to stop moving for seven minutes. There are so many ideas in this one! The author says they began this track in 2012 and completed it in 2024, so apparently the scene was dying for a very long time.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jVcHrL2ZwCM

Dubmood - The Scene is Dead (FT2 demo) (2012/2024)

YouTube

mcc May 21, 2025

What I'm listening to today: "Space Fall" (part 3.5), r beny

Most of my musical diet the last 5 years has been YouTube live bedroom synth sets and if anyone got me on this kick, it was r beny, who did it early and, tbh!, best.

This r beny live set is from a 2021 group concert at the Colorado Modular Synth Society. Opens with clockworky electronica, ends with an intense rework of the song on his YouTube channel as "Waldorf Iridium Ambient". In between: fog-haze ambient

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FD5obUv52xQ&t=1579s

Space Fall Part 3 ft. Tim Held & @rbeny Live Modular Synth Performances

YouTube

What I'm listening to today: "Wabi-sabi", a-symmetric

This is an "electro-acoustic" ensemble featuring @pangrus , a Merveilles user who makes his own instruments, from an album that mostly sounds like an argument between a digeridoo and a violin at the far end of a train station. This one track is a lovely, evocative melange of what I think of as "shine noises" punctuated by electronic-sounding warbles that feel like jazz music being crushed in a pneumatic press

https://a-symmetric.bandcamp.com/track/wabi-sabi

Wabi-sabi, by a-symmetric

from the album OUT!

a-symmetric

mcc May 26, 2025

What I'm listening to today: "Pikopiko", neu neu neu

This is a really nice Japanese post-rock album I hit at random on YouTube. This one track (begins at 3:40 in video) is game boy chiptune noises beautifully integrated into layered guitar and drums carefully tuned to clip but just a *little*. Consider the symmetry between violins and the game boy sound chip. Consider that you wouldn't be able to make out the lyrics even if you spoke Japanese. Ponder the shoes

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FIT1rb_tXfg&t=220s

neu neu neu (full)

YouTube

mcc May 26, 2025

What I'm listening to today: "List of Demands (Reparations)", Saul Williams

Position paper read through a megaphone. Terrifying, breezy industrial beats and laughing children.

I was originally gonna post "Grippo" today and make a joke about people reading this feed getting directly called out by the lyrics. But then I just started listening to the album and was like… no. List of Demands

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zDMtaIcrfQ0

Saul Williams - List Of Demands(Reparations)

YouTube

mcc May 27, 2025

What I'm listening to today: "Great Day (Four Tet Remix)", Madvillain [MF DOOM]

There's this amazing EP where Four Tet remixes MF DOOM's breakout album, and swaps Madlib's grubby funk smoothly out for his own headphones electronica. This one takes what was one of the original album's best tracks to start with and distills something truly transcendental out of it, built on garbled Spanish guitar and almost no beats

https://madvillain.bandcamp.com/track/great-day-four-tet-remix

Great Day (Four Tet Remix), by Madvillain

from the album Four Tet Remixes

Madvillain

mcc May 28, 2025

What I'm listening to today: "Brothers Feel Fly", Dr. Dooom [Kool Keith]

Kool Keith built his own around fluidly shifting identities with elaborate cover stories, dense wordplay, and sci fi references. So you can maybe understand how he'd feel a LITTLE miffed at Daniel Dumile.

This is from a run of late 90s albums where Keith was basically constantly going "hey, has anyone else noticed analog synthesizers make incredible noises?!". Always ten years ahead of every trend

https://koolkeith.bandcamp.com/track/brothers-feel-fly

Brothers Feel Fly, by Dr. Dooom

from the album First Come, First Served

Kool Keith

mcc May 29, 2025

What I'm listening to today: "Crumb Snatchers", MF Grimm

This *incredibly* hardcore 2005 album is an attempt to reconstruct a 1994 debut rap album that got shelved after a shooting left Grimm temporarily unable to see or speak, and permanently in a wheelchair. From there Grimm's career threads erratically through underground rap and comics; notably he was a very early collaborator/booster/roommate of MF DOOM but apparently that artistic relationship ended kinda badly.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZPkSPQ4TCDY

Crumb Snatchers

YouTube

mcc May 30, 2025

What I'm listening to today: "Hush the Crowd", J-LIVE

This 2003 track was, I think?, recorded while the artist was trying to balance a rap career with working as a public school English teacher, and is basically an anthem for the frustrated artist, or maybe a lovesong to their fans. I am currently in the process of winding down a game studio and the bit here beginning with "Besides, what's your options?" haunts me.

https://realjlive.bandcamp.com/track/hush-the-crowd

Hush The Crowd, by J-LIVE

from the album Always Has Been

J-LIVE

mcc May 31, 2025

What I'm listening to today: "Raedawn", Victor Vaughn [MF DOOM]

So I think the idea with DOOM was that his various recording names aren't personae, but are supposed to be aliases for the same shadowy supervillain, popping up in different places. Or maybe he was just trying to evade record label contracts. Anyway! Here DOOM goes so hard on the progressive production he breaks through all the way into the genre I keep trying not to describe as "IDM"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y6GXOD1I6iY

Raedawn

YouTube

mcc Jun 1, 2025

What I'm listening to today: "Pause Tape", JJ Doom

These sessions by MF DOOM and Jneiro Jarel were recorded during (what was at the time believed to be) a temporary stay in Britain after DOOM got ejected from the US. Jarel's an interesting guy and this deliriously weird B-side I think has the most of his own personality of anything from the collaboration. Is this literally a pause tape? I don't have space to explain what this means but I think this might be a pause tape

https://mfdoom.bandcamp.com/track/pause-tape

Pause Tape, by JJ DOOM

from the album Bookhead EP

MF DOOM

mcc Jun 2, 2025

What I'm listening to today: "Ambient Machine Live 17", Takeo Watanabe

Can I convince you to take a risk?

This is a 17 minute set from a series recorded in random remote locations, this one based on a tape machine and pedal looper. The first few minutes are a bit vague— he seems to just be messing around. But he's feeding the looper. Stop paying attention around minute two, leave it in the background, suddenly around minute seven you'll find yourself in another galaxy.

https://youtu.be/oAPUoFP3yxI?si=4sZ6PZ8s5fnLHCp6

Ambient Machine Live 17

YouTube

mcc Jun 3, 2025

What I'm listening to today: "Four", Nils Frahm and Ólafur Arnalds

Nils Frahm is an artist with whom I am Much Enamored, whose thing mostly is he records albums where all he does is play the piano softly and it's incredibly gripping. Occasionally though Nils dabbles in Electronic Instrumentation and gorgeous ambient music results.

https://erasedtapes.bandcamp.com/track/four

Four, by Ólafur Arnalds & Nils Frahm

from the album Loon

Erased Tapes

mcc Jun 4, 2025

What I'm listening to today: "Rogue Fossil", Virus

This was recommended to me by a Bluesky user after I said I wanted "either metal with jazz drumming or jazz with metal drumming". I'm not sure this is that, but it definitely slaps. This is like if Labradford was satanist, I guess? Or if Tool took pot instead of heroin. Video is like slow hypnosis. Heavy dissonant playing the bass with a pick, close and claustrophic, the entire renaissance faire breathing down your neck

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=220eDjcDSlM

Virus - Rogue Fossil (Official Video)

YouTube

mcc Jun 5, 2025

What I'm listening to today: "All Fours", Void Femmes

This is the solo project of @lexfeathers, bassist of Waxlimbs (and creator of the "prepared typewriter" piece if you remember me linking that). This EP is a series of off-kilter and incredibly sick dance pieces, swinging industrial deritus and bodies falling from the roof of the factory and clattering thudding to the ground and wait why exactly were they storing bodies up there?

https://voidfemmes.bandcamp.com/track/all-fours

All Fours, by Void Femmes

from the album All Fours

Void Femmes

mcc Jun 6, 2025

What I'm listening to today: "ahvenlampi" (deep house edit), phonex (remixed by xavier)

An ancient tracker scene file named "deep_house_edit.xm" @leona found and showed me. Created January 2000, remixed April 2000. Gorgeous vibes, eurodance dreams, the unique timbral feels of sample trackers used to their utmost, a $50 Casio keyboard reaching for the heavens.

Click "play".

https://modarchive.org/index.php?request=view_player&query=153555

The Mod Archive

mcc Jun 8, 2025

What I'm listening to today: "Canton", Nils Frahm

Did I mention I really like it when Nils Frahm plays the piano? This piece is so gentle it feels, when he finishes, as if he was never there. A whisper, a bubble. You are aware someone spoke but not a word they said. You wake from a dream and find you can't remember what you dreamed of

https://nilsfrahm.bandcamp.com/track/canton

Canton, by Nils Frahm

from the album Night

Nils Frahm

mcc Jun 9, 2025

What I'm listening to today: "curtain sequence", Silhouette Synthesizers (Pit Przygodda)

This guy designs and manufactures unusual synthesizers on the concept of converting images into sounds. Sweep a line across part of an image, read brightness data from underneath your line, convert it to waveform or spectral data. He's posted various demos of his synths at work on YouTube, of which this is one of the less flashy but more musically interesting examples. Morning bell

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nF4aNc96JYQ

SILHOUETTE SPORT - curtain sequence (april 2025)

YouTube

mcc Jun 10, 2025

What I'm listening to today: "Relaxing Experimental Ambient [Vinyl Studio Session]", Raica

Here a lady who runs a record store in Seattle for experimental music spins some mind-expanding space-journey ambient techno in a kitchen (not her kitchen, just *a* kitchen). A good solid 75-minute block of unnameable emotions.

(There's a second set by the same DJ on the same YouTube account which had some good highs, but I didn't find that other one as consistent.)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xo9nk7pqcGk

Relaxing Experimental Ambient [Vinyl Studio Session] with RAICA

DJ Raica, the mesmerizing project of Chloe Harris, is a name synonymous with the ethereal and experimental. As the head of Seattle’s iconic Further Records, ...

YouTube

mcc Jun 11, 2025

What I'm listening to today: "The Lie That Is Sin", YOB

My friend Ro recommended this when I said I liked doom metal. This live version (0:00-12:18 in the video) takes what was already a pretty great song and slows it down, picks apart each element and leaves it torn open on a dissecting table, luxuriates in each little sound, floating in isolation, icebergs on a dark ocean

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jnPu9RU28HE

YOB - Amoeba Green Room Session

YouTube

mcc Jun 12, 2025

What I'm listening to today: "7 string IR test", Daniel M Karlsson

Posted by @t36s as part of a series of computer sound synthesis tests, I'm not sure I understand it exactly but I *think* he used a recording of a string instrument as an echo characteristic and then by agitating it produced super realistic synthesized string plucks. Gorgeous little superresonating classical guitar improvisation with touches at once obviously human-driven and obviously computer-generated

https://social.ordinal.garden/@t36s/114661161710502396

Daniel M Karlsson (@[email protected])

Attached: 1 audio 7 string IR test. The *scordatura* open strings are the IR. It's just a file in there. No sweeps or nothing. Just regular ol recordings of each string spread out a lil bit with panning is all. Super fun to play. This works in realtime to my ears at 192kHz samplerate and a blocksize of 64 samples.

ordinal.garden

mcc Jun 13, 2025

What I'm listening to today: "Push Pull", Mark Thibideau

If you're up on electronic music genres: Imagine 90s French house but strip out the funk and substitute 00 dub techno instrumentation?

If you're not: Chill dance music for sitting in your chair. There are a lot of really cool sounds and I liked how good the sounds were, they were all like swoop swoop chikchikchik

2019 release. Apparently this artist is from Ontario

https://stomping-grounds.bandcamp.com/album/lividus-ep

Lividus EP, by Mark Thibideau

2 track album

Stomping Grounds / Vade Mecum

mcc Jun 14, 2025

What I'm listening to today: "only in it for Euro Cash", Doak 16

Been listening to this YouTube synth collector's tracks all morning. This isn't the friendliest ["Remember it"] or the most provocative ["an ewok…"] track in the channel backlog…

But *oh*, I love the drums in this one! I love the way it comes together like a magic eye, nonsense into sense. Dense, dreamy, unique

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dfPn5zJXXg8

only in it for Euro Cash

YouTube

Simon Rolfmore Jun 13, 2025

@mcc Oh that's lovely... everything old is new again. Reminds me of the small room 3 in Fabric, circa 2004.

ulrikkold Jun 13, 2025

@mcc thanks for the tip.

The mnml house or dub techno sound from the 00s is one of my favourites.

This reminds me of albums from that #netlabel Thinner. They are still available on e.g. archive.org

https://archive.org/details/thinner

Internet Archive: Digital Library of Free & Borrowable Texts, Movies, Music & Wayback Machine

Daniel M Karlsson Jun 12, 2025

@mcc Oh wow! You wrote such a nice thing for me here. I am smiling and blushing. Thank you so much for listening.

mcc Jun 12, 2025

@t36s i always get really excited when you post new pieces/snippets lol

ferunando Jun 10, 2025

@mcc oh, i've listened to another great set recorded on that kitchen in the past. can't remember what. have you perhaps shared something else in the same space before?

anyway, great set, thanks :)

mcc Jun 10, 2025

@gureito there are a lot of sets but i think this channel is new to me. i think i shared one in a laundry room before

Leon ._.Jun 6, 2025

@mcc Great writeup!

Misty Jun 6, 2025

@mcc This is really nice! I adore this era of tracker house/techno/etc

Lex Feathers 🍂Jun 5, 2025

@mcc
Woah I love this description, hahaha

Thank you for sharing it!

Leonie Jun 5, 2025

@lexfeathers
Damn, your music rips 👌
@mcc

Lex Feathers 🍂Jun 6, 2025

@atolisglli thank you!

poetaster Jun 5, 2025

@mcc the bodies piling up on the sidewalk are unseemly. Elevated, they are closer to goddog.

narylis Jun 3, 2025

@mcc i’m a fan on the other side of this: olafur arnalds has done a lot of very fascinating modern classical-inspired post-rock-ish work, such as his 2010 album “…and they have escaped the weight of darkness”

https://olafurarnalds.bandcamp.com/track/tungli

(from which this is track three, “tunglið”)

i’ve really enjoyed the gentle emotions that his music engenders, from gentle melancholy to pensive contemplation. in some ways, his work wouldn’t feel out of place in a soundtrack for a makoto shinkai film.

Tunglið, by Ólafur Arnalds

from the album ...and they have escaped the weight of darkness

Ólafur Arnalds

lachlan slowly taming rust Jun 3, 2025

@narylis @mcc Not exactly the same as Ólafur, but Trummor and Orgel hit a very similar note emotionally for me.

(And Silk Road Kimiyoku by Kitaro - slightly further again away, but from a lost Ennio Morricone soundtrack occasionally instead)

Andy Herd Jun 3, 2025

@mcc I was lucky enough to see him live in Edinburgh a little while back. His gig was nothing short of a JOURNEY he took us all upon. He used analogue stage lights and had each lamp tuned to a specific frequency, so the polyrhythms of each piece formed the most incredible patterns. I had so much fun identifying all the weird and wonderful instruments he brought, including a glass armonica and a mellotron ❤️❤️❤️

margot Jun 3, 2025

@mcc this was over too soon 😩

Alex Zandra Jun 2, 2025

@mcc thank you andi that was beautiful

mcc Jun 2, 2025

@zandra aa I'm so glad you heard this one

Kevin Granade has moved Jun 3, 2025

@mcc "what's so risky about it? It's just 17 minutes."
*listens and enjoys*
*YouTube immediately starts recommending more*
"Oh no"

John Parker Jun 1, 2025

@mcc Just in case you’ve missed it, Beck’s remix of Banished from JJ DOOM is well worth a listen.

Dreaming of dad jazz.May 31, 2025

@mcc It's one of my favorite by him. He's understandably lauded as rap great, his production is just as amazing.

I've not been listening to his old albums much and been reaching for the "Special Herbs" collections because as much as I love his rhyming and I think he's a genius, the casual homophobia and ableism really fucking bums me out.

Dreaming of dad jazz.May 31, 2025

@mcc This track always reminded me of the stripped down production of East Flatbush Project's Tried by 12 for some reason.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FjPnK3WVCJM

East Flatbush Project ft DeS Tried by 12/BEST VERSION WITH LYRICS

YouTube

Torb May 27, 2025

@mcc Such a good album! Havn’t listened to it for years, but will today!

💬 John Philpin May 27, 2025

@torb Yikes and Wow - and THANK You - putting that one away to listen to when i am not in an office full of people!

pangrus May 23, 2025

@mcc I love what you said about our stuff! Many thanks

mcc May 23, 2025

@pangrus I really enjoyed the album!