mix: Sleep

"When You Sleep"

A little over a year ago, as per request by a few readers, I published a second sleep mix. In retrospect, the mix isn't as much as ambient, as it is ethereal, although it does contain incredibly still moments of crystalline wonder. The goal with this mix was to provide a foray into dreams, a sort of Alice in Wonderland/The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe/Coraline portal into a sea of dreams, beginning with Vera November's transcendent cover of Arthur Russell's "Our Last Night Together" and ending in a wash of sea sounds and lilting forest voices, care of White Rainbow's "Awakening." While I don't consider this to be an incredibly well mixed mix, after recently rediscovering it, I truly felt like it accomplished its goal of leading the listener from the drowsy conscious world into the luminous world of dreams.

Sleep Mix
1.Vera November- Our Last Night Together (Arthur Russell Cover)
2. Stars of the Lid- Even if You're Never Awake (Deuxieme)
3. Deerhunter- Red Ink
4. Grizzly Bear- Granny Dinner
5. Japancakes- What You Want (My Bloody Valentine Cover)
6. Taylor Deupree- Untitled 1231
7. Tangerine Dream- Sequent c'
8. Efterklang- Illuminant
9. Johan Johannson- Bao
10. Jonny Greenwood- Prospectors Arrive
11. Klimex- The Ice Storm
12. White Rainbow- Awakening

Sleep Mix

video: Stars of the Lid

"Dopamine Clouds Over Craven Cottage"

stars of the lid at le poisson rouge (nyc) november 20th, 2008 from acid marshmallow on Vimeo.

Acid Marshmellow's capturing of a night that I'd like to live over a million times. These guys have been crushing the videos lately, with some killer White Rainbow footage (below), and many assorted others. Acid Marshmellow is also throwing a show next Wednesday at Matchless, featuring NJ-bred tropical-loopster Ducktails. Definitely worth a trek to G-Point, or a bike ride down the street. Live videos of White Rainbow and Ducktails below, courtesy of Acid Marshmellow.


white rainbow at knitting factory (nyc) november 23rd, 2008 from acid marshmallow on Vimeo.


ducktails at silent barn (ridgewood) november 8th, 2008 from acid marshmallow on Vimeo.

we saw: Stars of the Lid

"Tired Sounds Of..."
(Photo by The Roaring Twenties)
As expected Stars of the Lid took everyone to the astral plane on Friday night. A heavy combo of ethereal arrangements and intergalactic visualizations made me doze off a few times, but in the best way possible. Not only that but SOTL finished with the epic opus "December Hunting for Vegetarian Fuck Face." Mort's text to me, twelve and a half hours after the show ended, sums it up perfectly: "WOW! That was incredible. Felt like I was on another planet." Me too, Morto.


(Photo by Mercurian)

Stars of the Lid 12/15/2007 Prague, Czech Republic

monday morning music: Stars of the Lid

"And Their Refinement of the Decline"

Still recovering from the weekend? Don't fret, Stars of the Lid are here to make everything better. Their orchestrated ambient compositions are truly the musical equivalent to homeopathetic medicine, an organic cure for all ills. Above is the trailer from the Stars of the Lid film, to be released in 2o10. Luckily, Austin's finest purveyors of tired sounds will be in NYC for two shows in November, as well as an appearance at the Brainwaves Festival in Boston, which also boasts Silver Apples and Bobka-favorite Marissa Nadler on its lineup. Surprisingly, there are still tickets available for Stars of the Lids shows at (le) poisson rouge. We'll be at the late one night, getting all ethereal and shit. I recommend you do the same. You can get tickets HERE.

sunday morning music: Stars of the Lid

"Heaven Water Fire Earth"

Let the tired sounds of Stars of the Lid rock you gently back to sleep.

new mix: Ambient Sleep

"It's our last night together"

A long time ago we posted a sleep mix from the now deceased Knuckles McGregor. Apparently it knocked y'all right into a coma, however, immune systems adapt and that old mix just wasn't doing the trick anymore. Luckily, we're back with a fresh set of new agey dream music, the type of stuff DMT-heads listen to for fun.

Ambient Sleep is almost entirely instrumental, the exception being Vera November's rendition of the late Arthur Russell's "Our Last Night Together". (Although Grizzly Bear's "Granny Diner" does include the absurdist "Why don't you do any dishes? Why?/ I always clean up the kitchen" at the very end of the song.) Also included are some ambient classics by Tangerine Dream and Johan Johannson, a few soon to be classics by Stars of the Lid and Deerhunter, a totally wunderstruck cover of the Loveless jam "What You Want" and some of that eerie magic from There Will Be Blood. If you're having trouble sleeping, or you're simply looking to transcend space and time, this is your soundtrack. Guaranteed sweet dreams.

WARNING: NSFW (You Will Pass Out)

Ambient Sleep Mix
1.Vera November- Our Last Night Together (Arthur Russell Cover)
2. Stars of the Lid- Even if You're Never Awake (Deuxieme)
3. Deerhunter- Red Ink
4. Grizzly Bear- Granny Dinner
5. Japancakes- What You Want (My Bloody Valentine Cover)
6. Taylor Deupree- Untitled 1231
7. Tangerine Dream- Sequent c'
8. Efterklang- Illuminant
9. Johan Johannson- Bao
10. Jonny Greenwood- Prospectors Arrive
11. Klimex- The Ice Storm
12. White Rainbow- Awakening

Ambient Sleep Mix (sendspace link)