Now available: Merrin Karras / Northwest Passage

After debuting a live version of the album Saturday night during our 9128.live weekend programming, I hope many of you know the brilliance you’re in for by now... We’re extremely excited to present Northwest Passage as Brendan’s second album under his Merrin Karras alias.

See the release page for more details, and links to listen and buy. Also, don’t miss the amazing video by Jan Goldfuß for the closing track Dominions, below.

Lastly, a big thank you to Rafael Anton Irisarri on mastering, Lupo Lubich for never giving up with that press, our plant for multiple rounds of test presses and Jack Hardwicke for that amazing artwork!

The majority of vinyl will be available at Juno.co.uk, with a few copies remaining direct on Bandcamp.

Release page

ASIP 9128.live Takeover

*Updated with mixes from the event below*

We’re taking over our radio station 9128.live this weekend with a marathon live stream of exclusive music, DJs and live sets.

When:

Saturday March 21st, beginning at 10am PST (5pm GMT), running all the way until:-
Sunday March 22nd, ending at 9pm PST (4am GMT).

Why:

Firstly, because of what is happening in the world surrounding the Coronavirus. Most of us are at home (or should be!) And as a result, many shows are cancelled (including our first label showcase in London). So not only do we want to replicate that event online, we want to try help raise some money for a good cause, support more artists and labels, and offer some solace to everyone staying at home. We will be adding links to donate to a chosen charity during the event, should listeners want to give something back and help those in need as a way of saying thank you. We have also compiled a Buy Music Club list of all the artists featured in the program for you to support the featured artists directly.

Who:

The weekend programming will feature a mixture of live sets, new material and exclusive music to 9128 from the below artists/labels. Check the schedule tab for set times. Featured artists are listed in alphabetical order.

36 (Live) Dennis will be compiling a very special “Slow The F@ck Down” set featuring edits of his own material.

Benoît Pioulard (Exclusive material)Tom has prepared a very special hour of music containing guitar, voice, harmonium, piano, OP-1 & Moog synthesizers, and magnetic tape alongside several pieces taken from the subscriber-only album "Underwritten".

Bluetech (DJ/Live set)Evan has prepared a special hybrid DJ/live set featuring his own material along with tracks from an upcoming compilation he has compiled.

Certain Creatures (Live set)Mysteries of The Deep, Oliver Chapoy presents a rare live set.

Damm (Album Premiere)Joel Mull will be reviving his electronica alias Damm, set to be released on ASIP soon and will be playing tracks from the forthcoming ASIP album.

Digitonal (Live)A rare live set from Mr Andy Dobson of Digitonal

Field Records / AHPR & Sébastien (DJ set)Debut of a live set by Field Records’, AHPR & Sébastien taken from Organik Festival in 2018, Taiwan.

From Overseas (Album Premiere) First listen of the new album ‘Home’ upcoming on Past Inside The Present.

Gadi Sassoon (Live set)Set to release his debut album on ASIP this year, Gadi will be performing live from his studio amongst locked-down Italy. Check out his work here.

Grant Aaron (DJ set)The Mysteries Of The Deep label boss will be providing an exclusive DJ mix titled Shelter.

Isaac Helsen (Live set)The PITP co-founder and producer will be presenting new and improvised material alongside unreleased music.

James Bernard (Live set) James has been preparing a very special ambient-acid set, and will debut it here on 9128.

Jamie McCue (Live DJ set)The Silent Season label boss will be providing an exclusive Live DJ mix straight from the Silent Season Forest.

Jane Fitz (Live DJ set)Jane was set to close out our London event, and will complete her set instead from her studio with her entire vinyl collection to choose from.

Max Würden (Exclusive material)
Max will be presenting a piece of soundtrack work, mixed and edited with samples taken from the accompanying film ‘Derailed’.

Merrin Karras (Live + Album Premiere) The new Merrin Karras album is set to drop on Monday 23rd, and Brendan will be playing live with music from the album.

Multicast Dynamics (Live + exclusive DJ mix)We’ll be debuting a special previously unheard 2-hr live DJ mix from Samuel alongside as well as a live set straight from his studio.

Olga Wojciechowska (Live set)An extended, previously unheard live set by the ASIP composer.

Purl / Ludvig Cimbrelius (Live + exclusive material)
Ludvig will be making two appearances, the first with a preview of upcoming Purl material, and the second with a special raw piano live set.

Quiet Places (Album Premiere) Dennis White, Charlie May and Dave Gardner (Quiet Places) were set to debut at our London show. We’ll get a glimpse of their upcoming ASIP material this weekend.

r beny (Live set)A special live set from the admired synthesizer master.

Thesis Project (Exclusive material)Two hours of exclusive material from The Thesis Project catalog.

todos (Live DJ set)An admired DJ on ASIP for years, todos has soundtracked some of our finest journeys. Here, he will be spinning vinyl from his extensive collection in the UK to kick off the weekend program.

Tom Middleton (DJ/Live set)A very special DJ set featuring exclusive Global Communication tracks to close out our program.

Warmth (DJ set)Agus, producing as Warmth but also the man behind the Archives and Faint labels has compiled a mix full of exclusive label material including tracks from SVLBRD, Robert Farrugia, Powlos, Lauge, Christina Giannone, Purl and Javier Marimon

William Selman (Album Premiere)The Mysteries Of The Deep artist will be debuting his new upcoming album.

ASIP (Live DJ set)Lastly, A Strangely Isolated Place label boss ASIP will be spinning test-presses and unreleased label music.

Preorder: Merrin Karras / Northwest Passage

We’re very excited to see Brendan’s Merrin Karras alias back on the label with a new album titled Northwest Passage. It’s been quite the journey in itself to get this one out there, but we’re very proud of the end result, with stunning artwork by Jack Hardwicke.

Head over to the release page for full details and links to preorder.

Watch the video for album-ender ‘Dominions’ below courtesy of Inverted Audio.

And lastly, catch Brendan playing two live shows this month, in both London at our label showcase on March 21st and in Berlin the week after. See our events page for more details.

**POSTPONED** A Strangely Isolated Place at Hidden Sounds London (Label showcase)

**UPDATE**

Unfortunately, it is with a heavy heart that we have to postpone our London event. The recent travel restrictions mean it’s too much of a risk for me to attend from the USA and our European based DJs and live acts are also suffering similar risks. Not to mention the more obvious risk of a small, intimate venue. We hope to be able to reschedule this event in the future but for now, please stay safe, support music and enjoy it in the comfort of your own home!

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A Strangely Isolated Place presents an afternoon and evening at Hidden Sounds London. Featuring performances from Merrin Karras (aka Chymera), Quiet Places (a production trio consisting of Dennis White, Charlie May and David Gardner), local digger and much-loved selector Jane Fitz, and label journeyman, todos.

MERRIN KARRAS (Live - album launch)
After his debut album under his ambient-synth alias on ASIP in 2016, Brendan Gregoriy aka Chymera has been hard at work on his follow-up. Brendan will present his spaced-out synths on the rich Hidden Sounds system with music from his upcoming album, The Northwest Passage.

QUIET PLACES (Live)
When they’re not producing for Sasha or playing live on the recent Refracted tour, Dennis White, Charlie May and David Gardner have been busy creating their new project, Quiet Places. This will be the first presentation of the Quiet Places project in anticipation of their upcoming release on ASIP.

JANE FITZ (Vinyl set)
Jane is quite simply a vinyl and DJ institution in London - a collector, curator and selector of the finest order. Jane has been a big supporter of ASIP for years now, so it’s a pleasure to finally have her spin one of her infamous sets.

TODOS (Vinyl set)
Well known amongst the ASIP family, todos' Kilchurn Session mixes have become legendary and he was #1 choice to try and summarize ten years of the label and blog in one mix - he knocked it out of the park. We’re excited to finally see him present these infamous journeys on deck.

PLUS SPECIAL GUEST TBA.

Label owner ASIP will also be gracing the decks spinning some unreleased and upcoming test presses.

We’re most at home amongst the crates, with the chance to talk, dig and listen to new music, so we’re excited to present this showcase at Hidden Sounds London - a new record store with a beautiful Hi-Fi system (A pair of Ditton 44 sitting on a pair of customized Tannoy's Cheviots + various fillers, all running through a Rodec mixer).

We’ll be non-stop from 3pm til midnight. Food and drink available to purchase. Entry is free and there will be exclusive ASIP records and merchandise available.

LIMITED CAPACITY - RSVP/REGISTER HERE. Entry is free but RSVP is REQUIRED due to limited capacity and the need to keep things enjoyable for all. Please be ready to present ID at the door. We encourage you to arrive early as RSVP will not guarantee entry past 6pm if the venue is already full.

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Silent Season - Campfire Stories 42 (ASIP - Titan Kawaakari)

You are likely well aware of the brilliant Silent Season label by now, but you may not be aware of their brilliant mix series that's focused on inviting guests to tell a story - Campfire Stories - through deep ambient and techno music. Some of my favorite selectors have graced the series so far, and there's plenty to get stuck into. Listen to the series on Soundcloud. 

I'm honored to be a part of the series and because of the special place Silent Season has in my heart, I spent a long time making this mix as special as possible. It went through around five iterations, and I finally settled on a deep and meditative space-infused ambient mix that aims to be a nice compliment to the release of Markus Guentner's new album on June 11th. 

The mix includes some of my recent favorites by Rafael Anton Irisarri on Umor Rex, Dedekind Cut on Kranky, Terreke's meditative tape loops on Music From Memory, a track from Graintable's debut synth-odyssey album, and a deep cut from Powlos on Faint. Mixed in-between these comes several unreleased tracks and some self-released bits dug out from the ever-dependable rabbit-hole that is Bandcamp. All links to buy and support provided below.

Hope you enjoy the story, and thanks to Jamie at Silent Season for the deep forest hospitality. 

Download.

~ About The Story ~

Titan is the largest moon of Saturn. It is the only moon known to have a dense atmosphere, and the only object in space, other than Earth, where clear evidence of stable bodies of surface liquid has been found, including lakes, seas, rivers and rain.

Kawaakari is the glow of a river or stream in darkness or dusk, the gleaming surface of a shadowed river (Japanese 川明かり).

~ Chapters ~

1. Sophia Loizou - Divine Interference (Kathexis) 
2. qebrµs - ฌฎ๒๓๔ญ°°°°° (Self released)
3. Erica Etami - Contemplation (Self released)
4. Merrin Karras - Phaedra (unreleased)
5. Steve Good - Falling Upwards [Self released]
6. James Bernard - (unreleased)
7. Terreke - Ambien [Music From Memory]
8. Grand River - Flies [Spazio Disponibile] 
9. Graintable - 610 [Ransom Note Records]
10. Markus Guentner (with Julia Kent) - Refraction [A Strangely Isolated Place]
11. Dedekind Cut - Hollow Earth [Kranky]
12. Markus Guentner - Redshift [A Strangely Isolated Place]
13. Powlos - Of Theory [Faint Music]
14. Max Wuerden - (unreleased)
15. r beny - Vestigial [Self released]
16. 36 - DNI [unreleased]
17. Acronym - Pointless Endeavour [Field Records]
18. Rafael Anton Irisarri - Mountain Stream [Umor Rex]
19. Isorinne - Views From A Balcony [Northern Electronics]

Image/photo by Aperture Vintage