Journeymann Trax is Canadian producer Bobby Draino, who last month released a 7-track mini-album called Smoke Tape on Canadian label 1080p. About the release, 1080p writes "These tracks chronicle a summer of dank late-night voyages into the lush realms of British Columbian consciousness, full of hazy epiphanies, vibed out percussion, hypnogogic synths, emergent harp flourishes, softly acid-tinged arpeggios and a misty backdrop of forestial atmospherics." Check out the track "Black Forest" below, and download the album via Bandcamp.

Monomite is a producer from France who recently released an EP called Space Time Body and Soul on Paris label Beat X Changers. Check out the lead track "Innocence" below, an uptempo hybrid of frenetic broken beats and 70s era Herbie Hancock-esque fusion. Space Time Body and Soul is available in digital and vinyl formats from Bandcamp.

Bodysnatchers, the Santa Barbara, CA production duo of Richie Rivera and Steven Romeo, recently released a killer three-track EP called Diskonect. What the release lacks in length it more than makes up for in expertly crafted vibe: retro and simultaneously modern. Stream the title track "Diskonect" below, and download the EP from Bandcamp for a price you decide.

Even though the blog may not have been updated for the past month and a half, the music hasn't stopped. The goal has never been to post any and every new piece of music that pops into into the world, but to share an inspiring discovery or moment when it strikes. One such moment is now, here at the dawn of a new year, as Astral Cat looks back at the incredible music of 2014. As always, there are no rankings or commentary involved, and, while diversifying the selections wasn't a concern, a variety of genres are represented nonetheless. Also enjoy the Spotify playlist at the bottom of the page containing a sampling of most of the albums listed here. Happy 2015!

The lovely and engaging "Silk" is off Australian producer Thrupence's new mixtape Lessons, available now digitally on Bandcamp, or on vinyl from Future Classic. The track's easygoing melodicism is a welcoming summer vibe on this chilly fall day. Listen below, and grab Lessons from Bandcamp here.

D/P/I, which, according to his (I'm assuming-it could be a her) Bandcamp URL is a stylized abbreviation of DJ Purple Image, recently released a full-length called MN.ROY. The release comes on notable LA producer Matthewdavid's label Leaving Records, which has now put out over 50 releases by artists that include Jonwayne, Ras G, and Odd Nosdam. Check out a sample of the album with "012" below, which is one of the more unique tracks I've heard lately. If you like what you hear, head this way to purchase the album digitally or in limited edition CD format.

Here's what I know about Weith, and it's from Bandcamp:

On this self-titled EP, the Swiss producer combines atmospheric ambient influences with instrumental electronic hip-hop in the vein of Boards of Canada or QPE.

I also know that the track "Imminence of Change" (below) is really cool, and that the Weith EP is available on Bandcamp as a name-your-price download or on CD in superb looking handmade packaging.

Digital Saboteurs are a pair of producers from Sarasota, Florida who recently self-released an EP of breezy, vibey hip-hop beats. With a total running time of under 15 minutes, it's enough to set a mood, but leaves the listener wanting to hear more. Check out the track "ガラス" (glass, in Japanese) below, and grab a slice of the Sunshine State by downloading the EP for free from Bandcamp.

Sighborg (often spelled with varying letters- e.g. sssighborgg, siiighborg) is the South Korea-based duo of Sean Patrick Maylone and DeAnthony Nelson Jr. The pair use live drums, guitar, and synths to create an instrumental sound that's part melodic chiptunes and part post-rock edge. They recently released the free single "Kettle Pebble George" and an accompanying video. Check out the video below, and download the track here.

Euglossine is Florida multi-instrumentalist Tristan Whitehill, who produces what he describes as "tropical electronic exotica with jazzy flare and floral groove." To accompany a new release entitled Lustrous, which can be purchased digitally here, Euglossine put forth a lo-fi psychedelic video for the track "Phase Stone to Love," which can be viewed below. The video's primitive sci-fi theme captures the retro, ambient jazz atmosphere of the tune, in which the chord changes, along with the combination of electronic and organic components, create a vibe reminiscent of Thundercat's more relaxed compositions.

The description of the video, created by Adrian Pijoan, is: a space egg populates a planet with ethereal metallic goo, a fluxing garden of pure information, a sphere expands endlessly with life.

Monomorph consists of Italian twin brothers Fabrizio and Marco D'Arcangelo, who normally operate under the eponymous D'Arcangelo moniker. D'Arcangelo has been active since 1996, having released a number of albums and EPs on various labels, including Aphex Twin's Rephlex Records. Recently, the brothers decided to revert to an older, abandoned pseudonym Monomorph (under which they previously released material in the 90s) for the release of the Four EP, which is available from Bandcamp by donation. Check it out below.

From Brainfeeder: Taylor's musical style is equally influenced by the legends of 60s/70s Soul, the kings of the Modern Beat Generation, Golden Era hip hop, free form jazz and electronic music. By playing all of the instruments on his productions, while also relying heavily on sampling and chopping up his live takes, he has found a sound that seamlessly bridges myriad musical worlds and draws the listener into a constantly shifting audio soundscape.

Eli Colburn is a talented producer out of Tennessee that I happened upon some time ago via Soundcloud, and he recently put out a killer EP of vibey, eclectic (and fish-themed) hip hop beats. One of the standout tracks is the mellow and off-kilter "Angler" (below), on which Colburn makes great use of ambient space, allowing different elements to sit comfortably in their own dimension. The whole EP can be streamed on Soundcloud. CDs and T-shirts can be purchased through Bandcamp, where the EP is also available for digital download.

In the heyday of MTV, when the music video was almost as important as the song itself, the marriage of visuals and music reached new heights of innovation. A number of directors raised the artistic level of the medium, many of whom either came from or went on to the world of feature-length motion pictures, among them Spike Jonze, Michel Gondry, Jonathan Glazer, and Mark Romanek. These pioneers of the art form showed the world how to create an iconic visual identity for a piece of music, and perhaps no director has been more important to the electronic music aesthetic than Chris Cunningham.

Start with Cunningham's first video for "Second Bad Vilbel" by Autechre, which provides a rough sense for both the abstract, surrealist vibe that he would bring to his work and his collaborative approach, making the visuals a true extension of the sound.


Cunningham frequently worked with Aphex Twin, including the slightly ridiculous--in a good way--video for "Windowlicker" (featuring the superimposed Aphex Twin faces previously used in his nightmarish "Come to Daddy" video) and a piece called "Monkey Drummer," which was originally a video installation using Aphex Twin's track "Mt Saint Michel + Saint Michaels Mount."


Stanley Kubrick hired Cunningham for design and animatronic testing on his film A.I. Artificial Intelligence (a project that would ultimately be directed by Steven Spielberg), and that work was clearly an influence on his video for Bjork's "All is Full of Love."


Cunningham captured Portishead's floating, dream-like sound in his video for their song "Only You."


Finally, one of my favorite videos of all time is for "Come On My Selector" by Squarepusher, where all of Cunningham's idiosyncrasies come together for a more narrative-oriented piece.

Okay, so it was back at the end of February that vaporwave stand-out Saint Pepsi released his latest effort Gin City. There simply aren't enough hours in the day to always stay ahead of the game, so sometimes you have to rewind the clock a bit, just like the vaporwave movement looks back to find inspiration, somewhat ironically, from otherwise forgettable vintage sources: 80s video games, smooth jazz, corporate imagery, etc.

On Gin City, though, Saint Pepsi is less "vapor" and more bounce. Check out the track "Disappearing" below, streamed from SounCloud. There are breezy West Coast synths, melodic hooks, and a downright Dirty South-esque 808 beat.

Disappearing by SAINT PEPSI

LA-based producer Mast (Tim Conley) put out this track "The Waters" a couple months ago, back before his full-length Omni was released by Alpha Pup at the tail end of January. Featuring rapper/producer Jeremiah Jae, "The Waters" is one of those tracks that just might change your perspective on shit. I've spent the past 20 minutes listening to it back-to-back several times. Check it out:

Mast - The Waters (feat. Jeremiah Jae) by ALPHA PUP

More from Alpha Pup:

The multiverse of MAST is strikingly similar to physical life here on earth. Philadelphia raised, L.A. residing Tim Conley presents us with the everlasting unchanging everything of "OMNI", a debut musical sphere of bliss and structure, of chaos and destruction. MAST communicates to the core with a contemporary, electronic review of song-writing through a jazz composer's lens of unorthodox transcendence. Invoking the spirit of monumental Japanese painter Katsushika Hokusai, Conley pronounces an aesthetic theme to the surrounding emotive course of the album at-large bound by the serene and magical landscapes sometimes confusing, always intriguing. --- The Los Angeles electronic forefront of Alpha Pup Records speaks to every walk of life on the "OMNI" vibration plane, and it is not alone that the MAST vessel sets sail the maiden voyage. Assists from soul-navigating vocal gestures of Anna Wise (Sonnymoon, Kendrick Lamar), way-out raps from Brainfeeder/Warp's Jeremiah Jae, lullaby serenades from Low Leaf, and the long time partner / tourmate RYAT (Brainfeeder) attribute to the intricate album weaving of all things. All companions considered, it is Conley's solo sense of devotion to experimental process that guides us through the perfect flux that is MAST.

Now that 2014 is here, it seems the thing to do is reflect on the extraordinary happenings of the past year. There are no rankings of any kind here, just a sampling of AC's favorite jams from 2013 across a variety of genres. The only note to accompany these selections probably goes without saying: all of these albums and artists are (obviously) well worth checking out. If you discover something new, it's more interesting to go into it without expectations set by any description of the music. Some of these selections have been featured here on the blog at some point, and some haven't, but if you've been following this blog for the past year and generally like the music that is presented, your chances of disappointment are probably quite slim. Enjoy!

Daedelus recently performed a brilliant live set for the Boiler Room, and if you've somehow never seen Daedelus live, this is a great place to start. Improvisation in music is thought of as composing in real-time on an instrument. For Daedelus, music itself is also the instrument. Take a few minutes out of your day to go on a little journey with this set (below).

Nekochan is French singer/producer Chloe Oken, a classically trained cellist who, according to her bio, is influenced by Baroque and Classical composition, a Flamenco player stepfather, and a passion for Oriental melodic patterns. Her Bloodyful EP was released earlier this month by Fuselab, and includes the chill and highly Bjork-esque track "The Next World," co-produced by Free the Robots (below). The entire EP is available to stream here on SoundCloud.


Nekochan - The Next World (FREE THE ROBOTS & Nekochan) by Nekochan

I stumbled across this darkly hypnotic piece from 3:33, a production duo (I think?) about which there is very little info readily available online. The twisted, distortion-soaked "BB-2/BB2-8" is made of two tracks from a double LP called Bicameral Brain, which sees its release on October 29. The first half (presumably "BB-2") is all aggro drums and dissonant jabs, while the second half is creepy jazz, made of reverby industrial atmosphere and tribal percussion. "BB-2/BB2-8" Is available to stream and download for free (right-click/save as) from Soundcloud.

BB-2 / BB2-8 by Parallel Thought LTD.