To celebrate some of the recent changes here at beatFilter, here’s one of my personal favorites. A classic ambient epic by Spacetime Continuum. Spacetime is one of the most under appreciated ambient groups, a true pioneer in the early scene.
Speedy J is one of the most underrated artists in ambient electronic. His 1993 debut ‘Ginger‘ was simultaneously released on Richie Hawtin‘s label Plus 8 and as part of the Warp Records Artificial Intelligence series. Impressive for any release, let alone a debut.
He has released multipule ‘Fills’ over his career and all are excellent. Here’s one of my favorites.
This is the title track to the 1991 release ‘Analogue Bubblebath‘ by AFX, one of Aphex Twin‘s many pseudonyms. It is his first release under the AFX moniker. pRichard D. Jams (aka AFX) originally recorded the track in 1987, at the age of 16.
An aptly named classic, it really is a bubble bath for your ear canal. The EP continues with the much harsher and more discordant ‘Isopropophlex’ followed by an epic and chaotic ‘Entrance to Exit’, and it closes with some classic Aphex acid in ‘AFX 2’.
Not my favorite AFX release, but one of my favorite AFX tracks of all time, a true hallmark of ambient techno.
Sorry for the crap sound quality. Go buy the EP!
This is the title track of Serrie’s 1987 debut album, written in memory of the astronauts who died in the Challenger disaster.
This is just a taste of the journey that is Serrie’s music. He is truly a visionary and prolific artist. He has released 18 studio albums, and has “worked on various projects for Lucasfilm, IMAX Corporation, NASA, the United States Navy, Hayden Planetarium, Expo Seville, and CNN” (Wikipedia).
Do yourself a favor and grab some headphones for this one.
I could have chosen any number of Orbital tracks, but I started with this one because this song has penetrated pop culture so deeply. It is the theme track from Hackers, and has also been featured in CKY2K, Mortal Kombat, and Mean Girls.
Orbital is a British duo consisting of two brothers, Phil and Paul Hartnoll. Halcyon is a reference to Halcion, a tranquilizer to which the Hartnoll’s mother was addicted. The original mix of Halcyon is a longer and more downbeat version, and was dedicated to the Hartnoll’s mother. The vocals are a “backmasked vocal sample by Kirsty Hawkshaw from “It’s a Fine Day” by Opus III” (Wikipedia).
This massive tune is the closing track of The Orb‘s debut studio album “The Orb’s Adventures Beyond the Ultrawold”, released in 1991. Doesn’t get much more classic than this.
The Orb was formed in 1988 by Alex Paterson and a member of KLF, Jimmy Cauty. Peterson is the only permanent member of the duo, his current partner is Thomas Fehlmann.
This video is just part one of the epic 18min track. I’m sure you can find part 2 if you look hard enough.
I noticed the other day that this was one of my most downloaded tracks on soundcloud, so I gave it a reboot.
Pretty much the same track, just a little faster, a few more synths, and a slightly updated beat. Enjoy.
