Top 5 Tapes: 2016

Another year starts to wind it's way down, and again, our attention turns to reflect up on the previous months' releases. There were quite a few that really stood out for me this past year. Several albums required a resting place in close proximity to my decks. These 5 cassettes are the ones with the most wear.

• Tim Gray - Sandstone (Ethernet Music).
  Hypnotic and addictive synthesized ambient pieces that bring to mind the classic, Selected Ambient Works Vol. II. Copies of this tape are, oddly, still available.

• Joel Danielsen - Lines Of Withdrawal / The Possibility of Resonance (Total Black).
  I had the rare opportunity to play alongside Joel a new years ago. I played, in my mind, a terrible set that evening and that was even before he took the stage. His performance that night was elegant and showed much restraint. Like that performance, this cassette exemplifies the close attention he pays to every detail. 

• XAKATAGAWA - Vol. 2 (Nostilevo).
  This tape is described as "Ambient delirium disintegration playing very far away, under water, or from behind walls." by the label, and I'd say that's apt. Nostilevo fails to mention just how haunting and punishingly sad the tone is overall. Highly recommended.

• Grozny Penthouse - The Death Of Objects (Muza Muza)
  Minimal reptition. Heavy and deafening techno from Newcastle Upon Tyne artist Grozny Penthouse. 

• Cinema Perdu ‎- A Perfect Negative (Audio. Visuals. Atmosphere.)
  This double CS clocks in at just under 2 hours of music. Field recordings and manipulated classical music used as source audio for this beautifully negative collection of work.