#905

Love this. Not got much to say apart from the more I hear of his work the more convinced I am that RAI is a master of his craft. Every detail just feels right.

Gonna work backwards and listen to FSOL next.

2 Likes
#906

Just came back to this thread as it was mentioned in the ambient drone one…realised that I’ve heard the latest selection already through it being recommended yesterday…so I’ll pop it on again and offer some of my own thoughts (for the first time in ages) :slight_smile:

3 Likes
#907

Okay, so my brief experience with RIA is listening to his 2007 album Daydreaming once or twice…and filing it (in my brain) as decent, but since I was just starting to explore the genre I didn’t feel compelled to listen to it over SOTL, Hecker, Basinski etc. The next time I heard him (knowingly) was 2015’s A Fragile Geography…which is stunning record and I would recommend it for those who’ve enjoyed this.

I have so little technical knowledge so often struggle for words with this music…but to me it always feels like RIA’s drones are quite complex, as if they are built up of many different tones rather than one. The sort of thing that you could imagine sounding different in a different context. And that’s important…because it makes each song sound unique…and it distinguishes it from (for me, at least) a more rudimentary drone outfit that have the same swelling-minor chord melodies (some of which are beautiful, however, e.g. Slow Meadow).

Lovely cold weather music this, too…and I’m a big fan of autumn/winter (and second winter). Great pick, @old_man_burner!

3 Likes
#908

Digressing a little, here, but following on from my “cold weather” comment…does anyone else feel that ambient/drone/idm music is the best genre for bringing you in touch with the world around you? I listen to other genres plenty…but only when I’ve got something truly contemplative do I start stopping and looking around me, or actually thinking about the interactions happening in front of my eyes. I really hate the cliche of saying it is “background music”…I actually find it the most engaging genre of all.

6 Likes
#909

Pleased you liked it @manches

I had a definite feeling it would be an album you’d find both wonderful and strange.

Here’s an image of Rafael rehearsing that last incredible track:

twinpeaksjameshurley

(I’ll stop now - how far into the re-watch are you?)

1 Like
#910

Thanks a lot @wonton I’ve not heard Daydreaming yet, so I will seek that out too.

Agree about his complex tonal drones, yet he puts so much out that he makes it seem so easy!

#911

Only watched the pilot so far. This was supposed to be a week off but then loads of cool stuff happened

1 Like
#912

Yeah, that definitely rings true for me. I guess as it fades into the background and doesn’t demand your immediate attention it acts as a filter on your surroundings rather than a distraction from them, which helps with engaging with the world. Also for someone like me (and I’d wager a fair few people here) who spends a lot of time with an immovable sadness filter on the best melancholy ambient/drone stuff doesn’t help to make anything feel less sad but instead helps you focus on the beauty held within that sadness, which is often a bigger help to me. It feels more honest, sort of like, “well, s’all fucked but it sure is lovely, isn’t it?” If that makes any sense at all.

5 Likes
#913

Not only does that make sense, it absolutely hits the nail on the head

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#914

Nice to have you back in the thread @wonton, and I think a lot if us here don’t “know” how to write about music so I wouldn’t worry about that!

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#915

Yup, you write with obvious passion @wonton and that’s 90% of the battle really

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#916

Havent had a lot of listening time recently to contribute to this thread in any meaningful way. But will just quickly mention that I LOVE everything of RAI’s that I’ve heard and this was a great choice. So much this for colossalhorse’s comments ^^^, managed to articulate something I’ve never quite been able to there. I’m travelling New Zealand at the moment and being out in the wild with this kind of deeply textural ambient/drone as a soundtrack has been the most… connected I’ve felt.

Going to DL me some FSOL to try and catch up a little too!

3 Likes
#917

I’m way behind on this but listening to FSOL, I feel like all the journos got it wrong comparing Logos to Classical Curves, that first track has to have been an influence.

1 Like
#918

RAI is completely new to me, and I’m not really into drone, so I went into this with low expectations…but I really liked it. Rainy melancholia is always going to be up my street, but this is particularly good. It’s very contemplative and atmospheric, with some lovely textures and just enough of a hint of melody to prevent it dissolving into porridge. Would probably never have come across this without the recommendation, so thanks!

5 Likes
#919

Such a beautiful album. Sent me off on a bit of a RAI binge. I think The Shameless Years will end up as one of my albums of the decade tbh. Come away from it utterly transported every single time. What a master.

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#920

Sorry if this has been covered whilst I was absent from the thread, but are we working on a fortnightly basis now?

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#921

We are. @maggieloveshopey is up next week. Lemme know if you want to go into the roster :slight_smile:

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#922

Yeah, just put my name in wherever there’s another gap

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#923

3 weeks time then!

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#924

Where should I go next with him? I’d literally never encountered his work before the album posted