Index

 

BJNilsen (Sweden)

Focus Intensity Power (2018)

Sound and recording artist from Sweden. As an experimental composer, he often focuses on varied field recordings, mostly processed or treated in unusual ways. However, Focus Intensity Power was recorded in the Netherlands in the Willem Twee Electronic Music Studio. The material was created with a modular synth, tone generator and test & measuring equipment. There's something fascinating about these quiet, droning compositions that will be enjoyed by fans of both Drone Ambient and Noise Ambient.

 


Bjondo (Italy)

Colore vivo (2020)

Unique rhythmic World Music from Gianluca Biondo, with synths, lots of ethnic and even self-made instruments.

 


Bjørke, Kasper (Denmark)

Nothing Gold Can Stay (2019)
Sprinkles (2021)
Mother (2022)

Danish electronic artist whose work is oriented towards the dance crowd. His output is rather diverse, from 1980's style disco songs to soft house and "balearic beat". However, the reason I include him here is the melancholic, Klaus Schulze-like title track from Nothing Gold Can Stay and the whole of Mother, which is an ambient EM / classical hybrid. Sprinkles also has some interesting material.

 


Björnemyr (Germany)

Deep Space Mysteries (2004)
Deep Space the Planets (2004)

German new age artist. I don't know how much of his output will be interesting for EM fans. The above work, although still quite new-agey in places, will certainly appeal to fans of melodic EM and Space Music.

 


Bjørnstad, Ketil (Norway)

Three Ballets (1987)

Unusual music from this jazz pianist. This is a 3-LP set that contains his electronic works for three ballet performances: "Ophelia's Arrival", "Pianology" and "Minotaurus". The music is melodic and rhythmic and is made with typical equipment of the era (digital synths and samplers).

 


Blac Koyote (Portugal)

Blac Koyote (2011)
Quiet Ensemble (2014)
IO (2019)

Experimental project of José Alberto Gomes. Two massive tracks of blackened synths, clicks and processed baritone sax on IO.

 


Blache, Philippe (France)

The Ever Sounding Sea of Grief (2022)
Across the Silence And the Shade (2023)

Doomy, melancholic, often dramatic ambient compositions. Distant choirs, organs, drones, voices...

See also: Day Before Us

 


Black, Andrew (USA)

Dreaming (2018)
Dialethia (2020) (with מזמור)
Welcome Home (2021)
Hypnopompia (2022)

Ambient with a huge piano presence from this Portland, Oregon-based artist.

 


Black Cavern (USA)

Mātu Šaplītu (2018)

Dark soundscapes with some Middle Eastern touches.

See also: Bergtatt

 


Black Ceiling (USA)

A Candle Illuminates the Dungeon (2015)

A project of Spokane-based Daniel Guccia, mostly known for his witch house music. However, and quite surprisingly, on some of his releases he opts for an ambient, dungeon synth-influenced style.

 


Black Channels (UK)

Black Channels (2015) (S)
Two Knocks For Yes (2015)

A duo of Simon James and Becky Randall in a dark, analogue electronic mould, sometimes ambient and sometimes sequencer-based. I guess their sound could be considered horror synth-related but it's rather unique overall.

 


Black Deer (USA)

Black Deer (2013)
The Last Tortuga (2013)
Trail of Tears (2013) (S)
Pray For Us (2015) (S)
Nowhere Man (2016)
Black Deer (2019)

Black Deer is one of the projects of American deep house producer William Thomas Burnett aka Willie Burns. He states that Black Deer is influenced by Native Americans and their culture. Maybe there is some of that too, but mostly, Black Deer goes for a mixture of his techno / house influences and prog EM / kraut sound. A crossover project.

See also: Galaxy Toobin'

 


Black Dog, The (UK)

Black Daisy Wheel (2018)
Music For Photographers (2021)
The Grey Album (2023)
My Brutal Life (2023)
Radio Scarecrow (2023)
Music For Moore Street Substation (2023)

Varied techno / IDM project that exists since the early 1990's. Black Daisy Wheel is their ambient album that mixes floating and rhythmic tracks.

 


Black Fog (Russia)

Мечты и кошмары (2017)

The project is known under its Russian name "Чёрный туман". Hypnotic dark soundscapes.

 


Black Hat (USA)

Thought of Two (2014)

I have included only this one album from Seattle-based Nelson Bean aka Black Hat so far. If you like fusions of post-industrial and Ambient, this will be right up your valley. The album features three cold, monolithic and forbidding slabs of electronics with elements of glitch on the longer "Memory Triptych". The most impressive track for me is "Portrait In Fluorescent Light". There's even something of a Heldon quality to it (this is pure electronics, no drums or guitar).

 


Black Hole (Russia)

The Best of (2018)

Spacesynth project of Ruslan Bektimirov from Novosibirsk. Upbeat synth riffs, dynamic melodies, heavy Laserdance vibes.

 


Black Institute (Chile)

Robot Collective Consciousness (2021)

Mechanical, experimental EM from this project. For fans of Conrad Schnitzler maybe.

 


Black Lung (Australia)

Full Spectrum Dominance (2009)
Muzak From the Hive Mind (2015)
The Great Manipulator (2019)

Black Lung is a long-running industrial project of David Thrussell. He is also a soundtrack composer and would also venture into other electronic-based styles every now and then. Full Spectrum Dominance includes some moody melodic material. Muzak From the Hive Mind is him trying to compose "serious" electronic music. It is mostly quite ambient and full of beeps and bleeps. Surprisingly, some moments end up sounding like a strange, slow, abstract version of the Berlin School (track 13). Whether it's a direct influence or a convergent evolution so to speak, remains a mystery. The Great Manipulator compines ambient synths with rhythmic electro material. Some tracks are more like melodic / sequencer EM. Further investigation is needed

 


Black Merlin (UK)

Hipnotik Tradisi (2016)
Kosua (2018)

Black Merlin is a project of London-based producer George Thompson. He is known for his techno productions but with Hipnotik Tradisi he started a series of unique World Music explorations, in this case combining Balinese traditional gamelan styles with atmospheric and gently rhythmic electronics. Kosua continues in that style.

See also: Spectral Empire, Karamika.

 


Black, Mike (USA)

GO/NO-GO (2006)

Mike Black assisted Robert Fripp's guitar craft courses for 16 years. However, on his solo effort, recorded in just one month, he eschewed guitars (apart from some bass playing) to concentrate on keyboards and soft synths. What he came up with is EM of the style that is reminiscent of Synergy.

 


Black Mountain Transmitter (UK)

RedShift (2008) (S)
Black Goat of the Woods (2009)
The Unsettled Dust (2009) (S)
Stille Nacht (2010) (S)
Theory & Practice (2010)
Playing With Dead Things (2012)
Deathdream! Live In Edinburgh (2014) (S)
Oscillator Ritual (2017)
Mr. White Noise (2018) (with Matthew M. Bartlett)
Behold the Undead of Dracula (2019)
Call Me Corey (2019) (with Matthew M. Bartlett)
The Crypt of Blood: A Halloween TV Special (2020)
Dracula 1897 Part 10 (2023) (S)

Dark Ambient / Drone artist J.R. Moore.

See also: Cloudland Ballroom

 


Black Necromancer's Path (Serbia)

Funebres tenebras (2012)
How To Feed the Defuncts Shadows (2013)

Black Ambient with sort of a lo-fi feel.

 


Black Resonance (Russia)

Azure Syndrome (2015)
Dystopia (2018)
Polarity (2020)

A project of Artemy Kairyak from Saratov who makes complex music that blends influences like chiptune, progrock and progressive EM.

 


Black Robert (Germany)

Kolonie (2020)
Antalya (2020)

Calm, repetitive electronics with a Cluster feel and an extra IDM touch.

 


Black Sea, The (USA)

C:>Spacewalk (2002)

Cosmic music from this duo of Zero Scratch and David Weintraub bringing to mind some TD material.

 


Black Seas of Infinity (USA)

Within Daathian Chasms (2005)
Amrita - The Quintessence (2007)
The Wordless Aeon Has Awakened (2008)
Hieros Gamos (2008)
Invokation (2008) (S)

Black Ambient from Utah. Good stuff to play Quake 1 to.

 


Black Sun (USA)

Initiation (2012) (S)
Liber (2014)

Dark, ritual ambience from Randall Collier-Ford of Springfield, Oregon.

See also: Collier-Ford, Randall

 


Black Swan (USA)

Repetition Hymns (2021)

Anonymous project oriented towards ambient lo-fi tape loop experiments. Repetition Hymns is arguably the most ambient-oriented release to date.

 


Black Tape For A Blue Girl (USA)

The Rope (1986)
Mesmerized By the Sirens (1987)
Ashes In the Brittle Air (1989)
A Chaos of Desire (1991)
This Lush Garden Within (1993)
The First Pain To Linger (1996)
Remnants of A Deeper Purity (1996)
With My Sorrows (1997)
nameless maxi-CD (1998)
As One Aflame Laid Bare By Desire (1999)
The Scavenger Bride (2002)
Halo Star (2004)
10 Neurotics (2009)
To Touch the Milky Way (2018)
The Cleft Serpent (2021)
The Cleft Serpent (Instrumental & Alternate Mixes) (2021)

Black Tape For A Blue Girl is Sam Rosenthal plus additional musicians and singers that tend to vary from album to album. Not at all ‘wallpaper’ music as one could expect, this is quality Gothic Ambient electronics. Ethereal, dark music. Very cool in a depressive and dark sort of way. Sometimes features ethereal female vocals. I guess it’s one of the most introspective dark bands out there, but I need to confirm this presumption by listening to their music.

See also: Rosenthal, Sam, As Lonely As Dave Bowman.

 


Black Tempest (UK)

Proxima (2010)
Ex Proxima (2010)
Secret Astronomies (2011)
The Sun Behind the Sun (2013) (with Dead Sea Apes)
Sticks And Bells And Ancient Spells (2013)
Arcana (2013)
Astral Voyages (2014)
Darkness Unfolding (2015)
Enfolding Light (2016)
Psyberspace (2018)
Dataland (2021) (with Adam Stone and Dead Sea Apes)
Psyborg (2021)

Stephen Bradbury aka Black Tempest uses analogue synthesizers and acoustic / electric guitars to craft his long, cosmic compositions that strongly remind on the early solo work by Edgar Froese, with bubbling sequences, long-drawn pads, mellotron choirs and tons of effects.

 


Black Theatre (USA)

MMXX (2020)
Dreams of Time (2023)

Melancholic, cosmic synth compositions from Max Brigham, member of rock / black metal band Cloak. I like the cleanness of the synth sound on this one (something rare in these days of pedal overuse). Nice stuff.

 


Black To Comm (Germany)

Back To Comm (2003) (S)
Ruckwarts Backwards (2006)
Levitation / Astoria (2006) (S)
Shirley Temple Police Force (2006) (S)
Wir konnen leider nicht etwas mehr zu tun... (2007)
Back To Comm (2007) (S)
Fractal Hair Geometry (2008)
Collaboration (2008) (with Datashock)
Charlemagne & Pippin (2009)
Alphabet 1968 (2009)
Wave UFO (2009) (S)
Incidents (2009) (S)
Coldplay, Elvis & John Cage (2011)
Stille Nacht (2012) (S)
Earth (2012)
Black To Comm (2014)
Providence (2014) (S)
Seven Horses For Seven Kings (2019)
Before After (2019)
A C of M (2020)
Oocyte Oil & Stolen Androgens (2020)
Alkisah Versi Hitam (2021) (with Senyawa)
At Zeenath Parallel Heavens (2023)

Hamburg-based drone artist Marc Richter who uses electronic, acoustic instruments and lots of samples / concrete textures.

 


Black Unicorn (USA)

Squid And Whale (2011) (S)
Prosper Drift (2011)
Rediscovering Infinity (2012)
18047 (2012)
Tardigrade Teleport (2012) (S)
Traced Landscapes (2014)
Alien Jewelry (2014)
Insect Songs (2017)
Unmanifest Architecture (2017)

Sequences, arpeggios, drones and deep ambient synth soundscapes. Black Unicorn is Ohio-based artist Curt Brown.

See also: Cane Swords

 


Black Zephyr (UK)

M6 Travelogue (2023) (S)

EM with a concept a bit similar to Kraftwerk's Autobahn, done the British way. Some synthwave touches as well.

 


Black Zone Myth Chant (France)

Mane Thecel Phares (2015)
Jimi W. (2016) (S)
Feng Shen (2017)
Bad Decisions (2022)
IN D EV IL (2022)

Strange. Started as a screw / collage electronics project and releasing an album called Straight Cassette in that style in 2011, Black Zone Myth Chant aka Maxime Primault started to move in the direction of Progressive Electronic Music. On Mane Thecel Phares he sounds like Heldon and Throbbing Gristle backing demented rants of Anubis in a pyramid (used for the first time on Straight Cassette, the voice somehow reminded me on "Stargate"). There are still influences of screw / cut-up collage, but the whole does sound very Prog and is rather unique, too. Jimi W. is influenced by screw / hip hop, but one track ("Jail Love") is very Prog EM.

See also: Annapurna Illusion

 


blackbody_radiation (UK)

Ultra-Materials (2023)

Noise Ambient tracks.

 


Blackhall, Steve (UK)

Transport (1985)

Scottish electronic musician. This cassette was released by members of Altres.

 


Blacklight Chameleon (Austria)

Tearing At the Edges of All Restraint (2021)

A project of Martin Riedler. Complex themes with traces of art pop, neo-classical structures and EM.

 


Blackout, Mac (USA)

Love Profess (2020)

Chicago-based saxophonist (real name Mark McKenzie) active in the experimental and punk scenes. On Love Profess, he improvises on sax and synths mainly, also using other instruments like electric piano, guitar, bass, flute and drum machines. The music is a nice and wild amalgamation of free jazz and EM.

 


Blackthread (France)

The Way You Haunt My Dreams (2019)

Indie pop / shoegaze / post-rock / indietronica artist Pierre Georges Desenfant. The above album contains lots of ambient influences. The closer is a good example of ambient material by him. File under EM-related.

 


Blackwood Incident, The (Slovakia)

Curse of Tribe (2017)
Sea of the Trees (2021) (with Untitled Sea)

A bit psychedelic synth soundscapes from Dominik Novák.

 


Bladcvlt (Germany)

Anatomie der Agonie (2019)
Verfall (2020)
Opfergang (2020)
Finsterland (2020)

Dark Ambient project of Tino Seibt.

See also: Holotrop

 


Blagg, Kevin & Cochran, Amos (USA)

Air Structures (2020)

 


Blaison, Mélodie (France)

Vintvri (2022)

French visual artist and experimental musician. Dramatic compositions from Dark Ambient to mysterious melodic synth, sometimes with hushed voices.

 


Blak Saagan (Italy)

A Personal Voyage (2017)
Se ci fosse la luce sarebbe bellissimo (2021)

Electronic compositions (inspired, as you've guessed it, by Carl Sagan and his science / space popularization programs) recorded with just a Farfisa VIP 202 R organ, Roland TR-606 and a Siel Orchestra. The exact style is not known at the moment. Blak Saagan is Samuele Gottardello.

 


Blake, Tim (UK)

Sintesis Intemporal / Sintesis Intemporal II (1977) (S)
Crystal Machine (1977)
Generator Laserbeam / Woodland Voice (1978) (S)
Blake’s New Jerusalem (1978)
Waterfalls In Space (1979) (with Jean-Philippe Rykiel)
Magick (1991)
Tide of the Century (2000)
Caldea Music II (2002)
Noggi 'Tar (2018)
Lighthouse - An Anthology 1973 - 2012 (2018)

British synthesist, member of Gong and Hawkwind at some stages. He began experimenting with synthesizers very early and is one of the pioneers of Electronic Music. He was also one of the first to use laser shows during his concerts, because he collaborated with Patrice Warrener who was a great innovator in the field. His first two works are all-time classics and well worth seeking. I have Crystal Machine and it’s great. Blake's New Jerusalem is more song oriented, but still with excellent electronic arrangements. I also have Magick and it’s a complete failure, from my point of view. Although featuring some decent instrumental work, there are still vocal songs that leave much to be desired. I don’t actually think Blake should ever open his mouth for singing, because, to put it politely, I’ve heard far better voices in my life. And now imagine this man putting out romantic stuff of the ‘I love you baby’, ‘Tonight is our night’ kind and sounding as if he is serious about it. I cannot help but laugh. The 2000 album Tide of the Century also contains vocals, but this time not only his own voice is used. You can buy it, of course, that is if you don’t mind straight-forward vocal songs in your Electronic Music. Better grab his first two albums.

See also: Hawkwind, Gong, Nik Turner's Sphynx, Saratoga Space Messengers.

 


Blakmoth (USA)

Achromatic (2018)

Ambient pieces composed and performed in real time. Sort of mysterious, slightly cosmic sound here.

 


Blameful Isles (Sweden)

Ereeséon (2021)

Swedish spiritual jazz artist (Daniel Israelsson), changing to electronics for Ereeséon. There are three ambient tracks on that album ("Ghost Freq Pause", "Waving Angel" and "Yuki") and the rest is influenced by IDM. The IDM material is ok, albeit nothing special (or maybe I'm just not a fan of that style). The ambient material is very nice, though.

 


Blanchet, Daniel (Canada)

Le chemin de l’ermite (1987)
L’harmonie des mondes (1991)
Les voilers de l’espace (1992)
Légendes du ciel (1996)

His music has been compared to Jarre and Kitaro. Also has choral elements reminding of Constance Demby. In USA, Les Voilers... was re-released as Starsailing (1998).

 


Blanck Mass (UK)

Blanck Mass (2011)
Calm With Horses (2020) (soundtrack)
In Ferneaux (2021)
Ted K (2022) (soundtrack)

A project of Benjamin John Power. Mostly related to IDM or techno musics, some of his output (listed) may be interesting for fans of EM and / or Ambient. Calm With Horses is a varied soundtrack, mostly of ambient nature.

See also: Fuck Buttons

 


Blanco, Esteban (Canada)

Balloons (2018) (S)

Actually a spanicized name of Canadian musician Stephen White. Music is electronic and influenced by the Dusseldorf School.

 


Blanco, Juan Marcos (Cuba)

Caballos (1984)

Juan Marcos Blanco is son of electroacoustic composer Juan Blanco. This album is subtitled "Musica Electroacustica" but in fact contains quirky Electronic Music a bit in the style of melodic Jarre and Kraftwerk, but rather unique overall.

 


Blank Banshee (Canada)

Music For Menus (2022)

A project of Patrick Driscoll. Music For Menus is ambient music in the truest sense - nonchalant but strangely lulling and relaxing.

 


Blank, Boris (Switzerland)

Electrified (2014)
Resonance (2024)

Member of Yello, Boris Blank (real name: Hans-Rudolf Strickler) released this massive, 2-CD set of solo music in 2014 (Electrified). The material is pretty varied and ranges in style to electronic pop (similar to his parent band) to synth disco, electro, techno and more ambient or progressive stuff.

See also: Tranceonic

 


Blank Embrace (Russia)

We Should Have Stayed There (2019)
Angels (2020)

Prolific (most releases to date have been download-only) ambient artist. Some rhythmic or shoegaze-influenced stuff as well.

 


Blank Gloss (USA)

January (2020)
Melt (2021)
Cornered Glass (2023)

Sacramento-based duo of Patrick Hills and Morgan Fox. They have an ambient, melodic, semi-acoustic sound, with languid guitars and foggy synths.

 


Blank, Jeff (???)

Dialect (2018) (S)
Landscapes Part 1 (2019)

Dialect is a techno record with one track ("Prizmic Oscillations") being of particular interest to analog EM fans. With Landscapes Part 1, he went the EM route, delivering an album pull of Cluster-like synth sketches.

 


Blank, Tomas (Sweden)

Art Video Music (1985)
Nice And Slow (1988)
Waxone (1988)

Rare LP with Electronic Music composed for use in TV programs.

 


Blanka (France)

Hypnotic (2017) (S)

Diverse artist from Paris (Pascal Luvisi), whose style combines elements of instrumental hip-hop, electro, "bachelor pad music" and more. The above album has a little bit of everything and is pretty laid-back and relaxing overall. Interestingly, at least two of the tracks ("Abyss" and "Childhood") have a Prog EM feel, a bit Cluster & Eno-like perhaps.

 


Blanke, Toto (Germany)

Tales of Tomorrow (1978)

Ex-guitarist of Electric Circus who on this particular album (he released a few more since 1975) crafted a curious mixture of electronics ala Heldon and fusion / acoustic guitar material. His other albums are more oriented towards fusion / progrock or solo acoustic guitar.

See also: Electric Circus

 


Blankenship, Terry (USA)

Daemon (1985)
Entering the Silence (1987)

Terry Blankenship is an American guitarist and multi-instrumentalist. He is one of Robert Fripp's "alumnis" and is a member of his "League of Crafty Guitarists". His output is stylistically diverse. Daemon features driving instrumental tracks, both guitar-based and electronic, channeling that Tangerine Dream's 1980's soundtrack vibe. Entering the Silence is an album of "frippertronics" music in the style of Fripp & Eno albums. He also recorded banjo-based acoustic folk, trance (with guitar), David Bowie-inspired pop / rock and Celtic music.

 


Blanket Swimming (USA)

The Ringing In Your Ears Is the Cricket In the Stars (2016)
Contain Multitudes (2017)
Open Colour (2018)
Perpetual Seeds For Fleeting Time (2019)
INTR (2019)
The Sunroom (2020)
A Connection And Singularity (2020)
Rows (2021)
Arioso (2021)
Entering the Body By Way of Window (2021)
Leaves Painted In A Darker Blue (2021)
All Auspices (2021)
Temple of Heaven (2022)
Wishing For More (2022)
In Flower Made Masses (2022)
Star-Kissed & Blemished (2022)
The Turning Point (2022)
The Reason For This Dormant Surge (2022)
Silhouettes For A New World (2022)
Remained Unsaid (2022)
Sustained Eventualities I (2022)
Sein (2022) (with Demetrio Cecchitelli)
Zener_37 (2022)
Sustained Eventualities III (2022)
A Quiet Vision (2022)
Chase the Cloud If You Are Not the Cloud (2022)
Wonder (2023)
Of Form And Formlessness (2023)
Archway (2024) (recorded in 2023)

Jackson, Mississippi-based ambient artist Nicholas Maloney.

 


BlankFor.ms (USA)

In Part (2023)
Refract (2023) (with Jason Moran and Marcus Gilmore)

Ambient artist from New York, using degraded tape loops and modular synths. I've never really been a fan of tape distortion and styles or sounds built around those effects, so this is the part of Tyler Gilmore's (aka BlankFor.ms) music that just did nothing to me. However, the synth sounds are often nice and warm and the more synth-based sections definitely have a sort of a Prog EM atmosphere to them.

 


Blanks, Jeff (USA)

The Electric Minstrel (1987)

Jeff Blanks is an Atlanta-based musician who recorded this instrumental disc inspired by Olias of Sunhillow by Jon Anderson. The music features a similar mix of prog, Celtic music and EM, with a stronger emphasis on the latter.

 


Blanos, Mischa (Romania)

Indoors (2019)
Crossrhodes (2020) (with Khori Ander)
City Jungle (2021)

Pianist who combines his acoustic piano playing with electronics. Unique style, often with almost dancey / club combinations.

 


Blasco, Merche (Spain)

North of the Future (2021) (with Gryphon Rue)

Spanish-born musician based in New York. Experimental electronics based on the sound of analog / modular synths, as well as a few other instruments, like musical saw. A bit Heldon-like in places.

 


Blason (France)

Blason (2013)
Beautiful Interface Panel (2021)

Two brothers making playful experimental synth music.

 


Blast Attack (Germany)

Terrible Time (2021) (S)

Darkish Kraftwerk pastiche with electro and EBM influences. Nice use of vocoder.

 


Blauklang (Austria)

Events (1988)
1991 (1991)
Asia (1994)

Electronic Music band formed by Richard Gaisbauer circa 1986 after his two previous bands (that also played Electronic Music) The Silent Sun and Phaeicon split. Richard later became known as Agent Error and today he releases music in MP3 format as "Baumbach".

See also: Silent Sun, The, Phaeicon, Agent Error.

 


Blauw, Piet Jan (Netherlands)

Bluezone 1 (2002)
Pluma de Piedra (2002) (with Jorge Reyes)
Mosquitos On Ice (2008) (with Ron Rettich)

Piet Jan Blauw is a unique artist who crafts his own unique instruments and MIDI controllers.

 


Blazing Worlds (USA)

Blazing Worlds (2023)

Electronic duo of Justin Wright and Grant Corum. Cosmic, analog, lysergic, ala early 1970's EM / krautrock.

See also: Wright, Justin, Expo '70, Corum, Lethal Tender, Orchardist, The.

 


Blear Moon (Czech Republic)

Symbolic Seclusion (2018)
Expanding Lands (2020)

Abstract, experimental, melancholic and droning ambient compositions from Vlas Presnetsov.

 


Bleed Air (Germany)

Bleed Air (2020)
Ogehiko (2021) (S)
Abstruse Theories In Occult Christian Science (2021) (S)

Analog music with a slightly lo-fi feel. Melodic, rhythmic...

 


Bleek (USA)

Lay Your Skull Upon tha Groundz of tha Bleek Godz (2016)

Whacked out sax wails upon a bed of warped electronics. Alien Planetscapes jamming with Heldon and Gong in a basement? A project of Ethan Billips from Austin.

 


Bleeker, Robert (Australia)

Southern Spirit (1987)

Electronic musician with an ambient sound and some tribal influences.

 


Blenner, Serge (France)

La vogue (1980)
Magazin frivole (1981)
Fracture interne (1982)
Plaisir ardent (1985)
La dimension prochaine (1986)
Les architectes du temps (1987)
Equateur (1988)
Cosmos (1990)
Babylone (1991)
Liberation (1992)
Symbolique (1993)
Vision et poesie (1995)
Amour (1996)
Ars oratoria (1999)
Virtualis (2001)
Miroir de soi (2004)
Musique de chambre (2008)

French musician who lives and works in Germany. He began experimenting with electronics in 1975 and in 1978 he gave his first concerts of Electronic Music. La Vogue and Magazine Frivole, his first published albums, are said to be Berlin School based, while in the latter ones he developed his own unique style. I know that Blenner is also a poet and sometimes puts his own verses on top of his music - a fact which doesn’t really sound very inspiring for me. Moreover, I have a slight suspicion that most of his music would sound too ‘sweet’ and ‘romantic’ for my ears. Well, we’ll just have to see about that.

 


Blessed By Saturn (Bulgaria)

Blessed By Saturn (2021)
Wasted Heart (2022)

Doomy ambient electronics from this female Bulgarian project.

 


Blessed Oblivion (USA)

Blessed Oblivion (2001)

A Mauve Sideshow offshoot with Dusty Lee, Amanda Christina and Dana Devereaux. In the same vein as MS.

See also: Mauve Sideshow, Minus Infinity, Mistress of Strands, Steeple of Fyre, Thistle, Angel Provocateur, Torn Curtain, Kangaroo Kourt.

 


Blessum (Netherlands??)

Blessum (2018)

Minimal, droning ambient compositions. Sometimes vaguely melodic.

 


Blesvik, Runar (Norway)

Blend (2018)
Sedate (2019)

Ambient  / neo-classical composer who focuses on both piano / acoustic instruments and electronics. A nice blend (no pun intended).

 


Bleu System (USA)

Serotones (2023)

A project of Sevon Brown from Sacramento. Varied, psychedelic ambient EM, often ala Ishq.

 


Blevin Blectum (USA)

Talon Slalom (2002)
Magic Maple (2004)
The Rapid Cooling (2007) (EP)
Gular Flutter (2008)
Emblem Album (2013)
Irradiance (2014)
Omnii (2023)

An alias of experimental electronic composer Bevin Kelley. She is also a member of Blectum From Blechdom duo. Omnii is a nice EM work full of sci-fi narratives and analog electronics.

 


Blezqi Zatsaz (Brazil)

The Rise And Fall of Passionate Sanity (1991)
The Tide Turns (2000)

Blezqi Zatsaz is the project name of Brazilian keyboardist Fabio Ribeiro. His instrumental music (on which he's joined by a few guest musicians) ranges from the more typical symphonic rock to accessible melodic Electronic Music in the style of Jean-Michel Jarre

 


Blijweert, Elko (Belgium)

I bambino di Basilisco (2017)
Realm of Rides & Romance (2020)
66.6 (2021) (with Daniel B.)
Prison of the Mind (2021)

Aka Elko B. Although known mainly as a jazz guitarist, I Bambino di Basilisco features a unique take on a Cluster / Jean-Jacques Perrey-like electronic musical vision, with cartoonish sounds, cute rhythms and lulling melodies. Nice and singular. Realm of Rides & Romance continues in the same vein.

 


Blind Cave Salamander (Italy / USA)

Cabbalism (2012) (with Nurse With Wound)
The Svalbard Suite (2019)
Cabbalism Vol. III + IV (2020) (with Nurse With Wound)

Varied duo of Fabrizio Modonese Palumbo and Paul Beauchamp. The Svalbard Suite is a moody collage of field recordings, synths and processed strings.

See also: Beauchamp, Paul, Milanesio, Marco.

 


Blind Ruler Cursed Land (Czech Republic)

Chrysantheme Delirium (2021) (S)
For A Flower Called Sacrifice Sun Never Sets (2022) (S)

Philosophy-centered Martial Ambient project of Willhelm Grasslich.

 


Blindmachine (Poland)

Cosmos In Your Mind (2017) (with Asuntar)
Sequential Friends (2018) (with Drom66, JDan Project and others)
Planets (2019) (with JDan Project)
Music In Space And Time (with JDan Project)

Electronic musician from Poland.

 


Blink Twice (USA)

Crowned For Sound (1992)
Clouded (1993)
Source (1994)
Subsistence (1995)
Torn Soul And Other Locations (1995)
Other Locations (1996)
Slow Escape From Sorrow (1996)
The Brighter the Moon, the Darker the Shadows (1996)
Newer Unknown Breeds (1998)
The Demon Haunted World (1999)
The Holistic Approach (2000)
Metronome Sense (??)

Dark Ambient from Robert Salchak.

 


Blinkar från Norr (Italy)

Metaphors For Things (2020)

Atmospheric project of Sardinian composer Andrea Garau. Ambient, mysterious sound.

 


Blinkhorn (USA)

Sligo (2020)
Music For Rainy Days (2022)
Joy Mechanics (2023) (S)

Patrick Blinkhorn is a US synthesist. Sligo is an extremely nice, warm ambient work mixing field recordings and analog synths. Music For Rainy Days is similar in style. Joy Mechanics takes things into more melodic / rhythmic realms, with a touch of spacesynth even.

 


Blinky Blinky Computerband (Germany)

Fractured Sign (2016)
Inner Conflict (2019)
Dystopia (2019)
Electrostatic Interference (2021)
Geistmaschine (2022)

Solo project of Olaf Krautwurst, with three additional members used for live shows and some guest musicians from time to time. Mostly synth-pop / EBM / electroclash music. Some releases tend towards ambient and rhythmic / melodic EM, though. These will be listed. The best release EM-wise and a good starting point is probably Dystopia. If you like this one, you can explore further.

See also: Inside Alligator

 


Bliscappen Van Maria (France / Italy)

Pyha Hela Esten (2011)
Bliscepen (2012)

Started basically as a duo of Gianluca Ruggeri and Sébastien Favez, Bliscappen Van Maria has grown into a large ensemble that includes electronics, guitars and drums (there are two drummers). This expanded lineup recorded Bliscepen. The music on that release is krautrockish and avant-garde, ranging from abstract to motorik driven. Quite interesting stuff, actually.

 


BLNDR (France)

L'observatoire (2018)
Les fantômes de la côte (2018) (EP)

Ambient synth compositions. Melodic, repetitive, sometimes with multiple arpeggios / sequences. A project of Tom Huthwohl.

 


Bloch, Thomas (France)

Ondes Martenot (2004)

Thomas Bloch is a specialist and enthusiast of rare and unusual instruments such as the glass harmonica and the Ondes Martenot. The later, in particular, has been the object of Thomas' passion since 1985, when he had this instrument made especially for him - a replica of the last classic concert model of the Ondes. His output as a musician has been mostly that of a classical dude. The above album, however, showcases Ondes Martenot in different settings, from versions of pieces composed by people like Messiaen and Bernard Wisson to interesting original material by Bloch and the fantastic ambient piece "Mare Teno", composed by Michel Redolfi.

 


Block Barley (Germany)

Ether Ghost (2024)

Block Barley is Sascha Hohn, a Hamburg-based instrumental hip-hop artist. Ether Ghost is essentially an instrumental hip-hop work but with some sounds typical of a lot of EM. One of those "marginal" inclusions.

 


Block, David (France)

Kronos (2011)
Fukai - puits profond (2013)

French synthesist known for his scores to Butoh theater and contemporary ballet performances.

 


Block, Jonathan (USA)

Walking Between Raindrops (1985)
Beneath A Hidden Sky (1986)
Farther Than Tomorrow (1988)
IV (1990)
K (1993)
Organizing the Struggle (1994)
After (1995)
Either (1996)
A Science of Forget (1996)
The Anatomy of Waves (2008)

Solo Electronic Music by a synthesist who would later become known as Synthetic Block. Sequential, cosmic, Berlin School-like.

See also: Synthetic Block

 


Block, Olivia (USA)

Innocent Passage In the Territorial Sea (2021)

Experimental composer from Chicago, active since the 1990's. She generally employs chamber ensemble sounds, field recordings and processing. As Olivia explains, the covid pandemic and lockdown made her turn inward and explore tonal patterns and the sounds of an old, broken Mellotron. Innocent Passage In the Territorial Sea is the result of studio sessions using a Korg CX3 organ, Organelle, tapes, field recordings and of course the Mellotron. Ambient, droning, reflective sound. At times intense.

 


Blod (Sweden)

Livets ord (2018)
Tusen bitar (2020)
Blod & Miljö (2023) (with Miljö)
Ondskans frö (2023)

Ambient synth music from prolific and diverse musician Gustaf Dicksson.

 


Blokzijl, Gert (Netherlands)

From Marum To Clackmas (2008)
The Wine Forest Sequences (2019)
The Impact of the Mind (2020)
Hope (2020) (recorded in 2018)
Attic Sessions (2020)
Monopology (2020) (recorded in 2011)
Oldambt (2020) (recorded in 1993)
Toegang (2020) (recorded in 2011)
Syntithenay (2020)
Wide Fields (2020)
Sound Image (2020) (recorded in 2019)
Boreas Vol. 1 (2020) (recorded in 2019)
Boreas Vol. 2 (2020) (recorded in 2019)
Hypnosphere (2020)
Seedyk Tour (2020)
Aquasculpture (2020)
Orion Granite (2020)
Zodiacal Light (2020)
Interaction (2020) (recorded in 2015)
But You Are Still There (2020) (recorded in 2018)
But You Are Still There Vol. 2 (2020)
Secondoct 2010 (2020)
Clavem (2020) (recorded in 2018)
The Second Monopology (2021) (recorded in 2018)
Moodswings (2021) (recorded in 2017)
Similarities Vol. 1 (2021) (recorded in 2017)
The Green Source (2021) (recorded in 2017)
Similarities Vol. 2 (2021) (recorded in 2017)
Planetary Nebula (2021)
Cosmic Climate (2021) (recorded in 2017)
Embraced Period (2021) (recorded in 2017)
On My Way To 16-6-2018 Vol. 1 (2021)
Lanzarote (2021) (recorded in 2017)
On My Way To 16-6-2018 Vol. 2 (2021)
Receive the Light Rays (2021)
The Chain (2021) (recorded in 2016)
The Green Inspiration (2021) (EP)
Panorama (2021) (recorded in 2016)
Jurei (2021) (recorded in 2016)
Zoek en Blijf Vinden Vol. 1 (2021) (recorded in 2016)
Focus (2021) (recorded in 2016)
Color Changes Vol. 1 (2021) (recorded in 2015)
Zoek en Blijf Vinden Vol. 2 (2021) (recorded in 2016)
Recurring Thoughts (2021)
Moving Horizon (2021) (recorded in 2015)
Reflections Vol. 1 (2021) (recorded in 2015)
Reflections Vol. 2 (2021) (recorded in 2015)
The Dunes of Playa (2021) (recorded in 2015)
Voortwisch Vol. 1 (2012) (recorded in 2015)
Voortwisch Vol. 2 (2012) (recorded in 2015)
Cloud Tracks Vol. 1 (2021) (recorded in 2015)
Cloud Tracks Vol. 2 (2021) (recorded in 2015)
Diagnosis (2021)
Cloud Tracks Vol. 3 (2021) (recorded in 2015)
Cloud Tracks Vol. 4 (2021) (recorded in 2015)
Cloud Tracks Vol. 5 (2021) (recorded in 2015)
Water Surfaces (2021) (recorded in 2015)
From Rehearsal To Performance (2021) (recorded in 2015)
Oldambt Vier (2021) (recorded in 2015)
Move Vol. 1 (2021) (recorded in 2015)
Move Vol. 2 (2021) (recorded in 2015)
Antibiotics (2021) (recorded in 2013)
Four Places (2021) (recorded in 2015)
Convert (2021)
Human (2021) (recorded in 2015)
Imagination (2022) (recorded in 2015)
Linked Spheres Vol. 1 (2022) (recorded in 2015)
Linked Spheres Vol. 2 (2022) (recorded in 2015)
Twinnug Vol. 1 (2022) (recorded in 1990 - 2000)
Twinnug Vol. 2 (2022) (recorded in 1990 - 2000)
Twinnug Vol. 3 (2022) (recorded in 1990 - 2000)
Natural Phenomenon (2022) (recorded in 2015)
Nostalgia (2022) (recorded in 2015)
Spring Fever (2022) (recorded in 2015)
Subterranean (2022) (recorded in 2015)
Terrestrial (2022) (recorded in 2015)
Tsien Vol. 1 (2022) (recorded in 2015)
Tsien Vol. 2 (2022) (recorded in 2015)
Upgraded From the Past Vol. 1 (2022) (recorded in 2019)
Upgraded From the Past Vol. 2 (2022) (recorded in 2019)
Expected Destination (2022) (recorded in 2021)
Denkbeeldige Kusten (2022)
Bygone Times (2023) (recorded in 2022)
Freulevijver (2023)
Orion Granite (2023) (recorded in 2020)
Suspension Bridge (2024) (recorded in 2023)

Dutch synthesist with a rhythmic, vibrant style. Gert first appeared on the scene with a track on Groove's "Analogy Vol. 3" sampler (reviewed here).

 


Blomeier, Stefan (USA??)

Popular Electronics / Radio Astronomy (2011) (S)
The Danish Straits (2011) (S)
Unexpected Journey (2013) (S)

This artist likes to weave complex sequencer patterns using classic analog sounds. This approach is evident on The Danish Straits. On Unexpected Journey, though, he uses a more techno-oriented approach. His name sounds rather German or maybe Danish to me, so I am not sure about his country of origin.

 


Blomquist, Daniel (USA)

Measureless Oceans of Space (2014)
Wandering Eye (2016) (with Aria Rostami)
Signal Artifact (2016) (with Aria Rostami)
Distant Companion (2018) (with Aria Rostami)
Still (2021) (with Aria Rostami)
Time Apart In the West (2021) (with Aria Rostami)
A Storm That Came (2022) (with Aria Rostami)

San Francisco-based ambient artist.

 


Blonski, David (USA)

Shoreline (1986) (with Synchestra)
Saturn Rising (1992) (with Jon Allasia)

New age flutist and composer. On Saturn Rising you will find richly textured Space Music with a symphonic touch and a very 'Vangelis' feel.

 


Blood Box (USA)

Victim Selection (1994)
A World of Hurt (1997)
Sunday Sacrifice (2003) (S)
The Iron Dream (2004)
Funeral In An Empty Room (2011)

Dark Ambient from Michael J. V. Hensley.

See also: Yen Pox, Hollow Earth.

 


Blood Incantation (USA)

Timewave Zero (2022)
Luminescent Bridge (2023) (S)

An ambient or EM album is not something you would expect to hear from a death metal band. However, Blood Incantation pull it off beautifully with Timewave Zero. This is all dark synths in a cosmic setting, not without a Berlin School pulse or two, of course. Nice stuff with touches of Klaus Schulze, Tangerine Dream and more.

See also: Riedl, Paul, Hoverkraft, Extraterrestrial.

 


Blood, Jake (Australia)

PRIX (2021)

Dark, alienating, claustrophopic soundworlds with lo-fi rhythms. Sort of Savant vibe in places, but on a much deeper level.

 


Bloom, Daniel (Poland)

Thorn (1995)
Coitus interruptus (2000)
Completly (2001) (EP)
Krawedz swiatow (2001)
Horyzont zdarzen (2003)
Tulipany (2005) (soundtrack)
Schody do nieba (2008) (with Josef Skrzek, Paul Lawler, Michael Ogorodov and Steve Schroyder)
S.O.S. Kosmos (2010)
Mieulotne / Lasting (2013)
Lovely Fear (2015)
Dolce fine giornata (2019) (soundtrack)

Polish synthesist with a fairly traditional, Berlin-based style, spiced up by new elements.

See also: Paralogic, Krawedz Swiatow.

 


Bloom, Matt (USA)

Pacific Coast Highway (2021)

Varied artist from San Francisco, mostly in instrumental hip-hop / experimental vein. Pacific Coast Highway will be enjoyed by fans of ambient and relaxing forms of EM.

 


Bloom Tribe (Kuwait)

Matter (2016)
Notable Periorbital Vein (2022)

Difficult to describe the sound of Bloom Tribe. Liquid and abstract, it is also melodic and purposeful and focuses on fat analog and FM textures. There is a certain harshness to the sound but also smoothness in the right places. "Picture music" is a good term for it.

 


Bloop (Germany)

Schallaufnahmen (1999)

Dirk Jan Müller's 1990's band with Dirk Bittner, influenced by drum'n'bass and trip hop. There are also slight EM touches, especially evident on "P.T.O." and the largely ambient "Static Cream".

See also: Müller, Dirk Jan, Electric Orange, Octopus's Garden, Cosmic Ground, Hausfrauen of Death, The.

 


Blöser, Stefan (Germany)

German synthesist who I believe doesn't have any official solo releases as of 2019, but he did have a nice rhythmic (a bit disco-like) and spacey electronic track "Voyager One" on the sampler Viele Grüße Aus Dem Underground from 1981.

 


Bloss, Rainer (Germany)

Als Traum-Töters Knecht (1982)
Dzienkuje Poland (1983) (with Klaus Schulze)
Drive Inn (1984) (with Klaus Schulze)
Drive Inn Vol.2 (1984)
Ampsy (1984)
Aphrica (1984) (with Klaus Schulze and Ernst Fuchs)
Drive Inn Vol.3 (1998)

German electronic musician (1946 - 2015) who worked with Klaus Schulze on some albums during the Eighties and also toured with him from time to time. He is very skilled at piano playing and therefore his music with Schulze is a mixture of Klaus’ melodic side and a good dose of electronic piano thrown in. Drive Inn Vol.2 is done without Schulze and seems to be more melodic. Not as convincing as the first ‘Drive Inn’ but still pleasant enough to listen to. Recommended for those who like melodic Electronic Music without too much ‘depth’ and ‘philosophizing’ and for those who like a bit of ‘easy-listening’ in their EM.

 


Blot Heathen (Italy)

Awakening Gods (2019)

Tribal / Ritual Ambient with lots of voices and percussion.

 


Blouseusa (USA)

Tammy's Beans (2012) (S)

Varied synth / guitar duo from Seattle.

 


Blow Up Hollywood (USA)

Stars End (2005)
Take Flight (2010)

Alternative rock duo of Steve Messina and Nik Chinboukas. They have also experimented with the ambient EM genre. These releases will be listed.

 


Bloxham, Reuben (Australia)

Nine Nights (2020)

Lysergic synth and drum machine music recorded in the artist's home studio during the 2020's isolation. Unique style for sure. Sleepy synth?

 


Blüchel, Harald (Germany)

Die Toteninsel (2006) (recorded in 1999 - 2001)
Caged (2007) (recorded in 2001 - 2002)
Electric Chamber Music (2008) (recorded in 1999 - 2004)

German techno / trance producer best known for his music released under the Cosmic Baby moniker. The above is a CD trilogy ("Zauberberg-Trilogie"), which showcases the more experimental (musique concrete, Ambient, classical) side of his work.

See also: Cosmic Baby

 


Blue (UK)

The Path Of Least Resistance Meets The Point Of No Return (2021)

British downtempo duo from the 1990's. Their comeback album from 2021 is something much more experimental and related to the EM genre.

 


Blue Chip Orchestra (Austria)

Blue Chip Orchestra (1988)
Blue Danube (1991)
White River Red Spirit (1997)
Red Sky Beat (1998)

Bognermayr & Zuschrader’s musical project where they delve deeper into the ‘orchestral’ electronic sound realms. While it may be interesting from the technical point of view, musically it is not necessarily so. The latest works deal with native American culture and represent a fusion of electronic instruments and Indian musical traditions.

See also: Bognermayr & Zuschrader, Eela Craig.

 


Blue Communion: ISAM (USA)

Intercoastal Space (2015)
Cloud Forest (2015)

Aka Bill Doob. Same style.

See also: Doob, Bill

 


Blue Condition (USA)

Beyond the Sun (1976)

Scarce progrock private press from the Midwest, with one supposedly electronic track called "Synthesizer Prelude - Beyond the Sun".

 


Blue Cross Blue Shield (USA??)

Artificial Typhoon Memory (2022)

Aka BCBS. A project of Ian David. Shorter tracks of dramatic nature - some purely atmospheric, with distant choir pads, some with stiff, slow rhythms. Pretty nice stuff I would say. Best track: "Stasiswave".

 


Blue Crystal Star (USA)

Heart of the Muse (2019)
A Dream Ends (2019)

Sort of dungeon synth-like electronics but with an extra cosmic edge. A project based in San Francisco.

 


Blue Glass (USA)

Jardin des étoiles (2021)
Les jardins éternels (2023)

Ambient compositions with a cosmic flair. I hear some Klaus Schulze-isms in places.

 


Blue Lily Commission (UK)

Wine Songs (2000)
In the Heart of the Old City (2000)
Seshen And the White Jasmine Comission (2003)
Eastern Evening (2005)
Eve Songs (2008)
Undrugged (2015)
Four Journeys (2016)
Altaidubs (2017)

World Music project of Stephen Palmer that emphasizes the ethnic side of his oeuvre. Synths, combined with guitars ala Ash Ra Tempel, flutes, tablas, percussion and more. Sometimes a techno influence shows up but is not upfront.

See also: Palmer, Stephen, Mooch.

 


Blue, Lindsay (Australia)

Love All Life (1975)

German-born keyboardist named Lindsay Bourke released this album of psychedelic and religious electronics / voice / percussion / nature sounds.

 


Blue Neptune (Italy)

The Labyrinth of Transformations (1996)

A duo of Teo Ederle and Tiziano Zattera. Varied music: cosmic, melodic, often with tribal rhythms and spacey or reflective / symphonic synths.

 


Blue Nude (USA)

Blue Nude (2018) (S)

Tranquil electronics inspired by Japanese ambient releases of the 1980's.

 


Blue Planet Corporation (France)

Aquaquest (2022)

French goa trance / chill out / downtempo project. On Aquaquest, ambient / EM influences are pretty strong on some tracks.

 


Blue Sausage Infant (USA)

Sound For Dreams (1990)
Captain Smooth Wants You (1991)
Luna (1991)
Blue Clown Toilet (1991)
Supple Supple (2001)
Flight of the Solstice Queens (2010)
Trance Warfare (2011) (recorded in 1986 - 1989)
Negative Space (2011)
Manitou (2012)
A Cooling-Board Bacchanal (2014) (recorded in 2012)
Scalpels For the Animal God (2016)
I Mode (??)

Experimental formation by Washington, D.C. based Chester Hawkins, who's been around since 1986. Combines elements of noise, krautrock, EM and space rock.

See also: Hawkins, Chester, nil..

 


Blue Sky Machine (Finland)

Blue Sky Machine (1985)

Pre-Nemesis Electronic Music from Ami Hassinen.

See also: Nemesis, Ashen Simian, Moonwagon.

 


Blue Star (USA)

Blue Star (1982)

Space Music for guitar and synthesizer by Ed Van Fleet & friends.

See also: Van Fleet, Ed, Synchestra.

 


Blue Universe (Argentina)

Entre el Sueño y la Vigila (2003)

Blue Universe is a pseudonym of Argentinean musician and chapman stick player Sebastian Woscoboinik. This album represents a mixture of direct melodic progrock songs (with lyrics) and some atmospheric / melodic Electronic Music. One track is a dubious rendition of a Beatles song.

 


Blues Control (USA)

Local Flavor (2009)
FRKWYS Vol. 8 (2011) (with Laraaji)
Valley Tangents (2012)

This duo of Lea Cho and Russ Waterhouse once opened for Cluster and the German duo's sound pretty much defines what we have on display here. Local Flavor features motorik rhythms and organ / synth-based melodies in Dusseldorf School (sort of Cluster / Neu! hybrid) vein. They have other albums but they may be more rock-oriented. Further investigation is needed.

 


Blues, Niecy (USA)

Exit Simulation (2023)

Niecy Blues (real name - Janise Robinson) is a Charleston, SC-based alternative R&B / ambient pop singer and instrumentalist. Exit Simulation, although does not dispense with her R&B roots, explores more ambient realms, partly inspired by a science fiction novel she read during the pandemic and her church music experiences. Tracks like "1111", "The Nite B4", "Lament" are quite good. File under EM-related.

 


Bluetech (USA)

Dreaming Into Being (2013)
Behind the Sky (2018) (with In the Branches)
Liquid Geometries (2018)
Sci-Fi Lullabies (2019)
Underwater Cities (2020)
Liminal Migration (2021) (with Steve Moore)

A project of Evan Bartholomew. As Bluetech, he makes Psybient music. However, on Liquid Geometry, released on Ian Boddy's DiN label, he focuses on rich, multi-layered sequencer patterns. I will try his EM, EM-sounding and EM-related releases here.

See also: Bartholomew, Evan

 


Bluetung (Australia)

Laraproxy (2019) (S)
The Reserve (2019)
Music For Our Dying Earth (2020)
Room Tone Paintings (2021)
Eternity By the Stars (2023)

Melodic EM with sequences, pads, etc.

 


Bluewater School (UK)

Physics (1995)

A duo of David Salvi and Martin Lee-Stephenson. Mystic Ambient, looped textures.

See also: Vulse, Sundew.

 


Bluhn, Daniel (Spain)

Punto de Partida Hacia el Infinito (2018)

Analog synth compositions, mostly of ambient nature.

 


Blume, Ulrich (Germany)

Brain-Percussion (1984)
Ground Your Ears! Vol. 4 (1984)
Ground Your Ears! Vol. 5 (1984)
Ground Your Ears! (1985)
Alien Calling (1986)
Collage Abstracte (1988)

Little known synthesist from Bremen, Germany. The music is a bit on the experimental side and might appeal to fans of Conrad Schnitzler.

 


Blumenthal, Bob (???)

Fear And Rebirth (??)
Human Liberation (??)
Snow Falling Through Open (??)
Star Forest (??)

 


Blurred Spires (Canada)

Bewildered (2018)

Varied ambient material from this duo. Sometimes dreampunky, sometimes classically-inspired or with slow rhythms.

 


Blush Response (USA)

Rebirthed In the Sprawl (2016)

Blush Response is Joey Blush from New York City, currently residing in Berlin. He is known for his EBM / industrial style. With Rebirthed In the Sprawl he explores darker realms, such as ambient soundscapes and even slight Berlin School influences (sequences!).

 


Blutiger Fluss (USA)

Dawn of Mars (2008)
Rings of Saturn (2011)

This Iowa-based electronic duo was formed in 2008 by two guys Jeff Hutchison and Jim Duede. The music is quite flowing and atmospheric, recalling early 1970's works by Tangerine Dream and Klaus Schulze.

 


BMK (Hungary)

Die Mensch Meier (2020)

Experimental Electronic Music recorded in the duo format by Bálint Bolcsó and Oliver Mayne with video projections by Gábor Kitzinger. All track titles mimick Kraftwerk's titles.

 


Bnjmn (UK)

Pyrrhic (2019)

This album represents the ambient side of this diverse musician (Ben Thomas).

 


Boastein (Norway)

Urgata Hurgata (1980)

Progressive rock band formed in 1970 by Are Storstein (died in Thailand during 2004 tsunami events) and Østein Boassen. The combination of their last names gave name to the band. Musically they are all over the place, with complex arrangements, rock songs and, yes, a couple of tracks that will certainly interest fans of EM - "Stepping Ødis", sounding like Ashra in hyperspace and the closer "Seismologisk Kollaps" that is similar to a more electronic Hawkwind, with its combination of spacey synths and some heavy riffing. Lots of tasty synthesizers are used elsewhere throughout this record. There is an earlier album by them, released in 1977, that I know nothing about at the moment. File under EM-related.

 


Bob Brooks Music Co. And Chorus (Canada)

To Keep This Land Alive (1976) (soundtrack)

Obscure soundtrack for a movie made by and about Canadian trucking company. Various styles, including an electronic track "The Winnipeg Connection".

 


Bober, Alex (Russia)

Purity (2018)
Invisible Forest (2019)

Airy ambience.

 


Boblebad (Norway)

Inte ligent dansmusik (2023)

House music project venturing into more complex realms with Inte Ligent Dansmusik. This is mostly influenced by IDM, electro rhythms and Progressive EM.

 


Bochum Welt (Italy)

Seafire (2019)

IDM project of Gianluigi di Costanzo active since the 1990's. On Seafire, there is a strong influence of EM / Ambient.

 


Bock, Benny (USA)

Vanishing Act (2022)

Los Angeles-based pianist and keyboardist. Vanishing Act is a varied instrumental record, relying very much on Bock's piano playing, a string section and the author's collection of synthesizers, among which the mighty Oberheim Four-Voice stands out. Jazzy, fusion-y, classically-influenced, electronic...

 


Bock, Wolfgang (Germany)

Cycles (1980)
Biscaya Sunset (1995)
Mettle Water (1997)
Mintaka (2023)

The first album is a classic sequencer feast. Latter works contain very melodic romantic Electronic Music. 

 


Bocksholm (Sweden)

Excursions By the Bank of the Black River (2002)
The Sound of Black Cloggs (2003)
The Haunting Curse of Skogs-Sara (2006)
Rinna Leathercluster Liveaction 2008 (2009)
Caged Inside the Beast of the Forge (2013)
Ironic Discomfort And Cheesy Manners (2019)

This one is curious. Both men that participate on this album are named Peter Andersson. One is the man behind well-known Dark Ambient project Raison d'Etre and the other leader of Deutsch Nepal. This, and the fact that they both grew up in the same town (Boxholm - hence the name) have led to a collaboration. Mainly Noise Ambient material here.

See also: Andersson, Peter, Raison d'Etre, Deutsch Nepal.

 


Bockstandt, Claus (Germany)

Voyages (1992)
Lumania (1994)
Duel & Other Stories (2022)

Melodic music.

 


Bocquet, Didier (France)

Eclipse (1977)
Voyage Cerebral (1978)
Sequences (1980)
Pictures of Life (1982)

Initially a drummer, Didier Bocquet released several albums of Electronic Music in Klaus Schulze vein during the 70's and 80's after which time he left music business for good.

 


Bocquet, Roland (France)

Paradia (1977)
Robot rose (1982)
Robot bleu (1983)

Solo Electronic Music by former leader and keyboard player of French progressive rock group Catharsis.

See also: Catharsis

 


Bodaiju (Japan)

鳥のように (1983)
To Zen Mind (1986)

Flowing, ethnic-spiced electronics, a bit new agey. If you like Japanese EM like Kitaro or Fumio Miyashita, this is more or less along those lines. Bodaiju was a duo active in the 1980's.

 


Boddy, Ian (UK)

Images (1980)
Elements of Chance (1981)
Options (1982)
The Climb (1983)
Spirits (1984)
Phoenix (1986)
Jade (1988)
Decade (1989) (recorded in 1980 - 1988)
Odyssey (1990)
Drive (1991)
The Uncertainty Principle (1993)
The Deep (1994)
Symbiont (1995) (with Andy Pickford)
Continuum (1996)
Rare Elements (1997)
Phase 3 (1997) (with Ron Boots)
Box of Secrets (1999)
Distant Rituals (1999) (with Markus Reuter)
Caged (2000) (with Chris Carter)
Triptych (2001) (with Reuter & Mullaney)
Shrouded (2001)
Outpost (2002) (with Robert Rich)
Aurora (2002)
Jodrell Bank Planetarium (2002) (with Markus Reuter)
Chiasmata (2004)
Pure (2004) (with Markus Reuter)
Moir (2005) (with Bernhard Wostheinrich)
Lithosphere (2005) (with Robert Rich)
Elemental (2006)
React (2008) (with Robert Rich)
Slide (2008)
Dervish (2009) (with Markus Reuter)
Shifting Sands (2009) (with David Wright)
Trinity (2010) (with Klaus Hoffmann-Hoock and David Wright)
Exit Strategy (2011) (with Parallel Worlds)
Frontiers (2012) (with Erik Wollo)
Liverdelphia (2013)
Spectroscopic 1979 - 1982 (2013)
Colour Division (2013) (with Markus Reuter)
Tone Science (2016)
As Above So Below (2016)
Memento (2017) (with Markus Reuter)
Meridian (2018) (with Erik Wøllo)
Altair (2019)
Altair Redux (2019) (S)
Modulations (2020)
Outland (2021) (with Markus Reuter)
Nevermore (2021)
Modulations II (2021)
Revolve (2022) (with Erik Wøllo)
Coil (2022)
As Far Away As Possible (2023)
Modal operandi (2024)

Library music:

Developing Technologies (1997)
Space, the Unknown & UFO’s (1998)
Waterworlds (2000)
Drones (2001)
Sci-Tech (2002)
Living Planet (2002)
The Unexplained (2004)
Ambient Atmospheres (2006)
Future Tech (2007)
The Elements (2008)
Dark Drones (2009)
Light Drones (2009)
Space (2011)
Waterscapes (2012)
Supernatural (2012)

One of the leading British electronic musicians, Ian Boddy appeared on the scene in the late 1970's, experimenting with analogue synthesizers and releasing several cassettes during the 1980 - 1982 period. These went largely unnoticed, but in 1983 Ian performed at the first UK Electronica festival and his performance was met with a lot of enthusiasm. That same year saw the release of Ian's first vinyl album - The Climb. It got positive reviews from specialized press and had considerable success among EM fans. Since then, Ian has released a lot of solo and collaborative works in a variety of styles. He is also the founder of DiN Records - one of the leading British EM labels. Ian's music is hard to pin down, as he's done everything, from Ambient to rhythmic classic EM. Very good and highly recommended.

See also: ARC, Dub Atomica.

 


Bodén, Thomas (Sweden)

Kundtjänst (2016)

Experimental EM vaguely along the lines of solo Moebius.

 


Bodies of Light (UK)

Petrichor (2020)

Varied ambient compositions, both flowing and experimental.

See also: Langley, Nicholas, Mortuus Auris & The Black Hand.

 


Body Awareness (Sweden)

Body Awareness (2010)
The Awakening (2016)

Analog synth project of Andreas Malm. Echoes of 1970's EM and Ambient abound, with solos, warm atmospheres, chirpy vintage drum machines and some processed field recordings. Sometimes with an Adelbert Von Deyen feel even.

See also: Frihet, Skeppet.

 


Body Cage (USA)

Night's Meddle (2017) (S)
Four Obscurities (2018) (S)

Ambient compositions with a strong analog element and even some Timewind twitters on the title track.

 


Body Clock (Australia)

Body Clock (2019)
Wall of Junk (2021) (with Yunzero)

Moody ambience from Melbourne.

 


Body of Intrigue (Canada??)

Decadence (2016) (S)
Exploration (2016) (S)
Figuration (2018) (S)
Live At Send + Receive (2019)
Treasures (2019) (S)
Estuary (2022) (S)

Ambient with lots of field recordings and sort of a doomy atmosphere.

 


Body Sculptures (Sweden / Denmark)

The Base of All Beauty Is the Body (2015) (S)
A Body Turns To Eden (2016)

A group featuring Erik Enocksson, Frederikke Hoffmeier, Jonas Rönnberg, Loke Rahbek and Vit Fana. Given the background of some of the members, you can expect stark, industrial-tinged stuff and indeed, it's all quite intense, repetitive, at times noisy, but also hymnal, melodic and atmospheric.

See also: Enocksson, Erik, Varg.

 


Body Wishes (USA)

White Chocolate (2011)

One of the projects of synth artist Peter Tran. This one here is more minimal, consisting of repeating organ phrases ala Terry Riley and droning synths in supporting roles.

See also: Curved Light, HD Sunrise.

 


Bodyverse (Italy)

Whatever You Want On the Dry Way (2017)
Apollo (2017) (with Andrea Porcu)
Religion Cr70 (2018)
I Could Go Lucid (2018)
Beyond (2019)
De Sidera (2020)

Originally from Venice, Bodyverse is a Berlin-based ambient / experimental project of Andy Mintaka (real name - Andrée Burelli).

 


Bodzin, Herbert (Germany)

Revival II - The Electronic Tapes 1979 - 1982 (2018)

Herbert Bodzin is a jazz musician who has been experimenting with synthesizers and electronics since the early 1970's.

 


e, Nils Olav (Norway)

Nils Olav Bøe (1987)

Rare album by this Norwegian synthesist with guest performances by Lars Pedersen (organ, synth) and Nils Petter Molvær (trumpet).

 


Boevye Cikady (Russia)

Shtrihi trepeta (2004)
Pokamest (2009)
Golden Dissaciative Trip (2010)

Experimental ambient soundscapes from Evgeny Savenko aka Lunar Abyss.

See also: Lunar Abyss Deus Organum

 


Boffo, Jean Pascal (France)

Infini (2004)
In Spiral (2022)

French guitarist active as a solo artist since the 1980's, releasing music first on Musea label and then on his own. He has a nice discography of mostly guitar-centered progressive rock records. On Spiral he continues in that vein but also shows a subtle EM influence by means of recurrent synth sequences and echoing guitar pulses ala Manuel Goettsching and Gunter Schickert. File under EM-related.

See also: Sounds In Progress

 


Bogazzi / Gasparotti (Italy)

Extrema ratio (2018)

Mixture of electronics and guitars in a kraut / giallo setting.

 


Bogdanov, Yuri (Russia)

Берегите хлеб (1982) (soundtrack)
Возвращение со звёзд (1982) (soundtrack)
Телеглаз (1982) (soundtrack)

Unreleased electronic soundtracks for cartoons by member of "Boomerang" group.

 


Bognermayr & Zuschrader (Austria)

NP Computer Glocken-Stimmung (1981)
Sternenklang (1982)
Erdenklang Sinfonie (1982)
Bergpredigt (1983)
Schuh bi du 50 Jahre Eiler (1987) (S)
Div (??)

Former members of Eela Graig, a symphonic rock band. Their music is one of the first examples of digital sampling technology. Therefore, it’s not necessarily interesting from the musical point of view, but technically, this is certainly of some interest. Historical stuff. Sternenklang contains Christmas songs performed on the Fairlight.

See also: Blue Chip Orchestra, Eela Craig, Control Company.

 


Bogus, Billy (Italy)

Noi Tirreni (2023) (with Federico Bologna)

Pretty varied EM compositions with an ambient flair. Billy Bogus is an alias of Nicolò Bruni.

 


Bogwitch (USA)

Into the Lair (2021)

Denver, Colorado-based project related to the dungeon synth genre, but having a wacky, a bit cartoonish horror vibe.

 


Böhm, Alexander (Germany)

Ocean (2021)

Rhythmic / melodic music from this Dresden-based artist. Somewhat indebted to Enigma and 1990's dance styles perhaps. Also reminds on melodic synths / guitar instrumentals of people like Maxxess, MorPheusz etc. Alexander plays synths, drum machines, and guitars.

 


Bohon, John Paul (USA)

Sheele's Green (2023)

Texan musician, guitarist of Dikes of Holland. On Sheele's Green, he opts for an electronic approach, layering multiple synthesizer sounds to create pleasant ambient compositions.

 


Bøhren, Geir & Åserud, Bent (Norway)

Orions Belte (1985) (soundtrack)
Etter Rubicon / Orions Belte (1987) (soundtrack)
Is-Slottet (1988) (soundtrack)
The Dive (1989) (soundtrack)
Kvitebjørn kong Valemon (1991) (soundtrack)
Krigerens hjerte (1992) (soundtrack)

Both members of proressive rock band Junipher Greene during the 1970's, Geir Bøhren and Bent Åserud have since established themselves as some of the premier soundtrack composers, having scored a lot of feature films, documentaries, TV shorts and more. Sometimes they used a full orchestra for their scores but often resorted to synthesizers. I will try to list their soundtracks here that are supposed to contain some interesting electronic arrangements and will appeal to fans of the more visual / cinematic forms of EM.

 


Bojanek, Grzegorz (Poland)

Constraints (2013)
Warm Winter Music (2014)
Analogue (2014)
Stories of An Old Man (2017)
Solid (2018) (with Piotr Michalowski)
On Tour (2019)
Lines (2020) (EP)
Damaged (2022) (EP)
All Bento (2022)

Warm ambient sounds from this electroacoustic composer born in 1975.

See also: Eta Carinae

 


Bojasch, Lutz (Germany)

Reflex (1978 - 1982)
Orbiter (1984 - 1993)
Handmade (1997)
Voices (2001)

Synthesist, one of Cyborg members.

See also: Cyborg

 


Bokowiec, Mark (UK)

Visitations (2018)

Hypnotic ambience with a touch of electro-acoustics.

See also: Bromwich, Mark Alexander

 


Bola del Desierto (Spain)

Bola del Desierto (2018)

A duo of Susana Hernández (synth) and Darío del Moral (guitar). Spacey, ambient sound.

See also: Ylia

 


Bolander (USA)

Through the Tube (2005)
First Things Last (2010)
The Lone Drifter (2011)

Peter Bolander is an ambient artist whose album Through the Tube was preceded by a couple of download-only releases.

 


Bolivar, Pablo (Spain)

Distances (2023) (with Nacho Sanchez)

Dub techno / electro record with also enough ambient material to warrant an inclusion here.

 


Boll, Hans (Germany)

Elektronische Klanggemälde (1989)
Transparente Träume (1990)

Hans Boll received music education in former GDR. He was a member of GDR state broadcasting committee and apparently had a vast collection of synthesizers. Elektronische Klanggemälde LP went pretty unnoticed and contained music composed for planetarium in Bochum.

 


Bolton, Rose (Canada)

The Lost Clock (2021)

Interesting electronic compositions from this Toronto-based sound artist - abstract, subtle, droning and vaguely melodic. I like how her music has an almost physical feel to it.

See also: Canadian Electronic Ensemble, The

 


Bolton, Wil (UK)

Time Lapse (2010)
Quarry Bank (2011)
Chimes For A Wall Drawing (2011)
Melt (2011) (EP)
Angel In the House (2012) (S) (with Tarl Broad-Ashman)
Silver (2012) (EP)
Under A Name That Hides Her (2012)
Amber Studies (2012)
Kollane (2012)
Whorl (2014)
Bokeh (2014)
Inscriptions (2015)
Green & Gold (2015)
Marram (2015)
February Dawn (2016)
Maemi (2016) (S)
Transparencies (2017) (with Ian Hawgood)
Night Paths (2017)
안국 (2017) (S)
Viridian Loops (2018)
April Spiral (2019)
Meridian (2019) (with Joseph Auer)
Surface Reflections (2019)
Kochi (2019)
Visions In Static (2020)
Cumulus Sketches (2021)
Sumida Colours (2021)
Above the Neon Glow (2021)
Emerging (2021) (with Ian Hawgood)
Imaginary Tales (2022) (with Francis Gri)
Ornaments of Decay (2022)
Like Floating Leaves (2023)
Red To Orange, Blue To Black (2023)
So​̈​dermalm In Autumn (2023)
Floral Forms And Subsequent Interactions (2023) (with Ian Hawgood)
In the Still Water (2023) (with Francis Gri)

Ambient artist who mixes acoustic and electronic sounds.

See also: Ashes of Piemonte, Le Moors, Orphic Signals, Anzio Green, Pangolins.

 


Bon Voyage Organization (France)

Sociers des aéroports (2011) (S)
L'imposture (2012)
Xīngyè (2015) (EP)
Jungle? Quelle jungle? (2018)
La course (2020)
(Loin des) rivages (2022)

Floating, melodic, rhythmic, jazzy EM from this Paris-based project. For fans of YMO, You (on La Course), Osamu Shoji and Yuji Ohno. A group led by synthesist Adrien Durand.

 


Bonanno, Pietro (Italy)

Chiaccio (2007)
Music For Flying Planes (2008)

Ambient soundscape artist from Italy.

See also: Abandoned Communities

 


Bonarelli, Claudia (Sweden)

Starfield Simulation Series 08 (2002)
Ecocide (2017)

Actually a pseudonym of one Johan Fotmeijer. Abrasive soundscapes with some techno elements. One of his releases was omitted as it supposedly contains tech house  / dub music.

 


Bonaventure, Michael (UK)

In tenebris ratione organi (2019)

Scottish artist living between Edinburgh and Amsterdam. He is an organist and promoter of new and experimental music. On In Tenebris Ratione Organi, he combines organ drones with experimental electronics and processed samples for a menacing, sinister and often intense sound.

 


Bondarenko, Vadim (Russia)

Smoking Music (2008)
8 Atmospheres (2009) (with Faryus)
Quiet Songs From Misty Places (2011) (with Faryus)
Cloudscapes (2015) (with Yui Onodera)

Vadim Bondarenko is a sound artist from Saint-Petersburg. He works in various genres such as Ambient, new age and folk. On Smoking Music he presents his more ambient material that will be enjoyed by fans of Brian Eno and Harold Budd.

 


Bondarev, Nikita (Russia)

Siberian Loner (2014)
Siberian Ruins (2016)
Day of the Year (2017)
Postcard Collection (2019) (recorded in 2013 - 2014)

Semi-acoustic Ambient with a strong neo-classical flair from this Berdsk-based musician.

See also: Speck

 


Bondy, Ben (USA)

Sibling (2020)
Aphelion Lash (2020) (with Exael)
Cilbien Trance (2020)
Études (2020) (S)
Glans Intercum (2021)
Camo (2022)
Ben Bondy (2022)

Varied electronic vignettes with not much of a focus.

 


Bone Idol (UK)

Bone Idol (2004)
The Triumph of Entropy (2006)

Upbeat rhythms / sequencers, melodies and mellotron plus some darker atmospheric pieces with spoken word passages.

 


Bone, Richard (USA)

Bone (1979) (S)
Quiz Party (1980)
Life In Video City (1980)
Digital Days (1981) (S)
The Beat Is Elite (1982) (S)
Emerging Melodies (1982)
Brave Tales (1983)
Joy of Radiation (1983) (S)
Alternate Music For the Hindenburg Lounge (1984)
Living In Partytown (1984) (S)
Exspectacle (1985)
Quickwork (1993)
X Considers Y (1994) (S)
Ambiento (1994)
Vox Orbita (1995)
The Eternal Now (1996)
Metaphysic Mambo (1996)
A Survey of Remembered Things (1997) (with John Orsi)
Electropica (1998)
The Spectral Ships (1998)
Coxa (1999)
Etherdome (1999)
Ascensionism (2000)
Disorient (2001)
Tales From the Incantina (2001)
Alternate Worlds Vol. 1 (2001)
Indium (2002)
Alternate Realities (2003)
Untold Tales (2004) (recorded in 1979 - 1985)
The Reality Temples (2004)
Saiyuji (2005)
Vesperia (2006)
Serene Lives of Microbes (2006)
Via poetica (2007) (with Lisa Indish)
Songs From the Analog Attic (2007) (recorded in 1992 - 1998)
Infinite Plastic Creation (2007)
Connection Failed (2008)
Short Waves (2008)
Sudden Departure (2008)
The Ghosts of Hanton Village (2009)
Beleaguered Blossoms (2010) (recorded in 1993 - 2009)
Mind Environs (2010) (EP)
Xessex - The Palindrome Project (2011)
Images From A Parallel World (2013)
Cranium Fizz (2013) (EP)
Vertical Life (2014)
Vaulted Visions Filmworks, Synth Pop, Demos 1978-85 (2014)
Brave Sketches (2015)
Involution Vol. 1 (2015)
Aera (2016)
Age of Falconry (2017)
Empyrean Castles (2019)
Valengraph (2021)

American musician who was introduced to EM during the 1970's. Some of his early releases contain pretty wild and experimental music, while others venture into weird new wave / synth-pop realms. In the late 1980's Richard disappeared from the scene, only to emerge several years later as an Ambient musician. Richard’s got a fame of the musical chameleon because of so many styles covered in his works. None of his albums is like the other. From classic Ambient in the Eno / Budd vein to weird rhythmic stuff with distorted voices and God knows what else. Recommended for those who are already bored with the ‘ordinary’ EM. The first single contains tracks "Pirate the Islands" and "The Headlines Have It" and is sometimes referred to by its track names.

 


Bonechurch (USA)

Blackstatic (2000)
Burning, Drifting (2001)
Within Empty Spaces (2003)
Bonechurch (2004)
Ghosts In Silt (2004)
The Soul Blight (2004) (EP)
World's End (2005)
Nebenstation (2007) (EP)
Mistworks (2009)
Hell's Iron Gate / Echoing Dust (2007)
Mistworks (2009)
Asphyxia (2016)
Hymns For An Ending (2016) (EP)
Valleys of Ash (2017) (S)

Utterly Apart (2017) (EP)
The Brotherhood of Sleep (2017)
Skinsplit (2018) (S)
All the Broken Things (2021)
Earthward, Downward, Into the Dark (2021)
Detachment (2022)
Yamauba, Dame of the Mountain (2022)
Ether And Weightless Rains (2023)

A mixture of classic Dark Ambient and Ambient Noise. Bonechurch is Ben Hudgins.

See also: Abstract Audio Systems

 


Bones of Seabirds (USA)

Sink Thy Hands Deep Into Earth (2009) (S)
Hidden Places (2009)

A project of Ryan McGill, which focuses on the noisier side of his music, often using distorted guitars alongside noisy electronics. Two works stand out, Prog EM-wise, I think. On Sink Thy Hands... there are no guitars and the music is slightly more ambient (still pretty noisy, though). The same style is heard on Hidden Places, with the addition of some guitars, but also with moments of pure Prog EM bliss.

See also: Cliffsides

 


Boneschi, Giampiero (Italy)

San Remo Festival 1971 (1971)
Cybernetic Circus (1972)
Synthetics (1972)
Moog Mandolins & Moonlight (1973)
Sounds Electronic (1973)
A New Sensation In Sound: Fantastic, Futuristic Vol. 2 (1973)
A New Sensation In Sound: Relaxing Themes Vol. 2 (1974)
Instrumental Electronic Mosaic (1974)
Electronic Sound (1974)
Flute & Electronics (1978) (with Bruno Martinotti)
Light Electronic Scene (??)

Rare Electronic Music by this pioneering Italian composer. A lot of his stuff was released as part of the CAM library series.

 


Bonfarado (???)

Elan Vital (2024)

Ambient project of Peter Walz-Nikits. Dramatic, melancholic, existential, with a touch of neo-classical.

 


Bong Sample (Canada)

Midnight Oscillations (2015)

Solo music by member of Private Investigators Parker Thierssen. Similar style, but more rudimentary, less poslished (not that Private Investigators music is very polished to begin with) and sounds like sketches of a bigger thing to come.

See also: Private Investigators, Kaunsel, Soft Ions.

 


Bongolian, The (UK)

Moog Maximus (2016)

The Bongolian is a project of Nasser Bouzida in the style of Latin music / Lounge / Funk. On Moog Maximus he lets his love for analog synths shine through. It is still very much an easy-listening album, though, with nothing progressive about it for the most part and sounding a bit like some 1970's "Moog Pop" records or a verson of Latin / funk music with synthesizers. Some of the moments are more interesting than the others and then there's the nice title track composed in a melodic, very French, style (Joel Fajerman, Francis Lai, etc). File under EM-related.

 


Bonifácio (Portugal)

Hanami (2020) (EP)
Lockdown Tapes (2021) (S)

Melodic, repetitive, rhythmic EM with drum machine-based motorik from João Bonifácio.

 


Bonin, Didier (France)

L'arbre verre (1979)
L'air lumiere (1982)

Reflective, pastoral crossover guitar / electronic compositions from this French multi-instrumentalist.

 


Bonini Bulga (Sweden)

Sealed (2017) (S)
Blood Name (2020)

Bleak, minimal drones from Pär Boström.

See also: Kammarheit, Altarmang, Cities Last Broadcast, Hymnambulae, Teahouse Radio, Aindulmedir, Underwater Sleep Orchestra, Grave Owl, Trollslottet.

 


Bonnen, Dietmar (Germany)

Am schwarzen Stein (1993)
Adagio (1996)
Gazimağusa (2000)
Ouroboros (2002)
KnÆuel (2005)
La Luna (2009) (with Arkady Marto)
Axis (2011) (with Arkady Marto and others)
Сфера (2016) (with Arkady Marto)
FoxDrops (2018) (S) (with Peter Behrendsen)

German pianist, academic composer and member of a few jazz / rock projects and bands. Inspired by Brian Eno, he also experimented in ambient music (as on Ouroboros, for example) and electronics. Relevant works will be listed.

 


Bonney, Alex (UK)

Below the Blue Whale (2013) (with Fred Thomas)
Excavations And Demolitions (2016)
No Boundaries (2020) (with Andrew Bain, Peter Evans and John O'Gallagher)

Trumpeter and electronic musician born in 1978. His style is influenced by free jazz, improvisation, electro-acoustic music and Ambient / EM.

 


Bono / Burattini (Italy)

Suono in un tempo trasfigurato (2023)

A duo of Francesca Bono and Vittoria Burattini with a dynamic EM style focused on the use of the drum kit and Juno-60 synthesizer.

 


Bontempi 666 (Netherlands)

Berceuses pour Sara (2017)

Danny Wolfers creating music on a cheap Bontempi organ. It is amazing how he manages to coax so many different sounds out of it. Melodic, cheesy, a bit jazzy. Sometimes cosmic.

See also: Wolfers, Danny, Smackos, Legowelt, Weltman, Klaus, Falckenhaus, Franz, Phalangius, Knutson, Saab, Nomad Ninja, Occult Orientated Crime, Ufocus, Zandvoort & Uilenbal, Taniyama, Satomi, Rising Sun Systems, Osmo, Sammy, Star Sheperd, Psychic Stewardess, The, Lobosquillo, Mavelli, Florenza.

 


Bonzaii (Germany)

Death In the Cities (2021) (S)
Das D​ä​mmern der Welt (2023)

Shimmering ambient compositions.

 


Bonzi, Christian (Italy)

Flights (2000)
The Space In Your Eyes (2000)
Eve Eve Eve (2001)

Melodic EM, I think.

 


Boo Hiss (USA)

Sike Roc (2021)
Sike Jaz (2022)
Psyche Birds (2023) (soundtracks)

Experimental project. Psyche Birds is rather nice EM in a unique style.

 


Boocanan (Canada)

Hush (2016)

Berlin School worship from this vaporwave project.

 


Boodaman (Switzerland)

The End of the Beginning (2018) (S)
Obédiences électroniques (2018)
Subsequent (2021)
The Ninth Planet (2023)

Geneve-based musician. The End of the Beginning features one side of rhythmic, danceable analog music and another side filled with slowly unfurling modular synth sounds and slow arpeggios. Obédiences Électroniques delves deeper into the realms of EM, still retaining a very rhythm-oriented approach.

 


Boogaard, J. T. (Netherlands)

Place (2021) (with R. M. van der Meulen)

Repetitive, ambient, flowing, pastoral synth pieces.

 


Book of Kells (Germany)

Depiction of Saturn And Other Planets Floating In Space (2016)

Mostly shorter ambient tracks with something of a lo-fi feel.

See also: Yabrov, Aaron

 


Book of Shadows (USA)

IndigoM (2004)
Mantis (2005)
...And Then We All Woke Up (2007)
The Cosmic Doctrine (2008)
Isadora Shadow (2008)
The Morphail Effect (2009)
Twelve Degree Chandelier (2010)
Prayer Wheel (2010)
Festival of Shadows (2011)
Cayleper (2011)
Cosmos-Mother (2012)
The Second Attention (2016)
Shadow Lovers (2019)

Book of Shadows is the spacier side of Carlton Crutcher, vocalist and keyboard player of Texan space rockers ST 37. The core of the band is him on various keyboards and electronics plus his wife Sharon on "vocals", with other guests providing guitars, bass and more electronics. This is not their full discography as I'm not sure at the moment that all of their releases fit in stylistically; the supposedly more ambient and electronic ones are listed. The list may expand in the future.

 


Book of Wisdom (Germany)

Book of Wisdom (1991)
Mors Nigra (1992)
Catacombs (1993)
Jaegers Kreutz (1995) (EP)
Mythos und Legende (1995) (S)
Ultra (2005)

Classic Dark Ambient formation from the 1990's. In 2005 they released a reunion album with more song-oriented material.

 


Booker, Andrew (UK)

Ahead (1996)
Ends Meeting (2018) (recorded in 2006) (with David Cross)

Ahead is a mini-album from this drummer / keyboardist / singer in EM / progrock style. The only instruments used are keys, drums and voice. At times the sound is a bit similar to Patrick O'Hearn.

 


Bookovsky (Poland)

Uklad sloneczny - Naszyjnik Boga (1996)
Sen paranoika (2000)
Analogy (2002)
Book of Sky (2006)

Tangerine Dream style.

See also: Geiger Box

 


Bookworms (UK)

Mode of Transportation (2015)
Appropriation Loops (A Love Story) (2017)
Alternative Group (2021)

Bookworms is Nik Dawson - an "outsider house" deejay and musician. Some of his ambient or experimental explorations (where he uses granular synthesis, among other techniques) might interest fans of the more out-there forms of EM. Mode of Transportation is more or less an ambient release, while Appropriation Loops is full of mutant, repetitive, dense electronics of which the 20-minute title track is especially impressive, sounding like a deranged, noisy and accelerated hybrid of Lard Free circa Spirale Malax, a touch of Pinhas' guitar and a mutated house beat. Very very different but progressive in its approach.

 


Boom Boom Kid & Zurita (Argentina)

Dracula en Campana 1972 D.C (2017)

Imagined soundtrack made on vintage analog instruments.

 


Boone, Louis (USA)

Church of the Insane (1987)
Purity of Essence (1987) (with Reginald Taylor)

The Key To the Other Half of the Answer (??)

Synthesist. Louis Boone joined Doug Walker's Alien Planetscapes in 1982.

See also: Land of Guilt & Blarney, The, Alien Planetscapes, RLM.

 


Boone, Tim (USA)

Embryonic Dreamstates (1992)
Worlds of Another Color Vol. 1 & 2 (1992)
Swimming In the Clouds of the Summit (1994)

Tim Boone's music seems to evoke images of Klaus Schulze. There are even the sounds of a cello if you know what I mean. Tim Boone appears on one track off Elemental's Thee Divine Imagination and it also says on the back cover that Tim left this world in 1998.

See also: Square Wave

 


Booshank (Australia)

Fjord Falcon (2017)

Techno artist Paul Graham who expresses a strong EM influence on Fjord Falcon, culminating with the hypnotic, a bit new-agey, 14-minute "Meditation In F".

 


Booth & Creek (UK)

Lightwaves (2012)
Afterimage (2016)
Persistence of Vision (2016) (recorded in 2012)

Berlin School / Ambient.

See also: Modulator ESP, Daniel & Booth.

 


Boothman (Canada)

Boothman Cometh (2016)
Boothman vs. Time (2018)

A bit grating and noisy, but rather minimal electronics.

 


Boots, Ron (Netherlands)

Linear Waves (1987)
Dream Weaver (1987)
New Dream (1987)
Wind In the Trees (1988)
Moments (1988)
Bookworks (1989)
Hydrythmix (1989) (with Bas Broekhuis)
Dreamscape (1990)
Offshore Islands (1990) (with John Kerr)
Ghost of A Mist (1991)
Different Stories And Twisted Tales (1993)
By Popular Demand (1993) (with friends)
Detachment of Worldly Affairs (1994)
Backgrounds (1994)
Too Many Secrets (1994)
Cutting Branches (1995)
Schloss Burg (1995) (with Demo Art)
Screaming Whispers (1996)
Of Desolate Places & Urban Jungles (1997)
Current (1997)
Phase 3 (1997) (with Boddy & van der Heijden)
Tainted Bare Skin (1998)
BAH! Live In Sweden (1998) (with Aerts & van der Heijden)
E-Live 98 (1998) (with Aerts & van der Heijden)
Joie de vivre (1999) (with friends)
Close, But Not Touching (2000)
The 80’s Box (2000)
Livelines (2002) (with Aerts & van der Heijden)
Liquid Structures In Solid Form (2002)
Across the Silver River (2003) (with Rudy Adrian)
Area Movement (2003)
Fanta Magic 2005 (2005)
Acoustic Shadows (2005)
See Beyond Times And Look Beyond Words (2008)
Mea culpa (2008)
Beyond the Boundaries of Twilight (2009)
Boundary Tales (2009)
Derby! (2009) (with Frank Dorittke and Harold van der Heijden)
Refuge en verre (2010) (with Synth.nl)
La Caida de Hormigon (2011)
Ante
Oculos (2011)
From the Forgotten Rooms of A Lonely House (2011)
Signs In the Sand (2012)
Awakening At Booth's Palace (2014) (with friends)
Standing In the Rain (2015)
Juxtaposition (2015) (with John Kerr)
Juxtaposition the Bochum Bonus (2015) (with John Kerr)
Juxtaposition Live Highlights (2016) (with John Kerr)
Seven Days (2017) (with Stephan Whitlan)
Aachener-Jam-Session-Night (2017) (with Robert Schroeder and others)
An Evening With Friends (2017) (with friends)
Substitutes (2018) (with Stephan Whitlan)
Once the Dust Settles (2018)
Three Day Week (2019) (with Stephan Whitlan)
Borkshavn (2020) (with Synth.nl)
When It Gets Dark (2021)
A Night At Blackrock Station (2021) (with Gert Emmens)
Hot August Afternoon (2022) (with Skoulaman)
A November Evening @ CKE cd (2022) (with Rob Papen)
Antenna Live (2023) (with Rob Papen)
Alone On Stage (2023)

Dutch synthesist. Originator of the so called ‘Eindhoven School of Electronic Music’. A very talented musician who creates melodic dynamic music in the best traditions of the masters of the genre. He has also composed some Ambient works like, for instance, Of Desolate Places... released on Amplexus label. Boots himself is the man behind famous Groove Unlimited label that has released a lot of quality Electronic Music during the last several years. So, the music. It’s full of sequences and brilliant synth solos, that’s exactly what you would normally call ‘Electronic Music’ or ‘Synthesizer Music’. Some people may find it a bit too sweet for their tastes, but I don’t think that anyone with a taste for synthetic music should miss this artist. Even I cannot resist such music and I’m far from being a man who likes easy melodic EM. You should definitely check him out. Liquid Structures has many nods to classic era Schulze. By the way, Ron Boots along with Steve Roach, Vidna Obmana and Pete Namlook is a musician who probably has more collaborations with other synthesists than any other.

See also: MorPheusz, Derelict Thoughts.

 


Bop Singlayer (Italy)

Self-Portrait (2015)

Under this pseudonym hides one Luca Affatato from Italy. He seems to be a techno / IDM producer. However, on this album, a strong prog EM influence is heard, especially on sequencer-based tracks.

 


Boraku, Bledi (Albania)

Tha (2017)
Saggio (2023) (with Mardit B. Lleshi)

Interesting artist from Tirana. Mixing both acoustic and electric guitars with synths and electronics, he makes, hypnotic, spacey, manic tracks that bring to mind krauty repetition pioneered by Ashra / Manuel Goettsching, Achim Reichel and Günter Schickert, giving this sound a different, more up-do-date, as well as slightly ethnic twist.

 


Borange (Australia)

Bornite Nights (2019)

Strictly experimental electronics from Perth-based Grant Warner, like a crazy version of Cluster mixed with Asmus Tietchens.

See also: Strasarbs, Synth Pit.

 


Borda (Italy)

Atrabile (2022)

A project of Matteo Ravelli focusing on heavy drones.

 


Borden, Barbara (USA)

Lady of the Serpent Skirt (1990) (with Sheilah Glover)

Barbara Borden is a percussionist and drummer. The above album is sort of a spacious, melodic, a bit new-agey electronic work with lots of drums / percussion and a World Music flair. The track "Moon Jelly" is pretty nice and unique stuff.

 


Borden, David (USA)

Music For Amplified Keyboard Instruments (1981)
Anatidae (1983)
Migration (1988)
The Continuing Story of Counterpoint 9-12 (1988)
The Continuing Story of Counterpoint 5-8 (1990)
The Continuing Story of Counterpoint 1-4 (1990) (recorded in 1987 - 1990)
Double Portrait / In Double Edge (1992) (recorded in 1987 - ??)
Cayuga Night Music (1993)
Places, Times & People (1994)
Night And Day (??)
Perilous Night Companion (2000) (with John Cage)
FRKWYS 7 (2011) (with James Ferraro, Sam Godin, Laurel Halo and Daniel Lopatin)

David Borden is an American musician and synthesist with strong minimalist influences. He’s the man behind Mother Mallard’s Portable Masterpiece Co.

See also: Mother Mallard’s Portable Masterpiece Co.

 


Border One (Belgium)

Le feu / Le sacrifice (2017)

Stark electronic soundscapes with sparse rhythms.

 


Bordt, Michael (USA)

One (1988)

 


Boré, Marceau (France)

Schoon Donker (2022)
L'intérieur de la forêt (2022) (S)

French artist and nature sounds enthusiast. L'intérieur de la forêt is a strange tape containing bird sounds mixed with warm electronic themes. Pretty fascinating overall.

 


Boreal Leaf (Poland)

String Roads (2021)

Long-form, pulsing ambience with subtle changes and distant melodies from Krzysztof Siwkowski who plays modular synth and electric guitar.

See also: East Paddy Cicadas

 


Boreal Taiga (USA)

Boreal Taiga (2001)
Qoldai'yek (2005)
Polar Night (2008)
In Sentrum (2009)
Isopectic Isotac (2010)
Podkamennaya Tunguska (2010)
Northern Shamans (2010)
Arctic Remixes (2011)
Arctic Remixes 2 (2011)
Yg: drasil (2012)
at gutú (2013)
Return To the North (2015)
Polar Reflections (2016) (recorded in 2011 - 2016)

Arctic ambience project, initially with some downtempo influences, later becoming more purely Ambient.

 


Boregas, Carla (Brazil)

Linha d'Agua (2020) (with Mauricio Takara)
Grande Massa d'Agua (2022) (with Mauricio Takara)
Pena Ao Mar (2023)

From minimal drones to sequencer, kosmische EM bliss from this São Paulo-based musician and member of the city's post-punk scene. Music that is at the same time experimental and accessible. Very nice.

 


Borg, Annemarie (France)

Iridescent Perceptions (2012)
In Nomine Cetus (2014)
In Nomine Tellus (2018)

French-born ambient artist currently residing in London. Droning, classically-inspired, with some vocalizations.

 


Borg Symphony (UK)

Ode To Hero Tixe (2006)

A project of Paul Whitehead who is also a visual artist and CD cover designer (he made covers for Genesis, among others). Imagined symphony played by robots.

 


Borga, Ascanio (Italy)

Inner Geometry (2001)
Liquid Symmetries (2002)
Bad Ground (2006)
Peripheral Vision (2007)
Xenomorphic (2008)
Altered States (2015)
Raw Science (2016)

Diverse Ambient / electronics from this Italian composer. The 2007 album Peripheral Vision was created with nothing but electric guitar and processing. The first track, titled "Emergence" follows the classic Ambient formula, with long, drawn-out tones and cloudy masses of guitar drones. This is minimal and soothing music, somewhat hypnotic and very relaxing. There's nothing dark or neurotic about it; it's just pure sonic balm. "Floating Sequence" continues in similar fashion. In fact, you'd have a hard time trying to separate the two by just listening to one-minute excerpts of both. The chill continues until the next track titled "Cloudlike" takes things to darker realms, while retaining the general feel of the previous compositions. The sound has more richness to it and the tones of Ascanio's guitar are much more diverse. There's also a metallic element to the textures that was largely absent on "Emergence" and "Floating Sequence". "Everything Inside" continues where previous track left off, adding a heavier bass element to the proceedings. The sound is still extremely monolithiñ and yet somehow liquid and constantly moving. "Discovery" is more icy, hypnotic and out-there. The track corresponds to its title in that it's much more active than the rest of the material and there's something of a nature-inspired atmosphere to it. Yet, instead of marine discoveries and tropical islands, one gets the impression of snowy, wind-swept landscapes, icebergs and vast glaciers. "Forgotten Medicine", however, is more meditative and emotionally neutral. It is basically pure guitar-based drone with a bit of a mystic aura about it. "The Big Sleep" is introduced with a few mysterious bass notes. This three-note motif is then repeated throughout this track, complimented by a few droning textures. The last several minutes introduce new sounds and the mood lightens up a bit. This music is cyclical, minimal and hypnotic. I think Peripheral Vision is an album for those who like their ambient music on the stark, minimal side. These long drones and ice-cold minimal atmospheres would serve well as a soundtrack to some mystery / exploration movie. Otherwise, they are well suited for active and passive listening alike.

 


Borgan (Norway)

Asterion (2019)
Seamless (2022)

Varied soundscapes from Oslo. Quite intense sound.

 


Borghi, Matt (USA)

For Running Time (2000)
Huronic Minor (2000)
December Impressions (2001)
Intercepted Transmissions (2001) (with Cyber Zen Sound Engine)
Red Ambience / Kensington Hall (2002)
Moving Through (2002) (with Brannan Lane and Jason Sloan)
Elegy For Time (2002)
Ashes (2003)
Meditation Cycles Vol. 1 (2003)
Guilford (2004) (with Jason Sloan)
Images (2004)
Undercurrents (2005) (with Aidan Baker)
The Phantom Light (2005)
Johnson McCready's Morning Breaks In And Settles (2006) (S)
Kensington Hill / Fallen (2006)
Olagra (2006)
What the Night Leaves Behind (2007) (with Ben Fleury-Steiner)
Convocation (??) (with Michael Teager)
Shades of Bending Light (2014) (with Michael Teager)

Matt Borghi is an interesting character from East Lansing, Michigan, USA, who creates mostly droning Ambient using guitar, synthesizers and processed samples. A lot of his music was inspired by Michigan landscapes and the surroundings of the Great Lakes. Some of his works have a slight psych folk influence. Sometimes his music is very minimal but always with either dark or reflective / melancholic undertones.

 


Borgkvist (Denmark)

Maj (2022)

Rich, analog EM pastiche with multiple sequences on tracks like "Moln" or "Glas". Some tracks are heavy on bass kicks, approaching the techno territory. Pretty nice and competent stuff. I missed a good synth solo or two, though.

 


Boris Divider (Spain)

The Source (2012)
Aeon (2013) (S)
Surface (2013) (S)
Parallel EP (2014) (EP)
Deflector | Atractor (2014)
Visiones Sequenciales (2016)
Optx (2018)
Generative Operations 2 (2020) (EP)

Spanish electro producer Boris Saez aka Boris Divider decided to deviate from his usual electro style for this Aeon, instead opting for a pure 1970's Electronic Music sound (mostly Berlin School), clearly showing his influences. Sequencers galore! Surface continues in the same direction and Parallel EP also includes a classic, sequencer EM track called "Tangential". In fact, the EM tendencies in this musician's started to show themselves already on The Source from 2012, with the opening title track being a purely sequencer-based melodic and dramatic EM track, "Survivor Sector" and "Escape From District 7" being in similar style. There are also nice EM touches throughout the rest of the album. Overall it can be described as a mixture of electro, synthwave and progressive EM. Deflector | Atractor is a cold, Kraftwerk-like electro pastische updated for the glitch generation. Ditto for Optx.

 


Borkan, Daniel (USA)

Explorations (2023)

Playful, lullaby-like electronic compositions.

 


Borkiet, Eckhard (Germany)

The Final Sign (1992)
On the Fields of Nowhere (1994)
Polaris (1996)
Conjurer (1997)
Nuclear (1998)
Project Journey (1999)
Beyond Dreams And Reality (2000)
Resurrected (2000)
Fear 2001 (2001)
Snowblind (2001)
Endless (2002)
Leaving Earth (2003)
Transformed (2007)

Synthesist. He makes melodic and rhythmic (often cosmic) Electronic Music since 1988. Eckhard has a warm, rich sound thanks to the use of analogue synthesizers.

 


Borland, Wes (USA)

Crystal Machete (2016)

Idiosyncratic musician born in Virginia (based in Detroit), member of Limp Bizkit, Marilyn Manson, Black Light Burns and more. On his solo album, he acts essentially as a multi-instrumentalist, playing guitar, drums and synthesizers. He mixes post-rock and electronics, including some vocoder singing and melodic synths, sometimes rhythmic ala synthwave and a touch of spacesynth even on the title track (Crystal Machete).

 


Born Erased (Bulgaria)

I Am the End of the World (2023)

Cinematic droning ambient project of Angel Simitchiev.

See also: Mytrip, Dayin, Vague Voices.

 


Born Yesterday On Television (USA)

Flirting With Disaster (1987)

Jaxon Crow's duo with James Flory III.

See also: Crow, Jaxon

 


Borngräber & Strüver (Germany)

Transcontinental (2005)
In G (2010)
Con-Struct (2011) (with Conrad Schnitzler)
Urlaub (2011)
Clouds (2012)

Experimental electronic duo. Mostly hypnotic and rhythmic.

 


Bornstein, Alexander (USA)

Schematic (2017)

Cinematic music from this Los Angeles-based composer. Sometimes with a Blade Runner feel, soometimes leaning towards synthwave or 1980's Tangerine Dream soundtracks.

 


Boron (USA)

Mirages (2017) (with Argon)

Varied project of experimental musician Dan Nelson from Portland, Oregon. He has a certain affinity towards modular analog synths, but his output has been pretty diverse, ranging from completely abstract and noisy electronics to electro-acoustics and so on. On the above album a certain Prog EM infuence is felt.

 


Borreani, Gaston (France)

Reve abyssal (1979)
Oxygen (1982)

These are electronic library albums.

 


Borusiade (Romania)

A Body (2018)

Diverse electronic artist (real name - Miruna Boruzescu), whose music ranges from vocal stuff to hardcore experimental techno or industrial. Her album A Body opens with pulsing EM goodness titled "Cluster" and then proceeds through styles mentioned above. There may be some other EM tracks out there, so further exploration is needed.

 


Bosco, Marco (Brazil)

Metalmadeira (1983)
Fragmentos da Casa (1986)

Percussionist who combines Brazilian multi-percussion rhythms and folk styles with ambient and electronic sounds. Absolutely unique artist, although in a way it can be compared to Egberto Gismonti's electronic phase.

 


Botanica (Poland)

Invisible Gardener (2023)

Gentle ambient sounds from Maciej Panek. Sometimes with dubby moods.

 


Botanica (USA)

Garden of Earthly Delights (1989)
Strange Attractor (1992)

Space Music by a group formed by Sanford Ponder.

See also: Ponder, Sanford

 


Botchus (Lithuania)

Grand Delusions (2021)

Varied electronics, from downtempo rhythms to ambient synth and a touch of vaporwave.

 


Botielus (USA)

Botielus (1990)
Vision Quest (1991)
Phresh Ideas (1992)

Varied synthesist, from outright new-agey and loungy music with sax and fluety leads to moodier melodic stuff sometimes with touches of Jarre and other pioneers. Rather pleasant overall.

 


Botis, George (Greece)

Ταξιδεύεις Ακόμα (2021) (with Christos Laskaris)

Greek: Γιώργος Μπότης. London-based session musican, engineer and synthesist with a melodic, hymnal style. Sometimes jazzy or piano-based. States to be influenced by Ry Cooder, Daniel Lanois, Aphex Twin, Hiroshi Yoshimura and Vangelis.

 


Botka, Nicholas Howard (USA)

Live At Timbre Room - June 7, 2017 (2022)

Varied EM with sequencing.

 


Bottles, The (USA)

Phantom Cargo (1997)

Shorter tracks of Ambient influenced by classic works of Eno and Daniel Lanois. Some bagpipes bring in an ethnic / medieval flair.

 


Boucle Infinie (France)

直線移動 (2017)
Summit (2023) (recorded in 2022) (S)

Mixture of guitar riffs, driving drums and melodic synthesizers. Good if you like stuff like Harald Nies, Maxxess, Picture Palace Music and F. D. Project. A project of Rémi Gallego. Nice stuff.

See also: Algorithm, The

 


Bouda, Alojz (Slovakia)

Synthesizer Sound (1980)

Slovak keyboard player who released at least two LP's: Organ Fascination in 1976 and this monstrosity in 1980. It's basically a bunch of nasty pop tracks played on synthesizers but one of them stands out. It's called "Random" and it's the real deal. In the credits it is stated that on this track he just let his synthesizer play "by itself" and the results are quite nice. There's something genuinely Kraftwerkian about it, with a steady mechanical beat supporting sparkling clusters of synth arpeggios and wiggles. A pity it's too short, though.

 


Boulé, Christian (France)

Photo Musik (1978)
Non Fiction (1979)

Christian Boulé played guitar with Clearlight, Gong and Lard Free. His music is guitar-fronted space rock / synthesizer music. It offers a lot for an EM fan. Christian Boulé left this world in 2002.

 


Boulter, David (UK)

Yarmouth (2020)
Lover's Walk (2021)
Lover's Walk Instrumental (2021)
The First Take (2022) (S)

Moody, nocturnal, semi-acoustic EM with a hauntology vibe.

 


Boundless Relaxation (USA)

Tranquility of the Infinite (2022)

Pretty nice and competent ambient synth / guitar music which is marred by narrating voice.

 


Boundy, Justin (Australia)

Emospheres (1995)

Melodic, Jarre-like electronics with a few dance influences from this Queensland-based artist and studio engineer.

 


Bouquet, Jean-Pierre (France)

Classical & Modern Musical Worlds (??)

Electronic library music.

 


Bourdin, Lucette (France)

Soaring Above the Thunder (2005)
Oceanic Space (2006)
Raven's Dream (2006)
The Mystery of the Midnight Sun (2006)
Rising Fog (2007)
Stories From the City (2007)
Seeking Ganesha (2008)
Ancient Memories (2008)
Tiemeless Shore (2008)
Drums And Repercussions (2009)
Drum-Atic Atmospheres (2009)
Under Currents (2009)
A Thousand Voices (2010)
Nordic Waves Volume 1: Winter (2011)
Nordic Waves Volume 2: Spring (2011)
Nordic Waves Volume 3: Summer (2011)
Nordic Waves Volume 4: Autumn (2011)
A View From Afar (2012)
Breath of Grace (2012)

Lucette Bourdin was a French female painter and Ambient musician who lived and worked in the USA. Sadly, she died on February, 17, 2011.

 


Bourne, Matthew (UK)

Radioland: Radio-Activity Revisited (2015) (with Franck Vigroux)
Moogmemory (2016)

Moogmemory is a minimal analog synth exploration from this jazz pianist. Released on LP that comes with a CD containing additional tracks. As is clear from the title, the music was done on a Memorymoog synthesizer.

 


Bourrelier, Pascal (France)

Histoire d'une vie / 111 Mega Hertz (??) (S)

 


Boutenko, Stephan (USA)

Breathing Room EP (2016)

Electronic artist from Oregon with an ambient style and subtle sequencing on the first track.

 


Boutrup, Lars (Denmark)

Lars Boutrup's Music For Keyboards (2005)
The Symphonic Dream (2011)
Small As A Ball (2015)
The Great Beyond (2020)

Keyboard player from Denmark who mixes instrumental symphonic rock in the style of keyboard greats with some EM influences.

 


Bouts-Rimés (Russia)

Allowed Communication (2018) (S)

Saint-Petersburg-based project with different styles heard on Allowed Communication. Mostly ambient, the music is alternatively flowing, melodic and abstract, with glitch / IDM influences.

 


Boutz, Georges (USA)

Amber 7 (1983)
Silver Eagle (1984)

Melodic Electronic Music influenced by Jarre and other pioneers.

 


Bouvetøya (Ireland)

Subtractivate (2013)
Interstellarphonic (2014)
Timeslip (2015)
Blue Planet Talisman (2016)
Super High Frequency (2016)
Machines For Collective Living (2017)
Moonquake (2018)
Geometrium (2019)
The Fiction Makers (2020)

Curiously named after a remote Norwegian island in Southern Atlantic, Bouvetøya is a studio-based EM project from Ireland.

 


Bovine Mindstate (UK)

Bovine Mindstate (2023)

Although a drummer, Tim Giles focuses on electronics on his work as Bovine Mindstate. There is still live drumming, though, which, along with Tim's jazz and dub influences gives his quirky EM a lively improvised feel. Nice stuff.

 


Bowden, William (Australia)

The Dream of the Currawong (1994)
Sleeping Gardens (2002) (with Sean Tinslay)

Australian sound engineer and composer who worked with Kylie Minogue and The Living End, among others. This album is a relaxing affair, between Ambient and new age, with electric violin on some tracks.

 


Bowen, Eugene (USA)

Bourgeois Magnetic (1981) (S)

Eugene Bowen is a California-based singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. This small 45-rpm record was released in 1981 on Harold Budd's short-lived Cantil record label and is a forgotten gem of early Ambient and post-punk / art pop minimalism. It features vocal songs and instrumental tracks. Harold Budd plays processed piano and synthesizers on it. The record was re-released on CD in 2007 by Amorfon records of Japan.

 


Bowen, Jake (USA)

Isometric (2015)
The Daily Sun (2022)

American guitarist who is also interested in electronics. His album The Daily Sun presents dynamic tracks with a synthwave feel. Most of the material is instrumental, although there are also some songs. Best track: "Bone Wizard".

 


Bowers, Graham (UK)

Of Mary's Blood (1995)
Transgression (1997)
Eternal Ghosts (1998)
Pilgrim (1999)
Rupture (2011) (with Nurse With Wound)
Parade (2013) (with Nurse With Wound)
Diploid (2013) (S) (with Nurse With Wound)
Excitotoxicity (2014) (with Nurse With Wound)
Mutation... The Lunatics Are Running the Asylum (2015) (with Nurse With Wound)

Cinematic Dark Ambient from this musician, painter and sculptor.

 


Bowie, David (UK)

Low (1977)
Heroes (1977)

For Low, David Bowie (1947 - 2016) teamed up with Brian Eno and, as a result, this album is split in two parts where the first one features experimental / cold electropop / rock songs with sparse vocals, while the second one is filled with Eno-like ambient EM. Same goes for Heroes although there's not as much instrumental stuff as on its predecessor.

 


Bowles, Meg (USA)

Solstice Dreams (1993)
Inner Space (1993)
Blue Cosmos (1996)
Night Sun Journey (1996)
Places Where Rivers Meet (1997)
From the Dark Earth (1999)
A Quiet Light (2011)
The Shimmering Land (2013)
Evensong - Canticles For the Earth (2018)
Pilgrimage (2022)
Voices From the Ethereal Forest (2022)

Space Music. Jonn Serrie would be the closest comparison.

 


Bowman, Cooper (Australia)

Arid Fault (2017) (S)
Seabreeze Salute (2021)

Varied electronic musician, releasing stuff under various guises and as part of several groups. I don't know how much of his output will be EM-friendly but Arid Fault features waves of analog synths and melodies.

See also: Troth

 


Bownik, Adam (Poland)

Niebieskie przesrzenia (1997)
Sekwesencja (1997)
Olympus Mons (1997)
Across the Continents (1998)
The Presence (1999)
Sonabilis (1999)
Angels of the Seas (2000)
Dive Into Subconscious (2000)
Eter (2000)
Epicentre (2000)
Time Replicated (2001)
Artificial Life (2001)
Basis (2001)
Trajektoria X (2001)
Apogeum (2001)
The Presence (2001)
Perigeum (2001)
Vega (2002)
Phoebe (2002)
Silentium Universi (2002)
Hydrosfera (2002)
Aura (2002)
The Storm Is Here (2002)
Zlote Dzieci (2002)
Magma (2002)
Zmysly (2002)
S Andromedae (2002)
Antares (2002)
... a chmury pod nami (2003)
Smak sztuki (2003)
Hyperion (2003)
Psalmy (2003)
Marzenia twe (2003)
Rozowa magia (2003)
Equilibrium (2003)
Ekliptyka (2003)
As the Moon Shines (2003)
Code of Life (2003)
Apokalipsa (2004)
Dimensional Scales (2004)
Earth (2004)
Sun (2004)
Vocalia (2004)
Signs (2005)
I Awoke In A Dream (2005)
Mars Global Inspiration (2006)
A New Life (2006)
Contemplation (2006)
Epicentre (2006)
Glassicism (2007)
Supernova (2007)
Olcztyn - Elblag 2008 (2008) (with Andrzej Mierzynski and Piotr Krupski)
Metanoia (2008)
Red Planet (2008)
...And Life Goes On (2008)
De Revolutionibus (2015) (S)

Adam Cetramen Bownik (sometimes referred to as simply "Certamen") is a Polish synthesist with a lot of albums to his credit. His music can be described as traditional electronics while some works are more in the mould of Ambient (Silentium Universi, Smak Sztuki). He also has a few works in the techno / trance vein, not included in the above discography. I have Zlote Dzieci which consists of three long classic Berlin School opuses. For the most part you won't find any surprises here, just all classic elements nicely put together. The exception is the second track, slow and atmospheric (for the most part). For fans of classic Schulze, Tangerine Dream, and especially Patrick Kosmos, this is a must!

 


Boxwork (UK)

Dive Left (2017)
Heading North (2018) (soundtrack)

Boxwork is a project of James Wilson. You can tell he has a UK Garage / Dubstep background from all those complex vocal sample arrangements heard on Heading North. The whole sounds rather ambient, though, and is within the EM standards, in large part thanks to the excellent synth work. The album contains music composed as a soundtrack to a film about cycling. Recommended.

 


Boy Is Fiction (Australia)

Boy Is Fiction (2007)
Broadcasts In Colour (2010)
A Single Beam of Light (2018) (with Ghosts of Tyto Alba)
Deeper Than Static (2022)

Hard-hitting rhythmic tracks and ambient melodic interludes from Alex Gillett.

 


Boycalledcrow (UK)

Hyperlight (2018)
Emerald (2019)
Mystic Scally (2020)
Bottletown (2021)
Wizard's Castle (2022)
Nightmare Folk Art (2023)

Chillwave / post-internet / sequencer & MIDI electronics from Carl M Knott. There is a slight Prog EM flair on his album Emerald.

 


Boysen, Ben Lukas (Germany)

Mirage (2020)

Nice mixture of analog electronics and classical instrumentation from this IDM artist. Very progressive. I wonder if he has other albums that could qualify for inclusion. Further investigation is needed.

See also: Hecq

 


Boysen, Per (Sweden)

Civitas urbanus (2007)
Sub City 2064 (2010) (with Erdem Helvacioğlu)

Per Boysen is experimental electronic artist who is very much into wind instruments. Apart from staples like soprano sax and flute, he uses EWI (electronic wind instrument), electric guitar and processing. His style is quite unique and very diverse, mixing reflective / atmospheric numbers with more frenetic ones and a strong electro-acoustic influence.

 


Bozzone, Chris (USA)

Phantom Flowers (2022)

Soundtrack composer (with multiple scores to audio versions of H.P. Lovecraft's books) from South Jersey / Philly area. Phantom Flowers is a synth-infused work marrying analog electronics and haunting vocal delivery. A very Klaus Schulze-like work in spirit (everything from Blackdance through Timewind to collaborations with Arthur Brown and "Klaustrophony" from Dreams comes to mind), with also a strong horror soundtrack vibe.

 


bphax (USA)

Stranger Things Volume Three (2017)

Imaginary synth soundtrack from this Iowa-based project.

 


BPMoore (UK)

Komorebi (2020)

Ben Moore is an ambient-oriented artist from London. Strong neo-classical influence, relaxed rhythms, nice melodies... He states to be influenced by The Cure, The Prodigy, Lau and Talk Talk.

 


BpOlar (Belgium)

The White Heads (2007)
Pheromones (2009)

Ambient soundscapes from Antwerp, Belgium.

 


Bracale, Ron (USA)

Shamanic Extra-Terestrial Initiation (2009)

Electronic album from this flute player.

 


Bracchi, Giancarlo (USA)

Silicone Immortality (2010)

Analog sound sculptor and experimental musician from NY. This is a cassette release.

 


Brachial Palsy (Germany)

Control And Paralysis (2006)
The Central Point of the Nine Planets (2009)

I must admit I was a bit hesitant about including this project in EEM, as some tracks off Control And Paralysis are basically rhythmic experimental industrial based on loops. However, other tracks are pure Ambient, not very dark really, and remind me on Dwight Ashley's solo stuff. Brachial Palsy is a project of John Birch and rose out of the ashes of his previous group LA Comunidad that played rhythmic electro.

 


Braciszewski, Maciej (Poland)

A.D. 966 (2008)
A.D. 1000 (2011)
Beatyficare (2011)
Deep Blue (2013)

 


Brada (Slovakia)

Neila (2017)

Noisy and disturbing ambience from this duo.

 


Bradacs, Serge (Switzerland)

Space Time (2010)
Oscillateur (2012)

Synth artist from Switzerland with a classic, analogue sound.

 


Bradley, Mark (USA)

Shimmer (2008)
Wrecked (2008) (S)
Drifting (2008)
A Forever Heaven (2009) (S)
All of My Ghosts (2009)
Eternal (2009)
Absolution (2009)
Dream State (2009)
Smoke And Mirrors (2009) (S)
Bible Black (2009)
Luminous (2009) (S)
For the Monks (2009) (S)
The Gloaming (2010) (S)
Trembling Branches (2010)
Exile (2010)
Mark Bradley / Wereju (2010) (with Wereju)
Absolute Infinite (2010) (with Jacob Price)
Beyond Smoke And Mirrors (2010)
When Art Imitates Life (2010)
Memento mori (2010) (S)
Godspeed (2010)
Sanctity (2010)
His Masters Voice (2010)
Cathedral Sound Ritual (2011)
The Future Has Passed (2011) (S)
Deliver Me (2011)
Blind Faith (2011) (S)
Sustain / Release (2011)
Temple Music (2011)
Spectral Electricity (2011)
Mantra (2011)
Mystic (2011) (S)
Offerings (2012)
Radiant (2012)
A Collection - The First And the Last Five Years (2013)
A History of Silence (2016)
The Gospel of Fear-Lift Up Thine Eyes (2017) (S)

Extremely prolific electronic artist who does ambient drone, rhythmic, noisy, experimental and many more styles of music, sometimes within a single album.

 


Bradley, Paul (UK)

Paul Bradley (??)
All That Was (2003)
Behind Your Very Eyes (2003) (with Colin Potter)
Twenty Hertz (2003)
Confluence (2004) (with Colin Potter)
Sepulchral (2004)
Sometime Today (2004) (with Darren Tate)
Immure (2004)
Anamnesis (2005)
Anoxia (2005) (with Adam Sonderberg)
Liquid Sunset (2005)
Live (2005) (with Colin Potter)
Sophia Drifts (2005)
Moraines (2006) (with Cria Cuervos)
Memorias Extranjeras (2006)
Notes From Past (2006)
Sketches From Dust (2006)
Chroma (2007)
Somatic (2007)
Moraines II (2007) (with Cria Cuervos)
Searching For the Way (2007) (S)
Mas Memorias Extranjeras (2008)
Sirens (2008)
Special Edition (2008)
Live (2010)
The Simple Plan (2010) (with Colin Potter)
Veil of Dawn (2011) (with Darren Tate)
Water Mountain (2013) (with Jonathan Coleclough, Hitoshi Kojo and Colin Potter)
Manchester Live 2008 (2021) (with Colin Potter)

Paul Bradley is an English drone / ambient musician who's been quite prolific since around 2000. He mostly uses processed sounds and subtle instrumentation (guitar and keyboards) to create subterranean rumbles and drones. Paul's music is often quite dark.

See also: UN:

 


Bradley Sean Alexander (Canada)

Lowered Expectations (2018)

Ambient artist.

See also: Anthéne, Deschamps, Brad, North Atlantic Drift, Rosales.

 


Bradock, Pépé (France)

Baby Craddock (2016) (EP)
What A Mess! (2019)

Parisian deejay, producer and musician who comes from the techno / club / rave background and has been around since the 1990's. I don't know how and when he got influenced by EM, but if you listen to Baby Craddock, you will be surprised by a few moments of genuine EM bliss. Among the experimental techno / house tracks you get "Sainte-Maure" - a mesmerizing electronic soundscape and "1755" - a more experimental pastiche with a few hesitant sequences and various beeps and bleeps. These two tracks show us a unique EM style from an artist who is not afraid to step out of his comfort zone, if there is one. If and what other releases contain EM material or are EM-related is unknown at the moment.

See also: Barbu, Brigitte

 


Bradshaw-Leather, Don (UK)

Distance Between Us (1972)

So you call yourself a mellotron fanatic? Then you might be interested in this 2-LP set, as the music herein is a real mellotron overkill. Don Bradshaw-Leather (aka Donald Bradshaw and Don Bradsham-Leather) is an obscure artist who recorded the whole thing using just piano, mellotron (mostly using strings), organ, percussion and voice (his own and that of a guest female vocalist). These four extended "jams" sound like lost and deranged orchestral memories covered by time and dust. I don't know if he is a genius or a madman to put out something like this in 1972 (there are some parallels with early German krautrock / EM experimentalists) but those longing for a mellotron overdose can look no further. It is also interesting to compare this with later-day Neo-Classical Ambient acts like Mauve Sideshow.

 


Braheny, Kevin (USA)

Way Home (1978)
Lullaby (1980)
Hearts of Space (1986)
Western Spaces (1987) (with Steve Roach & Richard Burmer)
Galaxies (1988)
Desert Solitaire (1989) (with Steve Roach & Michael Stearns)
Secret Rooms (1990)
Rain (1995) (with Tim Clark)
The Spell (1996) (with Tim Clark)

American musician. Quiet Ambient music, sometimes melodic and always pleasant. Kevin Braheny uses the EVI (electronic valve instrument) in his music and has mastered this device to a great degree, hence the abundance of electronic ‘wind’ sounds (flutes etc) in his work. Has collaborated with Steve Roach and Tim Clark, among others.

 


Brahmen Raag (Belgium)

Brahmen Raag (2016)

A duo of Glen Steenkiste and David Edren who play harmonium, shruti box and synthesizers. Sort of an Ambient / drone / World Music sound here.

See also: Erden, David

 


Brahms (USA)

Pressure (2011) (S)
Shimmer//Suffocate (2013)

Minimal synth compositions from Jovan Moran. Sounds like toy melodies supported by melodic pads.

 


Braiden (UK)

X Years In London (2017) (S)

Steve Braiden is a London-based artist with a cinematic style between EM, synthwave and bass music / deconstructed club.

 


Brain, The (USA)

Lo-Tech (1995)
Access & Amplify (1996)

This CD (Access & Amplify) was released on the Hypnotic label and represents a mixture of rhythmic (including some modern beats) and floating analog electronic styles.

 


Brain, The (USA)

Experiments For Guitar + Machines (2020)
All Human Is Error (2022)

Fine darkish Electronic Music with synths & guitar, recalling earliest Klaus Schulze, Kluster and especially Heldon. A project of Nashville-based Karl Gottlaus (a pseudonym?).

 


Brain Ballet (Japan)

Aquarium of the Deep Sea (2004)

Aquatic electronics from one Hidemasa Kondo.

 


Brain Drugs (Australia)

Brain Drugs (2020)

Synth / drums project, although the synth part is rather rudimentary for the most part.

 


Brain Fruit (USA)

1.1 (2011)

Seattle-based duo with a Dusseldorf-influenced sound. Vintage synths galore and drum machine rhythms straight from Kraftwerk's Autobahn.

 


Brain Laughter (USA)

In the Land of Power (1989)
Not Far From A Distant Sun (1995)
Life Flows Water (2015) (with Craig Padilla)
Source of Compassion (2016) (with Madhavi Devi)
Being of Light (2017) (with Craig Padilla)
The Bodhi Mantra (2020) (with Craig Padilla)

Brain Laughter is Howard Givens. Pulsating sequential electronics ala Schulze and TD. The second album is more dreamy and ambient and features contributions by Steve Roach and Deborah Martin, among others.

 


Brain Machine (Italy / UK)

Brain Machine (2008)
Alpha Beta Gamma (2011) (EP)
The Lost Machine (2014) (S)
Peaks (2016)

A duo of Italian producer Guido Zen and Jon Tye (Seahawks). Cosmic and sequence-full music between Berlin School and Moroder.

See also: Vactrol Park, Mogard, Abul.

 


Brain Syndrome (USA)

Disconnect (2011) (S)

Presented by the label as a "mysterious 80's thrift store find", I strongly suspect a fake here. Anyway, the music on this limited cassette (program repeats on both sides)  is somewhat raw and unpolished (sometimes sounding more like sketches rather than full-blown compositions), but the sounds are warm and nice and all... Oh, well.

 


Brainman (Sweden)

Keep A Distance (2019)

From lysergic harmonium drones to melodic cosmic synth and sequencer raindrops plus leads ala Klaus Schulze. A project of Jonas Tiljander who is a member of noise rock band Brainbombs and one half of psychedelic / space rockers Bremen.

 


Braino (USA)

Early electronic band from Cleveland, Ohio, featuring Alan Howarth.

See also: Pi Corp

 


Brainstorm (Australia)

The Spiral Stair (2013)

Unclassifiable space rock / hard rock band from Melbourne, led by Paul Foley. This album has nice spacey background electronics throughout, but there is also a completely electronic (bar drums and glissando guitar) track, called "Das Elektronisches". It has a motorik rhythm and reminds on Dusseldorf School with some Berlin influences. One of those one-track (so far) inclusions.

 


Brainstorm Trust, The (USA)

Harmonic Motion (2014)

Miscellaneous bunch of tracks, mostly of rhythmic, melodic and symphonic kind. Sometimes with a weird cartoony vibe.

 


Brainticket (international)

Celestial Ocean (1973)
Adventure (1979)
Voyage (1980)
New Age Concert (1985) (with Stephanie Wolff)
Alchemic Universe (2001)
Live In Rome 1973 (2011)
Past, Present & Future (2015)
Zürich/Lausanne (2018) (recorded in 1983 and 1984)

An international formation that has seen many members coming and going during the years, but always revolved around Belgian born Joel Vandroogenbroeck. It has seen Swiss, Italian and American musicians boiling within its pot. The band was formed somewhere around 1968 and consisted at that time of Vandroodenbroeck, Ron Bryer and Wolfgang Paap. The music of that era had nothing much to do with electronics. After that they got caught by a ‘krautrock fever’ and their first two albums Cottonwoodhill (1971) and Psychonaut (1972) are typical examples of psychedelic jams, sometimes hinting at early Hawkwind. After the 'pure psych' phase was over, they became more electronic and their subsequent albums are the ones to grab. Completists, of course, would want to have all of them. EM fans, beware the female vocals on Psychonaut.

Notes 18.05.2003. A few words about Alchemic Universe. This is a very good album (composed entirely by Joel Vandroogenbroeck) with unique style, lots of changes and unusual techniques etc. The rhythms are modern, although the techno elements never become prominent enough to be irritating. Some tracks feature female voice reciting (mainly) random phrases and words. In contrast to some of Software's works (Syn-Code) where such voice just got on my nerves and made me reach for the "skip" button, here it seems to work somehow, maybe because it fits better to the music, or maybe for some other reason (doesn't sound like new age bullshit, you know)... Who knows! Anyway, a very pleasant modern EM album.

See also: Vandroogenbroeck, Joel, Deyssenroth, Hans.

 


Brainwave Research Center (USA)

Figure 1 (2023)
Mosaic (2023)

Electronic duo of Chase Smith and Christa Majoras. Figure 1 was recorded on multiple synths and drum machines (TR-606, OB8, SH-101, MS-20, Fizmo, H3000, SDE-3000) in the back of Smiths synth / electronics repair shop in Brooklyn. It is mostly warm and analog-sounding EM as we know (and love) it from the days of the pioneers, with also some 1990's ambient techno influences.

 


Brainwork (Germany)

Sunrise (1991)
Brainotronic (1992)
Back To the Roots (1993)
Rhythm Base (1994)
V Melodie & Ambience (1995)
Live & Unreleased (1996)
Sensual Reflections (1997)
Stollwerck '96 (1997) (with Strange Inside)
Back To Future (2003)
Soundclouds (2006)
Ten (2008)
Dreamland (2009)
Earcatcher (2010)
City Lights (2011)
The Other Works (2013)
Cosmic Places (2014)
Above the Keys (2016)
Back To Future 2 (2017)
Colours of the Soul (2018)
Back To the Roots II (2019)
2020 The Synthfonie (2020)
Late In Berlin (2021)
Behind the Sun (2022)
The Studio Sessions (2023)

Electronic project of Uwe Saher from Cologne, Germany. Very energetic music with some beats in New Berlin School style.

See also: Element 4

 


Brainworlds (USA)

. (2008)
.. (2009)
... (2010)
.... (2010)
..... (2011)

Atlanta-based guitarist and electronic composer Mason Brown who is very much into mesmerizing and melodic ambient hazy dronescapes.

 


Brajković, Massimo (Croatia)

Mosaico Istriano (1999)

 


Bramble (USA)

Dynamism (2007)
Emergence (2008)

Bramble is Scott Wehman from Toledo, Ohio, who also makes Breakcore musiñ under an alias BLÆRG. Bramble, however, is ambient and dark.

 


Bramlaan (Netherlands)

Aloft In A Balloon (1981)

Obscure double LP of experimental EM and psychedelic music that is somewhat spacey and minimal. There are vocals and the whole thing has something of a Peter Gabriel air to it or maybe also early Battiato.

 


Bran(...)pos (USA)

Den of Ordure And Iridescence (2013)

Jake Rodriguez is an experimental / noise artist who makes his own instruments (including softsynths) and invents unusual performance techniques. Den of Ordure And Iridescence is a nice album inspired by 1970's German Electronic Music, krautrock and some academic electronic artists. I don't know if there is anything else in that style or similar in his oeuvre, so, further investigation is needed.

 


Branches (Portugal)

Alto Astral (2010)
Sonho Maritimo (2011) (S)
Ninguém é Como Tu (2012)
Casa Nossa (2013)
Para Ver o Sol (2015) (recorded in 2006 - 2014)

Aquatic, floating Ambient.

 


Branchi, Walter (Italy)

Paesaggi intravisti (1987) (with Mauro Bortolotti)

See also: Musica Elettronica Viva

 


Brand, Steve (USA)

The Quiver of Dreams (2004)
One Hour As the One Who Watches (2005) (with Jonathan Benham)
Awakensong (2006)
Looking Into the Other (2007)
Twilightmind (2007)
Cahokia (2007)
Bridge To Nowhere (2008)
SoulSpiral (2008)
Broken Gold (2008) (with Disturbed Earth)
Because We Were Once Covered In Gold (2008)
Children of Alcyone (2009)
Spiritual Silence / The Voice From Home (2009) (with Ishq)
Coniunctio (2010)
Circular Scriptures (2010)
Sunprints (2010)
What Is Memory (2011) (with Disturbed Earth)
Avatara (2011)
Upwelling (2011)
Catalyst (2012)
Our True Nature (2012)
The Great Hoop (2013)
The Track of the Full Moon On Water (2013)
Over-Soul (2013)
The Fruit of the Spring (2014)
Meltstream (2014) (with Roy Mattson)
The Space Between (2014)
Into the Current (2015)
Second Spring (2015)
Sanctuary (2015)
Songs From Unknown Territory (2015)
The Path of the Heart (2016)
Leaving the Hive (2016)
Near Series: Silence (2017)
Near Series: Otherness (2017)
Near Series: Threshold (2017)
Spiritual Science (2017) (with Ishq)
Upwelling: Emergence (2017) (recorded in 2009 - 2017)
Near Series: Glow (2018)
Graduated (2019)
Counterintelligence (2019)
Archaism (2019)
Magical Thinking (2020)
High Strangeness (2020)
Common Wonders (2020)
CUSP (2021)
What Is Real (2021)
Abandoned (2021)
Translucent (2021)
Tides of Time (2022)

Formerly known as Augur, Steve Brand has been doing experimental electronic / electroacoustic compositions since the mid-1980's. At the start of the New Millennium, he began releasing works under his real name, delving deeper into the ambient realms. His works combine elements of Classic Ambient with desert ambience of artists like Steve Roach and Robert Rich and often Tribal / Ritual elements, with percussion, flutes, tropical forest ambiences, etc.

 


Brandal, Andreas (Norway)

Locks And Caves (2010)
The Delusive Light (2016)
Flames And Ether (2016)
The Land of Perfect Twilight (2016)
The Thursday Curses (2016)
The Work of the Spider (2017)
Subterranean Nerve Endings (2021)
Zener_38 (2022)
1995 (2022)
Trapdoor Crucifix (2023)

Mix equal doses of Nurse With Would's "creakyness" / horror sound, classic "horror synth" and lush classical arrangements and you will get the idea of what the nocturnal world of The Delusive Light is all about. Andreas Brandal is a prolific drone / experimental musician with quite a few releases to his credit. I will try to list his progressive works here, of which The Delusive Light is a nice gem in a unique style.

See also: Skeleton Harbor

 


Brandt, Daniel (Germany)

Eternal Something (2017)
Channels (2018)

Berlin-based composer. Working under the broad post-minimalism banner, he combines repetitive compositional structure with classical and electronic instrumentation. Rhythmic, hypnotic... Nice stuff.

 


Branģjolica, Ljubomir (North Macedonia)

Koneski's Constellation (1988)

Classical composer. This album is a theater piece and is supposedly electronic.

 


Brant DeMaria, Michael (USA)

Ama (2018)

New-agey music from this composer. Some tracks, like "Night Voyage", are closer to EM, though.

 


Brant, Richard (???)

Synthi Storm (1986)

 


Branz, Jürgen (Germany)

Tonal Shades (2023) (with Tom Simonetti)

Modular synth artist. Abstract, colorful, playful, sunny / shady.

 


Bras, Wilhelm (Poland)

Wordless Songs By the Electric Fire (2013)
Visionaries & Vagabonds (2015)
Living Truthfully Under Imaginary Circumstances (2018)

Music with lots of strange, quirky analog sounds made on self-built synths. Unique stuff which is great for fans of Experimental EM.

 


Brass Clouds (USA)

Metrochrome (2022) (recorded in 2020)
Escape Vessels (2023)

Solo electronic project of Portland, Oregon-based Dustin Dybvig, a multi-instrumentalist and member of several bands. Here, it's mutant, cosmic and rhythmic EM with lots of nice, fat synth sounds.

 


Brass Jr., Noel (USA)

Broken Cloud Orchestra (2017)

Seattle-based keyboardist with a jazz background. On Broken Cloud Orchestra, he presents jazzy ambient compositions made on just piano, electric piano and synths. A unique style for sure (like an ambient, strictly electronic version of a Cool Jazz record). Nice stuff to chill out to. Interestingly enough, there are also some darker, Blade Runner-ish moments. You can somehow see Deckard's lonely apartment and the rainy streets of 2019's Los Angeles listening to it. Wow.

 


Bratten, André (Norway)

Be A Man You Ant (2013)
Gode (2015)
Math Ilium Ion (2015) (EP)
Valve (2017) (S)
Pax Americana (2019)
Silvester (2020)
Picture Music (2022)

Synthesist from Oslo with a melodic sound, obviously influenced by the classics, but also modern and individual.

 


Brava Kilo (Canada)

Hang On, You Demons! (2018)

Varied electronic compositions, with influences from jazz, avant-garde, chamber pop and more. Pretty complex and engaging stuff.

 


Bravais Lattice (USA)

Emerald Repose (2020)
Aqua Glisten (2021)
Orientation Matrix (2021)

Sort of organic, sometimes slightly lo-fi or noisy electronic compositions.

 


Bravo Gallo Lento, Alfonso (Portugal)

Truck Driving Club Lessons (2021)

Manic, repetitive electronics with some guitar and a krautrock attitude. Sometimes with distorted Moog-like solos ala Klaus Schulze. Actually, a lot of it sounds like Schulze, Ashra and Cluster on a boat ride to Jamaica.

 


Bravo Tounky (France)

Cyao Catalunya (2018) (S)
Forez Gump (2018) (S)
Flash détente (2020)
Multigolf (2023)

Cyao Catalunya is chirping drum machine rhythms and cheesy synth melodies. Forez Gump is supposedly more ambient.

 


Braxton, Tyondai (USA)

Hive1 (2015)
Oranged Out (2016) (EP)

American composer and performer born in 1978. Tyondai Braxton is the son of avant-garde composer and jazz musician Anthony Braxton and, just like his father, he often relies on improvisation. He is known for several projects, both as a solo artist and with collectives such as the Wordless Music Orchestra for example. On Hive1, a totally unique brand of EM is presented. It is highly experimental, quirky, improvisational and yet melodic and accessible. The music is quite repetitive and loaded with strange chirpy sounds and warm analog interludes. Not comparable to other artists.

 


Brea, Clara (Spain)

Wetland (2020)

Varied, droning Ambient with lots of field recordings. Modular gear is used extensively here.

 


break_fold (UK)

07_07_15 – 13_04_16 (2017)
27_05_17 - 21_01_18 (??)
21_01_18 _ 15_10_17 (??)
break_fold (2020)

Nice and unique artist here. He creates driving, melodic, rhythmic, modern EM with a sense of purpose and great melodic sensibility. Not really comparable to other artists. Influences of Tangerine Dream, synthwave, dubstep and more.

 


Breaking (USA)

Babyteeth (2021) (soundtrack)

Young artist residing in Brooklyn (real name - Austin Johnson). Babyteeth is a moody synth soundtrack to a short movie.

 


Bréant, François (France)

Sons optiques (1978)
Voyeur extra-lucide (1979)
La nuit des lapins géants (2019)

Keyboard prog / Electronic Music. Excellent studio wizardry and some guest musicians. At times hints at zeuhl.

 


Breast Explosion (Belgium)

Necronomicon (2014)

Initially an experimental trio of musicians during the 1990's, it is now reduced to a solo project. This musical rendition of H.P. Lovecraft's "The Necronomicon", released on cassette, is a mixture of Dark Ambient, dark experimental and dark Berlin School (no soloing, just sequences). Will be enjoyned by fans of all things dark.

 


Breden, Greg (UK)

Undercurrents (1990)
Stones (1991)
The Border (1992)
Alternative 1 (1992)
Darkside (1993)
Summer Perfect (2010)

Synthesist who had several cassette-only releases in the early 90's. The 10-track CD-R demo I received reveals a highly versatile and talented musician who loves his guitar just as much as he loves his synths. "All Round the House" is a Dream Mixes-type piece. Really good if you like that late 90's Tangerine Dream sound, although the similarity is mostly in style, not in the textures themselves. It's an upbeat and melodic piece. "Undercurrents (1998 Mix)" is more atmospheric, with laid-back rhythm and strong melodic hooks. "Blue" sounds like a recent piece to my ears with a vaguely jazzy atmosphere and a relaxed, funky vibe to it. "Becoming the Alien" is a spooky (and really intense towards the end) number, that, despite having some rather cheesy voice samples, will give you the creeps.. "Earthrise" is a true cosmic trip, featuring a lot of spacey guitar work as well as some tasty synth solos. Think Ashra and Pink Floyd meet is space! My favorite track here - great stuff, indeed. "Pagan" is dominated by distorted guitar and is a very rocky number. Not really my cup of tea, this one. "Stones" is rhythmic / melodic and very synthy, with some guitar in there as well. A nice one! "Incantation" is, I'd venture, the newest track here. It's a "techno" track, although it's much more enjoyable than most of what I've heard in the genre. Once again, if you are a fan of the Dream Mixes series, I think you will find this to your liking. When I listen to "Waverider" I notice that Greg's guitar sound is a bit similar to that of Edgar Froese from the 80's / 90's, although Greg's performing style is different. The track has an Underwater Sunlight-era TD vibe to it. "Heading Home", the last track, is a very mundane piece - perfect music for an evening highway. Greg Breden is certainly an artist to look out for. In 2005, Greg released "Stones", a new album for which he took the title of one of his old cassettes. It contains some remixes and new material. Read my review of this album.

 


Bredice, Gianni (Italy)

Triptronic (2014)

Synthesist with a varied, mostly rhythmic / melodic style, with an extra loungy flair.

 


Bregger, Douglas (USA)

Crystal Arcade (1988)
Vampire Radio (1991) (EP)

US hometaper who generally gets lumped with the whole minimal wave / minimal synth scene. While the vocals and the aesthetics really confirm these roots, the music itself is very prog-like and TD seem to be one of his main influences.

 


Breidablik (Norway)

Songs From the Northern Wasteland (2016) (with Jordsjø)
Vinter (2017)
Penumbra (2017)
Nhoohr (2019)
Omicron (2020)
Alduorka (2021)

Although formally a split relase, Songs From the Northern Wasteland seems to be done by the same people. Wherease Jordsjø is dedicated mostly to symphonic rock / folk, Breidablik is classic, Berlin School-infused electronics. At least one of the Jordsjø tracks here is electronic too, though. The opening track from Vinter is dedicated to the memory of Edgar Froese.

 


Breinskam (Spain)

Deimos (2017)

Dark Ambient from Spain (Rubén Usero). Sort of a blackened, ritualistic sound, with mostly drones, resonant sounds, etc.

 


Breitband (Germany)

Fadu und der Unterschied (1999)

Dark and spacey, tribal but with sequenced rhythms. Complex electronic work. A project of Gerald Paetsch and Thomas Brassel.

See also: Eko.

 


Brendan Wells' Plant Music (USA)

Music For People & Their Plants Vol. 1 (2017)

I wonder if this guy was inspired by Mort Garson's Plantasia. Anyway, side A features minimal synthesizer compositions, while side B is basically a recording of a monologue.

 


Brennan, Thom (USA)

Mountains (1987)
Mohave I (1989)
The Dragon's Dream (1993)
The Path Not Taken (1995) (S)
Beneath Clouds (1996)
Vibrant Water (2000)
Formation of Storms (2001)
Mist (2001)
Shimmer (2001)
Strange Paradise (2001)
Satori (2002)
The Secret Faith of Salamanders (2002)
Signals In Moonlight (2003)
Silver (2004)
Stories From the Forest (2008)
Soundgardens (2019)
Another Time And Space (2019)
Imaginary Conquests (2019)
The Path Not Taken (2019) (recorded in 1994)
Elysian Fields (2019)
Departures (2020)
Night Lights (2020)
Dragon Fly (2020)
Home Land (2020)
October (2021)
Chasing the Rain (2021)
A Place To Remember (2022)
Typhoon (2022)
Between Islands (2022) (recorded in 2010 - 2012)
Aftermath (2022)
Chemical Sunset (2022)
Kyalmaira (2022)
Aightliste (2022)
Time Works (2023)
Cathedrals (2023)
Argo (2023)

During the 70's, Thom Brennan developed an interest in Electronic Music. Inspired by the music of Edgar Froese, Klaus Schulze, Terry Riley and many others, he started playing keyboards, using his double-manual electric organ as a sound source. Soon the first synthesizer followed and from there on he started building his electronic studio piece by piece. In the early 80's, Thom met Steve Roach - another Electronic Music enthusiast and musician. He learned a lot from Roach about the studio wizardry. Soon Mountains was released to critical acclaim, featuring great sequencer patterns and captivating atmospherics. Steve Roach hepled with the production. His early work behind, Thom's style started to drift towards the ambient side of things. After a brief hiatus during the 1996 - 2000 period, Thom returned to music making and since then he has released several albums in the Ambient mould.

 


Brenner, Steve (Canada)

Signals (1985)
Stellar Tunel (1985) (S) (with Peter Gulch)
Nacht Musik (1986)
Metropolis (1989) (with Brett Maraldo)
Quantum (1989)
Cybernetic Dancing (1990)

Canadian synthesist and Peter Gulch collaborator. Classic Electronic Music.

See also: Vernal Equinox, Kolab.

 


Brenner, Vytas (Venezuela)

Ofrenda (1978)
I Belong (1981) (with Paulette Dogier)
Estoy Como Quiero (1982)
Vytas (1983)
El Vals del Mar (1986)
Amazonia (1989)
El Dorado (1998)

Venezuelan musician of German origin. He was the leader of Seventies' progressive band La Ofrenda. After the band called it a day, Vytas Brenner gave several solo performances of Electronic Music. I am not sure how much of his recorded output could actually qualify as EM, though. Sadly, Vytas Brenner died in 2004 in Salzburg, Austria.

See also: La Ofrenda

 


Brenot, Jean Philippe (France)

Resurgence (1989)

This album is in a melodic, new-agey style, combining neo-classical keyboards with programmed drums, some female vocalizations and a few sequences. Jean Philippe Brenot released more albums but I am not sure if the bulk of his oeuvre is within the EEM's genre scope.

 


Bres, Tristan (UK??)

Levitation (2022) (S)

Music for a contemporary dance performance mixing piano and (modular) synthesizers. Nice, melodic, climatic sound.

 


Bretwalda (UK)

Barrowlands (2020)
Cammock Tongue (2021)

Strange stuff from this Bangkok-based artist. Essentially Dark Ambient, it has influences from "dungeon synth" and other strange sounds, including lots of voices (sometimes in the form of narration) and sampling.

 


Brewer, Corey (USA)

Velvet Vampire (2022)

Mostly a trip-hop artist. Velvet Vampire has some trip-hop rhythms, but is mostly oriented towards Dark Ambient and "horror synth".

See also: Old Dark House

 


Brewer, Dave (USA)

Okefenokee Dreams (1999) (with Free System Project)
Phase Shift (2000)
Harmonic Resonance (2004)
Piano Solo At the Edge of the Swamp of Okefenokee (2010) (EP)

Berlin School synthesist.

 


Brewer, Jared (USA)

Weapon Eyes (2018)
Yon Citadel... (2018)
Cult of the Computer God (2018)
Rogue Zero (2019)
Roguelike (2021)

This Missouri-based artist creates complex synth themes inspired by the synthwave, chiptune, progressive rock genres, as well as by video game music. Most of the time sounds like pumped up Doom soundtrack.

 


Brewer, Roger (UK)

Without Reason (1982 - 1988) (with Brian Smith)
Year By Year (1985) (with Brian Smith)
Standing On A Beach (1987) (with Brian Smith)
One Step Forward (1991) (S)
Five Weeks East (2006)

Unique artist who combines orchestral textures with Berlin School pulsations, resulting in an exciting EM brew.

 


Brewis, Peter (UK)

Blowdry Colossus (2023)

Instrumental electronic album from this singer-songwriter. Complex, funky, experimental, with elements of jazzy YMO, The Art of Noise, Synergy and more.

 


Brezzo, Gianni (Germany)

tak €2 (2017)
Masala Kiss (2019) (with Cass.)
The Awakening (2021)
Traditional Heart (2021)
Tutto passa (2022)
Soundscapes Vol. 1 - Music For Harlequins (2023)
Minari (2023) (with Bokoya)

Varied musician (real name - Marvin Horsch), whose 2017 release mixes keyboard-based fusion and ambient electronics.

 


Briand, Olivier (France)

Au-dela des nuages... (1988)
Live ’96 (1996)
Flibustieres (1999)
Neuronal Trance Mission (2002)
Libourne Dreams 2005 (2005)
Crystal Tears (2010)
Transparences (2011)
Random Control (2013)
Interferences (2013) (with Bertrand Loreau)
Light Memories (2013)
The Tape (2014)
Ice & Fire (2015)
Nomad Hands Space Watch (2017)

French synthesist.

 


Brickmason (USA)

Night Skies 夜空 (2023)

Long, cinematic ambient tracks from this Portland, Maine-based vaporwave project.

 


Bridge To Imla (Germany)

The Radiant Sea (2017)
One January Evening (2018)
Lost (2021)
Ambient Chapel (2022) (recorded in 2018) (with Volker Lankow)

Electronic duo consisting of Michael Brückner and Hans-Dieter Schmidt (Imaginary Landscape). This music gravitates towards the Space Music / Ambient side of EM.

See also: Brückner, Michael, Imaginary Landscape, La Ponto Ensemblo.

 


Bridonneu, Jérôme (France)

Human Colors (2018)

French synthesist.

 


Briece, Jack (USA)

Heterophonious Fool (1984)

Late enigmatic composer from Santa Fe who released at least one wacky album on cassette in 1984 (re-released on LP in 2020). The music is playful and experimental EM. You could say it's along the lines of Cluster, but the sound palette here is slightly different, bringing to mind rather some minimal synth artists and early video game composers. Briece died in 1988 of AIDS-related complications.

 


Brigitte Bardon't (Canada)

Pink (2020)

Brigitte Bardon't is a plunderphonics / sound collage project of Toronto-based Kristel Jax. Pink is made entirely with a circuit-bent Barbie Jam With Me keyboard she found by the side of the road. Playful, melodic, repetitive, cheesy, wacky, ambient...

 


Brigitte G. (USA)

Secret Earth (2021) (S)

Chicago-based duo related to the industrial scene. Secret Earth features cosmic analog synths, some noisier tracks and a few hushed female "vocals". A Prog EM feel permeates this music.

 


Brikha, Aril (Iran)

Dance of A Trillion Stars (2020)

Tech House musician from Stockholm. As he cites Jarre as one of his main influences, it was inevitable that the Prog EM part of his musical soul would have found a way onto a record somewhere, and, to my greatest delight, Dance of A Trillion Stars is a fine and delicate EM album, full of sparkling sequences done with passion and expertise (really, this album is very sequencer-centered). Thumbs up!

 


Brimble, Allister (UK)

The Team 17 Works (1992)
Sounds Digital (1993)
Bang! Tick... Tick... (1997)
The Amiga Works (2013)
The Spectrum Works (2015)
The Galway Works (2016)

Energetic, Mark Shreeve-like music. I haven’t heard it yet. Allister Brimble is mostly known as a video game music composer with quite an experience in the field.

 


Brinstaar (Russia)

Infotswetock (2011)
Testarossa (2013)
Drema (2019)

Darkish synth / guitar soundscapes from Mikhail Myasoedov.

 


Briot, Gervay (France)

Himalaya (1991) (recorded in 1984)
Quintessences (1991) (recorded in 1986)
TAO (1991)
Trans Mutant (1991)
Talysman (1991)
Exit To the Light (1991)

Synthesizers blended with acoustic and electric guitars.

 


Briseño, Guillermo (Mexico)

Ausencias e Irreverencias (1983)

Interesting artefact here. Guillermo Briseño is a singer-songwriter who plays piano in a jazzy style and sings. However, the whole side B of this LP is occupied by long electronic piece "Irreverencias". It is abstract, jazzy and is somewhat in Vangelis' Beaubourg vein, although with none of that work's spookiness and with different synth sounds used.

 


Brislin, Tom (USA)

Hurry Up And Smell the Roses (2012)

American keyboardist and member of the current (as of 2021) line-up of Kansas. Hurry Up And Smell the Roses is a pop rock record that, quite surprisingly, closes with a fine ambient piece called "The Outskirts". A one-track inclusion so far.

 


Bristol Manor (Canada)

A Distant Urban Forest (2022)

Atmospheric electronics and slow hoppy rhythms from Calgary. Reminds a bit on the output of the AD label.

 


British Electric Foundation (UK)

Music For Stowaways (1981) (recorded in 1978)

Experiments in rough electronics from Martyn Ware and Ian Craig Marsh (The Human League, Heaven 17). There's also a release titled Music For Listening To that curiously compiles tracks from Music For Stowaways cassette with only one slightly modified track.

See also: Human League, the.

 


British Space Group, The (UK)

Eyes Turned Skyward (2015)
The Phantasmagoria (2016)
The Ley of the Land (2020)
The Machinery of the Moment (2022)

Ian Holloway's project in a more cosmic, experimental synth mould.

See also: Holloway, Ian, Psychic Space Invasion.

 


British Stereo Collective, The (UK)

Mystery Fields (2021)
Tomorrow, the Stars (2022)
Our Feature Presentation (2022)
Drowning (2023)
In the Shadow of the Bomb (2024)

Phil Heeks aka The British Stereo Collective is inspired by vintage soundtracks, TV themes, BBC Radiophonic Workshop, Paddy Kingsland, Jean Michel Jarre, Tangerine Dream, Mike Oldfield and others. Nice classic melodic EM pastiche from Stoke-On-Trent.

See also: New Electric Frontier, The, Ardala.

 


Britton, Adam (UK)

Minions of Chaos (1988)
Dreamscape (1989)
Terminal (1989)
Xenomorph (1989)

Solo Electronic Music by Corporation member.

See also: Corporation

 


Brnčić, Gabriel (Chile)

Destierro y Cielo (1980)

Academic composer from Chile who has been living in exile in Barcelona since 1974. This particular album features synthesizer music (with added viola on side two) of an avant-garde, but prog-influenced nature.

 


Brnjsmin (Germany)

Wind bei Nacht (2020)
Skin (2022) (S)

Brnjsmin is Giovanni Raabe. Digital / analog music with experimental flair and a touch of glitch and IDM.

 


Broaddus, John (USA)

4 At 18 (2003)

The artist formerly known as Laocoon. Ambient.

See also: Laocoon

 


Broads (UK)

Care & Handling (2014) (EP)
Hellas (2014)
Omno (2015) (S)
Everything Is Spinning, Nobody Is Actually In Charge (2016)
Field Theory (2018)
A Small Box Over A Global Goal (2019)
Ollust (2020) (with Milly Hirst)

A project of James Ferguson, lately mostly as a duo with Mark Jennings. Broads occupy that grey area of electronics where you have multiple influences and do not actually know where to put it. There are elements of downtempo, pop, folk, ambient, Progressive Electronic, IDM and more. I guess most people would use the much hated (by me) umbrella term "electronica" (urgh!).

 


Broberg, Jonas (Sweden)

Kling Klang Salad (1985)
Two Composers (1997) (with Erik Mikael Karlsson)
Splash Mekanik (2016)
From K.K.S. To E.M.S. Electronic Music 1983-85 (2019)

Swedish analog synth master. His compositions range from noisy to hypnotic and beautiful, from abstract to rhythmic. Overall it's great for fans of Experimental EM.

See also: En Halvkokt I Folie

 


Brock, Dave (UK)

Zones / Processed (1983) (S)
Dave Brock (1983)
Earthed To the Ground (1984)
Agents of Chaos (1987)
Strange Trips & Pipe Dreams (1995)
Memos And Demos (2001)
The Brock / Calvert Project (2006)
Looking For Love In the Lost Land of Dreams (2012)
Brockworld (2015)

Hawkwind founder and leader who would release an odd solo album once in a few years. They are basically a mixture of electronic tracks and some guitar in space rock style. Beware the vocals.

See also: Hawkwind, Psychedelic Warriors.

 


Brock, John (USA)

Distant Dreams (1982)
12 Dances of Christmas (2010)
Pacifica (2011)

Electronic musician from Arizona.

See also: Android

 


Brockmann / Bargmann (Germany)

Licht (2017)

Dusseldorf School from members of Camera.

See also: Camera

 


Broder, Andrew (USA)

The Show Original Soundtrack (2023) (soundtrack)

Varied soundtrack mixing neo-classical, ambient electronics / Prog EM, EDM and even some rap.

 


Broekhuis, Bas (Netherlands)

Face Behind the Mask (1988)
Hydrhythmix (1989) (with Ron Boots)
The Escher Drawings (1991)
The Synchronicity of Life (1996)
Wet Dreams (1997) (with John Kerr)
The Annazaal Tapes (1999) (with Keller, Schönwälder & friends)
Project-Inter.com (1999) (with Keller, Schönwälder and Braun)
Vier Drei Zwei (2000) (with Keller, Schönwälder and Braun)
Wolfsburg (2002) (with Keller & Schönwälder)
Live @ Dorfkirche Repelen (2006) (with Keller & Schönwälder)
Space Cowboys @ Jelenia Gora (2007) (recorded in 2004) (with Keller, Schönwälder, Spyra and Fox)
Orange (2007) (with Keller & Schönwälder)
Blue (2009) (with Keller & Schönwälder)
Meditazionen zum Gottesdienst (2010) (with Keller & Schönwälder)
Musique des machines (2011) (with Keller & Schönwälder) (recorded in 2005)
The
Hampshire Jam (2012) (with Keller & Schönwälder) (recorded in 2005)
Red (2012) (with Keller & Schönwälder)
Level Four (2012) (with Keller & Schönwälder)
Repelen - The Last Tango (2014) (with Keller & Schönwälder)
Direction Green (2014) (with Keller & Schönwälder)
Green (2015) (with Keller & Schönwälder)
The Repelen EP (2016) (with Keller & Schönwälder)
USB Stick - Edition March 2016 (2016) (with Keller & Schönwälder)
Red Live @ USA (2017) (recorded in 2012) (with
Keller & Schönwälder)
Yellow (2017) (with
Keller & Schönwälder)
Repelen Revisited (2018) (recorded in 2011 and 2016) (with
Keller & Schönwälder)
Live @ B-Wave (2018) (with
Keller & Schönwälder)
Purple (2019) (with
Keller & Schönwälder)
The Vlagdwedde Tapes (2022) (with
Keller & Schönwälder)

Dutch synthesist and drummer. He usually collaborates with other artists. His own albums are delicate melodic electronics.

See also: Kontroll-Raum

 


BROKEN_CANYON (USA)

BROKEN_CANYON 1 (2016)
Paradise 1116 (2017)
LWA15BR (2018)
Waiting For You (2020)

Futuristic / cyber / neon-lit ambience. Pretty nice if you ask me.

 


Broken Chip (Australia)

Powwow Seven (2009)
The Wonga Pigeon (2013) (EP)
Bells (2023)

Australian ambient / electronic artist. IMO, he is best when he eshews the glitchy rhythms and goes for the reflective, Eno / Budd piano sound or combines electronics with acosutic guitar. Otherwise, it's not exactly Prog EM.

 


Broken Harbour (Canada)

Broken Harbour (2009)
Gramophone Transmissions (2011)
The Geometry of Shadows (2012)

Minimal ambient soundscapes from Blake Gibson.

 


Broken Head (USA)

Tea In Nyack (2016)

A duo of Paul Collins and Tom Gluibizzi with a somewhat new-agey synth / guitar sound.

 


Brokenchord (Lithuania)

Endless Transmission (2017)

Brokenchord is an alias of Lithuanian artist Ernestas Kausylas. On Endless Transmission, he seems to be mostly influenced by Radiohead or 1990's / 2000's space rock like Spiritualized. However, the incessant motorik rhythms and some of the textures make this one interesting for fans of the Dusseldorf School, especially early Moebius & Plank releases and more specifically Material.

 


Broken, Oskar (Spain)

Simply (2016)
Crystal Maze (2016)

Barcelona-based artist combining EM, classical influences and techno / house.

 


Broken Pillar (USA)

Red Spider Lily (2022)
Scars of Naomi (2023)

One of those difficult to classify projects that transcends genres. In this case, it's ambient EM and noise / power electronics.

 


Bromley Davenport, Harry (UK)

Xtro (1983) (soundtrack)

Synth soundtrack for low-budget sci-fi horror movie.

 


Bromwich, Mark Alexander (UK)

Route (2001)

Dark soundscapes with a strong electro-acoustic feel. In the late 1970's and early 1980's, Mark Bromwich aka Mark Bokowiec was a member of post-punk / minimal synth / industrial band Counterdance.

See also: Bokowiec, Mark

 


Bronnt Industries Kapital (UK)

Untitled (2002) (EP)
Polaris / Last Hope Sound (2003) (S)
Broken (2005) (S)
Virtute et Industria (2005)
Häxan (2008)
Hard For Justice (2009)
Turksib (2015)
Arsenal (2018)
Force the Line (2019)

A project of Bristol-based Guy Bartell. I don't know about earlier releases, but Force the Line features a mixture of vintage disco, giallo scores, Prog EM, electro and a light touch of industrial (the noisy element).

 


Brook, Michael (Canada)

Hybrid (1985)
Sleeps With the Fishes (1987) (with Peter Nooten)
Cobalt Blue (1987)
Live At the Aquarium (1993)
Dream (1995) (with Upalappu Srinivas)
Night Song (1996) (with Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan)
Star Rise (1997) (with Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan)
Albino Alligator (1997)
Black Rock (1998) (with Djivan Gasparyan)
Rock Paper Scissors (2006)
An Inconvenient Truth (2007) (soundtrack)
BellCurve (2007)
Into the Wild (2007) (soundtrack)

Canadian musician and innovative guitar player who makes Ambient and ethnic music. The first album was recorded with the help of Brian Eno and stylistically it is very similar to Brian's own Ambient works.

 


Brookes, Paul (UK)

Steps From Beyond (1978)

Nice Electronic Music by this obscure artist. The second side of the LP is excellent, bringing to mind Tangerine Dream, but very unique, with no sequences, relying on rock rhythms instead (a bit similar to what is heard on "Bent Cold Sidewalk"). Also reminds on the sountrack to "Mystery of the Third Planet" in places - you know, sort of a cosmic, nostalgic sound. Side A has some disco influences and is much weaker overall.

 


Brooks, Jon / Brooks, Cate (UK)

Music For Thomas Carnacki (2011)
Shapwick (2012)
Other Voices (2014) (S) (with Sean O'Hagan)
52 (2014)
Walberswick (2015)
Autres directions (2017)
Applied Music: Plastics Today (2018)
Applied Music: Science & Nature (2019)
How To Get To Spring (2020)
Applied Music: Land & Sea (2020)
Winterfest (2022) (S)
Easel Studies (2023)

Ambient / hauntology with library music vibes, classical and musique concrete influences.

See also: Advisory Circle, The, Woodbines & Spiders, Pattern Forms, The, King of Woolworths.

 


Brooks, Mike (UK)

Early Out Takes (1983 - 1984)
Bay of Solitude (1984)
Realms of Darkness (1984)
Shaolin (1985)

Fragile Shoreline (1985)
Sacred Voyage (1986)
At UK Electronica '86 / Outtakes (1986)
Dangerous Visions (1987)
Shadows of Humanity (1988)
The Lyme Experience (1990)
Time Walk (1991)
Mindshadow (1992)
Bringer of the Dawn (1995)
Passage of Time (??)

Floating, atmospheric synth music.

 


Brørby, Anders (Norway)

Nihil (2016)
Mulholland Drive, 1984 (2016)
Mannen faller (2017) (with Rune Clausen)
Traumas (2018)
Kill Count (2019)
Constant Shallowness Leads To Body Horror (2021)
Optimism In Slow Motion (2021)

Founding member of prog / psych band Radiant Frequency. As a solo artist he moved away from song-based structures of his earlier efforts to pure soundscapes of the darker variety. Relevant works will be listed.

 


Bross, Michael (USA)

Soul Fragments (2000) (recorded in 1995 - 1999)
Everything Is Now (2006)
Nomad (2008) (EP)
Dogs And Their Stars (2008) (EP)
Subway Meditations (2009)

Subway Meditations features rather nice and hypnotic urban synth soundscapes from this Californian artist. Moody and immersive.

 


Brother Raven (USA)

A Sound Like Wailing Winter Winds Is Heard (2009) (S)
Diving Into the Pineapple Portal (2009) (S)
Nellie (2009)
ITCZ (2010)
VSS-30 (2010)
Eagle Vision (2010)
Timewinder (2010) (S)
Many Moons (2012)

Brother Raven is basically a duo of Jamie Potter and Jason E. Anderson (a noise musician). Under this moniker they explore floating Ambient realms, with some experimental touches.

See also: Harpoon Pole Vault, 2 Hands On Knobs, Space Habitat.

 


Brother Saturn (USA)

Smoke And Mirrors (2017)
A Slow Dance (2019)
Music For Sleep (2019)

A project of Colorado-based ambient artist Drew Miller, who uses both electric guitar and electronics. The track "Anemone" from Music For Sleep really stands out for me - so airy, peaceful and hypnotic. "An Ocean of Dreams" is also extremely good. A nice release overall.

 


BROtheRS (Italy)

Walkin' In the Desert of Dreams (1995) (maxi)
Atlante (1997)

A duo of Marco Rosano and Paolo Modugno with sort of a Tribal Ambient / World Music sound.

See also: Modugno, Paolo, Rosano, Marco.

 


Brown, Alan (New Zealand)

Wind And Wire (2020)

Jazz pianist, former leader of jazz-funk band Blue Train. Wind And Wire focuses on ambient electronics, still with a heavy presence of the piano.

 


Brown, Arthur (UK)

Galactic Zoo Dossier (1971) (with Kingdom Come)
Kingdom Come (1972)
Journey (1973) (with Kingdom Come)
Faster Than the Speed of Light (1980) (with Vincent Crane)
The Complete Tapes of Atoya (1981) (with Craig Leon)
Requiem (1982)
Jam (1995) (with Kingdom Come)

One of the best rock singers of all times (for me - probably the best). A very talented artist. He is known to the Electronic Music fans for his collaborations with Klaus Schulze. Also his 1980 album with Vincent Crane (of Atomic Rooster fame) is very interesting (although it's not EM). This man has an incredibly broad range of voice, from low roaring and growling to high-pitched screams. The energy that emanates from him is impossible to describe. Although I’m not very keen on singers in Electronic Music, I cannot resist this one. By the way, he uses his voice as a musical instrument, rather than as a medium to transmit thoughts, so text is not important, just the sound. And energy. Recommended: his work with Schulze and Faster Than the Speed of Light. EM fans should also check out Journey, which is a great work! For instance, listen to the first track. You can easily hear how bands like The Rockets tried to copy this sound some years later. As usual, the energy that radiates from Arthur is overwhelming and although he rarely sings on the album, the last track is a very good example of his characteristic schizophrenic vocal style where he goes from one mood to another in a particle of a second. Mindblowing stuff!

See also: Intergalactic Touring Band, The, Ceremony of Innocence.

 


Brown Calvin (USA)

d i m e n s i o n // p e r s p e c t i v e (2022)

American musician of Puerto Rican descent (real name - Andre Burgos). Abstract, cosmic, psychedelic mass of sound, based on Rhodes piano and synths. Sometimes like a totally deconstructed instrumental hip-hop, sometimes reminiscent of Sun Ra, but overall pretty unique.

 


Brown, Charles (USA)

Bull In A China Cabinet (1981)

Privately pressed LP from Ohio with Electronic Music played on a E-Mu controller keyboard with Prophet 5, Oberheim expander modules and ARP 2600 synthesizer. The author describes the inspiration for this music as a "very unpleasant stay in the hospital with a kidney stone".

 


Brown, Christopher (USA)

Telepathic Daydream (2023)

Nice synth-sequencer from the USA from this member of a few rock bands. Long and mid-length tracks with unfurling pulsations straight from the Berlin School zones.

 


Brown, Edwyn (USA)

The Prehistoric Valley (2023)

Pretty nice "prehistoric synth" compositions. Symphonic, rich, melodic, "dungeon synth"-like...

 


Brown III, James (USA)

Solo Theremin Works (2014) (S)
The Source of Magic (2022) (S)

Louisville, Kentucky-based metal guitarist turning to electronics for the above releases. The Source of Magic is melodic, moody, hymnal EM mixing synths and guitars.

 


Brown, James Adrian (UK)

There Is Space Under Your Seat (2023) (S)

Ex-guitarist of British alternative rock band Pulled Apart By Horses with his own solo Electronic Music, which is mostly ambient and atmospheric.

 


Brown, Jeff (USA)

Cosmological Horizon (2014)
The Blinding Dawn (2016)

Mixture of guitar and synth soundscapes in a cosmic setting.

See also: Spacement

 


Brown, Miles (Australia)

Electrics (2014) (S)
Séance Fiction (2015)
The Gateway (2020)

This sounds like synthwave music with synth leads replaced by theremin ones. It is actually pretty nice and unique, even if not very progressive. The closing track from The Gateway really does it for me.

See also: Narcoleptor, The, Night Terrors, The.

 


Brown, Philippe (France)

Frequent Flyer (2022)
Paranormalement (2023) (S)

Pretty varied and pretty nice EM focused on the melodic style. Not many contemporary EM artists have a talent for writing a good melody. Philippe Brown seems to be one of those few who do. Apart from being a solo synth artist, he plays keys in coldwave / minimal synth duo La Punta Bianca.

 


Brown, Tim (UK)

Pleasure Strike (2012)

Music in a flashy, melodic style from this UK-based synthesist and keyboard player. Hints of Rick Wakeman, Keith Emerson, Synergy and more, all mixed with a dash of Schulzian spaciness.

 


Brown, Timothy K (Australia)

Dream Nightclub (2023)
Slow Yamaha (2023)

Weird experimental EM with a darkish / shadowy tone.

 


Brr (Canada)

Brr (2013) (S)
A Pining (2016) (S)

A project of Moshe Fisher-Rozenberg. Floating, shimmering synths. Sometimes with sequencers and more along the lines of classic EM. Nice stuff.

 


Brua, Freddy (France)

Music of Masters (1991)

Ex-leader of Wapassou with his solo music. Nice melodies and progressions, although pretty one-dimensional in terms of sound design (relying mostly on general midi sounds of the era). Best track: "Le Mandarin". This one reminded me on Tangerine Dream (maybe there's a hint in the title?).

See also: Wapassou

 


Brückner, Michael (Germany)

Eroonian Avady (1999)
Antiferromagnet (2006)
Five Minutes (??)
Gokuro (??)
Or Makif (??)
Sufi Sushi (??)
A Calm But Steady Flow (2007)
Challenge 29 (2007)
Oddwind (2009)
Endless Mind Portal (2011)
One Hundred Million Miles Under the Stars (2012)
"R" Is For Rocket And "S" Is For Space (2012)
Naura (2013)
Thirteen Rites of Passage (2014)
Sparrows (2014) (with Detlev Everling)
Ombra Revisited (2014)
Your Second Shadow (2014)
Ondes intergalactiques (2015) (with Mathias Brüssel)
Zwei vor Eins (2015) (with Tommy Betzler)
Two (2016) (with Tommy Betzler)
Hikari (2016)
Muzikhala (2016)
The Giant Illusion (2016) (recorded in 2004 - 2015)
Trois briques (2016)
Triplet (2016) (with Tommy Betzler)
The Dark Path (2017) (with Alien Nature)
Trees of Olivandá (2017)
All the Pieces Fit Forever (2017) (with friends)
During A Lull And Other Tales (2018)
Polar Vortex (2019) (with Mathias Grassow)
Astronauts 2 - The Great 1994 Gravity Escape (2019) (recorded in 1994 - 2019)
The Undercurrent (2019)
Servant of the Secret Fire (2020)
Segmented Vision (2020) (with Lankow)
Reiseziel Mond (2020) (with Everling)
Footprints (2020)
The Crossing of Zone 3 (2021)
Hymns To the Dawn - Drones, Atmospheres And Dreamscapes Vol. 3 (2021)
Twenty-Five Light Years (2022) (with Cilia di Ponte)
Umkehrpunkt (2022)
Test of Time (2022) (recorded in 2012 - 2022)
Puuro ja silta (2023) (recorded in 2017) (with Achim Breiling)
The Morphic Cycle (2023)

Endless Mind Portal is a massive 3-tome set of recordings by German synthesist and composer Michael Brueckner. The music pays homage to the (mostly German) EM classics of the 1970's and is available as a download or on CDR discs directly from the artist. Michael Brueckner has released a lot of music over the last several years, most of which can be obtained as downloads. Michael is primarily an artist who is experimenting in the fields of ambient soundscapes, Space Music and classic, Berlin-tinged EM.

See also: La Mansarde Hermétique, Bridge To Imla, P'Faun.

 


Bruçó, João de (Brazil)

Caracol (1989) (with R.H. Jackson)

Sao-Paulo-born musician (now residing in Europe) who is mainly known as a percussionist. This privately-released album mixes traditional Brazilian rhythms with electronics and guitar improvisations. Rare.

 


BRUGD (Sweden)

Blad stad och säl (2021)

A project of Love Kahnlund. From electroacoustic ambience to nice arpeggiated synths.

 


Brugger, Martin (Germany)

Music For Video Stores (2020)

Nice and relaxing synth compositions from this Munich-based musician - ambient synths and some sample-based acoustic sounds. Relaxing, floating, serene...

 


Bruised Skies (UK)

Guide (2016)
Remnants (2018)
Division (2019) (with Sangam)
Rain No Longer Softens (2020)

Varied Ambient, mostly quiet and minimal.

 


Bruley, Vincent (France)

Action (1988)
Nazca (1994)
Le vent (1997)
La nature s’endort (1997)
Au bord du ruisseaux (1997)
L’orage et la pluie (1997)
Le voyage en mer (1997)
La tempete (1997)
Dauphins et baleines (1997)
Sous la mer (1997)
Les chants de la glace (1997)
Volubilis (2001)
Le temps suspendu (2003)
13 the Storm (2003)

French musician who has contributed a lot of his music to the ‘La Collection Oxygene’ sampler. Ambient.

 


Brume (France)

Early / Unreleased Tracks (1992) (recorded in 1981 - 1988)
Transports (1997) (with Nomuzic)

Industrial / noise artist (real name - Christian Renou) who's been making music (mostly within the realm of musique concrete with industrial flair) since the 70's. In 1979 he got his first synth after many years of working with processed organs and tape recorders. Early / Unreleased Tracks has some archive material that comes close to what I normally cover in EEM, i.e. cosmic synthesizer music.

 


Bruner, Jeff (USA)

Foes (1977) (soundtrack)

Electronic (or partly electronic) sci-fi soundtrack.

 


Bruner, Joshua W (USA)

Viewings (2021)

Pretty nice ambient compositions from this synthesist.

See also: Flower & Frequency

 


Brüning, Andreas (Germany)

Blackfactory (2017)

Diverse artist from Hanover. Blackfactory features dark soundscapes with a dystopian edge.

 


Brüninghaus, Rainer (Germany)

Freigeweht (1981)

This album marriages ECM jazz with subtle Electronic Music. It is one of the most electronic-oriented releases on ECM but it's still about 70% jazz, so if you don't like that, steer clear. If you don't mind fusions of genres, though, give it a try. I've seen this album recommended to fans of Tim Story. File under EM-related.

 


Brunn, Benjamin (Germany)

Drop (2015)
Pieces From A Small Corner of Paradise (2017)
Midnight Fantasies of A Wantless Peacock (2017)
Honey (2017) (S) (with Move D)
Untitled (2019)

Minimal techno artist from Hamburg. Drop has a strong ambient influence. Pieces... is another beatless work built around repeating synth patterns all done on a Korg Poly-800 II synthesizer. Midnight Fantasies... is wackier, mixing minimal techno patterns and equally minimal sequencer patterns, plus several abstract pieces.

 


Brunnmeier, Andreas Maria (Germany)

Several Moments In A Different World (1987)
Silence (1991)
Cyberspace (1994)
Elements, Textures, Vision (1996)
Space, Underwater, Slow Motion (1999)
Animations & Inspirations (??)

Most of this artists's output consists of library releases. I don't know if his sound is ambient or rhythmic but I guess both are to be found.

 


Brüse, Claudius (Germany)

Arctic Circle (1993)

 


Brustad, Karsten (Norway)

Intarsia (1991)
Cape West (1994)

Dreamy, melodic music with environmental samples.

 


Brutou Dou (Finland)

Deep Tunnel (2023)

Synth duo of Sirpa Jokinen and Katja Lamberg. Experimental, but pretty listenable stuff. Overall, pretty nice EM in a unique style.

See also: Jokinen, Sirpa

 


Brutus Greenshield (USA)

Contours of A Failed Siege (2018)

Dungeon synth-related project from Idaho with a pretty fat synth sound.

 


Bruun, Sebastian (Denmark)

Drømmesyn (2021)
Formationer på gyldne gr​æ​sgange (2023)

Danish artist. "Hopeful ambience", as the 2021 album's description states.

 


Bryan, Morgan J. (UK)

Asleep While the Rain Falls (1992)
Under Every Sky (1994)
Thorn (??)

Irish composer from Guildford. During the 80's he played in several bands and then went on to write solo instrumental music. The first CD album was released through Dox music in 1992 and then re-released on Disky in Holland. The second album was released a couple of years later, although it never got the distribution of the first work. The third album is on its way.

 


Bryant, Matthew (Australia)

Klaus' Dream (2014)

With an album title like that, it could only be Berlin School music. And, indeed, it is.

 


Bryozone (Ukraine)

Acid Frog Day (2016)
Eye of Delirious (2023)

Bryozone is Ganna Bryzhata, a bass player from Odessa and member of surf-dub girl group Chillata. On Eye of Delirious, you will find varied ambient music, sometimes with subtle dubby or tribal rhythms.

 


Bryter Layter (USA)

Imprinted Season (2009)
Two Lenses (2011)

Uplifting EM from Joseph Raglani and Mike Pollard.

See also: Raglani, Temporal Marauder, Tanguy, Max.

 


BT (USA)

Nuovo Morceau Subrosa (2012)
Between Here And You (2019)
Metaversal (2021)

This artist (real name - Brian Wayne Transeau) has been working in club-related electronic styles (such as drum and bass, trance, techno, etc.) since the early 1990's. Between Here And You is his completely ambient work, and quite a hypnotic and moody one.

 


BU.D.D.A (Germany / Switzerland)

All der guten Dingen Drei (2019)
The Mourning of the Midnight Diner's Menu Card (2021)
Erste Opfergaben (2021)
Diese Anmut von Trophäen (2022)
Telefonseelmorde (2022)

Slightly industrial-tinged drones and synths. A duo of Sascha Stadlmeier and Chris Sigdell.

See also: Emerge, bºtong.

 


Bubble (Canada)

Features of Spheres (2011)
OI (2014)

Alternative name for John Sobocan's ambient work.

See also: Sobocan, John

 


Bubble-B (Japan)

最果てアンビエント - Ambient for the Farthest Land (2021)

Japanese electronic artist mostly involved in remixing, techno works, chiptune, TV and soundtracks. The 2021 effort is a relaxed synth excursion with water sounds and downtempo rhythms.

 


Bubble Keiki (Germany)

One Thousand Windows (2020)
Irrlicht (2022)

One Thousand Windows features nice, melancholic ambient synth compositions from this vaporwave-related project, recorded during the 2020 lockdown. Irrlicht continues in the same direction.

 


bubbo (???)

bubbo (2021) (S)
Bubbo + Dinky (2021)

Short, experimental electronic tracks. Often sort of cartoonish.

 


Buccheri, Francesco (Italy)

Journey (1979)
Second Journey (1982)
Hand Made (1995) (recorded in 1984 - 1989)

La via (1995)
The Call (1998) (S)
The Mirror (2001)
The View (2002)

Italian synthesist. Fans of Klaus Schulze will go nuts over this one. Classic synthesizer excursions with a schulzian flair.

 


Bucchi, Jean-Louis (France)

Hair (1979) (S)
Blue Prism (1983)
News (1985)
Reportages (1986)

These are supposedly electronic library records. Jean-Louis Bucchi also has a solo album from 1978 called Sunflower. It represents a mixture of jazz and RIO-type rock. Besides, Bucchi worked as an arranger and co-composer for the band Quartz.

 


Büchi, Noémi (Switzerland)

Matière (2020) (EP)
Prismis passages (2021)
Matter (2022)

Ambient compositions based on varied drones and complex, ever-changing rhythms from this composer out of Zurich. Pretty varied actually, and never boring.

See also: Musique Infinie

 


Buchikamashi (Japan)

Daireikai (2010)
Dontoyare (2010) (S)
Message From Space (2010) (S)
1958 - 2009 (2010) (S)
Yutairidatsu (2010) (S)
Seireikai (2011) (S)
Happy New Age (2011)
New Astral Projection (2011) (S)
Super Mind (2012) (S)
Superbrain (2013) (S)

A difficult artist to describe. A lot of his music falls into the category of Ambient, especially the droning type. Then there's the experimental angle, with noisy bits and subtle collage. At other times, he goes for melodic, even new-agey sound, with uplifting synths supported by acoustic guitar and other instruments. All of the above are limited cassette releases.

See also: Portopia '81, 25,000 Kittens.

 


Buchma, Yuri (Ukraine)

Autoportrait (1989)

Yuri Buchma released an album of material similar to the music of Tangerine Dream of the late 80's. In 1990, he moved to Belgium to write music for movies and theatre performances under the pseudonym G. Bossart.

 


Buck Moon (Germany)

Buck Moon (2021)
Between the Tides (2022)
Backland Melodies (2023) (S)
Metabol (2023)

Ambient duo of Julius Ménard and Julian Flemming. Ethereal, floating, otherworldly...

 


Buckland, Kevin (UK)

A Sound, A Place, A Time (2018)

Ambient musician with a mixture of processed guitar and electronics.

See also: Abstract Blue

 


Buckley, Linda (Ireland)

Moog Residency (2018) (with Jonathan Nangle)
From Ocean's Floor (2020)

The collaborative 2018 release features intense analog synth workouts in duo format. Pretty entertaining overall. From Ocean's Floor is more along the lines of neo-classical / electronic hybrids.

 


Buczkowski, Szczepan (UK)

Smile Eyes And the Children Folk (2019)

Supposed rediscovered synth score to an early 1980's children's TV show. Actually a hoax, with music composed by Stephen James Buckley. Varied, mostly melodic and cosmic.

See also: Polypores, Leproto, Stefano, Bachmeier, Stefan.

 


Budd, Harold (USA)

The Oak of the Golden Dreams (1970) (with Richard Maxfield)
Harold Budd (1971)
Pavillion of Dreams (1978)
Plateaux of Mirrors (1980) (with Brian Eno)
Serpent / Children of the Hills (1981)
Abandoned Cities / Dark Star (1982)
Pearl (1984) (with Brian Eno)
The Moon And the Melodies (1986) (with Cocteau Twins)
Lovely Thunder (1986)
La nouvelle serenite (1987) (with Jon Hassell and Gavin Bryars)
The White Arcades (1988)
By the Dawn’s Early Light (1991)
Music For 3 Pianos (1993) (with Ruben Garcia & Daniel Lentz)
She Is A Phantom (1994) (with Zeitgeist)
Through the Hill (1994) (with Andy Partridge)
Glyph (1995) (with Hector Zazou)
Walk Into My Voice (1996) (with Daniel Lentz & Jessica Karraker)
Luxa (1996)
The Room (2000)
Agua (2002) (recorded in 1989)
Three White Roses & A Bud (2002) (with Bill Nelson and Fila Brazillia)
Translucence / Drift Music (2003) (with John Foxx)
La bella vista (2003)
Avalon Sutra (2004)
Mysterious Skin (2005) (with Robin Guthrie)
Music For 'Fragments From the Inside' (2005) (with Eraldo Bernocchi)
After the Night Falls (2007) (with Robin Guthrie)
Perhaps (2007)
A Song For Lost Blossoms (2008) (with Clive Wright)
Candylion (2009) (with Clive Wright)
Bordeaux (2011) (with Robin Guthrie)
Little Windows (2011) (with Clive Wright)
In the Mist (2011)
Winter
Garden (2012) (with Robin Guthrie and Eraldo Bernocchi)
Bandits of Stature (2012)
Jane 1-11 (2014)
Jane 12-21 (2014)
Nighthawks (2015) (with John Foxx and Ruben Garcia)
Another Flower (2020) (with Robin Guthrie)

American composer (1936 - 2020) and a pioneer of Ambient music, along with Brian Eno. And his music is similar too. But Budd’s works are focusing even more on piano. The piano is usually sinked in heavy reverb so the overall feel is very ethereal. Harold Budd was born in Los Angeles and raised in the Mohave Desert. This special environment served as an early inspiration for young Harold to start his research in sound. His career as a composer began in 1962. First he made a name for himself in the academic / avant-garde circles. Graduating from the University of Southern California with a degree in music composition, Harold Budd started to drift more and more towards the minimal, ambient aspects of music. Among his earliest drone pieces was "The Oak of the Golden Dreams", composed in 1970 on a Buchla synthesizer. Taking a break from composing, Budd spent the bulk of the 1970's teaching music before he made a stellar comeback in 1978 with the seminal Pavilion of Dreams. From then on, Budd continued to release ambient works, some of which got spectacular reviews in specialized press. Besides that, Harold Budd has collaborated with a lot of artists, all of whom brought something new and personal to Budd's soundscapes. I can recommend Harold Budd's works for Ambient fans and for those who like this kind of meek, quiet stuff or piano-based music.

 


Buddha's Last T-Party (UK)

Emergence of Convergence (2007)
In the Land of the Prince Bishops (2012)

Music in an individual style, pulsing and melodic but rather minimal. Often reminding on Peter Baumann's solo albums because of that.

 


Budts, Danny (Belgium)

Dreamsequence (1992)
Mental Illusion (1993)

First cassette releases by Danny Budts (Syndromeda) under his own name.

See also: Syndromeda, Amin, Divided By Two.

 


Buelna, Raul (Mexico)

Meditacion (2018)
Cosmic Ambience (2019)
Lucid Dreams (2020)

Meditative Ambient, sometimes with strong ethnic influences.

 


Buffalo Tide (UK)

Arabia (2011) (EP)
Sleep Dealer (2021)

Cinematic, darkish pieces from Christopher Oliver, mixing UK bass / wonky / jungle and ambient EM.

 


Buffett, Peter (USA)

The Waiting (1986)
One By One (1989)
Lost Frontier (1991)
Yonnondio (1992)
500 Nations (1994) (soundtrack)
Star of Wonder (1996)
Spirit Dance (1997)
Wisconsin: An American Portrait (1999)
Spirit Live (1999)
Triathlon (2000)
Songs From An Eastside Attic (2001)
Ojibwe - We Look In All Directions (2002)
Spirit - the Seventh Fire (2004)
Inside Looking Out (2006)
Imaginary Kingdom (2008)

Melodic synth music (that often crosses into ordinary new age) from this musician and son of Warren Buffett.

 


Bug Snapper (Portugal)

Neptune Recreation Center (2022)

A project of Rui Santos. An amalgamation of lush, spacey, melodic synths and some 1990's IDM / ambient techno rhythms. Pretty competent stuff.

 


Bugaj, Adam (USA)

Telegraphed (2010)

Lo-fi electronic ditties that bring to mind Cluster. His debut album was supposedly more song-oriented.

 


Bugg, Richard (USA)

PAiA Synthesizers (1974) (S)

Member of Cosmic Debris who doesn't have an extensive solo discography but who seems to have been experimenting in the EM genre from early on, being essentially one of the pioneers. The above is a small demo record released by the PAiA company and features, apart from the narration about said synthesizers, segments of a piece called "Epsilon Boötis", which is very good and performed on PAiA 4700 series synth. I hope more of his solo stuff gets a proper release in the future.

See also: Cosmic Debris

 


Bugge, Magnus (Norway)

Iteration (2017) (recorded in 2015)

Ambient with a touch of Nordic "dungeon synth" sound and a cosmic flair.

 


Bügsküll (USA)

Collapsed View (2014)

A project of lo-fi, indie rock / psychedelic musician Sean Burn from Portland, Oregon. I am not sure how much of his music can be classified as EM or EM-related, and he is quite prolific too (like a lot of indie artists tend to be), releasing like 20+ albums, singles and compilations since the early 1990's. Collapsed View is a strange, synth-dominated, low-fi soundscape with melodic edges and sort of a wacky Cluster feel to it in places.

 


Buhr, Reinhardt (South Africa)

Seed (2018)
Movement 1 - Live at The V&A Waterfront (2018)
The Final Movement (2019)
Movement 2 - Live (2019)
Movement 3 - Berlin (2019)
Arise (2020)
Life (2022)
Live In Las Vegas (2023)

Born in 1988 in Johannesburg, Reinhardt Buhr is a Cape Town-based multi-instrumentalist using guitar, electric cello, didgeridoo, shofar, cajon and piano, as well as live looping and synthesizers. His music is influenced by post-rock and electronic dance music. The end result is like a mixture of driving acoustic / electronic hybrids practiced by the likes of Ashra, Frank Dorittke, Maxxess et. al, with sort of a 2000's Klaus Schulze feel (thanks to the use of the electric cello and a melancholic flair) and an extra World Music dimension due to the abundance of ethnic instrumentation.

 


Buio Mondo (Spain)

Italia violenta (2014)
Herderos de la Bestia (2017) (soundtrack)
Un omaggio a Riz Ortolani (2018) (S)
Bloom (2018)
La casa degli specchi / La notta della maschera bianca (2018) (S)
Jack Taylor, testigo del fantástico (2018) (S)
La dama del fantaterror (2020) (S)

Assassinio in 7 polici (2020)
Subumani sotto la cupola del terrore (2022)

John Carpenter / Goblin (more Goblin than JC) worship from this Spanish musician. A progrock / EM mixture based on the sounds of electric guitars, drums and lots of analog synths.

 


Bulbils (UK)

Blue Forty (2021)
A Smashing Adventure (2022)

Semi-acoustic, post-rock electronics with organ, synth, guitar, bass and drums, played by the duo of Richard Dawson and Sally Pilkington.

 


Bulkhead (Canada)

Aft Pressure (2021) (recorded in 2018)

Toronto-based duo. They mostly engage themselves in making hard-hitting techno, but the shorter, atmospheric tracks on Aft Pressure are pure Prog EM.

 


Bullard, Martin (UK)

Loch Ness Enigmas (1997)

Melodic and atmospheric compositions from this musician and member (keyboardist) of Smokie.

 


Bulot, Serge (France)

Sanctuaire d'eole (1980)
Les legendes de broceliande (1981)

Spacey Electronic Music.

See also: Marathon Life

 


Bulpitt, Chris (UK)

The Cyber Factor (1991)

See also: Hycrania House

 


Bultheel, Armand (France)

Lullabies For Computers (2021)

Diverse, mostly melodic EM. A French touch is felt here, but overall it tends towards the wackier, quirkier sounds of Cluster and their ilk, also hinting at The Art of Noise and vintage library music.

 


Bundrick, John Rabbit (USA)

Dream Jungle (1987)

This library album by Bob Marley and The Who collaborator (he played keyboards with them) was released in the mid 80's. All I know is that the music is electronic and features David Gilmour (Pink Floyd) on guitar. Looks like James Asher had a hand in this one as well.

 


Bundt, Michael (Germany)

Just Landed Cosmic Kid (1977)
Neon (1979)
Electricity (1980)
Dreamdancer (2016) (recorded in 1976) (soundtrack) (with Peter Seiler)

Michael Bundt was born in Mannheim in 1949. After spending some time with Peter Seiler in a duo called "Sirius", Michael Bundt (ex-Medusa) went on to record several solo electronic works that resembled both the space majesty of early Jean-Michel Jarre and the quirky krautrockish kinetics of Moebius & Plank. The first album is known to feature old friend Peter Seiler.

See also: Sirius

 


Bundy, Jason J. (USA)

Light In Extension (2006)
Returning (2007)

This Florida-based artist, influenced by Coil, Steve Roach, La Monte Young and a couple of others, creates drone-based works that can be classified as Ambient.

 


Bungalovv (Argentina)

Visited By Strangers (2023)

Bungalovv is Pablo Betas who is based in Berlin. A mixture of club styles & sounds with Progressive Electronic touches.

 


Bunkerpop (UK)

Bunkerpop (2021)

Diverse duo from Hull, taking inspiration from classic krautrock (mostly Neu!, with a touch of Can and Kraftwerk).

 


Bunkr (UK)

The Initiation Well (2019)
Graveyard Orbit (2021)

Brighton-based artist whose music on The Initiation Well is a mixture of rhythmic, even danceable tracks (more towards smooth house than harder forms of techno) and atmospheric / melodic synth, sometimes in French style (ala Jarre / Marouani as on "Solitary Drift"), sometimes more sequencer-based rhythmic / melodic ("For the Birds", "Rheasilvian Lakes") or closer to synthwave (the title track). An EM album which has a bit of everything and will appeal to a wide audience.

 


Bunzhukov, Oleg (Russia)

Prehistory Earth (1992)
Осенние южные ночи -
2012
(2014)

Russian synthesist with an individual style who tends to use a lot of analog sounds in a cosmic setting.

See also: Sphagnum

 


Bür Hoff Bau (UK)

I'r (2014)

Welsh band influenced by krautrock and Electronic Music, including the Dusseldorf and the Berlin "schools".

 


Burago (Russia)

Buma (2013)
Kabardian (2014) (S)
Untitled (2019) (S)
Taegeuk (2020) (S)

Moscow-based project with a lo-fi electronic sound and something of a Cluster vibe in places.

 


Burchette, Wilburn (USA)

Music of the Godhead (1974)
Psychic Meditation Music (1974)
Transcendental Music For Meditation (1976)
Mind Storm (1977)

California-based visionary musician and proto-newager. He released Occult Concert (1971), Opens the Seven Gates of Transcendental Consciousness (1972) and Guitar Grimoire (1973), all based on slow (and rather dull if you ask me) guitar strumming, like a lysergic and grayscale version of early krautrock. Around 1974, he started incorporating organs and synths, which gave his music an extra dimension, although it still remained rather crude and basic. If you fancy very early organ pieces by Klaus Schulze or the second half of Join Inn by Ash Ra Tempel, this is similar in mood. No sequencers here, just flowing organs, guitars and sporadic synth noodling. Anyway, if you're in a generous mood, the above works can be seen as EM-related, yes. Of these, Mind Storm has perhaps a slight edge over the rest, but not much, as his music tends to be quite samey.

 


BURG (Sweden)

Pendulum Swing (2023)

Flashy and cinematic melodic / rhythmic EM from Jouni Ollila.

 


Burger, Rob (USA)

The Grid (2019)
Marching With Feathers (2022)

American accordionist and multi-instrumentalist. On The Grid, he created a mixture of electronic and acoustic (mostly classical) sounds that is playful, melodic and nice. It will please those into Tim Story, Cluster, Brian Eno and more. Marching With Feathers is a bit similar, but focuses more on acoustic instrumentation (still with some electronics thrown in) and a stronger Michael Brook feel perhaps.

 


Burial Grid (USA)

Shores of Quiddity (2021)
Music For No Tomorrow (2022)

Dramatic, symphonic, analog, rhythmic, sequencer EM from Adam Michael Kozak out of Boston, Massachusetts.

 


Burial Hex (USA)

Initiations (2008)
Angelic Gematria (2011)
Farward (2012)
The Hierophant (2014)
Assumption / Ascension (2016)
Throne (2016)
Guardians (2016)
Pentecost (2016)
The Spoils of Feral Love Vol. II (2017)
Nightfall (2020)

Wisconsin-based Burial Hex aka Clay Ruby is mostly known to fans of dark noise / power electronics, but on Initiations you'll find enough ambient material (mostly of the "evil", darker variety) to warrant a satisfying listening experience. Scattered across this album are even shades of Vangelis, of all things. I'll try to list his other EM-related works as well.

 


Burke, Josh (USA)

Fantasy Nights In Xanadu (2008)
One More Night In Xanadu (2008)
Absorbent Lens (2009)
Autumn Shift (2009)
Imagination Pt. II (2009) (S)
Imagination Pt. III (2009) (S)
Imagination Pt. IV (2009) (S)
Empty Channels (2009) (S)
Speaking With Each Dancer (2009) (S)
Upwards (2009) (S)
42 (2009) (S)
Crosstalk (2009) (S)
Network (2009) (S)
Breathe (2009) (S)
Passion (2009)
Centered Perception (2009) (S)
Quartz (2009) (S)
Recovery Orb (2009) (S)
Underwater Recovery (2009) (S)
Fours (2009) (S)
Exist (2009) (S)
As We Grow Older (2009) (S)
Imagination (2009) (S)
Quiet Light (2009) (S)
Metadata (2010) (S)
Adapt (2010) (S)
Vista (2010) (S)
Sense Palace (2010) (S)
Bhavik's (2010) (S)
I Both In (2010) (S)
Universal Water (2010) (S)
Wherever You Are (2010) (S)
Shared Lucidity (2010) (S)
Prana (2010)
Envision (2011) (S)
Mirror Secrets (2011)
Cloned I (??) (S)
Cloned II (??) (S)
Levels (??) (S)
Synchronous Memories (??)
Untitled (??)
Data Sphere (??)
Wings (??)
Encryption: Life Process / Hypergame (2020)
Coinflip (2020)
Peels (2020)
Recluse (2020)
Dreamtrap (2020)
Headvoice (2021)
Overmind (2021)
The Language of Light (2021)
Timesea (2021)
Thoughtforms (2021)
Thoughtforms II (2021)
Forbid (2021)
Three Wishes (2021)
Untroubled Mind (2021)
Unpuzzle (2022)
A Life of Mystery (2022)
Nowadays (2022)

Prolific ambient synth artist from Chicago, with most releases on 20 to 30 minute cassettes but some CD / CDR's too.

See also: White Prism, Bermuda Link, 56K.

 


Burkett, Douglas (USA)

Alien Radio (2002)
Ambia (2007)

Mainly Space Music from this Florida-based artist.

 


Burma Project (Poland)

Synestezja (2007)

The project of Marcin Burminski in Dark Ambient / experimental mould.

 


Burmer, Richard (USA)

Mosaic (1984)
Bhakti Point (1987)
Inventions (1987)
Western Spaces (1987) (with Steve Roach and Kevin Braheny)
On the Third Extreme (1988)
Sounds of BodyPlay (1994) (soundtrack)
Shining By the River (1995)
Treasures of the Saints (1996)

Early albums are fairly rhythmic, featuring complex electronic compositions. Later he started composing more Ambient-oriented material. Richard Burmer has collaborated with Steve Roach and Kevin Braheny. He died on the 9th of September, 2006.

 


Burn Pilot (Germany)

Infinitism (2020)

Burn Pilot call themselves a "psychedelic punkband". Their music represents a mixture of stoner rock, psychedelic rock and kraut. On Infinitism, extensive use of synths and the motorik gives the music a very kraut / EM feel. Longs tracks. File under EM-related.

 


Burnham, Conrad (USA)

It Went Right Through Me (2018)
Medusa (2018)
The Sky Right Now (2019) (S)

Los Angeles-based composer. Intense synthscapes, sometimes a bit noisy.

 


Burnheart, Johanna (Germany)

Burnheart (2020)

Experimental violinist who is also into electronics. Her album from 2020 is a jazzy affair with some art pop songs, but there's also a repetitive EM piece called "Sisyphos". Sadly, it's too short. I wish the whole album was in that style. File under EM-related.

 


Burning Dervish (USA)

Soundscapes 1: Dimensions (2023)

Long tracks of deep drones, electroacoustic debris and brooding, cavernous, echoing voices.

 


Burning, Justin (USA)

Songs of the Thinned Veil (2019)
To Hell For the Holidays (2020) (S)
Gathering of October Ghouls (2021)

Unique horror synth pastiche here, with hymnal melodies, some organs, thick synth bass, etc.

 


Burning Plastic Blues Band (USA)

Peculiar Refractions In the Fullness of Time (2022)
Spiritual Latency (2023)

Varied synth compositions from Noah Depew. Abstract, strangely melodic and reflective. Sometimes cosmic.

 


Burning Pyre (UK)

Erotics of Aesthetics (2015)
Insipid Dalliance (2016)
Suspended In Glacial Ice (2017)
The Look of Love (2018)
United Angels (2020)
The Snipe & The Clam (2021) (with Canadian Rifles)
A Better World (2021) (S)

A project of  C. M. Owen from Newcastle upon Tyne. Rich and emotional synthesizer sound on The Look of Love. Good stuff.

See also: Couture

 


BurningTapes (UK)

Blood Runs Dry (2016)
Pieces Vol. 1 (2018) (with Repeated Viewing)
Black Lake (2019)
Devil X Nine (2021)

Horror synth-inspired project. Real drums are used here alongside synths. Energetic, pounding...

 


Burnos, Szymon (Poland)

Plastic Music For Deep Thinkers (2023)

Polish artist (pianist, keyboardist) with a wide range of influences - from the output of the Warp label to future jazz and hip-hop. The music is experimental, has a nice analog sheen to it and is rather progressive in its approach and sound, despite being far from the conservative EM standards.

 


Burns & Roberson (USA)

Album II (1983)

This is in fact the second Moolah album (recorded in 1979 - 1981) released under the real names of the musicians. The style is not known at the moment but the music is supposedly electronic.

See also: Moolah

 


Burrows, Terry (UK)

Watching the Burning Bride (1986) (with Asmus Tietchens)
The Whispering Scale (1989)
Burning the Watching Bride (1998) (with Asmus Tietchens)

Terry Burrows is a singer / songwriter from London and a collaborator of Asmus Tietchens, with whom he experimented in Ambient music genre during the late Seventies.

 


Burt, Theo (UK)

Colour Projections (2009)
Gloss (2015)

This member of The Automatics Group released a couple of solo works. On Gloss, he presents a crazy type of music: repetitive and absoultely relentless, it is made up of pretty much dry synthetic textures but resulting in some intriguing combinations from time to time. Interesting stuff.

 


Burt, Tony (New Zealand)

The Awakening Time (2000)

Aka Tony Burt Expression. Music influenced by Vangelis, Tangerine Dream and Australian folk stuff.

 


Burton, Jack (Australia)

Lake Monger (2019)

Varied music, ranging from pure ambient soundworlds to more rhythmic analog synth-focused stuff.

 


Burwash, Kris (Canada)

Moonlanding (2017)
lotl qs (2020)
Mutualisms 1 & 2 (2020)
Holding Air (2022)
Mutualisms 3 & 4 (2023)

Nice, analog music made with modulars, etc. Moody, ambient, melodic, cosmic...

 


Burwell, Carter (USA)

Blair Witch 2: Book of Shadows (2000) (soundtrack)

Dark Ambient soundtrack.

 


Burzum (Norway)

Filosofem (1995)
Daudi baldr's (1997)
Hlidskjalf (1999)
Sôl austan, mâni vestan (2013)
The Ways of Yore (2014)
Hvis lyset tar oss (2020)
Thulêan Mysteries (2020)

After being sent to prison for murder, Varg Vikernes (aka Count Grishnack) continued to make music. Straying away from the original black metal sound, he approached Ambient music. Using just synth, he made several albums with a shadowy Dark Ambient sound, heavily influenced by classical music but also with some Gothic influences. Filosofem was mixed and assembled without participation of Varg. It's only partly ambient. The next two are completely keyboard based. Hlidskjalf has been even compared to Vangelis! Note that some other, earlier albums also contain Ambient pieces, one or two per album. 

 


Buschkotter, Uwe (Germany)

Computer Energy (1983)

Library LP with a variety of styles, ranging from pure synth / EM to jazz rock / fusion. The music was performed with a cast of guest musicians.

 


Busso De La Lune (Poland)

Race Against Time (2002)
The Path At the Parting of the Ways (2002)
With Your Ear Down To the Ground (2002)
Around Borderline (2004)
Stream: In City (2005)
Stream Endlessly (2005)
A Walk To the Sea (2005)
Hidden (2007)
Stream Come In (2008)

Soundscapes by Piotr Jurczak.

 


Busy Microbes (UK)

Playing (2020)
Calling (2022)

Long-distance collaboration between Nick Edwards and Katie English. Playful or ambient electronic compositions with something of a Cluster feel to them.

See also: Edwards, Nick, Nunton Elektrikz, Photophobik.

 


Butler, Jim (USA)

Deep Energy 1 (2008)
Drone 1: The Darkside of the Drone (2009)
Droneland (2011)

Flowing soundscapes, deep drones and darkish Space Music from this New Hampshire-based folk musician.

 


Butler, Jonny (USA)

Memory (2015)

Pittsburgh-based ambient artist. Lots of organ and piano, as well as some guitars. Reminiscent of Eno.

 


Butt Boy (USA)

Fell the Music (1993)
Pleasure Bound (1994)
Plugged (1995)
Phillaphilia (1996)
Cathedral (1999)
Conundrum (2001)
Visions (2002)

Texan artist who used to compose music to accompany his own "dungeon play" practices. Despite the sexual context, the music falls squarely into the rhythmic / melodic EM genre, with sounds that remind on the 1987 - 1993 era, rather than 1994 - 2002, when most of his albums were released. Another comparison would be some general midi game soundtracks of the era.

 


Butterss, Anna (Australia)

Activities (2023)

Bass player from Adelaide (currently residing in the US). She also plays other instruments, including synthesizers. Her album Activities is a kind of experimental jazz fusion affair, sort of RIO-ish and with multiple instruments, including some EM sounds and influences.

 


Buttigieg, Ray (Malta)

Compucircuit 0.008ms (1981)
The Essential Transition: Symphonic Poem No.1 (1982)
Sounds of Transformation: Symphonic Poem No.2 (1982)
Etere (1983)
Nearing the Millenium: Symphonic Poem No.3 (1984)
Agriculture Architecture & Astronomy (1984)
Mechanism of Thought (1984)
Quantum Mechanics (1985)
The Great Siege of Malta Opuscule (1985)
Music For Computers (1985)
Music For Movies (1986)
Music For Video (1986) (recorded in 1980 - 1986)
Quartet (1986) (recorded in 1976 - 1985) (EP)
Codes: Diary of An Earthling Vol. 1 (1987)
Perpetual Energies (1987)
Sequence: Symphonic Poem No.4 (1987)
L'emigrant / The Emigrant (1987) (recorded in 1977 - 1987) (EP)
Messages (1988)
Spirit of the Soul: Symphonic Poem No.5 (1988)
Selected Works Vol. 1: Excerpts & Movements (1988) (recorded in 1977 - 1988)
Sonata 33 (1988) (recorded in 1976 - 1981) (EP)
Interlude (1988) (recorded in 1976 - 1988) (EP)
Etenoha: Earthnoise No.1 (1989)
In Dreams Passages (1990)
Almost Pure Vision: Symphonic Poem No.6 (1991)
Ġgantija (1991)
Tarxien (1991)
Ħaġar Qim (1991)
Mnajdra (1991)
Time Temples (1992) (soundtrack)
Elements - Water Suite (1992)
Elements - Earth Suite (1992)
Elements - Air Suite (1992)
Elements - Fire Suite (1992)
The Musical Instincts of Nature (1993)
Deus Meus. What Are They Doing?: Symphonic Poem No.7 (1993)
Ir-Rahal: Earthnoise No.2 (1995)
Procyon: Symphonic Poem No.8 (1995)
The Methuselah Chamber (1996)
Spheric (1998)
Selected Works Vol. 2: Themes & Suites (1998) (recorded in 1988 - 1998)
Roswell 1947. Alien Debris: Symphonic Poem No.9 (1999)
In Rebellion (1999) (with Jason Barnes) (recorded in 1988 - 1989)
Thru Energy (2001)
Electropolis (2001)
Feel (2001) (EP) (with Nala)
Electropolis Live (2005)
Science Fiction (2005)
Atom (2006)
Rendering Rembrandt van Rijn (2006)
Journeys On the Surface of the Earth (2007)
Travels To the Edges of the World (2008)
Apocraphon ~ Te Deum and other Sacred Hymns (2008) (with Novi Mystici)
Sanctum (2008) (EP) (with Novi Mystici)
Night At the Catacombs (2009) (EP) (with Demian Clav)
Voyages To Unknown Alien Landscapes (2010)
Excursions Into the Realms of Imagination (2011)

Born on Gozo, Malta, in 1955 as Raymond Francis Grazju, Ray Buttigieg became known after moving to New York thanks to his poetry and numerous solo electronic works. Initially a guitar player, Ray formed a rock group called Cykx somewhere in the mid 70's. The group released one single in 1976 that had considerable success. By the late 70's, Ray became interested in Electronic Music and built a large state-of-the-art studio "cykxsoundlab". It was the start of a long journey that continues to this day. Ray's music is likened to that of Klaus Schulze.

See also: Freemusicians, The

 


Buurman, Jeroen (Netherlands)

Ufo (2014)
Flying (2014)
Feel the Ego (2014)
Mother Earth - Take Care (2014)
Stranger (2015)
Live Life Live (2016)

Music with varied influences from this musician, sometimes with dance influences, sometimes beatless.

 


Buzenval (France)

Les signaux de la lune (2022) (S)

Alter ego for experimental music of techno artist Leo Leyzerowitz. Les Signaux de la Lune features minimal electronic tracks improvised in real time on a Behringer Neutron synthesizer.

 


Bvdub (USA)

We Were the Sun (2009)
A Prayer To False Gods (2009)
A Silent Reign (2010)
The Art of Dying Alone (2010)
Tribes At the Temple of Silence (2011)
One Last Look At the Sea (2011)
Resistance Is Beautiful (2011)
The Truth Hurts (2011) (with Ian Hawgood)
Songs For A Friend I Left Behind (2011)
I Remember (2011)
Then (2011)
All Is Forgiven (2012)
At Night This City Becomes the Sea (2013)
A Careful Ecstasy (2013)
Born In Tokyo (2013)
Erebus (2013) (with Loscil)
I'll Only Break Your Heart (2014)
A History of Distance (2014)
Tanto (2014)
A Step In the Dark (2015)
Safety In A Number (2015)
Yours Are Stories of Sadness (2016) (recorded in 2012 - 2016)
Epilogues For the End of the Sky (2017)
A Thousand Words (2017)
Heartless (2017)
A Different Definition of Love (2018)
Drowning In Daylight (2018)
Explosions In Slow Motion (2019)
Ten Times the World Lied (2020)
Burn Back Time (2020)
Wrath & Apathy (2020)
Hard Times, Hard Hearts (2021)
Violet Opposition (2022)
Decades On Divided Stars (2022)
Departing In Descent (2022) (with James Bernard)
Equilibium (2022) (with Netherworld)
Fumika Fades (2023)
Slowly Shifting Lakes (2023)
Days of Gold (2023)
Four Forgetting (2023)
The Depth of Rain (2023)
Destroyesterday. (2023) (with Inquiri)
Asleep In Ultramarine (2023)

Despite the name, most of this project's output consists of beautiful ambient soundscapes and drifting drones / textures with only slight dub elements from time to time. However, the earliest works (circa 1999 - 2007) that are supposed to be more rhythmic and dub / techno-oriented were omitted from the discography. Bvdub is the project of US musician Brock Van Wey who currently resides in China.

 


Byggesett Orchestra (Germany)

Wild Birch (2014)
Voyages (2016)
Meanwhile (2018)
Elsewhere (2019)
If All Else Fails (2021)
Sold Out Land (2022)

A duo of Peter Körfer and Georg Sehrbrock. They are mostly pretty jazzy and post-rocky / dancey. However, there is also some ambient material, such as "Low Pulse" from Wild Birch, for example. Not very progressive overall, more like EM-related.

 


Byrd, Joe (USA)

The American Metaphysical Circus (1969) (with The Field Hippies)
A Christmas Yet To Come (1975)
Yankee Transcendoodle (1975)

Former leader of The United States of America, Joe Byrd formed another group that included up to 12 extra musicians and released an album in 1969 that was somewhat similar to the original USA work, complete with female vocals (three different vocalists this time). After that he continued on his own and released some solo albums full of progressive synth explorations.

See also: United States of America, The

 


Byrd, Rob (USA)

Easter Invocation (2007) (S) (with Kris Thompson and Wisteriax)
My Ghosts And Yours (2010)
Twilight Tipi (2011) (with Kris Thompson)

Rob Byrd and Kris Thompson is a processed guitar / theremin duo that gave many improvised concerts in unlikely places such as forests, living rooms, small festivals, lofts, as well as various clubs. Their music is ambient and shadowy, sometimes hypnotic and emotional.

 


BySenses (Belgium)

Frigments-Fragments (2014)
People (2018)
5 jours de liberté (2021) (EP)
MonoCHROOM (2022)

Didier Dewachtere creates Berlin School music.

See also: Dewachtere, Didier, Tower Tree, The.

 


Bystriakov, Volodymyr (Ukraine)

Alice Through the Looking Glass (2019) (recorded in 1982) (soundtrack)
Battlefield (2021) (recorded in 1986) (soundtrack)

Soviet / Ukrainian composer and pianist. The above are rare electronic animation soundtracks. Melodic, bucolic, spacey, with touches of Artemiev, Zodiac, Zacepin, etc.

 


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