Crucial Listening

Haunting organs, sitting inside tape loops, endless questions. The Oslo-based multidisciplinary artist discusses three important albums.Jenny's picks:Henning Christiansen –  Op. 50 Requiem Of Art (Aus "Celtic") Fluxorum Organum II Robert Ashley – Private PartsLost Girls –  MenneskekollektivetJenny's new album, Here Is Always Somewhere Else, is out now via Breton Cassette. Check it out on Bandcamp. Jenny's website is here, and she's also on Instagram.Donate to Crucial Listening on ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/cruciallistening

Feedback as praxis, weird fragments, the first true drone show. The Cree, Canadian, interdisciplinary artist and sound designer discusses three important albums.Chloe's picks: Les Rallizes Denudes – MizutaniCoil – Backwards (Demos)Phill Niblock – MusicChloe's new album, They Can Never Burn The Stars, is out now on SIGE. Follow her on Instagram here.Donate to Crucial Listening on ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/cruciallistening

Black metal vs Aphex Twin, sad tape loops, the best screamo of all time. The UK-based artist and multi-instrumentalist discusses three important albums.Zen's picks:The Appleseed Cast – Low Level Owl, Vol. 1Welcome The Plague Year – S/TEveryday Loneliness – AppropriationCremation Lily's new album, Dreams Drenched In Static, is out now on The Flenser. Check it out here. Follow Cremation Lily on Twitter and Instagram. Their Linktree is here.Donate to Crucial Listening on ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/cruciallistening

Earth-shifting philosophies, wordless shoegaze treasures, cinematic heartache. The MC and producer discusses three important albums.Will's picks:Boogie Down Productions – Criminal Minded / By All Means NecessaryAll Natural Lemon & Lime Flavors – Turning Into SmallTom Petty – WildflowersCheck out Dälek's new album, Precipice, over on Bandcamp (along with all their other incredible records). Follow Dälek on Facebook and Instagram.Donate to Crucial Listening on ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/cruciallistening

Septic-tank-prog roadtrips, poop jokes written backwards, a literal anvil. The Oregon-based composer, multimedia artist, instructor and champion of friendship discusses three important albums.Vern's picks:Yes – FragilePamelia Kurstin – Thinking Out LoudHarvey Milk – My Love Is Higher Than Your Assessment Of What My Love Could BeGo have your mind whirled by Vern's website. The Avola bandcamp is here, and the Instagram is here.Donate to Crucial Listening on ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/cruciallistening

A weaving of voices, moments of pure connection, sibling influences. The Narrm/Melbourne-based drummer and composer discusses three important albums.Maria's picks:The Necks – OpenAlice Coltrane – Journey In SatchidanandaTyondai Braxton – HIVE1Maria's new album For Leolanda is out now on ROOM40. Check it out here, along with her other works. Maria's website is over here.Donate to Crucial Listening on ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/cruciallistening

Myspace discoveries, kaleidoscopic sonics, the beam shining through. The Yokohama-born, London-based producer discusses three important albums.Hinako's picks:The Knife – Silent ShoutLinda Perhacs – ParallelogramsBeverly Glenn-Copeland – Keyboard FantasiesHinako Omori's new album, a journey... is out now on Houndstooth. Check it out on Bandcamp. Hinako's website is here, and her Instagram is here.Donate to Crucial Listening on ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/cruciallistening

Reaching beyond our world, the thing in all its magnificence, the butterfly on your hand. The violinist, composer, improviser and interdisciplinary artist discusses three important albums.Biliana's picks:Sofia Gubaidulina – OffertoriumFrances-Marie Uitti – Utopian SpacesRhodri Davies, David Sylvian, Mark Wastell – There Is No LoveRead about Biliana’s DUOS series here, and check out the releases on her Bandcamp – including the most recent instalment with Leila Bordreuil. She's also on Instagram.Donate to Crucial Listening on ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/cruciallisteningRelevant to this episode is this documentation of Uitti and Voutchkova performing at DARA String Festival in 2020.

Divine possession, accessing a communal psyche, opening quantum windows. The guitar player and electroacoustic composer discusses three important albums.Stefano's picks:Franco Battiato – La voce del PadroneLoren Connors – SailsBernard Parmegiani – De Natura SonorumStefano's new album is out now on Die Schachtel, complete with some seriously gorgeous artwork. Get the vinyl/CD here, or digital via Stefano's own Bandcamp.Donate to Crucial Listening on ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/cruciallistening

Mum meets the Beatles, live environment failures, waves of transformative energy. The composer of experimental and electroacoustic music discusses three important albums.Yiorgis' picks:The Beatles – 20 Greatest HitsIannis Xenakis – La Légende d'EerSwans – The Glowing ManYiorgis' latest album, Fons et Origo, is out now via miclithuania. Check it out here. His website is over here.Donate to Crucial Listening on ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/cruciallistening

Stretched instruments, drudging through the mud, Kanye on the space highway. The Brooklyn-based Asian American musician and composer discusses three important albums.OHYUNG's picks:Mica Levi – Under The Skin OSTDean Blunt – Black MetalKanye West – My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasyimagine naked! is out 22nd April on NNA Tapes. Check it out on the OHYUNG Bandcamp.Donate to Crucial Listening on ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/cruciallistening

Sulphur and molasses, museums and ice cream, reverence for the beautiful. The avant garde ballard-purveyor discusses three important albums.Eric's picks:Betty Carter – Inside Betty CarterRichard Dawson – The Glass TrunkMartin Arnold – 'Stain Ballads'Eric's new album, Say Laura, is out now via Constellation and Murailles Music. Check it out on Bandcamp. Eric's label with Martin Arnold, Rat Drifting, is on Bandcamp too.Donate to Crucial Listening on ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/cruciallistening

Wombic alien mechanics, circuit-bent FIFA, worldbuilding soundtrack serendipity. The Syrian-born, Sweden-based artist discusses three important albums.Obay's picks:Boards Of Canada – Music Has The Right To ChildrenC418 – Minecraft: Volume Alpha / Volume BetaCeler – Discourses Of The WitheredCheck out Obay's splendid record Sandbox right here. He's also on Instagram and Facebook.Donate to Crucial Listening on ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/cruciallistening

Gargling fire, empty samplers, ruined picture discs. Crucial Listening host Jack Chuter shares his three important albums.Jack's picks:Meshuggah – Nothing (2002 version)Jesu – S/TSachiko M – Bar SachikoMany thanks for allowing me this bout of self-indulgent podcast host catharsis.Donate to Crucial Listening on ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/cruciallistening

Totality in music, lyrical homicide, destroyed Barbie dolls. The experimental music performer and instrument-maker discusses three important albums.Ramsey Lewis – Mother Nature's SonT. Rex – Electric WarriorViolent Onsen Geisha – Excrete Musicevicshen tours the US with Machine Girl in February 2022 – check out the dates here. She'll also be playing to mark the end of here Audium residency in San Francisco – details here. Check out her Linktree and Bandcamp.Donate to Crucial Listening on ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/cruciallistening

VHS basslines, definitive ambient, record shopping in Woolworths. The London-based musician and anarchist discusses three important albums. Martin's picks:LFO – FrequenciesAphex Twin – Selected Ambient Works 85-92Pete Namlook – The Definitive Ambient Collection Vol. 1Head over to sm-ll.com and partner label Tapes For Mates. For mastering/support for the electronic music community, check out causeandcondition.com.

Everybody against everybody, the left hand of the Qin master, tin can Beatles. The Beijing-based musician and poet talks about three important albums.Yan Jun's picks:Ævangelist – Enthrall To The Void Of BlissVarious – Sound Spaces: 9 Sound InstallationsThe Qin Repertoire Of LIU Shao-ChunCheck out the websites for Yan Jun's own work and Sub Jam. Both are on Bandcamp too (Yan Jun, Sub Jam). We talked about the work twice, produced in collaboration with Zhu Wenbo, which you can check out here.

Liturgical lullaby, canine concrète, a chess game that never ends. The Chicago-based media artist and composer talks about three important albums.Olivia's picks:Alèmu Aga – Éthiopiques 11: The Harp Of King DavidBeatriz Ferreyra – Huellas EntreveradasMorton Feldman – For Samuel BeckettHonourable mention: Kim Jung Mi – NowOlivia also mentioned another record in the Éthiopiques series: Piano Solo by Tsegué-Maryam Guèbrou.Olivia's new album, Innocent Passage In The Territorial Sea, is out now on Room40. Check it out on Bandcamp here. Her website is here.PLUS: Head over to ATTN for a premiere of the video for "Laika", directed by Deborah Stratman.Crucial Listening is taking donations on ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/cruciallistening

Spontaneous trips to Genoa, bloop speakers, big Tori energy. The LA-based musician and visual artist discusses three important albums.Emma's picks:Sibylle Baier – Colour GreenShape Of Despair – Monotony FieldsTori Amos – Boys For PeleEmma's new album Engine Of Hell is out now via Sargent House. Head over to her site for three beautiful music videos, merch and links to buy the record. It's on Bandcamp too.Crucial Listening is taking donations on ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/cruciallistening

Perceptual geographies, Dylan's near misses, Coltrane's unresolved places. The LA-based artist and composer discusses three important albums.Byron's picks: Maryanne Amacher – Sound Characters (Making The Third Ear)Bob Dylan – Planet WavesJohn Coltrane – Sun ShipByron's fabulous new record, Mirror Views, is out now via Ash International. His website is here, and he's on Twitter as @byronwestbrook.Donate to Crucial Listening on ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/cruciallistening