Ambient

Some musicians arrive like thunderclaps, all ego and elbow, pounding their genius into the earth like tent stakes at a festival of self-importance. But Harold Budd? He arrived like mist. Or maybe like the memory of mist. The kind that hovers quietly just above the ground, humming to itself, unbothered by gravity or genre. Budd called himself a "minimalist" with a grimace, as if the word were a beige carpet […]

Imagine standing at the edge of a fading photograph. The colors are muted. There's a scratchy hiss where silence should be. Somewhere in the background, a saxophone weeps gently for the 20th century. This is where William Basinski lives—a place halfway between memory and erosion, nostalgia and noise. Born in Texas in 1958 with cheekbones worthy of a New Wave poster and the heart of a haunted archivist, William Basinski […]

Some music makes you want to dance. Some makes you want to drive fast. And then there’s Eluvium, which makes you want to lie in a field and whisper “wow” to a cloud. Repeatedly. Possibly while crying a single dignified tear. Eluvium is the musical alias of Matthew Cooper, a man who heard the concept of “ambient” music and said, “Sure, but what if it also gave you emotional vertigo?” […]

Let’s talk about Bing & Ruth, the musical collective that proves once and for all that a piano, a tape delay, and an existential crisis can absolutely throw a party. A very slow, contemplative, slightly melancholy party with a dress code of all beige and a strict “no sudden movements” policy. If you haven’t heard Bing & Ruth, imagine if Erik Satie and Brian Eno had a child who was […]

If ambient music were a forest, then Loscil would be the cryptid quietly sipping artisanal tea under a moss-covered fern, occasionally releasing sound waves that make your spine feel like it's melting—pleasantly. Born Scott Morgan (but definitely more powerful when called Loscil), this Canadian composer has made a career of sneaking into your brain, laying down a futon of reverb, and whispering, “Shhh, just vibe.” Now, most musicians say they’re […]

Imagine a man who: Owned seven identical gray velvet suits Signed letters as “a phonometrician” Composed piano pieces with directions like “Play like a nightingale with a toothache” Once formed his own church (where he was the only member) You’re picturing Erik Satie, the French composer who strolled into music history with an umbrella, a monocle, and absolutely zero patience for musical pomposity. 🧼 The Cleanest Eccentric in Paris Born […]