After a period of quiet, and just in time for summer Solstice, Golden Ratio Frequencies is thrilled to return to releasing physical (or is that metaphysical?) music, announcing the release of TO THE ANCESTORS, an immersive suite of ambient electronics by Endurance & Inner Travels.
A trans-international collaboration between Canadian-born, Japanese-based Joshua Stefane, aka Endurance, and American based artist Steve Targo, aka Inner Travels, To The Ancestors see’s the duo turn in a serene and zen inducing listening experience, delicately blending flavours of traditional Japanese music influences with contemporary electronics and sound design.
In the artist’s words, TO THE ANCESTORS is “An exploration into synthetic nature”, drawing inspiration from, and conjuring the emotional resonance of, forest bathing, zen garden sitting, and the historical elegance of the Gagaku and Koto music of Edo period Japan. The album seamlessly merges these influences with moods of the environmental music movement Kankyō Ongaku of the 1980s and 1990s and then passed through a filter of modern electronics, digital processes and patch cables resulting in a collection of meditative pieces that evoke a sense of calm, introspection and peace.
Composed between 2018 and 2020, the album’s eight tracks, titled only by their duration, are rich in texture and shimmering with radiance. Utilising modular, analog and digital synthesis, Stefane and Targo conjure sounds that feel both distinctly processed, yet organic in nature, and in doing so, embody the Japanese traditions and practices of Wabi-Sabi. Digital flutes breathe through self-generative CV patched Gewa blocks while fountains of ethereal granular plucked koto like sounds cascade and glide over serene synthesised sparkles, drips, and tweets in a mimicry of the natural world bringing a harmonious meeting of human and machine, nature and virtual landscapes. Through40 minutes, these aural infusions hint at shades of Hiroshi Yoshimura, Midori Takada, Satoshi Ashikawa and other greats of the Japanese ambient golden era.
Prepare your favourite(sic) Temea ceremonial tea, relax and enter a state of serenity. This is environmental meditation music for the digital now-age.
Joshua Stefane, known for his work as Endurance, is a prolific Ontario, Canada born producer and curator currently residing in Nara, Japan. One of the founders of cult ambient cassette tape label Muzan Editions, Stefane has been instrumental in organising(sic) and supporting various events, happenings, and festivals in his adopted home, (such as the annual Moment Festival held in the majestic Tenkawa village) and being a vital, nurturing connector to an international community of forward thinking electronic ambient artists and DJs.
Steve Targo, performing as Inner Travels, and more recently as Nimbudala, is an American, Wisconsin based artist and explorer of inner and outer worlds. He has been creating New Age and spiritual-adjacent visionary music for years, releasing meditative works for cassette tape on labels such as Aural Canyon, Sounds of The Dawn, Fluere Tapes, and Inner Islands. A true purveyor and practitioner of futurist healing sounds.
TO THE ANCESTORS will be available in both digital and physical realms. Physical copies will be released exclusively through bandcamp as a limited edition pro-dubbed C90 cassette, featuring translucent smokey shell, on-body print, 4-panel full-colour inlay and as always, a screen-printed Golden Ratio Spiral acetate, continuing Golden Ratio Frequencies’ tradition of offering quality, visually appealing sonic totems.
Pre- Order available 21 June 2024, with full release and shipping from 5th July 2024.
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