A Decade Of Samadhi Sound

From Brilliant Trees through Died In The Wool...

A Decade Of Samadhi Sound

Postby baht habit on Sat May 18, 2013 4:34 pm

I had devoted the last few days to getting my 'shore shack' all situated for the summer ... and since I knew I would have a good amount of time for listening to music while toiling away, I opted to bring along a stash of Samadhi Sound releases. It then dawned on me that Sylvian's label is now already ten years old.
And in that ten years, one cannot help but be impressed with how the label has been distributor to some extremely eclectic artists and how it has issued some very challenging releases that blatantly defy the most stringent boundaries placed upon music. Also, I never would have expected the amount of releases to be as many as there already is. The label quickly grew to be more than simply just another independent label focused exclusively on the work of one artist - though I fear it may actually be devolving into exactly that sort of thing as time draws on.
So I'd be quite interested in learning of some of the most preferable releases over the past decade from the fans who peruse this site.


Also, I finally acquired Wandermüde by Stephan Mathieu - mainly because I became aware that John Tilbury had contributed to a track. In my opinion, the project serves as a fitting conclusion to the decade of Samadhi Sound - sort of bringing everything full circle, Blemish To Wandermüde : 2003-2013.
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Re: A Decade Of Samadhi Sound

Postby Blemished on Sun May 19, 2013 7:06 am

Samadhi Sound: Discography
(Excluding download releases and DVDs)

SS023: STEPHAN MATHIEU/DAVID SYLVIAN, WANDERMÜDE
SS022: JAN BANG & ERIK HONORE, UNCOMMON DEITIES
SS021: DAVID SYLVIAN, DIED IN THE WOOL
SS020: DAVID SYLVIAN, SLEEPWALKERS
SS019: AKIRA RABELAIS, CADUCEUS
SS018: JAN BANG, ...AND POPPIES FROM KANDAHAR
SS017: TOSHIMARU NAKAMURA, EGRETS
SS016: DAVID SYLVIAN, MANAFON
SS015: SWEET BILLY PILGRIM, TWICE BORN MEN
SS014: SAMADHISOUND SAMPLER / THE WORLD IS EVERYTHING TOUR CD
SS013: THOMAS FEINER & ANYWHEN, THE OPIATES - REVISED
SS012: STEVE JANSEN, SLOPE
SS011: DAVID SYLVIAN, WHEN LOUD WEATHER BUFFETED NAOSHIMA
SS010: NINE HORSES, MONEY FOR ALL
SS009: DAVID TOOP, SOUND BODY
SS008: DEREK BAILEY, TO PLAY - THE BLEMISH SESSIONS
SS007: NINE HORSES, WONDERFUL WORLD
SS006: NINE HORSES, SNOW BORNE SORROW
SS005: DAVID SYLVIAN, THE GOOD SON VS THE ONLY DAUGHTER
SS004: HAROLD BUDD, AVALON SUTRA
SS003: AKIRA RABELAIS, SPELLEWAUERYNSHERDE
SS002: SYLVIAN / SAKAMOTO, WORLD CITIZEN
SS001: DAVID SYLVIAN, BLEMISH
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Re: A Decade Of Samadhi Sound

Postby Blemished on Sun May 19, 2013 7:23 am

Funny how time flies. As Baht says, it has been a surprisingly productive decade for the label. It's been interesting to see how it has evolved it's own style and flavour - especially in relation to visual presentation, high quality audio and a sense of being a sort of family of sound. I hope there's more to come.

My favourite non-Sylvian release is probably Jan Bang's Poppies from Kandahar. It has a great atmosphere.

Of the Sylvian releases, my preference varies - probably DITW at the moment. I love the rawness of Blemish and it's quite unique sonic style - and it is probably the only truly 'solo' DS album. But when I listened to it again recently, I really didn't like the Bailey pieces - just too jarring and forced; without them it's more of a mini-album. I tend to swap in the remixed / reconstructed versions of those.
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Re: A Decade Of Samadhi Sound

Postby baht habit on Sun May 19, 2013 7:39 pm

Blemished wrote:My favourite non-Sylvian release is probably Jan Bang's Poppies from Kandahar. It has a great atmosphere.

I would have to admit that I hadn't listened to that one enough - but now hearing it again, I would agree about the strong atmosphere throughout. I actually enjoyed that cd more than any of Bang's work with Sylvian.
I also realize that I gave Nakamura's Egrets short shrift as I only listened to it once when I first purchased it and got more out of it when I played it all the way through the other day.

Blemished wrote:I love the rawness of Blemish and it's quite unique sonic style - and it is probably the only truly 'solo' DS album. But when I listened to it again recently, I really didn't like the Bailey pieces - just too jarring and forced; without them it's more of a mini-album. I tend to swap in the remixed / reconstructed versions of those.


Not due to disliking the discordant songs but more due to how they so obviously break the continuity of overall sound, I also have programmed an 'alternate version' of Blemish on a cd-r which excluded the Bailey tracks:
Blemish / The Only Daughter / Camphor / Late Night Shopping /
Mothlight / The Heart Knows Better / Trauma Therapy / A Fire In The Forest
I interspersed the three Bailey songs with tracks selected from Bailey's samadhisound release, To Play, for an entirely 'different' listening experience. :twisted:
Play 7 / The Good Son / Play 4 / Play 2 / She Is Not / Play 1 / Play 6 / How Little We Need To Be Happy / Play 8
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Re: A Decade Of Samadhi Sound

Postby baht habit on Sun May 19, 2013 7:54 pm

An attempt to catalog the numerous samadhisound offerings...

2003
free download: David Sylvian - Orpheus (live 88)
David Sylvian - Blemish
David Sylvian & Ryuichi Sakamoto - World Citizen (EP)
free download: David Sylvian - Trauma Therapy
2004
free download: David Sylvian - Mothlight
free download: David Sylvian - Late Night Shopping (Tweaking The Tweaker Remix)
Akira Rabelais - Spellewauerynsherde
free download: David Sylvian - Somewhere
Harold Budd - Avalon Sutra / As Long As I Can Hold My Breath
2005
The Good Son Vs. The Only Daughter : The Blemish Remixes
Nine Horses - Snow Borne Sorrow
2006
Nine Horses - Wonderful World (single)
Derek Bailey - To Play : The Blemish Sessions
2007
Nine Horses - Money For All (EP)
David Toop - Sound Body
Harold Budd - Perhaps (download)
David Sylvian - When Loud Weather Buffeted Naoshima
The World Is Everything : A Samadhisound Sampler
Steve Jansen - Slope
2008
Steve Jansen - Swimming In Qualia (download)
Thomas Feiner & Anywhen - The Opiates
Steve Jansen - 4 Remixes From Slope (download)
2009
Sweet Billy Pilgrim - Twice Born Men
Steve Jansen - The Occurrence Of Slope (download)
promotional single: Sweet Billy Pilgrim - Kalypso
David Sylvian - Manafon
free download: David Sylvian - Jacqueline
free download: Akira Rabelais - 1340 Gaw. & Gr. knt 471 Wel By-Commes Such Craft Vpon Cristmasse
2010
Toshimaru Nakamura - Egrets
Jan Bang - …And Poppies From Kandahar
Akira Rabelais - Caduceus
promotional single: Sweet Billy Pilgrim - Future Perfect Tense
free download: David Sylvian - A Certain Slant Of Light
David Sylvian - Sleepwalkers
2011
David Sylvian - Died In The Wool
2012
Jan Bang & Erik Honore' - Uncommon Deities
2013
Stephan Mathieu - Wandermüde
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Re: A Decade Of Samadhi Sound

Postby inkinthewell on Mon May 20, 2013 9:44 am

A very good decade. I really appreciate that releases have no fixed schedule, so it feels like records come out only when they're ready and not because there's a one-cd a month deal.
Amongst my favourites are Blemish, Snow Borne Sorrow, Twice Born Men, Egrets, Caduceus, Died In The Wool...
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Re: A Decade Of Samadhi Sound

Postby Simonp on Mon May 20, 2013 12:25 pm

10 years of beautiful music (and artwork) from all at Samadhi

It's interesting the comment you make Baht at the start of this thread. I spoke to Tim Elsenburg of Sweet Billy Pilgrim who confirmed that Samadhisound would be primarily releasing only Sylvian works in the future. This might explain why SBP, Thomas Feiner, steve Jansen and David Toop have recently released through other labels
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Re: A Decade Of Samadhi Sound

Postby inkinthewell on Mon May 20, 2013 12:58 pm

Simonp wrote:Samadhisound would be primarily releasing only Sylvian works in the future.


I do hope the key word is primarily. Most of the albums where Sylvian has just had a producer/publisher role have been enjoyable.
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Re: A Decade Of Samadhi Sound

Postby baht habit on Mon May 20, 2013 4:19 pm

Simonp wrote:10 years of beautiful music (and artwork) from all at Samadhi

It's interesting the comment you make Baht at the start of this thread. I spoke to Tim Elsenburg of Sweet Billy Pilgrim who confirmed that Samadhisound would be primarily releasing only Sylvian works in the future. This might explain why SBP, Thomas Feiner, steve Jansen and David Toop have recently released through other labels


Not to mention that Dai Fujikura's release Secret Forest was initially expected to be released on Samadhisound but wound up on NMC - and I believe there existed the possibility that Year of the Bullet by Erik Honore' and Greta Aagre was also scheduled to be released on Samadhisound, is that correct?
Thanks for getting that confirmation Simon.
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Re: A Decade Of Samadhi Sound

Postby Blemished on Tue May 21, 2013 4:40 pm

Simonp wrote:I spoke to Tim Elsenburg of Sweet Billy Pilgrim who confirmed that Samadhisound would be primarily releasing only Sylvian works in the future. This might explain why SBP, Thomas Feiner, steve Jansen and David Toop have recently released through other labels


Interesting - and I had no idea about the releases that Baht mentions moving elsewhere.

Any idea why this is the case? 2010 was a big year for non-Sylvian releases - and then they had the success of SBP...

I guess the costs and risks of design / manufacture / mastering / distribution are all an issue for a small label. I wonder what the sales of non-DS material are like.

Be very interested to know more.
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Re: A Decade Of Samadhi Sound

Postby silentwings on Wed May 22, 2013 3:12 pm

Thanks for the posts outlining the Samadhi catalogue - for me it's a tremendously rich set of work and I have enjoyed exploring these releases immensely.

One of the download only releases that I particularly like is Harold Budd's 'Perhaps'.

Regarding the latest CD release, I had a realisation whilst listening to Wandermude again today, that I am enjoying this as much as I enjoyed the Sylvian-Czukay releases - and I like them A LOT. I've stopped trying specifically to pick up the Blemish references (even though I love to hear them) and just to listen in the same way that I do to 'Plight & Premonition' and 'Flux & Mutability', and I've found it a very rewarding listening experience...
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Re: A Decade Of Samadhi Sound

Postby baht habit on Sat May 25, 2013 8:08 am

silentwings wrote:
One of the download only releases that I particularly like is Harold Budd's 'Perhaps'.



I also enjoy that one. I did find it a bit strange how Avalon Sutra was hyped up as his final work, then he released a few collaborative efforts on another label - and Perhaps was limited to a download only release. Avalon Sutra is excellent for both his playing and the lush orchestration. Budd had recently issued an album of songs for string quartet called Bandits of Stature on Darla Records.
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Re: A Decade Of Samadhi Sound

Postby shoop on Thu May 30, 2013 8:58 am

As far as non-David work goes, the Thomas Feiner record is staggering, and I really loved Avalon Sutra. About the only release that didn't move me was the SBP album.

EDIT: ah, forgot - Egrets was great too.
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Re: A Decade Of Samadhi Sound

Postby baht habit on Sun Jun 02, 2013 8:53 am

shoop wrote:As far as non-David work goes, the Thomas Feiner record is staggering, and I really loved Avalon Sutra. About the only release that didn't move me was the SBP album.

EDIT: ah, forgot - Egrets was great too.


I never did get around to purchasing either the Feiner or Sweet Billy Pilgrim releases.

My initial expectation of Egrets was that it would be merely 'pops and buzzes' along the lines of previous Nakamura projects, but how wrong was my preconception. Now I probably would have appreciated 'pops and buzzes' and austerity of sound for what it is - but Nakamura made it much easier to accept the direction what he was aiming for with this particular release.
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Re: A Decade Of Samadhi Sound

Postby Tin Bird on Tue Jun 25, 2013 11:57 am

I agree about Egrets...I also loved the T. Feiner record. Where is he btw? Why no new album?
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