Neo classical Archives - Backseat Mafia

Album Review: Julianna Barwick & Mary Lattimore – ‘Tragic Magic’: A compelling, emotional electro-acoustic collaboration which haunts and hopes.

Some collaborations are just meant to be and this is one of those. Composer, vocalist and electronic musician Julianna Barwick and experimental harpist Mary Lattimore have been more than crossing…

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Album Review: Eric Pan – ‘Travel Poems. Chapter 3. There is no path back.’: An inventive and intimate jazz journey.

It’s hard to pin down pianist and composer Eric Pan’s music, he is a troubadour and traveller both literally and creatively. Pulled towards jazz during his studies at the University…

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Album Review: Iván Muela –‘Ether’: a subtle and sublime merging of neo-classical and experimental music.

Writing a review of pianist/composer Iván Muela’s latest album ‘Ether’ feels almost like a redundant endeavour. Here is a recording likely to affect the listener differently each time they tune…

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Track/Video: Icelandic composer/multi-instrumentalist Davidsson previews his emotional debut album with the restorative ‘On Thin Air’.

Revered Icelandic musician Ólafur Arnalds’ new OPIA project (a part festival, part musical community, part record label kind of thing) is adding another artist to its roster to keep emerging…

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Album Review: Adam Wiltzie – ‘Eleven Fugues for Sodium Pentothal’: The composer of definitive ambient music provides an album for your deeper thoughts.

You sometimes get the feeling American composer Adam Wiltzie, despite instigating so much proclaimed ambient classical music for the last three decades, prefers the shadows to the spotlight. Whether intentional…

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Track/Video : Costa Rica’s budding pianist/composer Sofi Paez reveals the graceful ‘Por qué’ ahead of her incoming ‘Silent Stories’ album.

Easing us into the new year comes a song of shimmering reflections from Costa Rican pianist and composer Sofi Paez, the delicately poised ‘Por qué’. Her self-released EP ‘Circles’ from…

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Track/video : James Heather re-imagines his poignant track ‘Hidden Angel’ to uncover new dimensions.

This is in many ways a brave record. Neo-classical composer and pianist James Heather has just released the a new version of his track ‘Hidden Angel’ via Coldcut’s label Ahead…

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Album Review: Jim Wallis – In Huge Gesturing Loops: moving ‘ambient country’ way beyond passive mood music.

Drumming and making ambient soundscapes is not a well populated intersection on the musician directory Venn diagram but Jim Wallis sits comfortably within that quirky enclave. Perhaps best known for…

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Album Review: Christina Vantzou -‘No. 5’: astonishing ambient-classical story telling.

Visual artist, experimental film-maker and ambient classical composer Christina Vantzou works with a method. Following her beginnings as one half of ‘The Dead Texan’ with Adam Wiltzie (Stars of the…

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