low light mixes

Low Light Mixes

Ambient music mixes for a chaotic world

  1. 6 DAYS AGO

    Kosmische Musik - A Starter Guide Vol. 2 by Erwin Broers

    To finish the first quarter of the year we get another excellent berlin-school mix from EM master, Erwin Broers. Just like his ECM mix posted last month, Erwin sent me this mix last year but I spaced out and forgot I had until this year. Luckily for historical mixes like this one, the post is evergreen and can be appreciated anytime. I'll repost what he said about volume 1: "Here's a follow-up on my mix "Back To The Roots Of Berlin School". As you recall it featured a collection of electronic music tracks from the 1990s, that were inspired by the patterns, sounds and analog instruments of the 1970s and early 1980s. Back then, nobody talked about "Berlin School Electronic Music". That label would only appear somewhere mid 1990s, probably to honour the place where the genre was born. Fans in the early days would rather use the term "Kosmische Musik" (German for "Cosmic Music"). An explanation for the "cosmic" element is to be found in the use of the step sequencer, which made it easy to create hypnotic rhythm loops with up to 32 notes or steps, set a tempo, and mix them over electronic drones, soundscapes, soloing, washes, white noise and space sounds. The effect was to “float” the listener through endless terrestrial or cosmic space. For those not keen on using illicit substances, it was an interesting and harmless alternative "trip"! I thought about creating a mix of some classic pieces from that first era, but soon found out one mix would not be enough to do justice to all the fantastic "Cosmic Music" that was made back then. So we get two mixes! This post is for volume 2 and you can find volume 1 here - https://lowlightmixes.blogspot.com/2025/06/kosmische-musik-starters-guide-vol-1.html   Thanks, Erwin, for another great cosmic trip!   Cheers!   T R A C K L I S T : 00:00:00   Tim Blake - New Jerusalem (Blake's New Jerusalem, 1978) 00:16:01   Jean-Michel Jarre - Oxygène parts 1 & 2 (Oxygène, 1976) 00:31:14   Vangelis - Soil Festivities part 2 (Soil Festivities, 1984) 00:37:25   Alan Parsons Project - The Gold Bug (The Turn Of A Friendly Card, 1980) 00:41:47   Robert Schroeder - The Day After X (Harmonic Ascendant, 1979) 00:49:22   Edgar Froese - Maroubra Bay (Epsilon In Malaysian Pale, 1975) 00:53:24   Ole Højer Hansen - Song Blue (Nudity, 1988) 01:00:30   Synco - Silent Water ('85-'89, 1990) 01:02:40   Mergener & Weisser - Sunbeam (Beam-Scape, 1984) 01:12:52   Wavestar - Chase The Evening (Moonwind, 1987) 01:25:26   Tangerine Dream - Logos Live part 1 (2nd movement) (Logos, 1982) 01:38:46   Manuel Göttsching - Dream (Dream & Desire, rec.1977-pub.1991) 01:44:24   Klaus Schulze - Georg Trakl (X - Sechs Musikalische Biographien, 1978) 01:49:44   Michael Hoenig - Hanging Garden Transfer (Departure From The Northern Wasteland, 1977) 02:00:30   end

    2hr 1min
  2. Sleep comes like a drug

    20 MAR

    Sleep comes like a drug

    I was listening to some U2 tunes recently and in the song "In God's Country" there's a line - "Sleep comes like a drug in God's country." I liked the "sleep comes like a drug" part and thought it would make a good title for a sleep mix. So I got right to work and found some great, recent tracks that are perfect for sleeping. Cue up the mix, climb into bed, and drift off to sleep.   LINKS TO ALL THE MUSIC USED IN THIS MIX: https://homenormal.bandcamp.com/album/great-plains https://www.beatport.com/release/glass/5926376 https://aliodie.bandcamp.com/album/vimana-ascensional-waves https://sixmissing.bandcamp.com/album/drift https://tonepoet.bandcamp.com/album/radiant-pastures https://thelonelybell.bandcamp.com/album/time-lost https://phelios.bandcamp.com/album/dyson-sphere-beta-2 https://steveroach.bandcamp.com/album/sentient-being https://cosmicleaf.bandcamp.com/album/cellular-universe-6   CHEERS!   T R A C K L I S T : 00:00   anthéne & Far away Nebraska - meet me in saskatchewan (great plains 2026) 05:11   SVLBRD - Glass (2026) 07:20   Alio Die - Unknown Oceans And Starry Seas (Vimana Ascensional Waves 2026) 15:43   Six Missing - drift: sandcastles (drift 2026) 18:40   Tonepoet - A Land Of Eternal Spring (Radiant Pastures 2026) 25:45   The Lonely Bell - Elsewhere (Time Lost 2025) 30:45   Martin Stürtzer - 22:27 (Dyson Sphere Beta 2026) 36:33   Steve Roach - Angels At Rest (Sentient Being 2026) 43:50   Eguana - Cellular Universe 6 (Cellular Universe 6 2026) 66:10   end

    1hr 6min
  3. 10 MAR

    From Dusk Till Dawn by Fragile X

    Whoa nelly we are in for a treat with this guest mix! This new set comes from John McFadden who records as Fragile X. John has done two other mixes for us that you can find here: https://www.mixcloud.com/lowlight/aquadream-by-fragile-x/ https://www.mixcloud.com/lowlight/being-human-by-fragile-x/ I'm kind of jealous of this mix as there are bunch of tracks that I would love to have used in my recent undersea mix. So this is a perfect time for this set because it will play off of my "Alien Sea" mix and lead us into other ambient directions. John has a couple of new EPs out and you can find Fragile X music here - https://fragilex.bandcamp.com/ Here's what John says about "From Dusk Till Dawn" "I've been getting up early a lot so far this year, especially in midweek, for the day job and I've also been making the most of my weekends by trying to stay up late and be creative when I can. So, with that in mind, I've put together a mix to soundtrack the wee hours. I tried to make it dream-like and hazy. Like an escape into the hush of night and through to break of morning. Albeit crammed into 70 mins! It's got some dubby and experimental ambient stuff then slowly unfurls into more melodic ambient pieces over time. Very minimal percussion and the focus more on atmosphere and texture. Hope you enjoy!"  Thanks, John, for a great mix! Cheers!   T R A C K L I S T : 01. Erik M. - Half Sleep (00:00) 02. Squu - Essence (03:54) 03. Distant Echoes - Buried Into Ashes (07:03) 04. Jerod S. Rivera - Seamstress Clock (feat Cat Lauigan) (10:35) 05. Lee Gamble - She's Not (15:20) 06. Sonoj - Deal (18:26) 07. Tokyo Bedroom Orchestra - Mori (24:37) 08. Martin Allin - Play For The Slow World (28:56) 09. nthng - Two People (33:13) 10. Xenia Reaper - You Really (37:09) 11. Number One - Press 1 For Ever (39:48) 12. Aion Lazura - Fractal Conscientia (42:43) 13. Fragile X - Cielab (48:12) 14. Kaito - Rainbow Circles (Beatless version) (53:45) 15. Vertical67 - Peace of Mind (60:11) 16. Fernie - Subtle (64:44) 17. Yaka - Slow Reaction (68:20)

    1hr 12min
  4. 5 MAR

    Deep Ambient Explorations in an Alien Sea

    This mix is the perfect combo of two of my favorite mix themes - sea/ocean motif and ambient dub. I wanted to make an ambient dub mix and while searching for tunes I ran across several that had that great ocean vibe that some ambient dub can have. Then a few more had this odd sort of alien quality to them so I decided on a mix of deep ambient dub that sounds like it should be played in the oceans of Jupiter's moon, Europa. Mot of the tracks are fairly new, from the last few years. But there are some older tracks from 2013, 2012, and all the back to 2002. Everything combines for the perfect undersea exploration. I really love this one. LINKS TO ALL THE MUSIC USED IN THIS MIX: https://sahkorecordings.bandcamp.com/album/sysivalo https://earthensea.bandcamp.com/album/grass-and-trees https://westmineral.bandcamp.com/album/rv-lights-ouest082 https://otherfacts.bandcamp.com/album/you-are-eternity-sacd003 https://vibrantmusic.bandcamp.com/album/fluxion-ripple-effect https://signer.bandcamp.com/album/low-light-dreams https://ullastraus.bandcamp.com/album/hometown-girl https://avantroots.bandcamp.com/album/deep-sea-exploration https://scale-limited.bandcamp.com/album/stasis-grscl06 https://aufabwegen.bandcamp.com/album/lichth-fe https://leegamble.bandcamp.com/album/diversions-1994-1996 https://silentes.bandcamp.com/album/grotto-of-the-sun https://sohaso.bandcamp.com/album/binding-elements https://echospace313.bandcamp.com/album/analogue-oceans-double-cd-edition-w-digital-exclusive Cheers!   ( ( ( T R A C K L I S T ) ) ) 00:00   Mika Vainio - Etude 4 (Sysivalo 2025) 02:40   Earthen Sea - Spatial Ambiguity (Grass And Trees 2019) 06:15   Sleepdial - Icarus Rising (RV Lights 2025) 08:39   Dadub - Vibration (You Are Eternity 2013) 10:40   Fluxion - Moving On (Ripple Effect 2018) 14:10   Signer - Post Obsession (Low Light Dreams 2002) 16:29   Ulla Straus - Night Loop (Hometown Girl 2025) 17:36   Dublicator - Deep Sea Exploration (Deep Sea Exploration 2013) 22:25   Faded - Warhawk (Stasis 2017) 27:07   Asmus Tietchens & Thorsten Soltau - Lichthof 2 (Lichthöfe 2025) 28:10   Lee Gamble - Emu (Diversions 1994-1996 2012) 32:15   Mika Vainio - Sylvannus (Sysivalo 2025) 34:20   Rod Modell - Part 2 (Grotto Of The Sun 2026) 42:50   Bas Dobbelaer - Ray (Binding Elements 2023) 45:42   Asmus Tietchens-Thorsten Soltau - Lichthof 8 (Lichthöfe 2025) 47:15   cv313 - Analogue Oceans(Variant's conduction) (Analogue Oceans 2018) 62:23   end

    1hr 2min
  5. 26 FEB

    ECM Favorites Vol. 2 by Erwin Broers

    I know two things that are true - Erwin Broers is a great contributor to Low Light Mixes and I'm an airhead. 🤪 Last year after I posted a mix of my favorite albums from ECM records, Erwin did his own version. He sent it to me in September and I totally spaced out and forgot about it until this week. But it works out in the end because I've been busy lately so a guest mix is just what I needed. Here's what Erwin says about his ECM favorites: "When LLM published a set of highlights from the revered ECM label back in early Aug '25, https://www.mixcloud.com/lowlight/ecm-favorites/, it just felt like short-selling its 1600+ title catalogue. A second installment seemed only a matter of time. And here it is!  The mix mostly contains tracks one could characterize as "smooth contemporary jazz", the kind of music you put on to unwind after a busy day. A classic in this genre is John Abercrombie's "Timeless".  But it also features a very special piece by Stephan Micus, the renowned German multi-instrumentalist, for whom ECM seems to have been created. We hear him singing in an imaginary language and playing several instruments; hauntingly beautiful! Cover Artwork: Timanfaya National Park, Lanzarote, Canary Islands, Spain, 2017" Thanks for another wonderful set, Erwin. Cheers!   ( ( ( T R A C K L I S T ) ) ) 00:00:00   Arve Henriksen, Eivind Aarset, Jan Bang & Tigran Hamasyan - Traces I (Atmosphères, 2016) 00:06:12   John Abercrombie, Jan Hammer & Jack De Johnette - Timeless (Timeless, 1975) 00:18:00   Stephan Micus - To The Evening Child (To The Evening Child, 1992) 00:25:43   Pat Metheny, Eberhard Weber, Lyle Mays & Dan Gottlieb - Sea Song (Watercolors, 1977) 00:35:46   Bill Frisell - Etude (Works, 1988) 00:39:50   John Surman - Holding Pattern I (Withholding Pattern, 1985) 00:44:18   Tord Gustavsen Trio - Vicar Street (Being There, 2007) 00:47:49   Egberto Gismonti, Nando Carneiro & Zeca Assumpçao - Um Anjo (ZigZag, 1996) 00:53:32   Anouar Brahem - Ashen Sky (Souvenance, 2014) 01:00:50   Terje Rypdal - Shining (Skywards, 1997) 01:03:04   François Couturier & Tarkovsky Quartet - Nuit Blanche (Nuit Blanche, 2017) 01:08:28   Marcin Wasilewski Trio - Oz Guizos (Faithful, 2011) 01:14:55   end

    1hr 15min
  6. 22 FEB

    Sunday Morning Music Vol. 25 - The Beauty of Sundays

    It's been a little over a year since my last Sunday Morning Music mix so I figured we needed to revisit this beautiful series. This mix follows the same format as previous sets - a little jazz, some ambient and a few vocal tunes. There's not much else to say other than grab a cup of coffee, kick back and enjoy some Sunday Morning Music.   LINKS TO ALL THE MUSIC USED IN THIS MIX: https://ecmrecords.com/product/touch-of-time-arve-henriksen-harmen-fraanje/ https://blendreed.bandcamp.com/album/tales-of-tides https://www.amazon.com/music/player/albums/B0CLPDMX8R https://ecmrecords.com/product/convergence-bjorn-meyer/ https://panamerican.bandcamp.com/album/new-world-lonely-ride https://momokogill.bandcamp.com/album/momoko https://phi-psonics.bandcamp.com/album/morning-sun-arrival https://michaelscottdawson.bandcamp.com/album/the-tinnitus-chorus https://www.amazon.com/music/player/albums/B0CVJ8D5ZC https://anjalauvdal.bandcamp.com/album/farewell-to-faraway-friends-vol-1-2 https://amanaz.bandcamp.com/album/africa https://barrywalker.bandcamp.com/album/paleo-sol https://www.amazon.com/music/player/albums/B0BPQ216WH https://johnalsobennett.bandcamp.com/album/klima https://alabasterdeplume.bandcamp.com/album/to-cy-lee-instrumentals-vol-1 https://aaronshaw.bandcamp.com/album/and-so-it-is Cheers! T R A C K L I S T : 00:00   Arve Henriksen - The Beauty of Sundays (Touch of Time 2024) 03:00   Blendreed - Sillages (Tales Of Tides 2025) 07:54   Knudsen, Bremer, Ewert - Broken Beauty (Bushbabies 2024) 11:22   Björn Meyer - Motion (Convergence 2026) 16:25   Michael Grigoni & Pan American - Sun Morning Sun (New World, Lonely Ride 2025) 19:45   Momoko Gill - Heavy (Momoko 2026) 23:23   Phi-Sonics - Morning Sun (Morning Sun/Arrival 2024) 28:12   Michael Scott Dawson - Present Day(feat. Jairus Sharif) (The Tinnitus Chorus 2024) 30:50   Kamaal Williams - Everything in its Right Place (2024) 36:12   Anja Lauvdal - Silk (Farewell to Faraway Friends 2023) 38:38   Amanaz - Sunday Morning (Africa 1975) 43:30   Barry Walker Jr. - Under Leaf Hill (Paleo Sol 2026) 45:54   The Japanese House - Indexical Reminder Of A Morning Well Spent (In The End It Always Does 2023) 50:05   CV & JAB - Dwelling (Klima 2023) 53:50   Alabaster DePlume - Not My Ask (To Cy & Lee: Instrumentals vol. 1 2020) 57:10   Aaron Shaw - Soul Journey (And So It Is 2026) 61:28   END

    1hr 2min
  7. 8 FEB

    The Silence Between by Daniel Hawkins

    When Daniel wrote that he had a new mix based around silence I knew it would be good. Then I saw the tracklist and I knew it would be great. He includes cuts from some of my favorite artists - Halftribe, Innesti, Sonmi451, Loscil, and A Produce. The A Produce track is one of my favorite ambienbt tracks of all time. Here's what Daniel says about his new mix: Claude Debussy once wrote: “The music is not in the notes, but in the silence between them”, suggesting that music's emotional impact, beauty, and expression come from the pauses and spacing between sounds.  The first thing I think of is Eno’s classic Music for Airports - man did I fall in love with that album.  Roach’s Dream Circle comes to mind - low and slow - the music just seems to breathe.  Of course you have the steady state drone stuff from Grassow and friends, which I like - but there is no real structure - that’s the point I guess.  I tried to pick work for this mix that had at least a bit of melody, but plenty of silence to define the notes.  There is a sweet spot that when achieved sends me at least into a deep peaceful space.  I’m thinking we all need to spend some time in that space these days to recharge and nurture our sanity.  Hoping this mix might help with that my friends.  Thanks, Daniel, for another excellent mix. Cheers!  T R A C K L I S T : 00:00   Halftribe & Spinnet - A Minimal Resolution (Patterns of Sync 2020) 09:09   Snufmumriko - Mot Nattens Hjärta (Sekunder, Eoner 2019) 12:12   ASC - Find Yourself (Tales Of Introspection 2025) 22:48   Innesti - Nothwithstanding (Filament and Place 2021) 28:00   Sonmi451 - Oxygen Is Flowing (Oxygen Is Flowing single 2025) 33:12   Loscil - Stella (Clara 2021) 42:23   A Produce - A Smooth Surface(Edit) (White Sands 1995) 47:40   Hipnotic Earth - Repose (The Waters of Home 2017) 57:00   Lab's Cloud - Rising (The Structure of Emotions 2021) 63:58   end

    1hr 4min
  8. 29 JAN

    Step into my Time Machine

    I bought a new mac mini recently and I have been transferring a ton of music to the new system. While cruising through the old files I discovered a folder called "NETLABELS." It's a fascinating collection of music the 2000s that was released on what were then known as "netlabels". I had a ball listening to some of it so I decided to make a mix.  There was a lot of music to sort through so I decided to focus on two of my favorite labels - Thinner & Autoplate. Thinner, based in Frankfurt, Germany, released music from 2001 to 2009. They were one of the most consistent and successful netlabels. Thinner’s catalogue includes releases from artists such as Digitalverein, Marko Fürstenberg, Benfay, Pheek, krill.minima, Vladislav Delay, Christian Bloch and many others. As of September 2006, Thinner productions had accumulated over two million MP3 downloads. Thinner had a sublabel called Autoplate, focusing on experimental and ambient music.    Thinner on Archive.org Thinner on Scene.org Autplate on Archive.org Autoplate on Scene.org I hope you get a kick out of this trip back to the aughts. Cheers!   T R A C K L I S T : 00:00   Benfay - Mein Entschluss anders zu leben (Crossways 2005 Thinner) 04:12   arrial - Shiver(marsen_jules_rework) (this is my beauty, show me yours  2004 Autoplate) 08:00   tlon - while my tears swept away (Crossways 2005 Thinner) 12:45   color by numbers - Hyacinth Miasma (The Transitions 2004 Autoplate) 15:30   Danny Kreutzfeldt - Core_3-digitalis_remix (recore:02 2003 Thinner) 20:08  Tlon - Torch Number (Acoustic Lazy Dolls 2003 Autoplate) 27:20   krill.minima - Die Reflexion Des Projektors (Zwischen Zwei Und Einer Sekunde 2003 Thinner) 34:27   Lomov - Hochwaldregen (Holzwege 2005 Autoplate) 42:55   Falter - Taumelflug_1 (Taumelflug 2003 Thinner) 49:10   Lou Teti - Stroll (Night P{pieces 2005 Autoplate) 53:43   Martin Jarl feat Jon Ericsson - Inidimman (Crossways 2005 Thinner) 61:33   Marsen Jules - Lazy Sunday Funerals (Lazy Sunday Funerals 2003 Autoplate) 65:46   end

    1hr 6min

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Ambient music mixes for a chaotic world

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