PGM 401: CLOSE ENCOUNTERS 4

An ambient/electronica sc-fi mix inspired by unexplained phenomena.

TIME / ARTIST / TRACK / ALBUM-EP-SINGLE
00:25 / Zero Cult / In Motion (2024 Remastered) / Inversion
07:06 / One Arc Degree / Stellarator / Emergence
13:02 / Germind / Beyond the Limits / Antimatter, Vol. 6
18:05 / Chronos / Alien Lights Above My Head / Synthesizer Museum Live
24:40 / Alpha Hypnotica / Vitarka / [Single]
30:12 / Echo Season / Pilot / Solarmetric
37:13 / OUTER BANKX / Two Twelve Yaw / OUTER BANKX Pt. 1
42:50 / Synaesthesia / Entropy / Ephemeral
51:21 / Mark Dwane / UFOlogy 2 / UFOlogy 2
55:50 / Cosmic Cadence / Alien Artifacts / Alien Artifacts

PGM 388: ATLANTIS CALLING 3

An ambient/electronic fantasy mix inspired by a lost civilization.

TIME / ARTIST / TRACK / ALBUM
00:20 / Kamarius / Fantastika / The Code
06:00 / Mark Dwane / Atlantean Magic / The Atlantis Factor
09:55 / Sylvain Carel / Detected / Atlantide
20:34 / Deborah Martin & Cheryl Gallagher / Palace / Tibet (20th Anniversary Remaster)
28:06 / Medwyn Goodall / Temple of Prophecy / Priestess: Return to Atlantis
35:35 / Forrest Fang / Vessels of a Minor Deity / Perihelion
44:42 / Bart Hawkins / River Boat to Atlantis / Entering the Axis Mundi
52:45 / Mark Dwane / Atlantean Apparitions / Atlantean Apparitions
55:14 / ELEON / Hidden Kingdom / Hidden Kingdom

PGM 377: QUANTUM LEAP

A sonic sci-fi adventure of traveling electronic space music.

TIME / ARTIST / TRACK / ALBUM
00:25 / Jim Ottaway / The Edge of Knowing / A Promise of Eternity
06:37 / Divine Matrix / Azimuth / Sequencer Drift
12:25 / Kamarius / Konsequences / The Code
21:55 / Cryounit / Kardashev IV / Paradox
25:41 / Hollan Holmes / Drawn To An Intangible Energy / Sacred Places
31:35 / Cartas de Japón / Nueva Atlantis / Gemstones IV
43:00 / Joystick / Cerebral Augmentation / Machine Dreaming
48:42 / Hyperion V / Deep Sky Object / Accretion Disc
53:06 / Erik Wøllo / Shoshin Voyage / Solastalgia

PGM 343: OUTER LIMITS 3

A sci-fi sonic adventure into the extraordinary & unknown.

TIME / ARTIST / TRACK / ALBUM-EP-SINGLE
00:21 / The Orb / Delta MK II / Orblivion
07:10 / Mario Raposo / Lost In Terra Incognita / Lost In Terra Incognita
13 30 / Divine Matrix / Lofstrom Loop / Sequencer Drift 
18:52 / Jim Ottaway / Somewhere In-Between / Somewhere In-Between
23:14 / K. Markov / Mind Control / Interactivity 
35:15 / Cryounit / Signals in the Aether / Paradox
38:37 / Steve Orchard / The Clairvoyant / Macabre
45:20 / Mark Dwane / Altered States / Parallel Universe 
50:49 / Mike Clay / Ambient Memories / Somewhere in Time and Space
56:00 / Germind / Another Dimension / Diffusion 

PGM 285: Beyond Perception 2

Another ambient-electronic voyage through interdimensional dream-worlds!

Artist Name / Track Title / Album Title
Evenfall / Monsoon Winds / Monsoon Winds
Retro Rider / Lonely Cowboy (West Beach Mix) / Winter Time, Vol. 9
Dr. Psychedelic / Power of Dub / Chill Out Trance Vol. 2
Echo Season / Elevated / Solarmetric
Jim Ottaway / Diamonds in the Rain / When Eternity Touches Time
Eguana / Listen to the Universe / Destiny, Vol. 2
Kick Bong / Let Me Fly / Zelitude
Richard Ross / Oort Cloud / Event Horizon
Starterra / Council of Nine / Celestial
Germind / Last Humanity / Antimatter, Vol. 5

PGM 281: HAUNTED WORLDS 6

Another otherworldly mix for Halloween full of darkly ethereal soundscapes!

Artist Name / Track Title / Album Title
Blue Stone / Midnight Tides / Messages
Keith Richie / Chariots of Pumpkins / 2049
The Changelings / Johnny Ether’s Great Escape / Terra Firma
Frore & Shane Morris / Night Rapture / Blood Moon
Enigma / The Die is Cast / The Fall of a Rebel Angel
Christel Veraart / Asterope / Pleiades
Kamarius / Break the Spell / A Gate to Eternity
Lisa Gerrard / Space Weaver / The Silver Tree
Hollan Holmes / Something Wicked This Way Comes / Milestones

PGM 276: Fantasy Flight 3

Another euphoric mix of chill-trance & ambient electronica to convey feelings of boundless freedom!

Artist Name / Track Title / Album Title
Tangerine Dream / Catwalk (Dress-Up Mix) / The Dream Mixes
Schiller / Klangwelten / Sun
Ben Blackett / Deep Currents / Portals
Unusual Cosmic Process / Parhelic Circle / Frames of Silence
Giuseppe Dio / Over the Clouds / The Phoenix
Dream Twice / Begin / Enta
Jim Ottaway / The Skies the Limit / When Eternity Touches Time
ELEON / Last Flight Home / Flight Lounge
Tigerforest / Constellations / Discovery
Dlaivison / Ouverture / Aeon
Astral Fogg / Timelessness (Eternal Remix) / A Breath of Fresh Air

PGM 270: Close Encounters 3

Another ambient/electronic sci-fi set inspired by unidentified aerial phenomena!

Artist Name / Track Title / Album Title
Ancient Astronaut / Ancient Astronauts Part 1 / Through the Tunnel of Love
K. Markov / Close Encounter / Visitors
Alien Mutation / Dubula Technoid / Chill Out Trance, Vol. 2
Thaneco / Little Greys / Alien Species
Eguana / UFO / Destiny
Shinpal / Twisted Sensation / Momentary Disappeared Memory
Side Liner & Aviron / That Friday (Space Ambient Mix) / That Friday [single]
Martin Stürtzer / Pleiades / Far Beyond the Stars
Mark Dwane / Light Years / Future Tense

PGM 266: Martian Odyssey

An imaginary sci-fi soundtrack to a retro-futuristic Mars expedition.

Artist Name / Track Title / Album Title
Chronos / Zirda (Remastered) / Mars (5-Years Anniversary)
Traumwelt / Our World (Mars Flowers Remix) / Our World
Mark Dwane / Red Planet / Martian Apparitions
Giuseppe Dio / Martian Wind / Space Explorations
Jim Ottaway / Playing with Fire / When Eternity Touches Time
Robert Logan / Voyager / Sculptor Galaxy
Spacecraft / Signals / Mars
Thaneco / Expedition to Mars / Cerulean Voyager
Jos d’Almeida / Hello from the Children of Planet Earth / Aspheres

Album Review: temporal.Divergence by Peter Edwards Ambient

Peter Edwards, an ambient/dark ambient experimental soundsculptor based in Albuquerque, New Mexico, recording as Peter Edwards Ambient, landed on my radar screens only during the summer of 2018, shortly before releasing his third full-length CD album temporal.Divergence as the next chapter of dark ambient pentalogy. Available in digital formats since August 18th, 2018, the stunningly designed 6-panel digipak was released a few weeks later through Peter's own Caffeinated Monk Production label, the home of his previous two impressive CDs, suspended.Lucidity (May 2015) and binary.Abstractions (July 2017). To me, this was a huge discovery indeed!!!

Perfectly described as "ambient music for time travellers", this thrillingly immersing odyssey is ignited by the shorter "Prelude", which immediately sets the spatially tenebrous atmosphere. The 6-plus minutes long title track "temporal.Divergence" is fueled by bouncing cyber-tech pulses juxtaposed by industrial outbursts, razor-sharp beats, and heavenly hissing solitariness. A truly jaw-dropping introduction to distinguishably transporting realms by Peter Edwards!!! "quantum.Flux" at 7:33, the longest ride on the album, amalgamates massive drone reverberations with transcendentally helixing meridians and ear-tickling glimmers. Another aural spectacle! "revolution.Induction" masterfully merges hypogeally enigmatic stratums with perpetually ascending galvanic beacons and eerily rumbling fractals. Sonorously mindblowing! "gravField.Theory" dives into gargantuan depths, which are persistently illuminated by eternally galloping oscillations and piercing sci-fi narrations by Randy Savage, who also contributed his voice on the opening "Prelude". "dark.Matter" sails through unfathomably breathtaking realms, where intangibly thundering, yet tenaciously ambiguous magnitudes, commingle with inconspicuously emanating desolations and transmogrifying resonant vertexes. Beyond the gates listening splendor continues also through "causal.Continuum", when mesmerizingly barren heavy-duty beats collide with remotely roaring perplexes. "tempo.Kinetix", as indicated by its title, shifts into a vigorously driven scenario, perforated here and there by outbursting strikes, while immensely panoptic layers are guarding above. "time.Machine" merges abysmally engulfing murmurs with translucently flickering fragments and clandestinely arising oracular ephemerons. On "The Quantum Mechanics Of Time Travel Through Post-Selected Teleportation", mysteriously nuanced drones are reinforced by the narrations of a "quantum mechanic" Seth Lloyd of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Short epilogue "Gate.22180818" closes the album, but hidden also is a 4-minute untitled bonus track, which remains in fascinatingly enveloping monochromatic cosmic zones, percolated by gossamery evanescent traceries and ear-bending numeration.

Peter Edwards Ambient is a truly staggering exploration, which shifts each listener into magnificently adventurous portals, uniquely sophisticated, meticulously crafted and intriguingly rewarding. His 64-minute temporal.Divergence album is an all-inclusive magnum opus, both sonic and visual (design by Savage Internet Media), with deeply focused content and superb presentation. A vast display of artistic brilliance, which is, unfortunately, still hidden to a larger audience within the ambient drone soundscaping. On the science note, this must be some kind of a call I received only several months after experiencing the Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array, a Radio Astronomy Observatory located on the Plains of San Agustin in central New Mexico. I really wish I knew this gifted sound designer when passing by Albuquerque. Grab your headphones and immerse yourself into this exquisitely monumental futuristic journeying!!!

Reviewed by Richard Gürtler (Oct 20, 2019, Bratislava, Slovakia)

PGM 248: Beyond Perception

A fantastical voyage through ambient psy-fi dimensions!

ARTIST NAME - TRACK TITLE - ALBUM TITLE
Ascendant – Elliptical Memory – Source Transmission
A Positive Life – Aquasonic – Two A.D.
Dfuse – Libra – Amberdelic Space
Alien Mutation – Dream Scape – Chill Out Trance Vol. 2
Aes Dana – Sub Morphing – Memory Shell
Optic Eye – Blue Dreamers – Feed Your Head
Dr Psychedelic – Let’s Try Some Energy – Ambient Odyssey
Transformer – 2 Virtual Cocoon (Processed Mix) – Barramundi: Dreamtime Planet
Psychick Warriors Ov Gaia – Obsidian (Deconstructure Edit) – Excursions in Ambience 1

Album Review: Floating Consciousness by NoizeFilter

NoizeFilter is the recording alias of Austin, Texas-based musician Jose Reyes. Having released several prior albums, his latest full-length recording, Floating Consciousness, is arguably his most ambitious and boundary-pushing work thus far. Comprised of eight ambient-electronic compositions spanning just under an hour, Floating Consciousness takes the listener through a mysterious sound-world of seemingly astrophysical and technological environments, wherein one embarks on a fascinating exploration of both matter and consciousness.

“Cryogenic Dreams” opens the album with lushly warm expanses that eventually give way to undulating textures, before cleverly concluding with the haunting toll of a church bell. Often eliciting visual overtones throughout of cyberpunk impressions in a space age setting, the music herein feels simultaneously human yet robotic in a most appealing kind of way.

One of my favorite pieces on the album is the emotively melodic “Kepler’s Journey”, with its floating sequencers and vintage synthesizer elements conveying a sense of search and discovery. Likewise, “Fractal Patterns” is an utterly mesmerizing piece that paints captivating images of enthralling sci-fi strangeness. Characterized by fast-pulsating and spiraling figures, it seemingly imparts a feeling of being lost in space, perhaps while traveling through a time-portal to another dimension. Lastly, “Deep Water” feels enclosed and submerged like a submarine, as liquid swirls and a static-like rhythm guide us to our journey’s end.

Accompanied by beautifully abstract cover artwork that’s every bit intriguing as the music itself, Floating Consciousness seems to occupy a dream state that's equally foreboding as it is alluring. Easily Noizefilter’s most outstanding album to date, fans especially, of experimental yet accessible ambient and sci-fi music are highly encouraged to check it out! ~Candice Michelle

For more information please visit the artist's website. This album is also available at Amazon, Bandcamp and iTunes.

Artist Spotlight: An Interview with Mark Dwane

We’re honored to present a very special interview with Mark Dwane who’s just released an album called Martian Apparitions, a sequel of sorts to his 1988 landmark album The Monuments of Mars. Known for his signature brand of ambient symphonic and sci-fi inspired electronica, Mark creates highly imaginative soundworlds using electric guitar synthesis. Likewise, he’s carved out a unique niche with his music, which explores fascinating themes surrounding historical mysteries, ancient mythologies and unexplained phenomena. So please join us for some otherworldly conversation as we investigate the inexplicable!



Music from several Mark Dwane albums can be heard throughout the interview and are available at Amazon. His three most recent albums are also available in Hi-Res digital download from Bandcamp.

Album Review: Timeless e-Motion by Jim Ottaway

Jim Ottaway is an Australia-based electronic music composer with an impressive catalog of recordings that range from ambient-space to chill-out electronica. While his latest album, Timeless e-Motion, combines stylistic characteristics of both, it’s also a bit different from anything Jim has previously recorded. Namely, he employs greater elements of classic electronic space music in the vein of Tangerine Dream and Jean-Michel Jarre, all while infusing his compositions with a wholly up-to-date and modern feel via his vast arsenal of electronic music equipment and gear. Comprised of thirteen tracks spanning sixty-five minuets, the album was recorded, mixed and mastered by Jim between the years of 2013 and 2016.

“Sequence of Life” opens with a dynamic and rhythmic arrangement of sequencers and pulsing effects. A fantastic introduction, it conveys a feeling of moving through space and time. Following next is the hauntingly beautiful “Timeless e-Motion”, which gently paces along on a dreamily floating, liquid-like current. Easily my favorite piece on the album, hazy tones, scattering chimes and vocal-like washes are carried along by a hypnotic bassline and rhythmic pulse, which gradually evolves into a subtle chill beat. Digital bleeps and signals echo throughout, as if emanating from somewhere deep in the galaxy. At just over eight minutes in length, this piece could easily drift on forever, perhaps while one endlessly tries to solve the infinite mysteries of our vast and largely unknowable universe. Varying between the more dynamic, travelling pace of the first track and the floating ambience of the title track, the compositions always seem to move in a linear, forward motion. Each employs a varied degree of digital sequencing, synthesized vocals, spacey signals and pulsating electronic rhythms. The seventh track, “Behind Close Eyes”, is another especially notable and mesmerizing piece, which effectively brings to mind that of being in virtual reality or dreamlike simulation. Despite these distinctive sci-fi motifs, the compositions herein convey human warmth and a conscious presence throughout, as if musically illustrating a narrative of the cosmos and how it relates to life here on earth. Another favorite is the twelfth track, “Cosmic Shift”, a classic ambient-space number characterized by ethereal chords, sparkling chimes and a wondrous sense of mystery, as one can easily imagine numerous constellations of twinkling stars against a stark midnight sky. Aptly concluding the album is “Timeless e-Motion (radio edit)”, which clocks in at just over five minutes, lending itself as a sort of reprise of the title track to wrap-up this fantastical cosmic journey.

Jim Ottaway’s previous album, Southern Cross, was one of my favorite recordings of 2016 and this one is surely destined to become another. In fact, Timeless e-Motion may very well be the best output from this amazingly talented artist thus far, unquestionably solidifying Jim’s place as a distinctive and innovative electronic music composer. Fusing ambient, modern electronica and classic space music, I can detect several decades of musical influences here, as Jim masterfully carves out his own sound and style that he has both developed and gradually improved on over the years. Lending itself to an emotive sci-fi quality, the music of Timeless e-Motion conveys a mesmerizing notion of having entered some futuristic parallel dream-world that’s dominated by themes of hyperspace, wormholes and time-travel. Likewise permeated by an ever-present and intangible mystery throughout, this album is both an interstellar and inner voyage that’s absolutely not to be missed! ~Candice Michelle

Available at Amazon, Bandcamp and other music retailers. For more information please visit the artist's website.

Album Review: Invisible Vortex by Jim Ottaway

Jim Ottaway is an electronic music composer from Australia, whose album Invisible Vortex was created using an impressive array of electronic music gear and equipment, including several different keyboards and synthesizers. Dedicated in part to the memory of Tangerine Dream founder, Edgar Froese (1944-2015), notable influences of musical styles spanning several decades are evident, in particular, 80s-era European electronic music, 90s-era trance-techno, modern electronica, chill-out and a touch of progressive rock.

The highly energetic “Come Dance with Me” opens the album with a trance-techno dance-floor beat, digital bleeps and scratchy sounds, as the listener embarks on an interstellar voyage through space and time. “Alien Cries” follows next, which is characterized by a pronounced bassline and an electronic rock rhythm. Finally giving way to what is perhaps the album’s pinnacle, is a track called “Takin’ the Time”. Featuring Rick Fenn of the 70s-era British rock group 10cc on guitar, this incredible piece evokes the wonders of the universe, with its intergalactic, otherworldly tone, which is conveyed by swirling chimes, voice-like effects, and a potent driving rhythm. Right from the opening sequencers on “Just Another Dream”, which is a lighter trance-techno track, I could detect the nod to Tangerine Dream; perhaps not surprising, since the piece is a glowing tribute to the band’s soundtracks for "Risky Business", "Thief" and "Sorcerer". “Call for Peace" is another favorite, a slower piece led by a pronounced staccato down-beat and alternating hazy, distorted effects. A bonus ‘Chill Out Mix’ of the same tune closes out the album, clocking in at a full eleven minutes and twenty seconds. This slower-paced alternate version is equably carried along by a muffled breakbeat, until it eventually drifts away into oblivion.

Jim Ottaway has done a stellar job of connecting the past with the future on Invisible Vortex, by combining the sensibilities of both vintage and modern electronic music. The compositions herein explore the limitless bounds of space and time, sending the listener soaring above the stratosphere and cruising into the cosmos. The highly outgoing, dynamic and active nature of this album makes for a thoroughly rewarding sonic adventure, which will certainly appeal to electronic music enthusiasts who enjoy aural concepts exploring science fiction and retro-futuristic worlds. ~Candice Michelle

Available at Amazon, Bandcamp and other music retailers. For more information, please visit the artist's website.