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Kranky is an American independent record label in Chicago, Illinois. It was started in 1993 by Bruce Adams and Joel Leoschke. It houses predominantly experimental music artists, often branching into or inspired by ambient, rock, electronic or psychedelic music. Their first release was Labradford's 1993 debut album Prazision. Adams left the label in 2006, after which Leoschke continued running it, with the help of Brian Foote of Kranky band Nudge.
Stars of the Lid is an American ambient music project that formerly consisted of Brian McBride and Adam Wiltzie. The duo formed in Austin, Texas, in 1993. They have been acclaimed for their music incorporating droning, effects-treated guitars along with piano, strings, and horns, described as "divine, classical drone without the tedious intrusion of drums or vocals." After McBride's death in 2023, Wiltzie remains the sole member.
The Tired Sounds of Stars of the Lid is the sixth studio album by ambient drone music group Stars of the Lid. It was released in late 2001 on the Kranky label, on two CDs and three LPs. The album features long minimal, droning compositions created from heavily treated guitar, horn, flute, piano, and other classical instruments.
Hammock is an American ambient post-rock duo formed in Nashville, Tennessee, in 2005 by Marc Byrd and Andrew Thompson.
Loscil is the electronic/ambient music project of Scott Morgan from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Morgan launched the project in Vancouver in 1998 while a member of the multimedia collective Multiplex, which curated audiovisual events at an underground cinema called The Blinding Light. The name Loscil is taken from the "looping oscillator" function (loscil) in Csound.
Adam Bryanbaum Wiltzie is an American composer and sound engineer based in Brussels, Belgium.
Brian Edward McBride was an American musician best known as one half of the duo Stars of the Lid. He also released two solo albums, When The Detail Lost Its Freedom and The Effective Disconnect, on Kranky using his own name. McBride moved to Austin, Texas, in 1990 where he met Adam Wiltzie, forming Stars of the Lid in the early 1990s. He also worked with the now defunct Pilot Ships. McBride was also a member of the duo Bell Gardens.
And Their Refinement of the Decline is the seventh and final studio album by Stars of the Lid, which was released by Kranky in April 2007. The album was Kranky's 100th release, and was issued as a double CD and as a triple vinyl LP set. And Their Refinement of the Decline features minimal, droning compositions of varied length created from treated guitar, horn, piano, and other classical instruments.
Avec Laudenum is the fifth studio LP released by Stars of the Lid. It was originally released on Sub Rosa in 1999 and then re-released on Chicago indie Kranky in late 2002. The title translates as "With Laudanum", laudanum being an opiate. The first three tracks are three sections of one long piece but, while within the minimalist vein, they have some variation and movement. The final two, individual tracks are more minimalist than the former and create a "floating bliss" atmosphere. By the time of this recording, band members Adam Wiltzie and Brian McBride were residing in Brussels, Belgium, and Los Angeles, California, respectively. It is reported that a vast proportion of this album was recorded through mail, with ideas being sent back and forth between the duo.
Per Aspera Ad Astra is the fourth studio LP by Stars of the Lid, made in collaboration with artist Jon McCafferty and released on Kranky in 1998. McCafferty approached Stars of the Lid with a view towards collaboration after working on a series of paintings inspired by the duo's 1995 debut Music for Nitrous Oxide. The title is a common Latin phrase translatable as "through hardships, to the stars."
Dustin O'Halloran is an American composer and pianist. Aside from releasing music as a recording artist, O'Halloran is a film and TV composer, as well as one half of ambient act A Winged Victory for the Sullen.
The Ballasted Orchestra is the third studio album by Stars of the Lid and their first to have its initial release on Kranky. It was released simultaneously as a double LP and a single CD in March 1997. The album features minimal, droning compositions, of varied length, some of which blend into each other. The track "Taphead" is a reference to the Talk Talk song of the same name while "Music for Twin Peaks Episode #30 Part I" and "Part II" are named as a tribute to the cult TV show.
Gravitational Pull vs. the Desire for an Aquatic Life is the second studio album by ambient drone music group Stars of the Lid. It was recorded on four track and released as an LP on Sedimental in 1996. The album features short, medium and long minimal, droning compositions created from heavily treated guitar, horn, piano and other classical instruments.
Kyle Bobby Dunn is a Canadian composer, arranger, and live performer of modern compositional and guitar based drone music. He has performed in live and exclusive outdoor settings, including Banff National Park, since 2000 and has released music on various international recording labels.
Felix were a British chamber pop musical group, whose members included Lucinda Chua, Chris Summerlin and Elv Beetham. In 2009, Felix signed to Chicago-based label Kranky, following support from Ambient Music band Stars of the Lid. Their debut album met positive feedback from BBC Music and Pitchfork.
A Winged Victory for the Sullen is an American ambient music duo composed of Dustin O'Halloran and Adam Wiltzie. They have released four studio albums, an EP, and one soundtrack album. In 2015, they performed at the Royal Albert Hall as part of The Proms.
Christina Vantzou is a Kansas City, Missouri-born composer and filmmaker of Greek descent based in Brussels, Belgium. First becoming known as one-half of the audio-visual duo The Dead Texan, she has released five albums of orchestral ambient music for Kranky. The albums have been accompanied by short films often making use of slow motion photography, arranged using "dream logic".
A Winged Victory for the Sullen is the eponymous debut studio album by the ambient music duo A Winged Victory for the Sullen. It was released on 8 September 2011 on Erased Tapes Records and Kranky. Recorded over a two-year period at six studios throughout Europe, A Winged Victory for the Sullen features extensive use of natural reverb and combines classical instrumentation with soundscapes and drones. In addition to members Dustin O'Halloran and Adam Wiltzie, the album features several prominent collaborators, including Hildur Guðnadóttir and Nils Frahm.
Submers is an album by Canadian musician Scott Morgan under the alias of Loscil. It was released in 2002 by Kranky.
The Undivided Five is the third studio album by the ambient music duo A Winged Victory for the Sullen. It was released on 1 November 2019 on Ninja Tune.
References
- ↑ Luerssen, John D. The Dead Texan - The Dead Texan at AllMusic
- ↑ Ron Schepper (October 4, 2004) The Dead Texan Review. Stylus Magazine.
- ↑ Liam Singer (October 24, 2004) Pitchfork Review: The Dead Texan Pitchfork Media.
