Pop Ambient 2020

Pop Ambient 2020 is the 20th annual volume of what might be the most reliable compilation series of all time. This isnt to say that the series has been formulaic -- over the years, its shifted from muted, billowing ambient to more abstract material, even venturing into pieces closer to modern classical or post-rock than techno. Whats assured is that every volume fits within the series loosely defined aesthetic, and that theyre all worth listening to -- track by track, the selections are often incredibly gorgeous, or merely pleasant at the very least. Commemorating a quiet milestone, Pop Ambient 2020 is available in a special limited double-LP edition which includes the first-ever vinyl pressing of the series inaugural volume from 2001, while the CD edition is a continuous mix, with one less track than the vinyl and digital versions. In any case, the album includes several more tracks than the usual volume, which typically has around a dozen tracks, and they vary between Kompakt old guard (Joachim Spieth, Markus Guentner) and newer-school artists like Max Wurden and Yui Onodera who have become mainstays of the series more recent entries. The abundantly pretty snow-scape of Onoderas Cromo 4 leads into darker, more stirring pieces by Spieth and T.Raumschmiere, and any tension is relieved by the ASMR meditation of Morgen Wurde and Maria Estrellas Lasst Los. Thomas Fehlmanns Liebesperlen has the faintest notion of a bouncing beat, and almost seems funky compared to the rest of the tracks. Tracks like Gen Pops Iron Woman and Thore Pfeiffers Alles Bleibt Anders (excluded from the mixed-CD version) are fresh updates on the classic Wolfgang Voigt-esque Pop Ambient style of mesmerizing backward/forward loops of classical instruments. It all ends in the most peaceful way possible, with two wonderfully detached pieces from the long-absent Andrew Thomas, the second of which is simply, appropriately titled Sleep Fall. ~ Paul Simpson

老舗コンパクトの創設者の一人、ウォルフガング・フォイトが長らく監修を務め、レーベルのアンビエント・サイドを代表してきた看板コンピレーション・シリーズもついに記念すべき20作目。アンビエント・テクノの第一人者であるジ・オーブのトーマス・フェルマンら大御所から新進気鋭の才能までのトラックが収録されるなか、日本人アーティストのユイ・オノデラが初参加という快挙にも注目です。
bounce (C)藤堂てるいえ