Thursday, August 14, 2014

A new Daniel Crommie album released - "Penumbra - Summer Solstice Sketches"

A new instrumental / ambient album "Penumbra - Summer Solstice Sketches" was released on Tuesday, October 21st on iTunes, CD Baby and at Band Camp one month earlier on September 22nd. Read a review here.




The first long hot day of springtime and molecules are beating faster - rapid movement from all creatures, plants, insects, animals in the warm draft of air. The excitement is palpable. Trees grow, leaves reappear, flowers bloom, people shed their winter clothes and all creation is on the upswing. Rain nourishes the fecund gardens and a shaft of sunlight slices through the storm clouds, inciting the streets and sidewalks to steam. Rain returns, sun performs an encore to the delight of butterflies, birds and worms. The truncated nights are dewy, with sweetness emanating from blood-red roses wafting in the breeze. As the sun sets, Robins alight to their nests and the  dusky streets are abuzz with restless strollers. The lotus moon rises, nighttime falls in a hush and leaves rustle awaiting the new days dawning. Come morn, the first rays emanate from the east and the new season triumphs with birdsong and distant train horns.

This project was created spontaneously: conception, composition, recording and mixing taking place over a ten day period bookending the summer solstice. Daniel Crommie played all of the instruments, engineered and mixed the album at Digitalis in June 2014.

Revisionist History
For many a millennia the solstice arrives - familiar, yet always unique.
Rain Outside the Temple
Tall trees shelter tiny flowers and ferns on the forest floor.
Jungle Wire
Brambles and vines reach out through the thickets.
Summer Solstice Eve
On the eve, the short night sings.
The Leaf Gatherers
Squirrels and birds gather their nest material from arboreal heights.
Branch Water Avenue
Below the clouds, the sidewalks hum with activity.
4 July / Penumbra
On a midsummer evening, the moon casts its shadow.
Wind Dancer
A breeze winds its way through the vibrant growth. Birds soar.
Aunt Lion
Midnight dreams occupy sweet slumber.
Seeding the Clouds
Sea air moves in to nurture the landshape.

Tuesday, June 24, 2014

Daniel's 1988 album "Animosity" released at Band Camp


Daniel Crommie's 1988 album "Animosity" - an album previously only available on cassette has been released digitally at Band Camp. An experimental collection of works with only one vocal piece (a Medieval one at that...) and featuring synthesizers: "Animosity is a challenging album and one which it can at times be difficult to stick with, its stand offishness a real force that can prove overwhelming. Those with a fascination for 80s electronic that isn't commercial will find much to engage, those not will feel on the outside looking in, until "Still Life" reveals its brooding beauty." Read the full review here.

Steven Reid - Sea of Tranquility

Here's the track listing:

There Once Was a City, Red Sandstone Cliffs, Concrete, Horror of Horrors, Jump Barrier, (Sex) WalkieTalkie, Snake Oil, Vertical Ocean, Still Life, Birdhouse Metropolis



Sunday, June 1, 2014

New interview with Daniel Crommie

This month a new interview with Daniel Crommie discussing his latest album "A Silent Sea" and other music-related subjects was published in Turntable Operator. You can order the 'zine for a mere $2 here.

Friday, April 11, 2014

Daniel Crommie "Rarities 1976 - 2008" released


A collection of recordings made between 1976 and 2008 was released at Band Camp on May 27th. Some of these confections were previously made available on cassette EP's and out-of-print albums, but most have not been released before - such as a demo version of Floating in Limbo and Plainsong, a solo dulcimer tune from 1976.



Here's the track listing:

01. Fast By the River - Recorded in 1982
02. O Deadly Dwale - Recorded in 1978
03. The Gazelle - Recorded in 1979
04. Plainsong - Recorded in 1976
05. The Proud Father of My Garden - Recorded in 1982
06. Fear of Negative - Recorded in 1983
07. Fresh Fish Flesh - Recorded in 1986, remixed in 2012
08. We Are Both Virgins  - Recorded in 1986, remixed in 2012
09. The Hard Winters Fall - Recorded in 1994
10. Thingamajigwhatchamacallit (long) - Recorded in 1998
11. Made for TV (edit) - Recorded in 1995
12. Mango (vocal version) - Recorded in 1996
13. Mouse (space dub) - Recorded in 1996/2000
14. Still Standing (2010 mix) - Recorded in 2005
15. Floating in Limbo (early version) - Recorded in 2008

Monday, February 24, 2014

Vents Magazine interviews Daniel Crommie

Read A recently published online interview for Vents Magazine with Daniel Crommie, where Daniel talks about his past, present and future musical projects and working with the Jade Warriors.

Tuesday, February 18, 2014

Precious Time - 25th Anniversary Deluxe Edition

On March 25th, New Weave released a newly-remixed deluxe edition of Daniel's ground-breaking 1989 album "Precious Time" exclusively at Band Camp. This new remastered edition digitally remixed in January 2014 from the original DBX-encoded cassette portastudio multitrack tapes includes all of the tracks from the original 1989 cassette album, the bonus track from the 1998 CD release, plus an additional previously unreleased track. This is easily the best sounding remaster of this milestone album. Here's a 1990 review: "Crommie’s musical timespan stretches from the middle ages right through a digital sampler into 1990. He plays instruments as diverse as the recorder, the psaltery, the synth, and the dulcimer, and creates gorgeous compositions which utilize medieval sounds alloyed with a new age aesthetic. Your first comparison might be to Mark Isham’s music, although Crommie is more delicate – he doesn’t go in for Isham’s grandiloquence. Crommie’s synthesizers are subtle, creating a sort of dreamy context which allows the acoustic instruments’ voices plenty of room. If you’re into medieval music, you may hear it in a new light on this tape. And if your taste runs to new age, this is a must, a distinct cut above the audio anesthesia you hear from the larger new age labels these days." – John Baxter



Option Magazine / March 1990.

Here's a recent review:

"You will not find many intense instrumental workouts here, that's not what Precious Time is about. If, however, you enjoy instrumental music where the pieces flow seamlessly together and the ambience never gets too heavy, Precious Time might warrant further investigation."

Thursday, January 2, 2014

New Daniel Crommie limited release

A new album of rarities has been released as a Band Camp exclusive for the low price of $5. PsychedelicMedievalSpaceJazz features eight tracks recorded between 1996-2008 - out-takes from Sargasso Manuscript and Life Rattle  including an extended mix of "The Spell is Broken". Much of this was previously released in 2006 as a limited release under the title of PsychedelicMedievalJazz. All instruments: Daniel Crommie except on Distant Train Calling where Jess Fry played percussion samples. 



Here is the track listing: 


1. The Spell is Broken (extended mix #2) 2. Flutter & Fade 3. Bug Zapper Waltz 4. Warning 5. Short Circuit 6. The Zenith Curse 7. Faces in Stone 8. Distant Train Calling 9. Chrysalis 2 10. The Pillars at Dawn 2