John Adams—The Dharma at Big Sur

It's been a long time since I've heard a new piece of music (new to me) that has truly taken my breath away—too long. But now this:



It's something I really should have listened to before. I've loved Steve Reich and Philip Glass for a long time and I knew of John Adams as someone related to them but I'd only ever heard his operas, which, while nice...—I just don't like operas. But this piece for solo electric violin and orchestra just blows my mind. (NB I prefer the Leila Josefowicz version but the above is free.)

Noisy neighbours: a remedy

My downstairs neighbours seem (from the sounds of it) to be having a party.  I don't begrudge them it because it's Saturday night and they're normally fairly quiet (if anything we're the noisy neighbours!) but I'm really not in the mood for the shitty techno-ish thud, thud, boom, boom music that's vibrating through the floor so I've responded by playing the following album quite loud:



As most people who know me are aware, Sigur Rós are pretty much my favourite band ‒ nay, my favourite artists ‒ of all time.  This album is by the singer/guitarist, Jonsi, and his partner (who isn't in the band), Alex.  I think the rest of them probably helped record it but it's Jonsi and Alex's composition.  Anyway, it's the perfect remedy for the aforementioned predicament ‒ etherial, magisterial soundscapes that hazily, droningly fill up up the whole sound spectrum and lay out a world that you can get lost in.  Just wonderful.  Breathtaking.