After years admiring the work of 36 here on ASIP, we are pleased to announce his new concept album, titled ‘The Infinity Room’.
Inspired by his home and studio, Dennis Huddleston aka 36 set out to create an album born from endless possibility. Restricting himself to a limited sound palette, he focused on exploring his own private infinity, allowing even the smallest tangents to develop in a musical multi-verse of limitless potential.
“What is just one room (my studio) becomes many rooms when working on music,” Dennis explains. “From this single point, countless possibilities exist and this is where the concept for 'The Infinity Room' takes root. It's the thrill of taking a small idea from an ocean of possibilities, and watching it grow into something far grander."
“From the very first track, I made a conscious decision to restrict myself to a limited sound palette,” he adds. “Each track used the same core sounds, but evolves and mutates them in subtle ways, as well as being the direct inspiration for the track that came after.”
That intent is clear, with each track a different shade of what came before. Thoughtful tones with a warm, vintage brightness, develop into extended love stories and romantic journeys, speaking to the cinematic influence of pioneers like Tangerine Dream, Vangelis, Brad Fiedel, Charles Bernstein and John Carpenter.
“They were masters of creating vivid dream worlds, all of whom created the soundtracks to many of my favourite films,” he admits. “In more recent times, I’ve grown to deeply admire producers like OPN, Disasterpeace, Boards of Canada and Sinoia Caves, and they’ve reinvigorated my love for 70's and 80's era electronic film music.”
It all gives ‘The Infinity Room’ the subtle, shifting repetition that has long been a 36 hallmark; each track an ever-evolving reflection, a catalyst, another step into the inestimable.
“I just love those driving melodies that dig deep into your head and let the repetition take control, mutating and shifting on a macro level, so you only discover how much it's changed by the very end,” Huddleston smiles. “I think that's what the core of my sound was always about really and it's why each track on this album uses melody as the primary focus, with the keys taking control, and the track evolving with them. Repetition... The sound of infinity.”
36 has been a prolific figure in the modern ambient scene for close to a decade. Beginning with his debut and highly praised album 'Hypersona', Dennis Huddleston has been sharing his own emotive blend of electronic music through his own platforms, as well as labels such as Ultimae Records, Mystic & Quantum, and ICASEA. He also runs his own label 3six Recordings, which he describes as a love affair with the vinyl format.
released October 24, 2016
Mastered by Rafael Anton Irisarri @ Black Knoll Studio www.blackknollstudio.com Artwork by Dennis Huddleston (36)
"These tracks were recorded early 2016, immediately after I finished The Infinity Room. They were originally going to be pressed on a limited 12" white label, but due to various reasons, I never got around to releasing it. Some of you may have heard them in my recent mixlr broadcasts. They're a lot more uptempo than my usual tracks and because they're stylistically quite different to what I usually go for, they never quite found a place elsewhere. I like them a lot though and rather than see them go to waste, I've decided to upload them here as a digital download, exclusive to my Bandcamp page. It's a small thank-you to fans old and new, who have supported my music over the years. I've set it as pay what you want, but feel free to enter zero if you want to download it for free. Anything you do pay will go towards funding future vinyl releases. Thanks and I hope you enjoy them!" - 36
We're living in a unique time in history. Most of our planet has already been traversed and catalogued by people who have come before us. Earth, at least from a geographical perspective, has few discoveries left for us. The true unknown lies in the worlds beyond our own. It's likely that in the next few decades, humans will finally have the means to take our first tentative steps on the surface of our neighbouring planet, Mars. We will be the first known species that has both the knowledge and the desire to transcend our existence beyond our home planet and expand further into space. There may even be people alive today whose children will be born on a planet that isn't called Earth. For them, the concept of "home" has a very different meaning to our own. They will be Tomorrow's Explorers, redefining what it means to be human, whilst retaining the very thing that makes us so - our unquenchable thirst to explore the unknown.
"Tomorrow's Explorers is the follow-up to my 2015 EP 'Sine Dust'. Usually when I finish a record, I draw a line under it and move onto the next concept, with the explicit desire to do something different. After 'Sine Dust', I felt that there was more of a story to tell. Space is a pretty big place! Whereas 'Sine Dust' was a 100% synthesiser-based record, 'Tomorrow's Explorers' expands the sound gamut considerably, introducing heavy string-based sections, that work alongside the synths and pads to create expansive, enveloping walls of sound. This culminates in the 13 minute title track, which I feel is one of my most audibly rich, melodically complex tracks to date. Drawing influence from every other record I've made, whilst taking the sound to new and unfamiliar places, 'Tomorrow's Explorers' is sure to please fans both old and new. The endless themes of space have been explored countless times by artists in the past. It's a limitless source of inspiration for many of us and always a joy to discover. As usual, I hope you enjoy where it takes you." -36
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The Tomorrow's Explorers Versions are exclusive to this Bandcamp release and free for all who purchase the digital or vinyl version.
released January 30, 2017
All tracks written & produced by 36 Artwork & design by Patrick Bunn & 36 Mastered by Rafael Anton Irisarri @ Black Knoll Studio, New York
1. Black Soma 05:14 2. Black Sustain 05:48 3. Black Halcyon 07:08 4. Black Sun 05:40 5. Black Shore 02:20 6. Black Future 06:16 7. Black Sleep 06:53 8. Black Cascade 07:16
"Black Soma concludes my space-inspired series of releases, following the 'Sine Dust' and 'Tomorrow's Explorers' EP's. Whereas those records were often romantic and other-worldly sounding, I wanted 'Black Soma' to be more grounded in the realities and struggles of people living on our own planet, today.
Tracks like 'Black Soma' and 'Black Halcyon' see a return to the emotionally-charged choral sound of classic 36 tunes like 'Reunion', whereas, the synth-dominated 'Black Sun' and 'Black Future' radiate with the kind of mechanical warmth I just love. For me, the most memorable music skirts the line between sadness and exhilaration, and I feel this has always been at the core of my music, just like it's at the heart of all people.
It's been ten years since I first started the 36 project. Here's to the next ten." -36
