When I'm in the mood for classical piano and chamber music, I usually turn to a bottomless repertoire of Tchaikovsky, Liszt, Chopin, Stravinsky and Beethoven. For a more edgier, experimental, and contemporary feel, I queue up modern classical composers like Arvo Pärt, Phillip Glass, Nico Muhly and Max Richter. I'm definitely adding Hauschka to the latter list. I first discovered Volker Bertelmann upon the release of his sophomore album The Prepared Piano (Karaoke Kalk, 2005). It was an exploration into brutal modifications with adjusted hammers and padded strings that was more on avant-garde side (see John Cage's credited invention of the prepared piano), and made me listen closer for the adjustments in my favorite instrument. The fourth full length album from this Düsseldorf based pianist and composer explores every chamber instrument in its full capacity. On Ferndorf (translating into 'remote village' from German), Hauschka brings in two cellists, violinist and even a trombone player to construct modern classical pieces that are pleasant on the ear and the soul. Five out of twelve tracks appear to be "purely improvised", yet elicit strong musicianship from the participating players. Alluding to his birthplace in rural Germany, the trip along the memory lane, is an upbeat skip and hop. Here, Bertelmann revisits his childhood influences contributing to his decade long affair with the piano. Where most major-chord filled pieces usually fill me with a post-neo-classical dread of scale walking, Hauschka keeps restraint and tends to concentrate on execution and message of each individual piece. Of course, no such trip ever occurs without a touch of melancholy. Here, too, Hauschka excels in creating majestic and musical compositions, all whilst adding a touch of modern experimentation and exploration of live instruments, to let his composition rise just a notch above the rest. Deep respect to Bertelmann for extracting all percussive attributes from a beloved instrument while keeping it waltzing with joy. Grab this latest release from FatCat's sister label, 130701.

The Sea and Cake return to form after last year's disappointing Everybody with Car Alarm. I'll admit I thought maybe Sam Prekop's charm was wearing off after hearing The Sea and Cake's last album. It almost seemed as if they were just going through the motions. But they somehow seem rejuvenated with Car Alarm, which is more daring, with electronics making more appearances (though without messing up the band's very organic sound) and just more variety in the songs in general. The electronic interlude "CMS Sequence" is directly followed by the mid-90s indie sounding "Car Alarm" which is followed by highlight "Weekend", with acoustic guitar mixing electronic noodling that would have Capitol K impressed. It all works together to show that The Sea and Cake are still relevant, and can still capture a listener in an album the way they did so effortlessly before their last album, and even reinvent themselves a little in the process. A very welcome surprise from a still relevant band.

The debut album by Color Cassette rears its head under the new Mobeer sublabel, which The Remote Viewer are calling "Moteer's microbrewery". If you've followed the Moteer catalog at all you know what to expect here, instruments, electronics, and found sounds colliding to form gentle downtempo and indielectronic folk. A fair amount of effort goes into such patchwork music, and in the past it's been easy for albums of this style to be hit and miss. But the last few releases out of the Moteer camp seem to have a certain magic, with no missteps and containing nothing but absolutely stunning compositions. Color Cassette are arguably the most shining example now. Small Town Smoker is as charming as they come, and the myriad of different sources of sounds converge to form a cohesive sound that, to be honest, I think is more enriching than anyone that's done it before, including label founders The Remote Viewer or label stalwarts The Boats. I'm not sure what the Lexington, Kentucky based duo did before this project, but the labor employed here suggests that these men have been honing their skills for quite some time. What's also impressive is that Color Cassette maintain that Small Town Smoker is just the b-side collection for their proper debut "Forevere Sparrow" due soon from Autres Directions. An impressive debut even if it's not meant to be.

Danny Seim, the drummer of Menomena, flies solo for his ninth full-length (and second in 2008) as Lackthereof. Danny was actually a singer-songwriter long he joined Menomena in 2000, and he's obviously done a lot of work here away from the project he's best known for. On first listen not much will sound different from a Menomena record. The raw durmming is of course still there, and you'll certainly recognize the voice. His delivery is less emotional and more detached though, and by track 2, you're greeted with electronic synths and a country guitar. The songwriting becomes more straight-forward and less goofy than Menomena as you move through the record, but it's surprising that it's really not all that stripped down. The guitar work is different and the vocals are instrumentation are less tongue-in-cheek, but you'd never guess this was a one man band record even though Danny recorded it by himself in his basement. An impressive record, and more than worthy of holding over those waiting for new Menomena material.

Long-time jungle afficionado/blogger Naphta finally decides to drop an album, and it's sure to cause some disorientation for all but the most seasoned jungle vet. Following the fantastic Grande Illusions collection from last year, Naphta has used Long Time Burning to craft a dizzying exercise from 20 years worth of jungle music, getting so schizophrenic at times the music could almost pass for turntablism. Samples collide over drum patterns that are of course way over the speed limit, but as soon as the record gets up to speed the left turns keep coming, taking you through a new genre almost every couple of minutes, slowing down on a dime then wizzing past you. Jungle rarely gets this fresh, especially in the long-player format. Trainspotters will recognize a lot of these samples, but that becomes part of the fun of this wild ride of a record.

Here's everything I love about modern classical and experimental ambient. Tiny sprinkles of noise and artifacts. Glitchy digital errors across strummed guitars. Chopped up echoes of piano. Timeless bliss... All making up some jigsaw puzzle of a melody that reveals itself only if you unfocus your mind, unplug the brain, and blur your vision. Let the sound saturate your thoughts, swirling forwards and back in time, seeking lost data across corrupted volumes of memories. Ah, there it is, that moment. Nope, gone again. Tokyo based Shunichiro Fujimoto's solo project under Fjordne moniker is a feat of subliminal time slippage consumed by the inevitable force of a black hole. Sourcing only acoustic instruments and some voice, Fujimoto digitally warps and processes the sounds into The Last 3 Days Of Time which gets picked up by a San Francisco based Dynamophone Records. And here's where owning a physical copy of this album really pays off: the 250 limited and numbered compact disk has a black lining (maybe that's what reminded me of black hole) and arrives in a small round tin container with a matted imprint of a bird sitting on a branch, revealing tiny mechanical gears beneath its feathers. A wind-up bird of time, approaching its last three days... And the clock ticks... It is no coincidence that the cover art resembles the theme behind The Wind Up Bird Chronicle by my all time favorite Japanese author, Haruki Murakami. Fujimoto's music is inspired by this and other Murakami works (which you absolutely must read if you read fiction at all!).

The first High Places album (recently recommended here at The Music Lobby) induced visions of each track being laid down to tape on a separate sun-kissed Caribbean island, as it were, complete with a light breeze and circling tropical birds and locals helping out with the drum sounds, etc. Their second album sounds as if it was recorded in the middle of the night, in the duo's Brooklyn home. Darker, a bit more sinister, with more chord progressions and song structures than their earlier work, but still astonishingly inventive, playful, and thoroughly unique. My only complaint would be that the vocals are a bit washed out, and the darker shift in mood doesn't go perfectly well with their general aesthetic, but it's a very impressive effort nonetheless.

More dub-related goodness from the Rod Modell collective in Detroit; supposedly Intrusion is a mysterious producer who did some unreleased recordings in the mid-90's and has been 'discovered' by Modell, but I'm guessing this is just Basic Channel-esque self-mythologization. Though, as I've said before, and will probably say again; Modell is a true savant, and could rightly be called the one-man heir to the Basic Channel sound. "Tswana Dub" is probably closest to the Rhythm & Sound axis of Ernestus/Oswald's output - reggae/dub from deep, deep outer space. Highly recommended!

After 2007's "Tio Bitar," Gustav Ejstes brings us "4." Simply, the 4th album released by Dungen. "4" moves in a somewhat different direction while keeping the signature psychedelic-folk, shredding guitar, and fuzzed out rhythms found throughout the previous three releases. Ejstes plays piano as the lead instrument on "4" as opposed to the usual guitar. Don't get me wrong, there is plenty of shredding guitar moments throughout the release (for example: "Samtidigt 1" as ever, like "Intro" from "Tio Bitar." However, the album feels more like a jazz fusion release as it is much mellower and focused around warm grooves. Tracks like the instrumental "Samtidigt 2" are reminiscent of jazz rock bands like Hatfield and the North and The Soft Machine that evoke a mellow and warm groove. "Det Tar Tid" is among the standout tracks, full of fuzzy guitar and echoing electric piano as well as Ejstes' melodic voice carrying out the rest. "4" is exciting and holds up well with previous releases.

Writing about such music is difficult. Especially when its beauty is escorted by concept. I could tell you about Touch Ringtones, and Max Richter's approach at creating twenty four miniature classical sketches designed to capture the moment and snap you in and out of your daily tasks. I could tell you about Richter's gallery installations where the pieces would be transmitted to the audiences mobile phones via SMS. I could tell you about the twenty four photographic images beautifully laid out on a CD insert (some revealing a reflection or a shadow of Max Richter himself), and on a mini website with a preview of the tracks. I could, perhaps, quote the German-born, modern classical composer, who explains the idea behind his fourth album in his own words: "thinking about how we listen to music now, with the range of options available, I wondered why it is that the ringtone medium has so far been treated as unfit for creative music..." But I won't do any of that. Instead, I simply invite you to listen and decide for yourself... Richter may have an impact on your perception of the intrusive personal wake up call of a gadget humanity should probably live without. I often picture Mozart slapping his forehead at the thought that his genius is echoed through a tiny speaker on a busy subway. Perhaps one day, on my morning commute, I will be disturbed by the alarming calm of Max Richter's peaceful piano playing through someone's Nextel. Perhaps... I doubt it... Until then, I highly recommend an excellent pair of headphones to enjoy this absolutely marvelous collection of sketches whose shortcoming is only their brief existence. Each track ranges between one minute and two, offering you only a short glimpse into a moment conveyed through geographically centered track names, personal photographic snapshots, and of course music itself. The instrumentation for the album is limited by Richter himself to a string quintet, acoustic guitar, and of course, a piano. The seasoning for this recipe includes dusty vinyl, fuzzy shortwave radio, and clicky scratchy samples, all processed by transistors and 16 track 2" tape. The pieces are designed to be a cluster of fragmented impressionistic vignettes, "stitched together to form a series of jump-cuts and foldbacks in time." Richter elaborates further: "because the piece is a collection of tones, where I have no control of the order, I made a structure that holds together by use of shared material – like a cloud of pieces, or a handful of confetti, or a constellation of fragments – to be navigated as you like..." 24 Postcards In Full Colour is released on Brighton Based Fat Cat Records imprint, 130701, dedicated to more instrumental albums. I highly recommend you also pickup (or revisit) Richter's previous hailed modern classical masterpieces, Memoryhouse, The Blue Notebooks, and Songs From Before.