14 October 2025: The Moody Blues "Days of Future Passed"; Raica "The Absence of Being" (Quiet Details 39)

 Be sure to follow KMXT FreeForm Radio on Facebook and Bandcamp and Spotify.  

You can now listen to the livestream of the show through the KMXT app; it's available through the Mac App Store or Google Play. The stream is also available at www.kmxt.org

Please support FreeForm Radio and KMXT by going to www.KMXT.org and pledging your support.

The music you hear on tonight's show is available on the artists' Bandcamp pages and websites. (links below) 

We urge you to support the musicians you hear on FreeForm Radio. 

I will also be hosting Rural Electric (Mostly) Country Music from 7-9 pm after the Island Messenger.  

15 July 2025: Field Lines Cartographer "Resplendent in the Light of the Universe" (DiN93); Jo Johnson "Escape Now" (Quiet Details 36)

 Be sure to follow KMXT FreeForm Radio on Facebook and Bandcamp and Spotify.  

You can now listen to the livestream of the show through the KMXT app; it's available through the Mac App Store or Google Play. The stream is also available at www.kmxt.org

Please support FreeForm Radio and KMXT by going to www.KMXT.org and pledging your support.

The music you hear on tonight's show is available on the artists' Bandcamp pages and websites. (links below) 

We urge you to support the musicians you hear on FreeForm Radio. 

 I'll also be hosting Rural Electric right after the Island Messenger at  7 pm until 9 pm

Resplendent In The Light Of The Universe (DiN93)
Mark Burford aka Field Lines Cartographer 

The second solo album on the DiN imprint from UK synthesist Mark Burford, aka Field Lines Cartographer, sees him venturing even further out into the cosmic void with an hour long suite of modular explorations. His previous DiN release, Portable Reality Generator (DiN85), was enthusiastically received, and as with that release the music on this new album flows seamlessly from one track to the next. Burford has been establishing a fine reputation both as a live performer and with releases on several labels such as Castles In Space, Quiet Details and Woodford Halse. His musicality and deft touch are certainly at the fore on the beautifully named ‘Resplendent In The Light Of The Universe’.

Using a range of analogue modular instruments as well as an array of digital effects Burford weaves music for a deep contemplation of questions alluding to the underlying nature of the cosmos. The eight tracks have such an organic feel and swell and grow like nebulae. With reference to the albums title they have an inner light which shines through the swirling clouds of texture. At times he ventures into Berlin School sequencer territory, especially in tracks such as ‘Various Rotations’ and ‘The Light of Billion Stars’, but it’s never a slavish pastiche of this idiom but rather his own musical voice finding form in this particular style. Elsewhere pieces such as ‘Forever Spheres’ and ‘Gentle Flows’, which bookend the album, are particularly redolent of, in his own words, “the splendour of the luminous universe”.

This new release from Field Lines Cartographer is another fine addition to the DiN canon and takes the labels musical roots forward to a bright future. 

credits

releases July 18, 2025

All music performed and recorded by Mark Burford as Field Lines Cartographer.
Mastered by Ian Boddy February 2025.

Instrumentation:
ARP 2600 and Intellijel Cascadia semi-modular synthesisers
Eurorack and BugBrand modular synthesisers
Buchla 208C Easel Command
Make Noise Strega
Effects processing via Eventide, Chase Bliss, Strymon and Walrus Audio


Thanks to everyone who supports my music and love to my friends and family as always for their unflinching support.
Special thanks to Ian and Wendy at DiN.
FreeForm Radio thanks Ian Boddy for a complimentary copy of this release.

Always strive for the light

ambient em electronic electronic music electronica modular synth space ambient space music Sunderland

 

  Escape Now (QD36)

Jo Johnson 

Credits:
Music by Jo Johnson
Mastered by Alex at quiet details studios
Artwork by quiet details in collaboration with Jo Johnson
Design by quiet details
© quiet details 2025 all rights reserved 

FreeForm Radio thanks Alex for a complimentary copy of this release.
 

Next in the quiet details series is one of the most naturally talented musicians working today, the wonderful Jo Johnson, with Escape Now

Known and loved across the musical spectrum for her transcendent and deeply affecting synthesiser mastery - heard on the albums for labels such a Castles in Space, 9128.live, Apartment, Bleep43, Further, Going In, Mysteries of the Deep and her own self-releases; and in her much in-demand live performances.

Previously also on guitar and vocals in the revolutionary punk band Huggy Bear and other projects, Jo is a true musicians’ musician and has taken all this artistry and experience to create something stunning that goes beyond all expectations.

Escape Now is the music of an artist in brilliantly creative evolution - taking all the elements that make her so widely admired and building on them to take things to a new and mind-expanding sphere.

All the trademark gorgeously nuanced melody and harmony is present, deeply hypnotic and psychedelic - and now her synthesisers combine with a dazzling array of other sound sources and live instrumentation.
Recorder, voice, bells and harp join the analogue and digital synthesis to form a living whole - a vast universe that shows Jo’s unique blend of musical skills - wonderful performance technique, exquisite taste, and the ability to orchestrate it all together in the most elegant fashion.

Ever-shifting melodic sequences come in and out of view, soaring washes of chords mix with endless organic textures - at times a huge sound-world, at others intimate and delicate - always using sonic dynamics to create a beautiful and powerfully mesmerising atmosphere.

The album is perfectly balanced and takes us on a totally absorbing exploration through Jo’s musical mind - it’s a brilliant piece of work that I’m honoured to share with you.

Huge thanks to Jo - an incredible addition to the series.

The artwork was made as always influenced by the music and idea behind the album - originating from a photo from Jo which was then captured with analogue photography and processed here at quiet details studios.

As usual, the album is presented on the physical edition, a custom six-panel digipack with a separate fine art print too.

The CD also has a special long-form continuous mix of the album, created by the artists and representing the music in its purest form.

jojohnson.bandcamp.com  

credits

released July 2, 2025

ambient chill-out downtempo drone electronic field recordings synth synthwave United Kingdom

 

21 September 2021: Melancholy Circus; The Pineapple Thief

 Be sure to follow KMXT FreeForm Radio on Facebook and Bandcamp.  

Please support FreeForm Radio and KMXT by going to KMXT.org and pledging your support.

Due to the City Council work session lasting until 9:35, we did not have time to play Pineapple Thief - we will feature them on October 5.

The first half of tonight's show is a concept album released March 1, 2021.

Composed of eight songs and 59 minutes long, Contents Under Pressure features a symphonic prog approach of exploring mental health using bass guitar, trumpet, piano, and synthesizer solos, as well as guest guitarists, Landon Hankins and Ron Rutherford.

The album takes the listener for a journey from the life and perspective of someone born during the opening song and growing older as the album progresses. This "being" ventures through life unsure of himself/herself and making decisions on his/her own, some of which are questionable.

credits

released March 1, 2021

Ryan Hankins
lead and backing vocals, piano, mellotron, harpsichord, electric piano, Hammond organ, Pipe Organ, Vocoder, bass guitar, trumpet, synthesizers, drum/percussion programming, harmonica, kazoo, jaw harp, recorder, sound effects

Landon Hankins
Tracks 1, 3, 6, 7 - Lead/Rhythm Guitar

Ron Rutherford
Track 7 - Guitar Solo

Aria Brunner
track 1 - Lead vocal
Track 5 - ukulele

Sydney Hankins
Track 1 - Sound FX

progressive rock rock fusion psychedelic rock synth rock Kansas City

 

 The second half of tonight's show is an outstanding release from The Pineapple Thief.

THE PINEAPPLE THIEF, THE LEADING LIGHTS OF EUROPE’S EXPERIMENTAL ROCK DOMAIN RELEASE THEIR NEW ALBUM VERSIONS OF THE TRUTH ON SEPTEMBER 4TH ON KSCOPE

Over the last half-decade, The Pineapple Thief - led by musical polymath Bruce Soord and bolstered by the involvement of master drummer Gavin Harrison - has rapidly ascended to the upper echelons of Europe’s Alternative Rock scene.

Versions Of The Truth - out on September 4th through Kscope - is the latest installment in the band’s deserved (and welcome) rise to success.

The band's anthemic 2018 release Dissolution garnered worldwide acclaim. Earning TPT its highest chart positions to date and the album led to two extensive European headline tours (including a headline show at London's prestigious O2 Shepherd's Bush Empire) and a hugely successful tour of North America.

With the release of its new album, The Pineapple Thief is set to raise its exceptional standards once more, having produced what may be one of the most important albums of 2020.

Versions Of The Truth represents a conceptual progression from Dissolution (a contemplation on our ‘post truth’ world)... and lyrically tackles similar themes, but from a more personal perspective. Reflecting on how there can be more than one ‘version of the truth’, the album’s songs revolve around the impact the media can have on our lives and the people we love.

Recording began at Bourne Place (London) and Soord Studios (Yeovil) after the band had completed its US tour (October 2019 to April 2020), with engineering handled by Bruce Soord and Gavin Harrison. The album has been mastered by Steve Kitch. 

credits

released September 4, 2020

09 April 2019: Babylon / Kindly Spoken Thieves

Babylon was a progressive rock band from Florida that emerged from the band Helicopter.^[2] Babylon was formed in 1976 by Rick Leonard, Rodney Best, Doroccas, J. David Boyko, and Gary Chambers.^[3]
They have been compared to Marillion, Gentle Giant, Rush, and Nursery Cryme period Genesis. The members state their main influences as Gentle Giant, Van der Graaf Generator, Happy the Man, Genesis, and others.^[4][5]. 
Very Genesis influenced Floridian band who put out a coveted album in the late seventies. This is album is extremely in the Genesis style (like Marillion) yet avoids the commerciality that this band eventually dived headfirst into.) Syn-Phonic also released two bootleg quality live albums from their heyday which show them in a rather muddy light.
Imagine an incredible dynamo of progressive energy in the mold of Nursery Cryme period Genesis, but with some slight punky undertones thrown in as well. Add to this the affected vocals of singer Doroccas, and you have a sound that, while not unlike a high energy version of early Marillion, pre-dated that band by five years. They only released one self-titled studio album around 1978, featuring four long cuts. Hopefully someday that fine album will be reissued on compact disc. A few years ago, two limited issue LPs of their live show were released, (Night Over Never and Better Conditions For The Dead) which included all of the songs from the original album, plus several other tracks not included on the studio LP. While the quality of the recording is no better than an average bootleg, the performance on both of these live albums is incredible.
Babylon, in some ways, is better than Nursery Cryme-era Genesis, although certainly not nearly as innovative, given that their album was recorded in '77. Detectable influences include peak-period Genesis, Gentle Giant, a bit of Zeppelin, even. The vocalist has a very high voice, Plant-like in tone, but phrased more like early Gabriel (if you can imagine that). There's some vague resemblance to Rush, but much more progressive and less metallic. I wish they'd been better recorded; the home-grown qualities of the studio album detract from its appeal, though it's certainly better than the "bootleg quality" ascribed to those live albums. If some really exceptional remastering (or remixing!) is done for the CD reissue, this could be a major winner!
 

Discography

• Babylon (1978, reissued 1995 and 1999)
• Night Over Never: Live at the Empty Keg 1 (1989)
• Better Conditions for the Dead: Live at the Empty Keg 2 (1989/2002)

The electronic and ambient collaboration of Steve Setzepfandt and Josh Wittman out of the Minneapolis, MN area.
Recorded from beginning of 2016 to the end of 2018. It is the first album released by the duo under the moniker, Kindly Spoken Thieves.
 

released March 30, 2019

All tracks recorded, mixed, and performed by Steve Setzepfandt and Josh Wittman

Cover Art By: Artem Gordienko
Titled: "Anthropomorphism"
Instagram: www.instagram.com/gordienko.artem/

ambient downtempo electronic guitars piano synth Minneapolis

1.	Black Lines 04:45
	2.	Copter 05:58
	3.	The Graze 07:48
	4.	Straights of Fear 03:42
	5.	Cable Two 05:58
	6.	In Queens 06:37
	7.	Grey Cradle 04:52
	8.	Vyrmillion 03:12
	9.	Amphibious 05:55
	10.	Moonraker 05:52

 

12 March 2019: d'Voxx (DiN58) / Parallel Worlds - Tonal Paintings

The DiN ambient electronica label run by the well known UK synth artist Ian Boddy has reached the milestone of 20 years of releasing music in this year of 2019. During this time Boddy has curated DiN to bring a series of critically acclaimed albums by both well known and up and coming artists through almost 60 CD releases. It’s always particularly satisfying to give new artists a platform for their music and so it is with “Télégraphe” (DiN58) the debut album by d’Voxx.

This duo of Nino Auricchio and Paul Borg explore the post-digital landscape working within the constraints of analogue systems and the evolving phenomena of New Modular synthesis. The project has developed over the past three years through a series of acclaimed live performances at festivals and expos across Europe, which included the world premiere of a live new modular performance in 3D-Audio at the London College of Music in 2016.

Both Paul and Nino have enviable music careers in the worlds of music production, engineering, remixing and musical education that gives them a wealth of experience that they bring to bear both on stage and in the studio. “Télégraphe” unfolds over 9 tracks to create a sonic travelogue where each track segues into the next via field recordings at various subway stations throughout the world. The music both looks at the past with it’s tightly choreographed, Berlin School inspired sequence lines but wraps this in a gorgeous blanket of modern ambience. Some beautiful vintage Fender Rhodes adds to the textures via glitched up modular effects. What is most impressive though is the sheer musicality of the sequencing which is showcased in the glorious opening track “Opera”.

Even after 20 years the DiN label shows no signs of resting on it’s laurels and in promoting new acts such as d’Voxx is helping to expand the worlds of ambient electronica. 

credits

releases March 15, 2019

Composed and produced by Gaetano Auricchio and Paul Borg.
Station announcements by Jutta Bushell.
Mastered by John Webber at AIR Studios, London.
Special Thanks to Ian Boddy, Robin Rimbaud, Ben Wilson, Phelan Kane, Andreas Schneider, Ross Lamond, Jason Lim (Instruō), Larry Whelan & Luke Oxlade. 

ambient em electronic electronic music electronica chill out downtempo modular synth Sunderland

Parallel Worlds’ music is a combination of dreamy/atmospheric textures with pure analogue electronic rhythms and sequences, combining the feel of 70s electronic music with modern electronica and ambient music.

Delving deep into a ghostly landscape, Parallel Worlds make his personal journey through ambient-soundtracks music created by a selected range of synths. This personal and introspective album is composed by eight tracks which come from far away and unraveling between horror atmospheres, dark desolate landscapes and sci-fi visions. After a series of incredible albums for labels such as Shima Records and DiN, Parallel Worlds lands on Lost In It Records with an intense and visceral work ready to leave its mark in your soul.

Biography:
Parallel Worlds’ music is a combination of dreamy/atmospheric textures with pure analogue electronic rhythms and sequences, combining the feel of 70s electronic music with modern electronica and ambient music. For Parallel Worlds, melody is essential, but most important is emotional context.

Parallel Worlds are the main project of Bakis Sirros with John Sirros (and some occasional collaborators). They were originally born in 1994, but only after 1998 they started to be a part of the active greek electronic music scene.

Parallel Worlds have collaborated, so far, with established Italian ambient composer Alio Die, with the very well-known UK electronic music master Ian Boddy, and with the music professor Dave Bessell (member of the NODE synth supergroup).

Bakis Sirros also participates on some collaboration projects, the project “Interconnected” with the german musician Ingo Zobel (of DRON, Signalform, Self Oscillate, Datasette, etc.), the ambient / experimental project “Memory Geist” with the australian electronica musician Steve Law (of Zen Paradox, Starseed Transmission, Guild Of Fire, etc.).

Bakis Sirros has also teached Synthesizer Programming at an (after-high-school) public learning institution and also instructed a Workshop on Analogue Modular Synthesis in Synch Festival 2008. 

credits

released October 22, 2018

Machines used:
Yamaha CS-01, CS-5, CS-15, Roland SH-101, Novation Bassstation rack, Korg Mono/poly, Roland JX-8P, Akai
AX-80, S-950, Korg Wavestation, 03R/W

All tracks written and produced by Bakis Sirros, in Wavemountain studio, Athens, Greece, between 1995 - 1997

Mastered by Andrea Merlini
Cover Design by LaCosta
Photography by Francesco Stella

2018 - Lost In It Records 

ambient berlin school cosmic downtempo electro electronic experimental synth techno Roma