Soothers #03 is brought to you by Texas-based producer Gi Gi, taking us on a jazz-based journey of skittering rides and cascading woodwinds.

“This one was an exercise in tying together two disparate but interconnected styles: 21st century electronic jazz & a loosely idm-y strain of 90’s downtempo electronic music. The first third or so focuses on the former, the middle bit on the later, & the last section a sort of imprecise blend of the two. I find there’s a parallel in the complexity of the jazz instrumentalists’ performances & the electronic producers’ programming, a virtuosic streak that's balanced with restraint in service of texture & mood. I like how in many of these tracks it’s hard to parse what is organic vs synthetic— a live saxophone recording may be chopped & looped so that it sounds like a sample; likewise, a sample may be smoothed and blended so that you're fooled into thinking it’s a live take. Both of these styles share the sort of tranquil quality you’d associate with “ambient music”, but are (to my ears) a little more engaging or stimulating than your typical static, droning example of the genre due to a heavier emphasis on movement, both rhythmic & melodic. Think of it as a different panel of the ambient umbrella— Active Ambient?”

Words & Photographs: Gi Gi