Mark Mosher Multimedia

Hi there, and Happy Thanksgiving to those in the US.

I’m happy to announce that Sonic Encounters Volumes 01 – 04, which up till now were only on Bandcamp, are now available on all major streaming platforms such as Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube Music, Amazon Music and more.

That is 35 tracks and 3 hours and 44 minutes of music. Perfect for your road trip and holiday travel playlists 😀.

Below, I’ll offer a section for each album with a little info on the release, plus a HyperFollow link will direct you to the album on your favorite listening app or platform.

Please take a moment to follow my artist page on your fav app, and add some songs to your playlists.

About Sonic Encounters

Sonic Encounters began as a podcast in 2015. After each season of the podcast completed it was released in album form.

These songs are a combination of electronic tonalities derived from synthesis and musique concrète using original sounds. Most of the songs are improvisations recorded in one take. Songs were produced on a variety of rigs including Ableton Live, Electron, Synthstrom Deluge, Nord Lead 4, Eurorack, and various iPad instruments and effects using keys, pads, multi-touch, expressive controllers, and gestural expression via joystick.

The following review of the original podcast does a nice job summarizing the concept of Sonic Encounters Soundscapes…

Goosebumps and Deep Breaths… these rich soundscape “stories” sincerely do thrill my senses. The concept for Sonic Encounters (so far, and in my interpretation) is this. You read a short text (sometimes the title is enough) on the premise of the “story” before listening. Then you listen to a purely sonic piece of field recording morphed with music, electronic manipulation, and performance, and you’re immediately transported via your own imagination’s 3D projection of his premise. Mark’s become a consummate sound artist. He creates powerful imagery and elicits surprisingly keen emotional response from the listener without being heavy-handed. His economy and value in precision is proof of his skill.

 Blind Fly Theater

Sonic Encounters Volume 01

Sonic Encounters Volume 01 first released in 2017 is filled with 13 ambient soundscapes with running time of 1 hour and 50 minutes. These soundscapes are a combination of electronic tonalities derived from synthesis and musique concrète using original sounds, field recordings, patterns and notes played via keys, pads, trigs, and buttons. Additional expression on these musical objects is improvised via key/pad pressure, touch strips, knobs, sliders, crossfaders and live sound design to create real-time automations.

1. And What do the Trees Hear When the Wind Blows?  
2. Metamorphosis Under The Chatham Light 
3. Children of the Gods Find the Weather Machine 
4. A Day In The Life Of A Krell Technician 
5. Irreversible Transcription Errors During Consciousness Transfer 
6. When the Whales Take Back the Ocean 
7. Descent Into Ancient Ice Cave 
8. Take A Trip On The Train From Devil’s Gate Depot 
9. I’m Completely Operational, and All My Circuits Are Functioning Perfectly 
10. Swarm of the Nanobots 
11. Tonalities from Orbit 01 
12. Tonalities from Orbit 02 
13. Replicant’s Lament 

Sonic Encounters Volume 02

Sonic Encounters Volume 02 was first released in 2019 and has a running time of 42 minutes. In addition to ambient soundscapes, I start to introduce more melodies and rhythms into some of these works. The album also features one track from my horror soundscapes album No Ghosts. Just Fear.

1. The Department of Entropy 
2. Slipping Into Stasis Entering Jump Gate 42 
3. Primeval (From No Ghosts. Just Fear.) 
4. Last Known Transmission of the Expedition to Explore The Undersea Cave of the Giant 
5. Operation Polynya
6. Tonalities from Orbit 03 
7. Dancing at the Edge of Entropy

Sonic Encounters Volume 03

Sonic Encounters Volume 03 was first released in 2020 and has 7 songs and clocks in at 35 minutes.

In volume three, in addition to more traditional soundscape, I turn up the heat with some heavy rhythmic experimental songs and introduce more off-the-grid lead synth work. 

The album kick off “Please Press 3”, a journey in corporate phone routing hell, features extreme tempo changes ranging from 80 BPM – 764 BPM. Hang in there till the end as there is a fun twist.

Another fun and unusual track on this album is “Ancient Savanna (A Post Modern Ambient Bossa Nova Ice Cream Sandwich)”. This was inspired in-part by the fantastic soundtrack to the horror TV show Helix which old Wurlitzer organ/drum machine sounds and elevator music. Speaking of this, check out my interview with Helix Composer Reihhold Heil here (who BTW was in the band Nena back in the day https://markmoshermusic.com/2014/05/02/modulate-this-interview-composer-reinhold-heil-helix-tv-series-syfy-music/ .

Of course, other tracks have more lovely and haunting vibes including “Ghosts of Time and Space” which feature some very intriguing ancient upright piano samples and more from my friend and New Zealand-based sound designer Greg Cole (aka https://store.emptyvessel.co.nz ). 

Enjoy. One more album to go to close out the re-release of the Sonic Encounters series of albums.

1. Please Press 3 
2. Rainforest Clocks 
3. Ancient Savanna (A Post Modern Ambient Bossa Nova Ice Cream Sandwich) 
4. Communing with Ancients Through My Gossamer Threads 
5. Ghosts of Time and Space 
6. Shimmering Light from the Time Mirror 
7. The Mysterious Shortwaves That Haunt Our Airwaves

Sonic Encounters Volume 04

Sonic Encounters Volume 04 was first released in 2021 and has 8 songs and clocks in at around 39 minutes.

In Volume 04 I introduce a new character called Droid 164 in my Outpost universe. In addition to soundscapes, I have a few tracks that adhere to a more traditional song structure with some lead synth work and hocketing like “Droid 164 Gets Distracted by a Wildflower”. 

1. A Brave Attempt to Plod Along Unnoticed 
2. Droid 164 Gets Distracted by a Wildflower 
3. Approaching the Artifact 
4. Beware the Siren Call to the Like Machine 
5. Being Reprogrammed Through the Convenience of Your Screens 
6. Robot Dreams 
7. The Signal Within the Signal 
8. Droid 164 Searches for Survivors in the Forbidden Zone 

Thanks

Thanks for listening. And a huge thanks to Victoria Lundy (Cuttlefish Arts) who helped me tweak and completely refine my original Sonic Encounters artwork to support a different color for each volume in series, make the covers pop more, add title text, and create the Sonic Encounters textual logo.

Stay Tuned

I have a few more singles from the back catalog I’ll be releasing soon so stay tuned for more music before the end of the year. Also Sonic Encounters Volume 05 is in the works for 2024.

Have a great weekend.

Mark