Dark Ambient
Here we reach quite possibly the most perplexing of all the genres outlined here. This is the case due to each of the genres that came before this on the site could also be considered in some ways to be dark ambient. HNW, power electronics, death industrial, and black noise all have elements of dark ambient and at times are purely ambience, noise itself is based heavily in ambience and thus it makes distinguishing dark ambient from noise itself a nearly futile task. However, the task is not futile due to a few defining characteristics that dark ambient and dark ambient artists strive for and achieve outside the realms of the other genres found here.
While the droning repetition of Trepaneringsritualen or the minimalist walls of The Rita and Vomir could indeed be considered dark ambient and often are, something separates strict dark ambient from these other genres, a sense of isolation and desolation found in subtlety. Dark ambient at it's core strives to create soundscapes devoid of structure and rooted in creating a haunting and meditative atmosphere (hence the term ambient in the name). Through constantly evolving drones and resonances mixed with low frequency rumbles dark ambient creates organic churning noise. The complete devotion to atmosphere (more so than actual music or structure itself) is a defining characteristic of dark ambient and can be seen in all the projects that will be highlighted here.
Like most of the genres found here dark ambient was founded in the wake of industrial music. Industrial luminaries like Throbbing Gristle, Psychic TV, and Current 93 began to experiment with minimalism in their music putting far more emphasis on texture and immersion than actual structure. This was not a new phenomenon by any means, in 1972 krautrock and electronic music luminaries Tangerine Dream released an album called Zeit which can be considered the first example of dark ambient. Dark ambient was formed as a direct result of this fearless experimentation of industrial artists in the 1970s and 1980s and one of it's most important figures, Lustmord (who is pictured in the header for this page), was born out of that scene.
Lustmord stands as the main poster figure and purveyor of dark ambient in the world and has been really since the 1980s. With the release of his album Heresy Lustmord created basically an archetype for dark ambient music. Characterized by low frequency rumbling drones all born out of manipulated sounds gathered by the artist himself the album is a nearly hour long piece of ambience that exemplifies the oppressive atmosphere conjured up by most dark ambient. The album was completely made out of sounds the artist sourced from subterranean location recordings carried out in crypts, caverns, mines, deep shelters, and catacombs mixed with sounds of seismic and volcanic origin. The recording exemplifies the use of organic recordings to create dark ambient sounds and succeeds in creating a proper standard for the dark ambient community. A sample from Heresy can be found below and shows the depth created by Lustmord.
While the droning repetition of Trepaneringsritualen or the minimalist walls of The Rita and Vomir could indeed be considered dark ambient and often are, something separates strict dark ambient from these other genres, a sense of isolation and desolation found in subtlety. Dark ambient at it's core strives to create soundscapes devoid of structure and rooted in creating a haunting and meditative atmosphere (hence the term ambient in the name). Through constantly evolving drones and resonances mixed with low frequency rumbles dark ambient creates organic churning noise. The complete devotion to atmosphere (more so than actual music or structure itself) is a defining characteristic of dark ambient and can be seen in all the projects that will be highlighted here.
Like most of the genres found here dark ambient was founded in the wake of industrial music. Industrial luminaries like Throbbing Gristle, Psychic TV, and Current 93 began to experiment with minimalism in their music putting far more emphasis on texture and immersion than actual structure. This was not a new phenomenon by any means, in 1972 krautrock and electronic music luminaries Tangerine Dream released an album called Zeit which can be considered the first example of dark ambient. Dark ambient was formed as a direct result of this fearless experimentation of industrial artists in the 1970s and 1980s and one of it's most important figures, Lustmord (who is pictured in the header for this page), was born out of that scene.
Lustmord stands as the main poster figure and purveyor of dark ambient in the world and has been really since the 1980s. With the release of his album Heresy Lustmord created basically an archetype for dark ambient music. Characterized by low frequency rumbling drones all born out of manipulated sounds gathered by the artist himself the album is a nearly hour long piece of ambience that exemplifies the oppressive atmosphere conjured up by most dark ambient. The album was completely made out of sounds the artist sourced from subterranean location recordings carried out in crypts, caverns, mines, deep shelters, and catacombs mixed with sounds of seismic and volcanic origin. The recording exemplifies the use of organic recordings to create dark ambient sounds and succeeds in creating a proper standard for the dark ambient community. A sample from Heresy can be found below and shows the depth created by Lustmord.
While much dark ambient exists within the sphere of influence of Lustmord many acts have taken the genre to different places and have sought out originality in a genre that could easily grow stale. Ogham is the project of two artists who have been featured on this site already, Kevin Gan Yuen of Sutekh Hexen and Thomas Martin Ekelund of Trepaneringsritualen, together they make long-form dark ambient in the form of deliberate drones. Another artist who has been featured in the black noise section of the website is a practitioner of dark ambient as well, a member of the Les Légions Noires. Moëvöt, a project belonging to the Légions is a prime example of horror ambient music and his demo tapes are legendary within the dark ambient world due to their cold and otherworldly atmosphere and emphasis on general creepiness. A final luminary in the dark ambient world is raison d'être which focuses on dream-like (or nightmare-esque rather) soundscapes with industrial elements, utilizing keyboards and percussive elements as well as sampling and sound modification.
