Interview with Tim Allen of Spectrical // conversations on topics like the musicality in electrical signals, the relationship between our music and our identity, and other topics

Ambient Discourses // conversations with musicians and composers

Episode 021 / September 20, 2023 My guest on the program is Tim Allen of the Australian ambient and electronic project Spectrical. Spectrical has three releases on Bandcamp that capture his exploration of sound design, creating interesting soundscapes for the listener to dive into. My conversation with Tim carried us through topics like the musicality in electrical signals, the relationship between our music and our identity, his new record label Perceptual Tapes, and other topics that I think you’ll find interesting. You can also hear Spectrical on The STOLACE | RELAY STATION, episode 3.46. Find more at https://stolace.com/relay-station/episodes/03/46/ Find Spectrical on Bandcamp — https://spectrical.bandcamp.com/ [0:01:17] Origin story [0:05:52] Finding musicality in the non-musical — Emergent Forms [0:09:58] Electrical signals as music [0:11:59] Fleeting Visions Into Sleep — melodic ambient [0:14:11] Music creation as therapy [0:18:16] “Emergent Forms IV” by Spectrical from “Emergent Forms” [0:28:36] Inspiring artists [0:33:04] The creative process [0:37:44] “Adrift” by Spectrical from “Fleeting visions into sleep” [0:46:12] Personal influences [0:47:42] The role of emotions in making music [0:51:45] Guiding the process [0:53:06] Overcoming creative blocks [1:01:00] “Emergent Forms II” by Spectrical from “Emergent Forms” [1:13:27] The relationship between our music and our identity [1:26:16] “Illucid” by Spectrical from “Fleeting visions into sleep” [1:29:52] Perceptual Tapes [1:31:45] Nostalgic mediums: cassettes, 8 track, and vinyl [1:37:13] Advice for other artists // ABOUT AMBIENT DISCOURSES // Ambient Discourses is the podcast companion to The STOLACE | RELAY STATION, a weekly 59-minute music program that showcases ambient, neoclassical, new age, and other instrumental music from around the world. Discover new signed and independent artists from nearly every corner of the globe, unwind with the Relay Station at work or at home, and hear from the artists themselves what inspires them, how their latest releases evolved, and other deep topics of conversation. You can find every episode of The STOLACE | RELAY STATION at ⁠https://stolace.com/relay-station/⁠ The STOLACE | RELAY STATION is available on YouTube and the Public Radio Exchange (PRX) platform. // CONNECT WITH STOLACE // https://stolace.com⁠ ⁠https://youtube.com/stolace⁠ ⁠https://twitter.com/stolacemusic⁠ ⁠https://instagram.com/stolacemusic⁠ ⁠https://facebook.com/stolace⁠