HannukAmbient 2025
FAQ
- Are you Jewish?
- no.
- I'm sorry... you arent jewish? you did that rosh hashanah thing. the ambient september steve roach thing. why are you doing this?
- Listen man (character I created as rhetorical device), I understand the confusion, but I think judaism is awesome. As I have sunk my toes more into christian religious thought, I think it is baffling that chritstians do not celebrate many of the major jewish holidays. All because Apostle Paul wanted to spout lowkey anti-semetic rhetoric, deeming these festivals as "meaningless" in Christ's sacrifice for mankind. I'm not saying everyone needs to fast every Yom Kippur or anything, I am already casual enough in this undertaking (I celebrate lent and I have never gone to a church service), but as a theological exploration and celebration I really do not see exploring the story of the Macabees as some kind of ultimate disservice.
- Whatever man, just sell me on the idea.
- Thank you for getting to the point! Each day of Hannukkah (or night, I guess) I am going to listen to a new ambient album. Nothing is going to be clock specific, and I will probably find a menorah at a thrift store to set near a windowsill or something (but not light it because I am afraid of open flames), but I have been slacking on my ambient and what better way to celebrate the miracle of extended candlelight than listening to extended drone chords!
- Are the artists themselves going to be jewish?
- As wonderful as this idea would be, there is very little ambient by specifically jewish artists. I am sure many ambient artists are casually jewish, but it seems many in the scene are not talking about it that much. I also have done extensive searches for judiac ambient on rym, but I have only discovered like one album. I'll listen to that album for this challenge though.
- You gonna do anything for christmas?
- I'm working. just kidding I know what you mean. Yes I am. Prepare yourself for the Twelve Days of Shoe Gaze.
DJ Lenar
Drite Shtilkayt (2017)
Ambient
Night Eight
The final Night. Night eight is actually day eight, I listened to this driving down to see my girlfriend. I thought I had the flu but I woke up feeling totally fine which is a mystery I hope works itself out. I have been eyeing this album because it is one of only a few albums with experimental and jewish music tags, perfect for my little celebration. unfortunately, I could not get into this, save for the last track which I think does a really good job. repetitive and eerie, perhaps the point, but it was not comforting like the album of the evening previous.
So there it is. Hannukambient. I did not learn anything super major besides some wikipedia reading on the first night, learning about the storied history of Hannukah, the books it is in, the celebrations. I listened to my new ambient albums, which was at least a way for me to connect more clearly with something I have been missing out on. There is something spiritually powerful about the evening, especially when combined with ambient soundscapes such as this. Thanks for reading and paying attention.
Hantasi
Now! (2025)
Minimalism
Night Seven
Listened while reading The Anthropocene Reviewed on the couch worrying if I'm ill. reddit is always right there on the iphone. one of two Judaic ambient albums on rym.
Yann Novak
The Future is a Forward Escape into the Past (2018)
Field Recordings
Night Six
Listened because it was there after work. Emulates some of his finest deep drones. great for the challenge. My girlfriend and I napped for two hours. Anyone realizing deeper into this challenge I have less to muse about? I am looking back at the descriptors and they are all repeating themselves over and over again. At least I am having fun.
Will Morris
Helios Attunement (2000)
Progressive Electronic
Night Five
Found this reading the liner notes of Quiet Music, apparently he plays the flute on a couple of those records. I love listening to steve roach collaborators, I have found some inspiring and unique ambient voices as a result. This is another classic 80s new age tape, buried among contemporaries, but I think it melds the drone and extended electronics of full length b sides with 6-8 minute long tunes. Floaty. Good for naptime.
Steve Roach
On This Planet (1997)
Space Ambient, Berlin School
Night Four
I decided for the fourth night I would dig into my compact disc collection to find new ambient. on our finest CD thrifting day I found this roach sitting around, just waiting for me to add it to the collection. I played some NHL 07 while it sat on the basement stereo disc changer. Dynamic. As progressive electronic as it is tribal, but not overtly tribal like a lot of his 90s work. Tribal through the underbelly of the cover and the title. The general packaging really. moderate glurp on this one.
Shuttle358
Optimal.lp (1999)
Night Three
When I left the downtown area, good conversation and a great haircut led me to loiter longer than I should have. I got to the highway around 11:55, and my traction control, ABS, and brake fluid lights all lit up. I drove home because my car drove the same, and I spent the following hour trying to figure out what was wrong (likely a sensor issue, but, you can never be too careful). The following morning the warmth made them turn off. Then on fifteen minutes later. and finally, off for a substantial amount of time as I turned off the highway going to work. Glad? of course. I did not have to go to the car wash or the autozone to get my codes read. This pretty little glitch album for day number 3 sat wonderfully by my side. A lot of these turn of the century glitch releases sound the same, but I am not complaining, they found something beautiful in the mess.
Hank & Slim
The World Turned Gingham (2000)
Sound Collage, Radio Broadcast Recordings, Dark Ambient
Night Two
"night one" "night two" these distinctions are not as natural to me as the days. I am trying to account for sunset and then think the night before what ambient I will listen to. I was really stuck, unsure what to queue up for night two. I watched this video about the NCAA Group of 5 distinction and the dissent towards it, and I guess I was too unfocused because I gave up 3 goals against the Vancouver Canucks in NHL 07. Eventually I put this on, because Tor Lundvall's Yule was a little too Christmas-y for this discipline.
Waking up this morning was difficult mostly because I kept waking up in the middle of the night, thinking my alarm went off when really it was 5am. Anthropocene Reviewed playing on my iPhone next to me. Hank and Slim is so abstract, and of the "hauntology" discipline I am more naturally drawn to albums that were created before the moniker really existed, mostly as a result of 2010s hauntology falling into gimmicks and ambient with too much required thematic headspace building (I'm looking at you Leyland Kirby (I still like your work, but I mean, you get it)). Really warmed my heart thinking about a group of country listeners from Leeds enjoying a radio broadcast by tape, sitting around the fire. the gale warning messages remind me of classic weather channel from youth.
Infinity Frequencies
Between Two Worlds (2018)
Mallsoft, Minimalism
Night One
anywho. Listened to this on the drive to work this morning. My dear friend Melody told me to listen to it actual years ago, and for some reason a friend's ambient reccomendation could not cut through the noise. I like it a lot though, especially for when it is dark. Driving down the snowy highways the repetitive motifs really stick out. It is painfully cold outside today, and the slow crawl to work, waiting for my car to warm up, was not exactly pleasant.