In its early days in the late 60s and early 70s, electronic music served as the soundtrack of a generation that was ready to conquer space. Neil Armstrong has just set his foot on the moon, and artists like Tangerine Dream, Klaus Schulze, and Jean-Michel Jarre defined the open horizon of a completely new kind of sonic adventure that was about to become the real "classical" music of the 20th century. The genre evolved into myriads of styles, and most of them are defined as Ambient music these days.

The Italian composer Massimo Ruberti brings back this classic space sound on his latest release "Autour de la Lune"; and if you happen to read a book every now and then, you might already have realized that this is also the original title of the well-known science fiction novel "Around the Moon" by Jules Verne, the story of three brave astronauts, who embark on a five-dray trip to the moon (which they never reach by the way). Massimo Ruberti put their adventures into music, and together with his musical "partners in crime" Fabio Leonardi, Roberto Mangoni, Alessandra Donati, Sandro Nullo Vincenzoni Sainati, and Laura Lo Conte he delivers a breathtaking soundtrack to the book. Warm analogue sounds are everywhere, sweeping around your head and guiding your imagination into space.

But Massimo and his crew don't just pretend to be true to the original spirit, they even used a bunch of classic synths from that "space era" like the Korg Polysix, the Sequential Circuits Pro-One, or the rare Concertmate MG-1. On one track, Massimo Ruberti even plays a Theremin, which is regarded as one of the first electronic instruments of all time - no good (or bad) SciFi movie from the 60s and 70s could do without its howling sound.

"Autour de la Lune" is a masterpiece of its genre and without any doubt one of the best releases of the year. If you're ready for some sonic adventures, you simply can't afford to miss it. Jean-Michel Jarre would kill for it, I'm sure.

Massimo Ruberti - Autour de la Lune | Massimo Rubert's website | Massimo Ruberti on MySpace

circlesandlines recordings is another shining example of the emerging Russian netlabel scene, which established itself in the past few years as one of the main sources for fine free and legal music. Russia just seems to be bursting with undiscovered talents these days, and especially the electronic music scene holds a lot of them.

Founded back in 2008, circlesandlines concentrates on classic, airy Ambient music and its various more experimental sub-styles. While the label put out its first two releases as a set of limited CDs, it's been transforming into a digital-only netlabel since then, releasing all of its music for free. And while the label's website design might be refreshingly minimal and simple, you'll notice that the makers behind circlesandlines care about the quality of their music simply by the fact that all of their releases are available as "traditional" MP3 as well as improved FLAC downloads. So no matter if you just want to feed your iPod or if you're looking for the highest quality available for your home entertainment pleasure, circlesandlines holds the right kind of package for you.

This October, the Russian netlabel released its 25th release already, so join the quiet celebration by browsing through their fine back catalogue. It's kind of hard to make a specific recommendation, as all of the label's EPs are worth spending some time on, but I surely love Vidasm's "In the Sky EP" as well as the experimental collaboration of Saffron Slumber, Spectra Sierra, and Carl Sagan's Ghost. Another good place to start is the last compilation circleandlines put out in 2009 - "More Than Feelings" will give you a good idea about the label's sound and style.

circleandlines recordings | V/A - More Than Feelings

Dominik Paß knows electronic music. He grew up with the emerging scene of the German media capital of Cologne in the early 90s and sporadically publishes both electronic music and phonetic poetry under his real name and various pseudonyms such as Liquid Diffusion, Sapere Aude!, and Serve & Destroy. But he does not only produce music, he also studies the theories behind it and shares his insights in his written publications: on abstract electronic music, on phonetic poetry, and on Break- and Speedcore in his doctoral dissertation.

One of his (way too) rare vital signs in the netaudio scene is the not less than brilliant "Transcendere LP" from 2006, which has been released on the excellent German netlabel Dreiton.net. Although Paß explores known territories like Ambient, Minimal Dub, and Dub Techno with it, he finds uncharted spaces in these genres, opens doors for further investigations and thus paves the ground for thinking artists. It's striking that Paß moves between these different approaches to electronic music, dense rustling soundscapes, lugging beat constructions, and minimalistic harmonies with the most impressive ease, without ever losing the focus on the overall coherent sound of the whole album. And while his debut is a didactic play of precise composition techniques, detailed sounddesign, and the integration of all of these aspects into one harmonic picture, it never bothers its listener with a sterile, an all too systematic or even indoctrinating style, but stays soothing and emotionally stimulating at the same time.

Dominik Paß' "Transcendere LP" sums up the essence of electronic music in its purest form: it perfectly reflects the digital environment of its listener's actualities of life while eluding itself from any secularistic methods of comprehension - and therefore lends itself to the "staging of counter-worlds", as Dreiton itself puts it so very tellingly.

Dominik Paß - Transcendere LP | Dominik Paß' biography on Dreiton.net

Communication is not only the art of talking. It also defines the art of listening. When it comes to music, a good arrangement is always like a perfect communication. Between the artist and his music. Between the bass and the drums. Between the melody and the rhythm. Between the head and the heart. And between the music and its listener.

Adam Williams aka Model Citizen and Leonardo Rosado aka Subterminal decided to communicate. And they chose the most conclusive language that exists in this universe: They started a dialogue via their music, using their native tongue of piano and electronics. And it turns out they're great communicators, as they both know the art of listening.

Attracted to subtle and minimal arrangements, they develop the most interesting musical dialogue on their joint EP "Take This Longing". While Williams leads the conversation with cautious notes and chords, Rosado illustrates these fine contours with his discrete electronic sounds and field recordings. Both respond to one another, closely observing each other's every musical move, to be ready for the next answers and questions.

"Take This Longing" invites you to spy this dialogue. And you consequently take part in it - as listening is part of the art of communicating.

Adam Williams and Leonardo Rosado - Take This Longing | Subterminal on MySpace | Model Citizen on MySpace