I listen to his last record, Singularity, quite regularly, [particularly] the song “Feel First Life.” Especially if you’re going through some kind of grief, and you have a sense of loss—this track in particular has helped me move through those moments. And it’s also facilitated a lot of really inspiring conversation. There have been moments when I’ve had this song on loop and the conversations get deeper and deeper and deeper. His sounds can encourage you to open emotionally.
On the same album, there’s also a track called “Recovery,” which on the album comes after this journey inward. It’s uplifting whilst remaining gentle, so if you’re in a state that’s quite fragile, this can really help you.
Biosphere – “Dissolving Clouds”
This track makes me feel like I’m literally floating on clouds. Jon Hopkins introduced me to it and it’s a track I go back to again and again when I feel I need a moment of calm.
Alice Coltrane – “Journey in Satchidananda”
Best record cover ever—it’s absolutely phenomenal. This is the opening, title track, something I come back to over and over again. It feels very…of the times. The music that’s needed at a time resurfaces. It comes back when people need it, depending on what the consciousness is at that moment. Anything spiritual, cosmic, right now, is something everyone is reaching for.
The way people’s consciousness has sped up in the past few years has been quite beautiful, coming to the realization that we’re all connected. This virus, this whole thing that’s going on, we’re realizing that we really need each other and it’s not just this hippy-dippy stuff that people in the West have mocked for so long. It’s actually all true—it’s said for a reason. The West is so focused on individualism, but that’s not what we need to survive, to thrive. We’re coming back to community and what we value.
Wah! – “Radhe”
I started meditating about two years ago, I’ve used this for meditation for the last year and a half. It’s something that keeps me centered and moving forward. While I was touring my last record, I needed something I could bring with me, so meditation was something that could ground me no matter where I was in the world. Without sitting meditation and Kundalini yoga, I don’t think I could have functioned. I listen to this almost every morning. It’s seven and a half minutes, a nice time to set aside for the morning to just sit.
Nils Frahm – “Them”
It’s so simple, but it’s emotional. It’s very deep and hopeful, but it keeps a certain lightness. It’s a beautiful track that I could listen to on repeat, possibly forever.
Laraaji – “Meditation No. 1”
Laraaji is another cosmonaut who has been doing his thing for a while now. There’s a track on Ambient 3: Day of Radiance, his album that was produced by Brian Eno. Laraaji x Brian Eno is just an amazing combination, and Eno is obviously the king of ambient music, so this seems like a logical collaboration.
Brian Eno – “Signals”
This track is my go-to when I need sleep or rest.
Gong Sound Baths
I’ve been going to gong sound baths for four and a half years. I was signed up for a monthly yoga membership, and as part of the package they did them for free. So I was going twice a week for a year. I found it difficult at first because I’m used to controlling sound, and so to lay there and have it wash over you— at first I was like, “Wait, where is that sound coming from? Wait, that’s a perfect sine wave, where is that coming from?”