We Speak Music
Euphoric and warm glitchy Michael Hamilton single ‘Glimmer’
Michael Hamilton is a composer who is just as capable of tugging on your heart strings as bursting your ear drums. In his work you’ll hear everything from symphony orchestras, to retro synthesizers, to the 8-string guitars that linger from his days as a death metal guitarist. In addition to his work as a solo artist, Michael is also known for his work on video game and film soundtracks and, alongside collaborator, Ross Cairns, is also a prolific techno producer whose tracks have been released by record labels and heard on dancefloors from around the globe.
When he’s not composing, Michael works as a session musician, performing with various internationally renowned artists, and can be found onstage as the bassist of Progressive Music Award winning post-rock band, Midas Fall.
A Language Forever is a collection of electronic, beats-driven tracks inspired by UK Bass and Electronica producers such as Burial, Jamie XX, Asa and fellow Monotreme labelmate, Sorrow. As with each of his releases, the aim was to break new ground while borrowing from and building upon his previous work.
A Language Forever takes many of the characteristics of his soundtrack work, as well as his work with Midas Fall, and relocates it to more dancey, experimental realms where Dubstep, Glitch and IDM collide. These compositions marry fractured breakbeat samples with emotive, cinematic chord progressions; crunchy drum machine loops with intimate piano melodies; deep, gritty reese basses with mournful string passages – all atop a textured backdrop of vinyl crackle, foley recordings and pitch-shifted vocals. It’s the kind of album that can provide an apt soundtrack to both the climax of a Saturday night, and the chilled out ambience of a Sunday morning.
Remixes are provided by friends and fellow Glasgow-based producers farfromnorth, Ross Somerville, and Innblásin, as well as frequent collaborator and the album’s mixing/mastering engineer, Ross Cairns.
In keeping with his long-standing DIY ethic, like each of Michael’s previous releases, A Language Forever was written and recorded in his living room in Glasgow, Scotland, with Michael playing/programming every instrument himself.
Glimmer, the 3rd single from, A Language Forever, swoops and soars on gossamer wings of violin and synths, underpinned by airy beats. Says Michael, “I call this the ‘Disney Finale’.. The album can be quite intense and dark at points, but I wanted to close it with a moment of euphoria and warmth. I wanted to leave listeners feeling positive at the end of their journey, and this is the album’s lightest, most whimsical point: a glimmer of light at the end of the album’s proverbial, kaleidoscopic tunnel of emotions.”
Aaron makes music about meaningful topics that rocks and grooves – and sometimes it even skanks on a rock steady beat!
His new song ‘Geeks’ has been released on all major music platforms on November 15th. It is an anthem for the heroes of the digital age: computer nerds, also known as geeks. It is driven by an off-beat ska guitar, a sticky bass line and a groovy brass section. The icing on the cake is a jazzy saxophone solo.
“I have always loved Ska, I even saw the Specials, the Selecter and Madness live in their heydays”, says Aaron. “I chose the topic although I am not a geek myself, but I have a lot of sympathy for them. Geeks are often frowned upon because they can be socially awkward, but they are the ones who are building a better world. So I think they deserve an anthem.”
The music video is mostly made up of typography, minimalistic ASCII graphics and heavily pixelated images – it surely looks geeky! Watch it here:
Aaron writes catchy songs that are made for people who like meaningful, uplifting topics and guitar-driven, hand-made sounds. His musical journey started young but it wasn’t until he discovered Bitcoin and became so invested in it that he used music to express his new found joy.
“It’s mostly rock music, with excursions into funk, soul and other styles I grew up with. In general, it’s guitar-driven and hand-made, often with a punkish energy and beatlesque harmonies. What all my songs have in common are meaningful lyrics about being in the here and now, about transforming disturbing emotions into wisdom, about being in the flow, things like that.” says Aaron in an interview.
“I have always been making music and writing songs, starting with a punk rock band when I was 15. However, I never saw it as a career. I played in several bands in my teenage years and my early twenties, but after my media studies in Berlin and Rio de Janeiro I focused on other things. I first worked in TV production and then founded one of the first Internet agencies in Germany. I discovered Bitcoin in 2011 and became fascinated by it. I wrote five books about it, made lots of promotional videos and educational series for Bitcoin and blockchain companies, and organised events. I even wrote some songs about Bitcoin, which became quite popular in the community, like my Reggaeton about the Bitcoin Beach in El Salvador. People always liked that my songs are catchy and provocative. It was by the end of 2023 that I decided to go full in on music. It’s what I enjoy the most, so now I want to fully follow my passion.”
Since May 2024, his songs have been streamed more than 250,000 times on Spotify and his music videos have been viewed more than 350,000 times on YouTube.
Read more about Aaron King: http://aaron-koenig.net/press/
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