Vanaprastha (The Man Who Went Into The Woods To Find Himself), by Alex Smalley

Vanaprastha (The Man Who Went Into The Woods To Find Himself)

by Alex Smalley

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Manuel Sometimes music needs time to be understood. At first I found this album boring, but over a year later I came back to Vanaprastha with a totally different approach… and I couldn’t be happier with my decision.

I can now describe Smalley’s work with just one word:

Peaceful.

Steve Mahoney Seriously great sounds on this Alex Smalley album. Released today by the Past Inside The Present label.
Sensory Existence take you to another world. Stunning track and album with superb album artwork. Favorite track: Sensory Existence.

Josiah Grey One of my favorite albums I've found this year. Ineffable Origin especially is an addictive track. Favorite track: Ineffable Origin.

Anthony Childs Cool reintroduction to the artist formerly(?) known as Olan Mill but what really grabbed me initially was seeing the art of Bruce Riley grace the cover as to this point I've been following Bruce on Instagram for a year-ish. An interesting paring of the visually vibrant and active visuals with the languorous, almost secretive audio. Favorite track: Edit Yourself Holy.

Mathieu M. Well done, very subtle work! Favorite track: Sensory Existence.

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160 gram LP on transparent pink vinyl housed in a UV high gloss coated jacket. Full color center labels. Record placed in black, anti-static inner sleeve with a .75 gauge archival polypropylene lining. Shrinkwrapped.

Includes unlimited streaming of Vanaprastha (The Man Who Went Into The Woods To Find Himself) via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.

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Limited Edition LP (Transparent Blue)
Record/Vinyl + Digital Album
◾️◾️ UK/EU fans can purchase at Juno Records ◾️◾️
www.juno.co.uk/labels/Past+Inside+The+Present+US/

160 gram LP on transparent blue vinyl housed in a UV high gloss coated jacket. Full color center labels. Record placed in black, anti-static inner sleeve with a .75 gauge archival polypropylene lining. Shrinkwrapped.

Includes unlimited streaming of Vanaprastha (The Man Who Went Into The Woods To Find Himself) via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.

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	1.	Ineffable Origin 11:58
	2.	Sensory Existence 11:20
	3.	Implicit Memory 09:04
	4.	Optimal Care 07:19
	5.	Edit Yourself Holy 06:02

about

Alex has released a collection of immersive works with Past Inside the Present and we are honored to release his first official solo album.

Alex has worked under the well-known aliases Olan Mill and llm, which PITP released previously unreleased tracks for our Healing Sounds I Compilation (bit.ly/2VJpHfm). His track, ‘Gaia’ still is our highest streamed track from our catalogue.

Less than a year later, PITP released a long player by Alex and Simon’s drone project known as Pausal. 'Melatonia' was the seventh album by the duo and encompassed six expansive pieces, sequenced into an uninterrupted hour long album designed for prolonged and deep listening.

A year later from Melatonia, we are pleased to offer Alex’s newest endeavor titled, ‘Vanaprastha’. According to Alex, ‘Vanaprastha was inspired by so many different events, changes and progressions it's hard to pin down anything specific, though relocating from the UK to Germany was impactful, along with starting a family’.

He further states, ‘learning more about plant medicine, Veganism, meditation and yoga on the Island of Koh Phangan in Thailand was really progressive for my creative process.’

The title Vanaprastha literally means "retiring to the forest" and is the third stage in the Varnashrama system of Hinduism. It represents the third of the four ashramas of human life, the other three being Brahmacharya, Grihastha and Sannyasa.

Alex states, ‘This is my first solo album, the music serves as a release from an old way of life where for many years I was lost and found in the woods of rural Hampshire, England.’

The music on Vanaprastha is deeply layered and mediative. Written, recorded and mixed throughout the summer of 2020, you will hear Guitars, flutes, voice, organ and Marimbas that were set against field recordings from the river Ilm, Weimar.

Alex’s music is a collage of therapeutic dream-states aimed to promote mindful interactions with nature and the cosmos.

credits

released August 20, 2021

Written and performed by Alex Smalley
Mastered by Porya Hatami
Artwork by Bruce Riley
Layout and assemblage by zakè

—

© Past Inside the Present
This is PITP-V038 | MMXXI
pastinsidethepresent.com
alexsmalley.net

Review ▪️▪️

“With the literal translation of this album title being Retiring to the Forest, the third stage of the Varnashrama system of Hinduism, you should probably be able to guess where Alex Smalley - AKA Olan Mill, AKA Ilm - is coming from. It feels almost like you step into Vanaprastha in the same way you would a world unto itself.

Through the wormhole, down the rabbit hole we go. Fear not, though, what's waiting for us is really rather nice.

Understatement of the century, this is ambient at its organic and most endearing, painting textured tapestries of sound that float on a soft and inviting mood. It's hard not to feel yourself sinking ever-deeper into the refrains, which themselves are pure melodic bliss without necessarily presenting themselves as such in any obvious way.”

-Juno Records

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Past Inside the Present Indianapolis, Indiana

Past Inside the Present (PITP) is an american ambient label.

Distribution through A Thousand Arms (US), Juno Records (UK), Norman Records (UK), Tobira Records (JP), Linus Records (JP), HHV (DE), BLEEP (UK), Phonica Records (UK), Boomkat (UK) and others. ... more

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