Ambient pioneer, glam rocker, hit producer, multimedia artist, technological innovator, worldbeat proponent, and self-described non-musician -- over the course of his long, prolific, and immensely influential career, Brian Eno was all of these things and much, much more. Determining his creative pathways with the aid of a deck of instructional,... [+] Read More

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Following the 1982 dissolution of Japan, the group's onetime frontman David Sylvian staked out a far-ranging and esoteric career that encompassed not only solo projects but also a series of fascinating collaborative efforts and forays into filmmaking, photography, and modern art. Born David Batt in Kent, England, on February 23, 1958, Sylvian... [+] Read More

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The American ambient/neo-classical composer who has most closely allied himself with the increasingly sympathetic independent-rock underground -- through his collaborations with the Cocteau Twins' Robin Guthrie -- Harold Budd is also one of the very few who can very rightly be called an ambient composer. His music, a sparse and tonal wash of... [+] Read More

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Born of a French father and Spanish mother in pre-independence Algeria, Hector Zazou first recorded in the mid-'70s under the name ZNR, as one half of a duo with Joseph Racaille. This early work is light but engaging French chamber jazz, lyrical and quirky, with Zazou playing keyboards and violin. The music has long since lost any radical edge,... [+] Read More

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The Nordic group Hedningarna was formed in Sweden by multi-instrumentalists Anders Stake, Björn Tollin and Hållbus Totte Mattsson; although the group's self-titled 1989 debut LP was an instrumental effort, by the release of 1992's Kaksi!, Finnish vocalists Sanna Kurki-Suonio and Anita Lehtola had joined the lineup. Trä followed in 1994, and two... [+] Read More

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While John Cale is one of the most famous and, in his own way, influential underground rock musicians, he is also one of the hardest to pin down stylistically. Much has been made of his schooling in classical and avant-garde music, yet much of what he's recorded has been decidedly song-oriented, dovetailing close to the mainstream at times.... [+] Read More

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Australian-born composer and producer Paul Schütze is among the most focused and prolific artists of the contemporary experimental electronic scene. Releasing album after album of sprawling, icy, often difficult ambient and electro-acoustic music, Schütze's work has most often been grouped with post-industrial ambient/isolationist artists such... [+] Read More

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The music of Finland has been brought up to date by saxophone and clarinet player Tapani Rinne. Inspired by the playing of percussionist Edward Vesala, Rinne formed jazz/techno band RinneRadio in 1988. The group, which remained together until August 1997, became one of Finland's best-loved bands. Their fourth album, Unik, released in March 1994,... [+] Read More

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