Bringing together therapeutic frequencies, forest bathing (shinrin-yoku) and binaural sound, Hinako Omori’s ‘a journey…’ combines inner healing and natural landscapes into in an immersive cartography of the mind in ambient electronics. The album progresses not track by track but as a continuous journey, a stream of consciousness tracing hills and valleys with the warmth of analogue synthesis and Omori’s voice always close at hand. Omori detuned oscillators to create binaural beats, syncing to the Hz of our brainwaves so that listeners might further find themselves calmed by and immersed in these soundscapes

‘a journey…’ was recorded at Omori’s home studio and Real World Studios, when Omori was an invited to perform at the immersive online festival WOMAD At Home. Spatial 3D recordings are woven throughout the album, and situate each track in different environments, from waterways to forests in and around the Mendip Hills.

It is Hinako’s work in sound engineering that provides the bedrock of skills that manifest her vision for ‘a journey…’, articulating a whole world in binaural field recordings, analogue synthesisers, and augmented vocals.

The album sits within a rich lineage of electronic musicians who have looked to music for its healing properties, from Venezuelan musician Miguel Noya to Pauline Anna Strom’s ambient soundscapes; Pauline Oliveros’ deep listening meditations and the augmented field recordings of Irv Teibel’s ‘Environments’ series.

Mastered and cut by Matt Colton at Metropolis.

LP pressed on white vinyl.