Jason van Wyk

Jason van Wyk is a Cape Town (South Africa) based electronic music producer whose music I often wish could have been my own. From cinematic soundscapes to soft piano keys and mesmerising passages, the elements of his pieces are all the necessary ingredients that I often try to combine in my music. And that is basically the highest sort of praise that I could give. There are many incredible ambient musicians who truly inspire me with their ability to create and transport me to their fantastic sonic worlds. And plenty have contributed to my growth as a musician – I am permanently indebted to many of them, whom I am honoured to call friends. But in my soul, I am a pianist, and the instrument [or its echoes] inevitably make it into my tracks. And this is what I love about Jason’s music. His most recent release on the beloved n5MD, Inherent, is a more upbeat, forward-driven progression, combining his skills of crafting dance-oriented grooves with atmospheric soundtracks. For his upcoming EP, Jason reworked three tracks into pure ambient pieces. To truly appreciate the transformation, start by hearing the original track, followed by this alternative version. If you want to dig deeper into the process behind the composition (including the details of the actual effects chain used, like the Space Echo, etc.), you can read up on Headphone Community, where Jason revealed it all when he was a featured artist for the entire month of July [the content is still up there!]. Deep listening and focus are essential to truly appreciate the textures here…