Música Esporádica #1
About the Newsletter
Música Esporádica is an independent newsletter about music, featuring reviews, occasional interviews, and more, with a special focus on Madrid’s music scene. Every now and then, I’ll also shine a light on artists, labels, and communities from across Spain.
About Me
I’m Aleksei, a musician and producer from Voronezh, Russia, now based in Madrid, where I create music under the name forlate. Beyond my own work, I curate Building Bridges, a show on Madrid’s Radio Relativa, where I explore ambient and experimental sounds from across Eastern and Central Europe.
About the Name
The name of this newsletter is a nod to the Spanish ambient classic Música Esporádica — a real gem of a record! If you haven’t heard it yet, I highly recommend giving it a listen!
With this newsletter, I’d like to highlight what Madrid – often overshadowed by the more cosmopolitan Barcelona – offers in terms of ambient and experimental music scenes. But trust me, Madrid has its own treasure trove of incredible artists, tight-knit communities, and great events that deserve all the attention they can get.
I know this isn’t the kind of topic that will draw a massive audience, but if it sparks excitement for even one person, I’ll be happy! I’m no expert or authority — just someone curious and eager to explore the Madrid music scene. So, this newsletter is as much about satisfying my own curiosity as it is about sharing what I find.
I’ll aim to send out one newsletter a month and see how it goes. There’s no paywall, but if you’d like to support what I’m doing, you can always opt for a paid subscription.
As I find my footing with this newsletter, I might miss some things here and there. This is a work in progress, and I’m very open to suggestions and recommendations, so feel free to reach out — especially if you’re a label or an artist! If you have an idea for a feature or want to share records or events worth highlighting, I’d love to hear from you!
Now onto this months’ recs:
Reviews
First, a couple of local (or not-so-local, in the case of X.Y.R.) releases from the past couple of months that I’ve enjoyed and think are worth mentioning:
Álvaro Corrochano – Patterns [Mitte]
Álvaro Corrochano’s debut album is remarkably confident and sophisticated especially for a first release. At just over 30 minutes, this concise album presents beautiful, slow-moving cinematic soundscapes rich in nuance and varied in instrumentation – vintage synths, soaring choral vocals, cellos – you name it. If you enjoy artists like Rival Consoles, Nils Frahm, or Ólafur Arnalds, this one’s for you.
What’s more, Álvaro will present the album live at Réplika Teatro this week. Details below – don’t miss out!
AM/DM - old & new [Fetuccini]
The new album from AM/DM (Alejandro M. De Miguel) is out now via Madrid’s Fetuccini. It’s a collection of pointillist dub excursions — at times clanky, but with a cozy, homespun vibe that you can easily wrap yourself in. As the album’s Bandcamp description says, “Less is more,” and in this case —I completely agree.
A short snippet from the album’s presentation at Espacio Monederos.
X.Y.R. - Middle Of Nowhere [Abstrakce Records]
Now, I’ll admit — this one feels a bit like cheating. It’s not really Madrid-related, but it still ties back to Spain. And since every release from Vladimir Karpov (X.Y.R.) deserves your attention, I’d be remiss not to mention it.
Out now via Valencia’s Abstrakce Records, the latest one from Vladimir sounds EXACTLY like its cover – meaning gorgeously technicolor and psychedelic. Seriously, though, it contains four tribal ambient pieces reminiscent of some ceremonial music somewhere deep within fourth-world jungle. Would fit perfectly as a soundtrack to an Apichatpong Weerasethakul’s movie. Great record-to-get-lost-to-while-tripping-on-magic-mushrooms-in-a-rainforest, this. RIYL: Jon Hassell, Laraaji.
Shows
13/02/2025 – Modo Avión: Emil Saiz and Irene Saénz at mk2 Cine Paz. Tickets.
The first event in a series called “Modo Avión”, promoting disconnection through a fusion of sound and visuals, at mk2 Cine Paz, features Emil Saiz, who creates vast ambient soundscapes with his guitar, is paired with Irene Sáenz's visual art.
14/02/2025 – Verde Prato at Replika Teatro. Tickets.
Basque singer Verde Prato will perform at Réplika Teatro this week to present her third LP, "Bizitza Eztia", which was recorded in Rome and produced by maestro Donato Dozzy.
15/02/2025 – LIMO: Garazi Navas at CentroCentro. Tickets.
LIMO is a monthly concert series at CentroCentro that explores the connection between traditional and experimental music. Garazi Navas is a classically trained Basque accordionist who incorporates traditional music and Pauline Oliveros’s ideas (Deep Listening) into her work.
15/02/2025 – Álvaro Corrochano at Replika Teatro. Tickets.
Álvaro Corrochano will present his debut album “Patterns” at Réplika Teatro this week. See the short review above.
22/02/2025 – Florian Hecker, Rearranged Playlist as Auditory Scene Synthesis. Tickets.
VANG at CentroCentro is a music series focused on the immersive power of sound. Florian Hecker works with sound synthesis to explore psychoacoustics and the psychological and physical effects of music.
07/03/2025 – aeria (live), t0ni (live) & julek ploski (live) at Replika Teatro. Tickets.
LAGRIMA, a Madrid-based collective focused on experimental electronic music, kicks off 2025 with live performances from aeria, t0ni, and julek ploski.
09/03/2025 – Alessandro Cortini (AV Live) + F-on (DJ). Tickets.
I’m pretty sure that legendary Alessandro Cortini needs no introduction to the readership of this newsletter. A truly towering figure in electronic music. Madrid’s own F-On will open the event with a DJ set.
13/03/2025 – Modo Avión: Epifanías Luminosas: El Fuego, Primer Encuentro de Irene Ivankovà & Amanda Lago. Tickets.
The next installment of Modo Avión, on March 13th, presents "Epifanías Luminosas: el fuego," an immersive performance by Irene Ivankovà and Amanda Lago. The show, a meditative, audiovisual piece, takes "fire" as its point of ignition and explores illumination in its many forms.
Now, that’s it for the first dispatch! I hope you enjoyed it and thank you for reading! Feel free to reach out with any suggestions or recommendations — I’d love to hear from you!
Very excited for this! I trust your vision Alex, just know this will be a great source of inspo and recs :)