“Umi no drone” (Drones of the sea) by Hakoneko, released on mimi, is a set of drones using various elements of the sea as a metaphor, and reminds me in many ways of Biosphere’s Autour De La Lune. The soundscapes are sombre, slowly evolving, low frequency pieces. The titles for each track work well as directions for the imagination of the listener, helping to make the experience more vivid, such as Plankton and Jellyfish.
“Umi no drone” makes for delicate listening, I found it suits headphones and a quiet environment. Hakoneko manages to make these drones encourage calm and contemplative thoughts, rather than the texturally rich and emotionally dry drone-based music that seems to be common lately.