For each release, I invite Whitelabrecs artists to work with me on a blog post, and I provide a list of 10 different ideas. The most popular one of these ideas is the Grounding Sounds series, in which the artist shares some of the fondest records they own and/or the music that has helped shape their own sound as a musician. From receiving his wonderful Substack messages, I had a feeling that Euan Millar-McMeeken (Glacis) might opt for this as his blog post! As always, it is truly fascinating to learn about the musical tastes of others and discover some new records along the way - and it is out hope that you will too!

Read on to learn about some of Euan's cherished albums and what they mean to him. I've included an embedded Bandcamp player where possible so you can listen to one of the tracks from each album, and if you're curious to hear more you can click the cover image to check it out. If you've not yet checked out Euan's latest Glacis album 'This Darkness From Which We Cannot Run' there's a Bandcamp player at the bottom of this blog!

If you're a Spotify user, Euan has built a playlist of tracks from each of the albums below so that you can save the playlist to listen to later, or listen as you read on...

"This list of albums is a collection that has shaped me, influencd me, inspired me or changed me both as a person and a musician. They reflect and influence directly or indirectly how I think about sound and music and are relevant to my wider musical output rather than as glacis alone." ◼️Euan Millar-McMeeken

Neil Young - After The Goldrush (1970)

I wasn’t born when this came out but that doesn’t matter. Neil Young is one of my biggest song writing influences. His voice. It’s all in the voice. A younger me was compared to him and it’s the biggest compliment I think I’ve ever received. This album is perfect from start to finish.

dEUS - Worst Case Scenario (1994)

I remember the press quote on this stated “This is art wank. But as fan of art and wanking I love it”... that was 15 year old me sold. If you’re going to make me laugh then I’m going to give it a shot. Plus art wank sounded good - who doesn’t like art wank? (even just to laugh at). And so it was. ‘Suds and Soda’ was the opener from heaven and there are not many better songs than ‘Hotellounge (be the death of me)’ out there. I’ve lost my love for dEUS over the years but never for their first 3 albums, masterpieces that I return to regularly.

Sparklehorse - Vivadixiesubmarinetransmissionplot (1995)

What is there to say about Mark Linkous? This album ripped up everything I thought was important in music. Even now it’s the biggest influence on me and my work - which might be pretty obvious if you’ve listened to my solo album. The broken sounds, the lo-fi production, the toy instruments. Up until this point records sounded polished, clean, like people striving for perfection. It made me realise there is no such thing as perfection and actually a lot of beauty in the real and imperfect. Although not evident immediately in my work, these ideas of making things sound a little fucked up - come through, like on the track The Northern Shore for example. A simple piano piece pulled apart, broken up, fractured.

Mogwai - Come On Die Young (1999)

Mogwai have taught me so much about dynamics. Loud and quiet and loud again - but also how to use melody, even when things are noisy or distorted. I’ve seen them live so many times and what always struck me was that despite the huge drums and guitars, the piano line always took centre stage. Come On Die Young might be their most chilled record. It’s also their best in my opinion. It was like nothing I’d heard before or have heard since. There is only one real moment of that brutal noise they have become known for - at the end of Christmas Steps. The rest is beautfiuuly restrained and perfectly constructed. The dynamics just right.

Tom Waits - Mule Variations (1999)

What can I say about Tom Waits that’s not been said before? I Hope That I Don’t Fall In Love With You sucked me into his world and I’ve never got out since. People talk about the likes of the Beatles, Dylan, Neil Young, the Stones as these legends of music but I think Tom Waits tops it all. I don’t think he has a bad album. I genuinely don’t. But his run of Mule Variations and Real Gone are special. His use of sounds incredible. His willingness to experiment superb. His ability to leave you devastated with just a piano/guitar and his voice unquestionable. Mule Variations saw me through 4 months living in the Netherlands as a 19/20 year old. A wonderful time which included this album, Come On Die Young and The Ideal Crash by dEUS as well as watching Man United (who I supported from age 5) win the Champions League against Bayern Munich. Perhaps these albums resonate because of the time I was living, the freedom I experienced for the first time in my life. Regardless, Mule Variations is an incredible work and one of my all time favourites.

Radiohead - Kid A (2000)

Everything In It’s Right Place. The greatest album opener ever? I think it might be. There are not many moments in music when you sit back and think “what is this”. That change the face and shape of music. That leave you wondering what the hell happened. In my life time I can think of a few bands that have come along and changed things but not another album like Kid A.

Wilco - Yankee Hotel Foxtrot (2002)

My all time favourite record. It’s perfect from beginning to end. It mixes beautiful songs with noise and experimentation. It’s a 10/10 album and is the album that, more than any other, made me want to be in a band and make music my way. I’ve always stuck to that principle. I know Graveyard Tapes, Gallowglas, Civic Hall and even my own solo record won’t generate large numbers of listeners but it’s what I love to listen to and make.

Ryuichi Sakamoto & Alva Noto - Insen (2005)

This is the perfect piano album. Combination of piano and electronics it’s just sublime. I have all 5 of the V.I.R.U.S series and I do believe this is the cream of the crop. All are special but Insen is timeless. It probably is my all time favourite record in the “ambient” genre. I know, everyone hates that word. Anyway, Ryuichi Sakamoto was one of our generations finest pianists and Alva Noto is a very special electronic/noise musician. I love when these very different worlds come together - which I guess is what happened with Graveyard Tapes and me, and Matthew Collings which was undoubtedly inspired by the likes of Insen. Beauty and noise can combine to create something special - Insen is that.

Ben Frost - By The Throat (2009)

I was introduced to Ben Frost by Matthew Collings when we worked together on the Graveyard Tapes records. This album blew my mind. I was not involved heavily in the world of sound or deep listening at this time. So when Matthew explained that on one track the sound of double bass was combined with the sound of wolves it took me a moment to adjust me ears to hear the difference. This record is visceral, brutal and essential. It’s the first piece of vinyl I bought when I started to buy vinyl and so it holds a special place musically for me.

Hildur Guðnadóttir – Without Sinking (2009)

I love cello. Next to piano it’s the instrument I love most (although also falling in love with the banjo this past year). This record by Hildur Gudnadottir should be released on vinyl because it’s incredible. Long before she was making Hollywood soundtracks she was creating music of rich, dark beauty and this one tops the lot.

Richard Skelton - Landings (2012)

Another piece of stunning cello based music. Richard Skelton is one of the UK’s real treasures. His music is dark and brooding - for the most part - his books and publications that often accompany the work capturing the landscapes within which the work is created. He’s maybe the artist who first got me thinking about music and place, perhaps music of place. If you don’t know what he does then you really should check him out - though I would imagine people reading this are very familiar with his catalogue and brilliance.

Bing and Ruth - Tomorrow Was the Golden Age (2014)

I’ve never seen anyone play piano like David Moore. I never saw Bing and Ruth live but I saw him play with Steve Gunn and when he does those piano rolls, like wave after wave after wave of piano it’s stunning. Tomorrow Was The Golden Age is my “get to sleep” record and I don’t mean that in a negative way because it’s boring. It’s rich and dense with swells of complex sound. There’s just something about the motion of it that helps me relax and sleep. All music has different impacts and purposes. When I was making Exuberance (Borders movement 3) on the piece Walls Beneath Walls Beneath Walls Beneath Walls I kept reminding myself of the feeling I was trying to capture and thought constantly of this record. It’s special in so many ways.

Taylor Deupree - Fallen (2014)

Another shift in my musical practice came when hearing Taylor Deupree for the first time. I was going through some difficult times and struggling with stress and sleep. All his work had a profound impact on my well-being but none more so than this. I constantly return to this record in difficult times/moments. I guess for me, more than any other artist, his work has been restorative. It’s really a place I go to when my mind goes mad. I’m so grateful for finding his work. When I saw he had downloaded the Civic Hall record, that was a pretty cool feeling. I do hope he likes it.

Swans - To Be Kind (2014)

Brutal. To Be Kind starts with Killshot, which is just an incredible track. From the word go this album slays. There’s no other band like Swans. Michael Gira is the most engaging and enigmatic front man. Swans one of the most essential bands of the last 30 years. Nobody does what Swans do. You simply cannot imitate them. One of my most intense memories is listening to this album while walking through Waverley Station in Edinburgh. The place was mobbed and I’d never felt so claustrophobic. I had to turn it off as it was just too much. A band for the right time and place but this album is an essential part of my collection.

Now Wakes The Sea - Bildungsroman (2014)

I used to run a record label called mini50 records. You can still find the releases https://mini50records.bandcamp.com here. Now Wakes The Sea is a Scottish musician from the Edinburgh area. I knew of his work and released one of his albums ‘Fluoxetine Morning’ on cassette. This was the follow up and is, in my opinion, one of the best Scottish records ever made. It got barely any recognition. That still bothers me. However, it’s an album that challenges you - I remember our press release stating “If art is to nourish the roots of our culture, society must set the artist free to follow his vision wherever it takes him.” Alan most certainly followed his own path and in so doing made this immaculate piece of wonky pop.

The Silence Set - Teeth Out (2015)

Another mini50 release and important because it introduced me to Johan G Winther. We would later release as Gallowglas (referenced by Polaroid Notes in his blog post). I think Johan has a unique take on music. His influences are so wide ranging from Black metal to gentle folk and in this record - a collab with fellow Swede Dag Rosenquist - combines all these elements beautifully. I still return to this album again and again - even if just for the opening banjo track The Passing. It’s a travesty that they only managed one record together.

Western Skies Motel - Settlers (2016)

No guitar album matches this. I mean that sincerely. I recently discovered Raphael Roginski and I’m a massive Bill Orcutt fan as well as loving the work of Seabucktorn and Marissa Anderson. However, I don’t think any of those artists could top this beautiful record by Danish artist Western Skies Motel. If music transports you then get your hands on this incredible record.

SUUNS - HOLD/STILL (2016)

SUUNS are one of my favourite bands. Pushing boundaries and endlessly creative they never rest on the laurels of previous work constantly evolving and challenging themselves. Incredible live they are experimental pop at its best. This was the album that introduced me to their work and remains my favourite. They have become more chilled and expansive over time but their first 4 records have incredible beats and feel. As music should.

Richard Dawson - Peasant (2017)

Nobody on earth makes music like Richard Dawson. Aforementioned Johan G Winther introduced me to him around the time this record came out. This is part of a trilogy of records culminating with The Ruby Chord from last year - which includes the finest 40 minute track I’ve ever heard. Peasant is an avant-garde take on traditional folk music. It has to be heard to be believed but is sensational.

Efrim Menuck - Pissing Stars (2018)

Yeah, I chose his solo work ahead of God Speed. I think his solo work as well as his collaborations with others has had a massive impact on the way I approach song writing - particularly when it comes to Gallowglas. I’m less interested in traditional song structures, more interested in creating soundscapes and then seeing where that takes the vocals. I think that will come across more when the second Gallowglas album gets under way properly but everything I’ve been working on for that project is really more about finding the music and then inserting the voice rather than a more traditional approach to songwriting. I find that more interesting as a musician and also find it leads to much more interesting results. I hope…

Kali Malone - The Sacrificial Code (2019)

Another moment of pure joy. The Sacrificial Code is mostly performed on church organ. The drones of this instrument really are something special when in the right hands. I do believe Kali Malone might be one of the finest musicians out there in the field right now. This record got me into her work and it’s been a love affair ever since. Of course, there’s an academic rigour/grounding to her work that not all musicians can profess to having. However, more than that the feel of this music is absolutely on the money. It does exactly what it’s meant to. If you’ve had a long, hard day then a glass of red wine and this album will help you relax. Again, the movement of the work, the propulsion or lack of - taught me so much about what I want to achieve with my music moving forward.

Satomimagae - Hanazono (2021)

This might be the easiest album to explain. Without this record I would not know Satomi. I would not have made a record with her (it’s currently being mixed/mastered). And we would not be friends. This album has easily had the most profound impact on me as a person and as a musician. Her approach to vocals has taught me so much and inspired me to work really really hard on the vocal sound of All The Weather Of The Human Heart (https://sleepinthefirerecords.bandcamp.com/album/all-the-weather-of-the-human-heart) The album itself is a stunningly beautiful work mixing elements of traditional japanese folk, alternative pop and ambient. It is genre defying because of the many influences across its 12 tracks. As influenced by Grouper as it is Florist this is a wonderful record. I’ve also been lucky enough to hear the mixes of the follow up and I simply cannot wait. If you do not know her work you must change that now.

You can find out more about Glacis' music at the following links:

Bandcamp
Substack

If you enjoyed reading and listening to this blog post, you might enjoy Glacis' own album 'This Darkness From Which We Cannot Run', which you can check out HERE or by clicking the play button below.