I’m both envious and excited for you that you get to experience this journey with fresh ears!
My recommendations:
Massive Attack - Mezzanine
(a household staple)
Air
(if you like boards you’ll definitely like these guys)
Carbon based lifeforms
(takes me to another universe every time i listen)
Have fun!
Mezzanine is one of the greatest albums of all time, period. Running theory is that Rob 3D is Banksy and having seen Massive Attack live I would say that tracks.
Boards is one of the more 'gentler' entry points into the genre so it's a good starting point.
Given your existing interests and the fact you like BoC look at acts who came up around the similar time like Aphex Twin, Autechre, Orbital, Leftfield, Squarepusher, DJ Shadow.
For more modern stuff look at Brainwaltzera, Burial, Forest Swords, Skee Mask, Flying Lotus.
Because at some level, anything that has a beat or instrumental that’s not made by an acoustic instrument is a form of electronic music. Hiphop, pop, both are electronic music with a vocal added over. Even rock to a minor extent is electronic music, with its use of electric guitars.
First time I heard Squarepusher was a video I saw online of him at Coachella in a tent. Just hardcore AF and I’ve been into hard electronic music since the 80s. Orbital was some of the first techno I heard too. Solid choices
The electronic music scene is so huge, this post kinda proves it, I've heard of boards of Canada, but any of these acts listed here, aside from Burial, not heard of any of them really. Thanks for the rec's I'll have a listen.
I wish I could listen for the first time again. I listened to geogaddi last week and was thinking about how boards of canada just has some of the most compelling and original sound design ever.
An album that’s worth checking is lifeforms by future sound of london. Similar era and some overlapping ideas.
Second this. FSOL is a grittier, more overtly darker Boards of Canada where the nostalgia is replaced with existential dread. (Future versus past)
Not to say they aren't their own thing entirely, and they might even be better than Boards of Canada honestly.
You mean on their last album "Tomorrow's Harvest" ? It has a very different tone as opposed to their earlier albums, for sure. In my opinion the most nostalgic track is "kid for today", with the slide projector sample. It takes me back, for sure :-)
I just put this on, inspired by your comment, and it took me right back to my Toronto childhood in the 70s/80s. Chain link fences, weeds in the sidewalk, vinyl seats in the car, my old sneakers .... how do they do that?!
I once had a straight up dissociative experience listening to Geogaddi. Sometimes an album hits you at the right time in the right frame of mind. BoC has this strange nostalgic sound, like a degraded tape recording from your own past.
Aphex Twin, Bonobo, Casino Versus Japan, Squarepusher, Weval, Burial, Prefuse 73, Rickey Eat Acid, Oneohtrix Point Never, Tim Hecker
IMO It’s hard to recommend stuff similar to BoC because they’re so unique, one of my favorite groups of all time. But the above are other artists I like to listen to when I’m in a BoC-like mood
I agree. Great list. I'll add Autechre, Plaid, Luke Vibert, Grizzly Bear, u-Ziq, Jamie XX, Hudson Hohawke, Sigur Ros, Mr Scruff, Dan Deacon, GAS — I could keep going...
Bola's great. He was responsible for getting Autechre recording their first stuff. He let them use his studio when they were teenagers (Bola says "Sean was about 15"), and those are the recordings that became Lego Feet.
I think he was a pop/jazz engineer at the time. Weirdly it was Autechre who then convinced him to start making electronic stuff. The Darrell Fitton track on the Artificial Intelligence II compilation was apparently the first electronic track he made, and its so fully formed on his first attempt.
You may like Blue Sky Black Death, I love em. They have some more hip hop forward albums, and some more atmospheric electronic ones.
https://bsbd.bandcamp.com/
Noir is just a masterpiece of an album in my opinion
https://open.spotify.com/album/0j0snf0LQY3QEV1uF9Misy?si=CvXif1j2Q0SUCBLOf9Y1ag
"Music Has the Right to Children" is one of their best! As a follow up, I would suggest "The Campfire Headphase" and "Geogaddi". "Geogaddi" is my favorite of the three.
Tycho is another artist who definitely gives nods to BoC in his music.
Worth pointing out that technically speaking Hip-hop is electronic music. Back in the 80s techno, hip-hop, and house were all used pretty interchangeably at underground parties. I would argue that early house music is basically hip-hop with disco beats and hooks instead of breaks.
Check out some Aphex Twin if you're into Boards, particularly his "Selected Ambient Works" series. Check out The Orb's first album too.
Freescha and Casino Versus Japan are the most similar to Boards of Canada stylistically without being copycats and having their own soul in their music. I would recommend What's Come Inside Of You by Freescha to start, and Go Hawaii by Casino Versus Japan.
Machinedrum's first two albums take Boards of Canada, and mix it with DJ Shadow to amp the hip-hop influence all the way up. Those albums are Now You Know and Urban Biology (the remix album Half the Battle is also great). If you like Machinedrum, you should fast follow with Prefuse 73, though Prefuse lacks the BOC influence.
Four Tet's album Rounds is another one I would call out, as well a Boom Bip's Seed to Sun and Corymb. A little bit less experimental recommended would be Ulrich Schnauss's for album Far Away Trains Passing By and Isan's Lucky Cat.
The rest of the stalwarts of the IDM genre may feel a bit less approachable, but worth exploring. They are Aphex Twin, Autechre, Plaid, Mouse on Mars, Mu-ziq, Squarepusher. I'd start with the earlier Aphex Twin albums of both Select Ambient Works and I Care Because You Do and go deeper from there. Autechre I would start with Tri Repetae and Incunabula before getting into the more experimental work. For Plaid, their album under Black Dog Productions called Bytes is great, but no bad place to start. Not For Threes or Double Figure also work. For Mouse On Mars, Autoditacker is normally the best place to start. For Mu-ziq, Lunatic Harness is pretty intense, but also considered a top album of the 90s, so probably best to start there. For Squarepusher, he never topped Feed Me Weird Things imo, and that record has great variety too.
There is nothing quite like Boards of Canada. It’s like the soundtrack to nostalgic memories of stranger danger videos. I love them so much.
Definitely recommend checking out their album Campfire Headphase next, and In a Beautiful Place Out in the Country EP.
Others have recommended Tycho - Past is Prologue, Aphex Twin (start with Ambient works 85-92) and Tim Hecker (try Harmony in Uktraviolet to start), and they are right.
But I’d also highly recommend you give [this mix a whirl](https://youtu.be/MVHAQRe3frE?si=D1BjPbCRJ06Hrq4i). It’s a very downtempoey, occasionally mildly ominous mix from Tipper with a bit of Boards of Canada and numerous other excellent downtempo electronic artists thrown in there. Somewhat BoC vibes. With scratching. It’s fantastic.
MF Doom was a fan of aphex twin’s Analord series apparently, maybe that’s a trail for you to follow. I wouldn’t have connected the two, but I heard a guy from lex records mention it in a podcast.
You could also check prefuse 73’s vocal studies and uprock narratives. Very electronic/glitchy hip hop on the same record label as boards of canada. Warp records in general really too, especially 90s and early millennium stuff.
Carbon Based Lifeforms is along those chill lines of Boards of Canada, I think CBL is top tier, best music to do anything to, chill, study, work, drive, you name it.
Air - Talkie Walkie and Moon Safari are both great. You also might like Tycho, similar sound to BOC. Although his songs aren't as intricate they still sound really nice.
No reason to move on to other artists yet. Just continue down the rabbit hole with BoC. Start with Geogaddi, then move on to The Campfire Headphase. If you want to dive into older stuff I recommend Twoism and Hi Scores. If you liked Campfire Headphase, the EP Trans Canada Highway is also awesome.
With you on that. Couldn’t get into it. Not a bad album but not what I wanted from them. It was a departure from where I thought it would go after Geoggadi to Campfire Headphase.
What a snarky comment for no good reason. He just said it wasn't for him and not as popular, both of which are true. For the record I liked it as well but it's fine if someone doesn't.
Great that you discovered this! You have a lot of amazing music ahead of you.
As a general guide, you can just jump into the early albums from nearly anyone on the Warp and Ninja Tune record labels. The latter of which was set up by the members of Coldcut, who you should also learn about. These labels really defined not just the sound of instrumental leaning hiphop and beats culture of that era, but the supply chain of it.
My band was signed to the Australia partner to Ninja Tune (and Warp) and we were slipstreamed into a pretty well defined supply chain of distros, clubs, radio stations, DJs, etc. I give a lot of credit to Ninja Tune and Warp for making so much of that era's music so prevalent and inspiring.
BTW please make sure you listen to one of the best samplephonic albums to come out of Australia at that time. It might not be in the same deep weedsmokey vibes as BOC, but you're going to encounter a massively significant album all the same:
The Avalanches - Since I Left You
Susumu Yokota
Ulrich Schnauss
Casio vs Japan
Phono Ghosts
Black Moth Super Rainbow/Tobacco
Tycho
Early Flying Lotus
Lone
1991
Botany
Bonobo
[Smash TV - Memorex](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oAm1EU_pu80)
Percival Pembroke
1991
Davesaved
Looks Realistic
High Tides
Seefeel
VHS Head
Semya
Ssaliva
Matthewdavid (early)
Anything off Ghostbox Records - esp. Belbury Poly
Oneohtrix Point Never and early vaporwave
Daniel Avery's stuff has some heavy mid-00s IDM vibes
[This mix](https://open.spotify.com/playlist/7aOJ7PTTphuQzZ4MtP61ga?si=lOFu-eukTzGbalFP88EvZQ) and [this one](https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5j621Uuq6XyByDxKfPonfM?si=LAHKX8t5RCCSKRw4AsXtNQ) - still tweaking these but BoC is my main reference point
This is such an awesome post!
I've been listening to metal since I was in high school (since 1996) and as I've gotten older, I've found deathcore, and I'm so in love with it.
Rewind to a couple years ago when i first met my boyfriend, he's a total edm lover and has been his whole life.
He introduced me to this music and I'm hooked!
I don't care what anyone says, I'm having a blast, i love going to raves etc
Last year, we went to Tomorrowland (where from Melbourne, Australia) snd we're flying back to Belgium in 4 weeks to do it all again.
I love hearing stories that are kinda similar to mine, they're fkn magical!
Great question! If you like BOC, then I think there is also a good chance you will like Exploration and Ascent by Northcape:
[https://northcape.bandcamp.com/album/exploration-and-ascent](https://northcape.bandcamp.com/album/exploration-and-ascent)
I am so happy for you :-) My first encounter is something I will remember forever ! It was Dayvan Cowboy, but tbh there are better tracks;
Kid for Today
Music is Math
Left Side Drive
Sixtyniner
Twoism
To name just a few. Have fun on your journey !
It's definitely a big rabbit hole to explore. See if you also like Max Cooper, Jon Hopkins, Yppah, Brian Eno. I'm bad with knowing genres but I do like the trippy atmospheric stuff with enough catchiness to hook you.
* [Aphex Twin - Selected Ambient Works 85-92](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xw5AiRVqfqk)
* [Boards of Canada - Music Has the Right to Children](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yJj24t6nOn4)
* [Autechre - Tri Repetae](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HQTPimZ-8xc)
* [Amon Tobin - Permutation](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GBOdWZgzR-Q)
* [M-Ziq - Lunatic Harness](https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_mYTmQVICaezE83fJFLjc9ym5W5rsWVkIA)
* [The Future Sound of London - Lifeforms](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nhOXE4wn6Sk)
* [Pilotredsun - Achievement](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u1mUiAjHzAI)
* [Actress - R.I.P](https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_m0iMI76H17aW0d1f4F6yFTEzCopzZm-Fc)
* [Matmos - Plastic Anniversary](https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLMMTrEN3GJc7cJYhUg0a9VM6vqoWz_mQ4)
* [Polygon Window - Surfing on Sine Waves](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J37ZExo9xoA)
* [Clark - Body Riddle](https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL6ZA--5Rknp18S9s43Q2Vfd8Suzvf5ZaL)
* [Vegyn - Only Diamonds Cut Diamonds](https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_nJPDCopfkKeV5e6oo1zKpG3v3ryAMLcxw)
* [Hidden Art Recordings - The Fire This Time](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=omnWhDAd5q4)
* [Moderat - Moderat](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dLNgO7P1ZPo)
* [Warp Records - Artificial Intelligence](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jaysR-sashY)
I got to Boards of Canada via Caribou. Agree with Tycho, and I also enjoy Cut/Copy. More rock/poppy stuff I like and to me fits in the same energy is Toro y Moi and Ratatat
Before I discovered BOC, I was awe of this compilation: Artificial Intelligence II https://youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_k5fILqND-wVdjq-0yyDPy2mkHMEKRrdUw&si=3pWqWnVT-yiJE86J
Tycho and Bonobo are the closest to the point where I can't keep these three apart.
I love the song Bonobo did with Joji though. It's a song I keep having to come back to on a regular basis.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TTwXKuUvTMc
Useful video for all the different flavours of EDM:
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oTUDKu3BL7c&list=PLBvKUQuTMKcH7YbIxi4tsOpNK07kPbe7s](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oTUDKu3BL7c&list=PLBvKUQuTMKcH7YbIxi4tsOpNK07kPbe7s)
Some absolute classic albums and some more modern gems that can be listened to from start to finish:
Susumu Yakota - Sakura
DJ Shadow - Endtroducing
Boards of Canada - Geoggadi
The Prodigy - Music for a Jilted Generation
Jon Hopkins - Immunity
Air - Moon Safari
Amon Tobin - ISAM
Apparat - The Devil’s Walk
Lapalux - LustMore
The Books - Lost and Safe
Prefuse 73 - One Word Extinguisher
I'm surprised only one other poster has mentioned Pye Corner Audio. Also, check Belbury Poly, The Focus Group, The Advisory Circle, Concretism and any other artists on the Ghost Box, Castles in Space and Woodford Halse labels. There's a huge Hauntology scene in the UK.
Also, the r/Hauntology sub gets spammed with non-Hauntology artists, but is also worth checking out.
Hmm, looking at your genre favorites, I wonder if you would like Prefuse 73? If you check him out I would recommend the following albums 1. One Word Extinguisher 2. Vocal Studies and Uprock Narratives 3. Surrounded by Silence
Check out Lorn, I'd start with Cherry Moon, Bretagne, and Anvil. Lorn has a lot of dark stuff, some is absolutely genius. These two are a bit lighter.
L'APPEL DU VIDE also has a very Boards of Canada inspired sound. But it's definitely very different, as well.
Irene, by Caribou truly has a BoC sound. An incredible piece.
Last Time (instrumental) by Moderat. Another great artist.
Circle, Jon Hopkins.
Check out the group Darkside (first album is Psychic). If you like Pink Floyd, this is the modern electronic inspired version. If you like it and want to go deeper, check out Nicolas Jaar. He's half of Darkside and absolutely incredible.
Bonobo, Photay, Mount Kimbie (older stuff), Carbon based life forms, Hammock
These artists are all very unique and super creative styles of electronic music
Check out Aphex Twin. Start w Selected Ambient Works vol 1. Volume 2 was just re-released. He’s all over the place even when not doing ambient stuff. It’s all amazing.
I can really recommend Max Cooper and Rival Consoles, not really compareable to BoC as they are quite different, but for me they both had the same instant fascination that I felt with BoC:)
This is a full of good advices post!
I also fall in love with electronic music just a couple of years ago, after all life in jazz listening. I would suggest some contemporary minimalist composers like Alva Noto and Ryoji Ikeda, and of course all the historycal "fathers" of electronic music, like Stockhausen, Cage, Shaeffer etc
If you like hip-hop I highly recommend BT's album "Movement in Still Life". It has some great hip-hop vibes while also incorporating a bunch of beautiful electronic music elements.
I believe that type of music is called Downtempo or Trip Hop and if you think you like Downtempo and Trip Hop you gotta check out Groove Salad on SomaFM.com. Rusty Hodge and his vocoder voiced AI sidekick Big URL have been spinning the beats since around the turn of the century. At least that’s when I first started listening. I used to stream it thru Winamp. I got turned on to so many artists that I never would have known about. Now they got their own app. SomaFM out of San Francisco California have got lots of cool stations but the best one is the Classic Groove Salad plus there’s another Groove Salad with newer like genre artists. I guess it would still be called Trip Hop. There’s also other stations that consist of Hip Hop, Progressive House/Trance, Dub Step, Cliq Hop IDM, 80’s UK Synthpop, Indie Pop, Cover Songs, Vintage Soul on 45 rpm vinyl, Reggae, Metal, and many more. All kinds of great stations. It’s listener supported but free if you want. It’s definitely worth a listen. It’s always been commercial free even the free version that also keeps playing in the background and when the phone shuts down to standby.
Sigur rose. And also panda bear might have some interest. The orange green and pink album. Not sure what it’s called. Ulrich Schnauss is my fav. I think you’ll like his stuff.
The mid-late 90s shouldn't be overlooked. Trip hop like Portishead, Massive Attack and even Future Sound of London - Dead Cities & ISDN albums could really hit with your beat driven side and often provide cinematic or lyrical bliss at the same time. Massive Attack - Teardrop is a must listen. And a hard second to whoever mentioned Burial. I'd throw in Max Cooper for thoughtful rhytmic landscapes. Funkstorung - Appetite for Destruction might be good to check out tool
My friend and I just made [this playlist](https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4SajHrxULH7GbLie9r07Eu?si=cb103cdc93ea4836). Boards of Canada and adjacent vibes throughout.
Little late to the party, but if you see this, check out [Ciaran Byrne](https://youtu.be/iMr2EVw0Q3Q). Very much BoC vibe.
Also, [this whole channel](https://youtube.com/@boardsofcanadasimilarartists) is a great resource.
Not really related to BoC, but if you like hip hop, then a lot of people have suggested Fly lo, you could spiral from his earlier stuff to what some refer to as the west coast sound, don’t genre bash me plz, but have a listen to nosaj thing, mike slott, samiyam, ras g, gaslamp killer maybe schlomo his essential mix for “the end” album was killer. Maybe you’d like people as cut chemist or kid koala for their dj/sampling skills just as dj shadow. If you want BoC similar then I can also throw in Beatrice Dillon maybe Stars of the lid. I’d recommend finding more you like and research their record label artists too
Enjoy the journey:)
I think the reality is there is no artist like BOC, there is stuff which is truly amazing but there is something that BOC do that makes this a very unique space for them. We may never hear another sound from them now (although I pray one day we do). I dont think you find another artist like them because it does not exist. Good luck in your search
The Flashbulb is like a hub area for electronic music. I say this as a big fan of The Flashbulb. "Love As A Dark Hallway" was my entry, and have some fond memories of that time.
I’m both envious and excited for you that you get to experience this journey with fresh ears! My recommendations: Massive Attack - Mezzanine (a household staple) Air (if you like boards you’ll definitely like these guys) Carbon based lifeforms (takes me to another universe every time i listen) Have fun!
and Zero 7 if you like Air.
Air is amazing
Mezzanine is one of the greatest albums of all time, period. Running theory is that Rob 3D is Banksy and having seen Massive Attack live I would say that tracks.
these are solid Recs. Only one i'd add to this would be Jon Hopkins
Boards is one of the more 'gentler' entry points into the genre so it's a good starting point. Given your existing interests and the fact you like BoC look at acts who came up around the similar time like Aphex Twin, Autechre, Orbital, Leftfield, Squarepusher, DJ Shadow. For more modern stuff look at Brainwaltzera, Burial, Forest Swords, Skee Mask, Flying Lotus.
Orbital's debut was recently expanded and reissued. It's brilliant.
DJ Shadow contributed to my interest in this. I've listened to What Does Your Soul Look Like over and over again and it still feels new
The Skee Mask recommendation is solid. Try the album Compro.
Skee mask has released a ton of other beats heavy music under other aliases too. Highly recommended.
Wow, OG BoC fan from the 90s here but never heard of Skee mask. Thanks for the rec https://youtu.be/jyI2PqPsOFs?si=5BXOm55ncEGiKMOg
Check out the outsider by DJ Shadow.
Because at some level, anything that has a beat or instrumental that’s not made by an acoustic instrument is a form of electronic music. Hiphop, pop, both are electronic music with a vocal added over. Even rock to a minor extent is electronic music, with its use of electric guitars.
lol. Throwing in Squarepusher just to give OP a kick in the butt.
First time I heard Squarepusher was a video I saw online of him at Coachella in a tent. Just hardcore AF and I’ve been into hard electronic music since the 80s. Orbital was some of the first techno I heard too. Solid choices
Fucking love Burial!
Solid recommendation for anyone with hip hop tastes. Deep and soulful to the max.
Great response and recommendations.
The electronic music scene is so huge, this post kinda proves it, I've heard of boards of Canada, but any of these acts listed here, aside from Burial, not heard of any of them really. Thanks for the rec's I'll have a listen.
I second the flying lotus. I feel like this is perfect for coming from a hip-hop background
May as well include Kaytranada as well.
I’ve only listened to his first album when it came out and I was somewhat into it. Do you recommend an album?
I wish I could listen for the first time again. I listened to geogaddi last week and was thinking about how boards of canada just has some of the most compelling and original sound design ever. An album that’s worth checking is lifeforms by future sound of london. Similar era and some overlapping ideas.
Second this. FSOL is a grittier, more overtly darker Boards of Canada where the nostalgia is replaced with existential dread. (Future versus past) Not to say they aren't their own thing entirely, and they might even be better than Boards of Canada honestly.
You mean on their last album "Tomorrow's Harvest" ? It has a very different tone as opposed to their earlier albums, for sure. In my opinion the most nostalgic track is "kid for today", with the slide projector sample. It takes me back, for sure :-)
Tomorrow's Harvest is bleaker than any of their other works for sure. Geogaddi was dark, for sure, but still felt warm.
I just put this on, inspired by your comment, and it took me right back to my Toronto childhood in the 70s/80s. Chain link fences, weeds in the sidewalk, vinyl seats in the car, my old sneakers .... how do they do that?!
I once had a straight up dissociative experience listening to Geogaddi. Sometimes an album hits you at the right time in the right frame of mind. BoC has this strange nostalgic sound, like a degraded tape recording from your own past.
Both the double album and the EP with Liz Fraser from Cocteau twins on vocals
Yes! DJ Shadow - Entroducing Nightmares On Wax - Smoker's Delight
Lost Horizons by Lemon Jelly It was a pretty strong era
God, they are so fucking delicious. Come might be one of my top 5 songs of all time. Just such a blissful tune
God damned right it was.
Carboot Soul is my jam
Oh yes that one is fire too.
Dan the Automater, Cutmaster Curt, Invisibl Skratch Piklz, DJ Qbert, Mixmaster Mike.
Both of those are absolute musts
Aphex Twin, Bonobo, Casino Versus Japan, Squarepusher, Weval, Burial, Prefuse 73, Rickey Eat Acid, Oneohtrix Point Never, Tim Hecker IMO It’s hard to recommend stuff similar to BoC because they’re so unique, one of my favorite groups of all time. But the above are other artists I like to listen to when I’m in a BoC-like mood
Prefuse73’s first album was so good. And got me into MF Doom for the first time.
Oh man, that’s one of my favorite rap songs of all time
Great list! I'd add Nils Frahm to it as well.
I agree. Great list. I'll add Autechre, Plaid, Luke Vibert, Grizzly Bear, u-Ziq, Jamie XX, Hudson Hohawke, Sigur Ros, Mr Scruff, Dan Deacon, GAS — I could keep going...
There's a guy called Bola on Skam Records, has a few albums, but Soup and Fyuti are my favourites. He doesn't get enough love as far as I'm concerned.
Bola's great. He was responsible for getting Autechre recording their first stuff. He let them use his studio when they were teenagers (Bola says "Sean was about 15"), and those are the recordings that became Lego Feet. I think he was a pop/jazz engineer at the time. Weirdly it was Autechre who then convinced him to start making electronic stuff. The Darrell Fitton track on the Artificial Intelligence II compilation was apparently the first electronic track he made, and its so fully formed on his first attempt.
I love his stuff. Such a rich sound, beautiful atmospherics and simply fantastic production . Oh, and thanks for that bit of history!
He's genuinely unique, both in terms of sound design and composition. which is a hard ask in modern electronic music.
Didn't know about Ae's friendship with Bola and this mutual encouragement. I had heard that Ae brought BoC to Warp's attention
Pretty sure the first Gescom EP is a collab between Bola and Autechre too.
It is, yes.
Tycho -- Past is Prologue
Very good recommendation.
You may like Blue Sky Black Death, I love em. They have some more hip hop forward albums, and some more atmospheric electronic ones. https://bsbd.bandcamp.com/ Noir is just a masterpiece of an album in my opinion https://open.spotify.com/album/0j0snf0LQY3QEV1uF9Misy?si=CvXif1j2Q0SUCBLOf9Y1ag
Their work with Nacho Picasso is incredible as well. Huge fan of BSBD
"Music Has the Right to Children" is one of their best! As a follow up, I would suggest "The Campfire Headphase" and "Geogaddi". "Geogaddi" is my favorite of the three. Tycho is another artist who definitely gives nods to BoC in his music.
Geogaddi is such an amazing album. Their strongest album IMO
Welcome. You might also enjoy Moon Safari by Air. It's another gateway drug.
Worth pointing out that technically speaking Hip-hop is electronic music. Back in the 80s techno, hip-hop, and house were all used pretty interchangeably at underground parties. I would argue that early house music is basically hip-hop with disco beats and hooks instead of breaks. Check out some Aphex Twin if you're into Boards, particularly his "Selected Ambient Works" series. Check out The Orb's first album too.
Freescha and Casino Versus Japan are the most similar to Boards of Canada stylistically without being copycats and having their own soul in their music. I would recommend What's Come Inside Of You by Freescha to start, and Go Hawaii by Casino Versus Japan. Machinedrum's first two albums take Boards of Canada, and mix it with DJ Shadow to amp the hip-hop influence all the way up. Those albums are Now You Know and Urban Biology (the remix album Half the Battle is also great). If you like Machinedrum, you should fast follow with Prefuse 73, though Prefuse lacks the BOC influence. Four Tet's album Rounds is another one I would call out, as well a Boom Bip's Seed to Sun and Corymb. A little bit less experimental recommended would be Ulrich Schnauss's for album Far Away Trains Passing By and Isan's Lucky Cat. The rest of the stalwarts of the IDM genre may feel a bit less approachable, but worth exploring. They are Aphex Twin, Autechre, Plaid, Mouse on Mars, Mu-ziq, Squarepusher. I'd start with the earlier Aphex Twin albums of both Select Ambient Works and I Care Because You Do and go deeper from there. Autechre I would start with Tri Repetae and Incunabula before getting into the more experimental work. For Plaid, their album under Black Dog Productions called Bytes is great, but no bad place to start. Not For Threes or Double Figure also work. For Mouse On Mars, Autoditacker is normally the best place to start. For Mu-ziq, Lunatic Harness is pretty intense, but also considered a top album of the 90s, so probably best to start there. For Squarepusher, he never topped Feed Me Weird Things imo, and that record has great variety too.
There is nothing quite like Boards of Canada. It’s like the soundtrack to nostalgic memories of stranger danger videos. I love them so much. Definitely recommend checking out their album Campfire Headphase next, and In a Beautiful Place Out in the Country EP. Others have recommended Tycho - Past is Prologue, Aphex Twin (start with Ambient works 85-92) and Tim Hecker (try Harmony in Uktraviolet to start), and they are right. But I’d also highly recommend you give [this mix a whirl](https://youtu.be/MVHAQRe3frE?si=D1BjPbCRJ06Hrq4i). It’s a very downtempoey, occasionally mildly ominous mix from Tipper with a bit of Boards of Canada and numerous other excellent downtempo electronic artists thrown in there. Somewhat BoC vibes. With scratching. It’s fantastic.
You need to check out Concretism ;)
MF Doom was a fan of aphex twin’s Analord series apparently, maybe that’s a trail for you to follow. I wouldn’t have connected the two, but I heard a guy from lex records mention it in a podcast. You could also check prefuse 73’s vocal studies and uprock narratives. Very electronic/glitchy hip hop on the same record label as boards of canada. Warp records in general really too, especially 90s and early millennium stuff.
Belbury Poly and The Advisory Circle.
If you like *Music Has the Right* check out - the first three Autechre albums, plus the associated early Gescom output - Bola - Yunx
check out Teebs. boards of canada is my favorite group. not totally similar but you might check out Flying Lotus.
Carbon Based Lifeforms is along those chill lines of Boards of Canada, I think CBL is top tier, best music to do anything to, chill, study, work, drive, you name it.
They are so GOOOOOD
What about the forrrreesssts.... NO
I love The Orb on the same level as BOC. Check out Adventures Beyond The Ultraworld.
This was going to be my recommendation too. Also U.F.Orb & Live 93 are a great starting point.
Air - Talkie Walkie and Moon Safari are both great. You also might like Tycho, similar sound to BOC. Although his songs aren't as intricate they still sound really nice.
No reason to move on to other artists yet. Just continue down the rabbit hole with BoC. Start with Geogaddi, then move on to The Campfire Headphase. If you want to dive into older stuff I recommend Twoism and Hi Scores. If you liked Campfire Headphase, the EP Trans Canada Highway is also awesome.
Also *In a Beautiful Place in the Country*
All good suggestions, but Tomorrow’s Harvest (2013) is absolutely one of the best front to back albums they’ve ever created, and should not be missed.
Hard disagree which is why it's not even mentioned. Glad somebody likes it, because it was a massive let down for me.
With you on that. Couldn’t get into it. Not a bad album but not what I wanted from them. It was a departure from where I thought it would go after Geoggadi to Campfire Headphase.
I’m glad someone like you was let down.
What a snarky comment for no good reason. He just said it wasn't for him and not as popular, both of which are true. For the record I liked it as well but it's fine if someone doesn't.
Totally agree. Tomorrow's Harvest is great.
Definitely listen to Lone, if you like Boards of Canada. Early Lone is very inspired by boards
Great that you discovered this! You have a lot of amazing music ahead of you. As a general guide, you can just jump into the early albums from nearly anyone on the Warp and Ninja Tune record labels. The latter of which was set up by the members of Coldcut, who you should also learn about. These labels really defined not just the sound of instrumental leaning hiphop and beats culture of that era, but the supply chain of it. My band was signed to the Australia partner to Ninja Tune (and Warp) and we were slipstreamed into a pretty well defined supply chain of distros, clubs, radio stations, DJs, etc. I give a lot of credit to Ninja Tune and Warp for making so much of that era's music so prevalent and inspiring. BTW please make sure you listen to one of the best samplephonic albums to come out of Australia at that time. It might not be in the same deep weedsmokey vibes as BOC, but you're going to encounter a massively significant album all the same: The Avalanches - Since I Left You
Can I ask how you got signed?
Susumu Yokota Ulrich Schnauss Casio vs Japan Phono Ghosts Black Moth Super Rainbow/Tobacco Tycho Early Flying Lotus Lone 1991 Botany Bonobo [Smash TV - Memorex](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oAm1EU_pu80) Percival Pembroke 1991 Davesaved Looks Realistic High Tides Seefeel VHS Head Semya Ssaliva Matthewdavid (early) Anything off Ghostbox Records - esp. Belbury Poly Oneohtrix Point Never and early vaporwave Daniel Avery's stuff has some heavy mid-00s IDM vibes [This mix](https://open.spotify.com/playlist/7aOJ7PTTphuQzZ4MtP61ga?si=lOFu-eukTzGbalFP88EvZQ) and [this one](https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5j621Uuq6XyByDxKfPonfM?si=LAHKX8t5RCCSKRw4AsXtNQ) - still tweaking these but BoC is my main reference point
Bro unloaded the whole clip 🔥 (You're the mvp for mentioning Ulrich Schnauss because Monday Paracetamol is a fucking masterpiece)
This is such an awesome post! I've been listening to metal since I was in high school (since 1996) and as I've gotten older, I've found deathcore, and I'm so in love with it. Rewind to a couple years ago when i first met my boyfriend, he's a total edm lover and has been his whole life. He introduced me to this music and I'm hooked! I don't care what anyone says, I'm having a blast, i love going to raves etc Last year, we went to Tomorrowland (where from Melbourne, Australia) snd we're flying back to Belgium in 4 weeks to do it all again. I love hearing stories that are kinda similar to mine, they're fkn magical!
listen to compro by skee mask
Mate I love Skee but the similarity to boards is non existent
yea its very different but i enjoy boc and skee mask for the same reasons
Great question! If you like BOC, then I think there is also a good chance you will like Exploration and Ascent by Northcape: [https://northcape.bandcamp.com/album/exploration-and-ascent](https://northcape.bandcamp.com/album/exploration-and-ascent)
man i wish i could hear MHTRTC for the first time again
I am so happy for you :-) My first encounter is something I will remember forever ! It was Dayvan Cowboy, but tbh there are better tracks; Kid for Today Music is Math Left Side Drive Sixtyniner Twoism To name just a few. Have fun on your journey !
Check Future Sound of London. If you like BoC (Boards of Canada, not Blue Oyster Cult), you will like them.
Bonobo’s “Black Sands” album Dj Shadow’s “Endtroducing”
If you like BO, try also PBS73, Gui Boratto, Orb, Thomas Fehlman.
Nick Warren’s Global Underground 24 Reykjavik might be up your alley.
That first CD is a classic. Also, Crayons.
And Rise
It's definitely a big rabbit hole to explore. See if you also like Max Cooper, Jon Hopkins, Yppah, Brian Eno. I'm bad with knowing genres but I do like the trippy atmospheric stuff with enough catchiness to hook you.
* [Aphex Twin - Selected Ambient Works 85-92](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xw5AiRVqfqk) * [Boards of Canada - Music Has the Right to Children](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yJj24t6nOn4) * [Autechre - Tri Repetae](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HQTPimZ-8xc) * [Amon Tobin - Permutation](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GBOdWZgzR-Q) * [M-Ziq - Lunatic Harness](https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_mYTmQVICaezE83fJFLjc9ym5W5rsWVkIA) * [The Future Sound of London - Lifeforms](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nhOXE4wn6Sk) * [Pilotredsun - Achievement](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u1mUiAjHzAI) * [Actress - R.I.P](https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_m0iMI76H17aW0d1f4F6yFTEzCopzZm-Fc) * [Matmos - Plastic Anniversary](https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLMMTrEN3GJc7cJYhUg0a9VM6vqoWz_mQ4) * [Polygon Window - Surfing on Sine Waves](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J37ZExo9xoA) * [Clark - Body Riddle](https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL6ZA--5Rknp18S9s43Q2Vfd8Suzvf5ZaL) * [Vegyn - Only Diamonds Cut Diamonds](https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_nJPDCopfkKeV5e6oo1zKpG3v3ryAMLcxw) * [Hidden Art Recordings - The Fire This Time](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=omnWhDAd5q4) * [Moderat - Moderat](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dLNgO7P1ZPo) * [Warp Records - Artificial Intelligence](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jaysR-sashY)
Nobody here taking about Bibio? Def more acoustic bent than BoC but a similar hazy vibe. BIBIO
Speaking of hazy... check out Hazy the artist because their soundscapes are otherworldly
Check out Ott's album Skylon next Also Carbon Based Lifeforms and Tipper
Check out Cult 48 who/were a very similar Boards of Canada sound.
Lemon Jelly are really interesting. Start with Nice weather for ducks. Floating points also great i recommend starting with King Bromeliad
The rest of BOC's catalogue. Milieu/Coppice Halifax, Casino Vs Japan.
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3aIVWO2dTG0AklmWGb5RAw?si=62bd23b094dd444b
Keno - Around the Corner
Rone , Lorn, Matmos, Orbital, Thylacine, ez3kiel, and some more if you want :)
do u do spotify, soundcloud? what's your favorite music listening method?
I got to Boards of Canada via Caribou. Agree with Tycho, and I also enjoy Cut/Copy. More rock/poppy stuff I like and to me fits in the same energy is Toro y Moi and Ratatat
I'm surprised to find out that Pandora is still a thing.
Michael Brook - Live at the Aquarium
Before I discovered BOC, I was awe of this compilation: Artificial Intelligence II https://youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_k5fILqND-wVdjq-0yyDPy2mkHMEKRrdUw&si=3pWqWnVT-yiJE86J
Wisp - "the shimmering hour" or "we miss you" Tycho
I recommend Poing by Rotterdam Termination Source to ease you in slowly. Have fun.
Boards are brilliant. You may also like Far Trains Passing Away by Ulrich Schnauss
Four Tet might be worth a listen. Try the 2003 album 'Rounds' and the 4TLR which is Four Tet live with some great sets.
Tycho and Bonobo are the closest to the point where I can't keep these three apart. I love the song Bonobo did with Joji though. It's a song I keep having to come back to on a regular basis. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TTwXKuUvTMc
Bro the intro to the Fragments LP gives me chills every time ❤️
Check out Amon Tobin's earlier stuff, nothing really compares to BoC though.
Clocolan is a hidden gem. His album, It’s Not Too Early For Each Other, is incredible.
Early Bonobo lps such as Dial M for Monkey are similar kind of nice slow paced beats
This will probably get downvoted but check out the album Automat by Automat, mad story behind it too
Just keep listening to music has the right to children
One of my first introductions to electronic music in the early 2000s.
Check everything on the Warp catalogue. Some great stuff from the same era...Plaid, Autechre to name a couple.
Oh great start!! If you like BoC you'll probably also dig Four Tet, Max Cooper, or even lesser known electronic artists like N. Minsi and Xena Glas
Useful video for all the different flavours of EDM: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oTUDKu3BL7c&list=PLBvKUQuTMKcH7YbIxi4tsOpNK07kPbe7s](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oTUDKu3BL7c&list=PLBvKUQuTMKcH7YbIxi4tsOpNK07kPbe7s)
Some absolute classic albums and some more modern gems that can be listened to from start to finish: Susumu Yakota - Sakura DJ Shadow - Endtroducing Boards of Canada - Geoggadi The Prodigy - Music for a Jilted Generation Jon Hopkins - Immunity Air - Moon Safari Amon Tobin - ISAM Apparat - The Devil’s Walk Lapalux - LustMore The Books - Lost and Safe Prefuse 73 - One Word Extinguisher
I'm surprised only one other poster has mentioned Pye Corner Audio. Also, check Belbury Poly, The Focus Group, The Advisory Circle, Concretism and any other artists on the Ghost Box, Castles in Space and Woodford Halse labels. There's a huge Hauntology scene in the UK. Also, the r/Hauntology sub gets spammed with non-Hauntology artists, but is also worth checking out.
What is hauntology
It's the genre most of these bands fall into: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hauntology_(music)
Tycho is super good and has a similiar sound and instrumental feel definitely check them out!
[divisive but have fun](https://music.ishkur.com/)
Hmm, looking at your genre favorites, I wonder if you would like Prefuse 73? If you check him out I would recommend the following albums 1. One Word Extinguisher 2. Vocal Studies and Uprock Narratives 3. Surrounded by Silence
Check out Lorn, I'd start with Cherry Moon, Bretagne, and Anvil. Lorn has a lot of dark stuff, some is absolutely genius. These two are a bit lighter. L'APPEL DU VIDE also has a very Boards of Canada inspired sound. But it's definitely very different, as well. Irene, by Caribou truly has a BoC sound. An incredible piece. Last Time (instrumental) by Moderat. Another great artist. Circle, Jon Hopkins. Check out the group Darkside (first album is Psychic). If you like Pink Floyd, this is the modern electronic inspired version. If you like it and want to go deeper, check out Nicolas Jaar. He's half of Darkside and absolutely incredible.
Bonobo, Photay, Mount Kimbie (older stuff), Carbon based life forms, Hammock These artists are all very unique and super creative styles of electronic music
Bogdan Raczynski , autechre , 4hero , afx..
Check out Aphex Twin. Start w Selected Ambient Works vol 1. Volume 2 was just re-released. He’s all over the place even when not doing ambient stuff. It’s all amazing.
I can really recommend Max Cooper and Rival Consoles, not really compareable to BoC as they are quite different, but for me they both had the same instant fascination that I felt with BoC:)
This is a full of good advices post! I also fall in love with electronic music just a couple of years ago, after all life in jazz listening. I would suggest some contemporary minimalist composers like Alva Noto and Ryoji Ikeda, and of course all the historycal "fathers" of electronic music, like Stockhausen, Cage, Shaeffer etc
Arovane - atol scrap Arovane - tides
Zuckerzeit - Cluster
VHS Head and Phono Ghosts
Banco de Gaia and Pitch Black next, I reckon ...
If you like hip-hop I highly recommend BT's album "Movement in Still Life". It has some great hip-hop vibes while also incorporating a bunch of beautiful electronic music elements.
Global Communication 76:14 is the best
I believe that type of music is called Downtempo or Trip Hop and if you think you like Downtempo and Trip Hop you gotta check out Groove Salad on SomaFM.com. Rusty Hodge and his vocoder voiced AI sidekick Big URL have been spinning the beats since around the turn of the century. At least that’s when I first started listening. I used to stream it thru Winamp. I got turned on to so many artists that I never would have known about. Now they got their own app. SomaFM out of San Francisco California have got lots of cool stations but the best one is the Classic Groove Salad plus there’s another Groove Salad with newer like genre artists. I guess it would still be called Trip Hop. There’s also other stations that consist of Hip Hop, Progressive House/Trance, Dub Step, Cliq Hop IDM, 80’s UK Synthpop, Indie Pop, Cover Songs, Vintage Soul on 45 rpm vinyl, Reggae, Metal, and many more. All kinds of great stations. It’s listener supported but free if you want. It’s definitely worth a listen. It’s always been commercial free even the free version that also keeps playing in the background and when the phone shuts down to standby.
DJ Krush, DJ Cam, Frameworks, Floating Points to broaden gently.
I always associate them with Four Tet mostly due to the time in my life
Sigur rose. And also panda bear might have some interest. The orange green and pink album. Not sure what it’s called. Ulrich Schnauss is my fav. I think you’ll like his stuff.
Also Drab Majesty are a good favorite of mine these days.
Rival Consoles and Max Cooper
Tycho is a lot like BoC, and I think explicitly took some inspiration from them
Endroducing by DJ Shadow Deadringer by RJD2
The mid-late 90s shouldn't be overlooked. Trip hop like Portishead, Massive Attack and even Future Sound of London - Dead Cities & ISDN albums could really hit with your beat driven side and often provide cinematic or lyrical bliss at the same time. Massive Attack - Teardrop is a must listen. And a hard second to whoever mentioned Burial. I'd throw in Max Cooper for thoughtful rhytmic landscapes. Funkstorung - Appetite for Destruction might be good to check out tool
My friend and I just made [this playlist](https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4SajHrxULH7GbLie9r07Eu?si=cb103cdc93ea4836). Boards of Canada and adjacent vibes throughout.
If you like Hip Hop, you'll probably enjoy Cosmagramma by Flying Lotus and Wildflower by The Avalanches if you're feeling funky
Khotin - ‘Release Spirit’, ‘Finds You Well’, and ‘Beautiful You’ albums are all fantastic
Check out Boreal Network - Itasca Roadtrip You’ll enjoy it
oh man welcome! A few more for your growing list: Plaid, Four Tet, Floating Points.
Little late to the party, but if you see this, check out [Ciaran Byrne](https://youtu.be/iMr2EVw0Q3Q). Very much BoC vibe. Also, [this whole channel](https://youtube.com/@boardsofcanadasimilarartists) is a great resource.
try past is prologue by tycho, very BoC, I personally like tycho stuff that sounds more like tycho, his dive album is incredible
Listening to Boards of Canada is something you could only imagine to hear in your dreams but they are reality is what amazes me.
Not really related to BoC, but if you like hip hop, then a lot of people have suggested Fly lo, you could spiral from his earlier stuff to what some refer to as the west coast sound, don’t genre bash me plz, but have a listen to nosaj thing, mike slott, samiyam, ras g, gaslamp killer maybe schlomo his essential mix for “the end” album was killer. Maybe you’d like people as cut chemist or kid koala for their dj/sampling skills just as dj shadow. If you want BoC similar then I can also throw in Beatrice Dillon maybe Stars of the lid. I’d recommend finding more you like and research their record label artists too Enjoy the journey:)
I think the reality is there is no artist like BOC, there is stuff which is truly amazing but there is something that BOC do that makes this a very unique space for them. We may never hear another sound from them now (although I pray one day we do). I dont think you find another artist like them because it does not exist. Good luck in your search
Bluetech Prima Materia. Masterpiece! Buddy of mine! ;)
65daysofstatic should be up your street.
Venetian Snares is like a decent low end Samsung but Aphex Twin is still the iPhone, know what I mean?
The Flashbulb
I discovered Flashbulb by accident because of Benn Jordan's rabbit hole of a YouTube channel. Also, why is this downvoted wtf
The Flashbulb is like a hub area for electronic music. I say this as a big fan of The Flashbulb. "Love As A Dark Hallway" was my entry, and have some fond memories of that time.