There’s a lot I love in the discographies of both LA based new-age improviser Carlos Niño and NYC producer/keyboard/synthesist Photay. I enjoyed everything either of them have done, including their many separate collaborations, and especially this one where they come together.

After getting in contact as mutual fans and exchanging several features over the following years, the material for a full record inevitably formed. Like many of my favorite psychedelic bands they created this record with a mix of live instrumentation, collaboration, and sampling of improvisation from their archives. This includes recordings from previous Niño ensembles, spoken word by Greek new-age legend Lasos, and some very prominently sampled improvisations by psychedelic harpist Mikaela Davis (a favorite player of mine and apparently Photay as well.)

An Offering is a collaborative album that really does find a new sound in halfway point between the two artists sonic universes. The songs have a little more weight and contrast than Niños usual untethered jazz. Likewise the ambient tendencies in Photay are pushed to the front and there’s a greater sense of patience than his previous work. For a record made by two different people and incorporating such a variety of samples and textures it’s exceptionally cohesive and plays through wonderfully as an immersive, meditative experience.