By Kory Thibeault //
Emancipator Ensemble //
The Regency Ballroom – San Francisco
November 19th, 2015 //
Last Thursday night saw the return of Emancipator Ensemble to SF, this time in support of the recently released Seven Seas. Portland-based electronic music producer Douglas Appling, aka Emancipator, is known for his ambient, downtempo style and has garnered serious attention over the years for tracks such as “First Snow” and “Minor Cause”. One of his newest creations “Land and Sea” follows suit in this tradition. The show at The Regency Ballroom saw Appling being backed by a tight four-piece ensemble, which at times grew to six. For a fan like myself, it was a beautiful experience seeing his musical visions fleshed out.
[…] Portland-based musician Douglas Appling, better known by his stage name Emancipator, has been fusing hip-hop-flavored beats with downtempo electronica ever since he started writing his debut LP Soon It Will Be Cold Enough while attending the College of William & Mary. And in many ways, he’s still cooking up that same sonic recipe that borders on post-trip-hop with violinist Ilya Goldberg by his side, although it’s with his ensemble members that we get to see Appling serve as more than just an electronic music producer. At his Friday evening set on the festival’s main stage, Emancipator set the tone for the rest of the weekend, grooving to tracks from his latest studio album Seven Seas with a guitar in hand and a full band at his disposal, much like we saw at The Regency Ballroom last fall (see more photos from that show here). […]