Release data:

Matthew Florianz – Maalbeek
CD, H/S Recordings, 2008

Years back, I got to know some of the fine crafted ambient music of The Hague-based musician Matthew Florianz. In 2008, he released the concept album “Maalbeek”, which again shows his great talent of painting slow morphing, highly atmospheric landscapes.

Named after a forest area near the Holland/Germany border, the uninterrupted music found on the six tracks is classic minimal ambient, slowly but surely unfolding and expanding its spaciousness.
The output of Steve Roach comes to mind when hearing the opening track “Belfeld”, but after that, Mr Florianz starts digging into vast, dense and clouded sonic territory in which only artefacts of Budd and Eno can be noticed.

The gentle and smooth fading of the intense free form textures within the imaginary and carefully rendered ambient musings is eminent, as is a strong sense of remoteness embedded deep within. For me, introspectiveness and atmosphere are the key elements in “Maalbeek”, which rises to beautiful heights on the 15-minute “Spiegelend”.

This headphone music surely and truly triggers the imagination and the senses when you open up to it. To do it justice, this environmental soundscape journey is best experienced at night time or during quiet hours with eyes closed to immerse (or submerge if your like) in its full impact and intrinsic beauty.

This excellent produced gem is your one-hour ticket to neverland, and a must-have for any ambient fan….

Website: www.matthewflorianz.com

You can see what reviews I have done of this artist on the Matthew Florianz artist page