Release data: Steve Roach – The Magnificent Void CD, Hearts of Space/Fathom, 1996 “The Void,” wrote metaphysician Stanislav Grof, “exists beyond form of any kind. While being a source of everything it cannot be itself derived from anything else. It is beyond space and time.” This idea became the core concept of the vast interior landscape album “The Magificent Void”,…
Release data: Ian Boddy & Bernhard Wöstheinrich – Hemispheres CD-R, DiNDDL, 2009 On invitation of the German Schallwende Club, 27th September 2008 saw Ian Boddy & Bernhard Wöstheinrich perform together for the first time at the Bochum Planetarium, Bochum, Germany. Both musician previously collaborated on “Moiré” (2005) while Mr Wöstheinrich appeared on the DiN releases “Blast” by Centrozoon and “Präposition”…
Release data: Polaris – Background Stories CD, Ricochet Dream, 2008 Polaris hails from Poland, and is an electronic music studio project by Jakub Kmieć. The accessible and overall energetic music of his fourth album “Background Stories”, which is released as a limited digipak edition of only 300 copies, pays tribute to the sound of the Berliner School with its bright…
Release data: Don Slepian – Sea of Bliss CD-R, Private release, 1980 This in fact is a fully remastered version of the classic album Don Slepian made at the start of the ‘80s. At that time, it created quite a buzz in the electronic music scene as is was played a lot at Stephen Hill’s Music from the Hearts of…
Release data: Slow Dancing Society – Priest Lake Circa ’88 CD, Hidden Shoal Recordings, 2008 Slow Dancing Society is a project of Washington-based musician and producer Drew Sullivan, who’s music is released through the Australian independent music label Hidden Shoal Recordings. “Priest Lake Circa ’88”, his third full-length album, is filled with gentle and warm ambient music and glistening guitars,…
Release data: Robert Carty – Starlight Volume 1 CD-R, Deep Sky Music, 2008 Ambient/space musician Robert Carty has started a new series of musical explorations under the moniker Starlight, which (as he writes) began with an attempt to create a work with a “space” theme. Well, he has succeeded well, as this eight-track album (composed in December 2008) offers some…
Release data: Steve Roach – Pure Flow CD, Timeroom Editions, 2001 “Pure Flow” (Timeroom Editions Collection 1), the seventh release on Steve Roach’s own label Timeroom Editions, offers “an essential flow of atmospheric soundscapes” made over the years. Initially provided as a free gift until the end of 2001 to all fans who ordered music through his site, the cd…
Release data: Steve Roach – Structures from Silence CD, Fortuna Records/Projekt Records, 1984/2001 “Structures from Silence” was recorded in 1983 and 1984, a time that Steve Roach was living in Culver City, California. The mood music on this classic recording (originally released on audio cassette, soon attracting the attention of Fortuna Records) is perfectly suitable to put the busy mind…
Release data: Steve Roach – Darkest before Dawn CD, Timeroom Editions, 2002 The press-sheet described this music as a “minimal, immersive sound environment” and “a deep zoneworld of glacial movement and magma-like flow”. In my opinion it most of all is a kind of introductory portal to Steve’s album “Mystic Chords & Sacred Spaces”. Created in The Timeroom in September…
Release data: Constance Demby – Novus Magnificat CD, Hearts of Space, 1986 In the middle of the ’80s, classically trained female composer Constance Demby made a major work of contemporary classical spacemusic that is still regarded a monumental work in the genre until this very day. “Novus Magnificat”, propelling the listener deep into space and other dimensions, was made on…
Release data: Robert Schroeder – Taste It CD, Spheric Music, 2009 Since a couple of years, composer Robert Schroeder has found a new publishing home at Lambert Ringlage’s Spheric music, which releases both his solo releases as well as the albums he makes under the moniker Food for Fantasy. “Taste it” kicks off with the 9-minute title track in a…
Release data: Psicodreamics – Fantasynth CD-R, Private Release, 2009 I must say the chosen title of this album by Salva Moreno (aka Psicodreamics) is a blunder, although I like the nice Gothic cover art in which the cd is wrapped. The 13 instrumentals on “Fantasynth” are again inspired by fantasy tales and mythology, but this time they are more up-tempo…
Release data: ESE – Entheogenic Sound Explorers – The Other Door CD-R, DataBloem, 2009 ESE, Entheogenic Sound Explorers, are the Milano-based musicians Stefano Contini and Piero Marchesi. “The Other Door”, which is the duo’s second release, contains 50 minutes of crispy, warm and organic infused ambient with psychedelic flavours, all presented in a clear, transparent sound spectrum. Next to melodic…
Release data: Monolake – Hongkong CD, Chain Reaction, 1997 In the middle of the ‘90’s, Monolake (aka the German duo Robert Henke Gerhard Behles) released the album “HongKong”, which had been out of print for quite a while. Put out as the fourth album in a series of metal cases, it contained tracks made between 1995 and 1997. They were…
Release data: Steve Roach & Vidna Obmana – Spirit Dome / Live Archive CD, Projekt, 2009 This value-priced double album is a re-release of two recordings which have been unavailable for quite a while. “Live Archive” was originally released in 2000 on Groove Unlimited. Steve and vidna were together on tour in 1997, doing a whole series of concerts in…
Release data: Clifford White – Ascension CD, New World Music, 1985 “Ascension” is the debut release of UK-based musician Clifford White, who composed the music when he was 17 years old. Until now, it sold over 50.000 copies worldwide, making it a bestseller in the genre. Often referred to as England’s answer to the music of Kitaro, the nine tracks…
Release data: Purfoze – Songs of the Earth CD-R, Rhea Music, 1984/2008 The Belgian cosmic music group Purfoze was founded in the late seventies by Ruud Rondou and Mark Creemers, Mark De Wit joined them in 1977. Between 1982 and 1989, the band, known for their warm analogue sound, would perform various projects for which they only used analogue synthesizers.…
Release data: Michael Neil – The Tempest and other tales CD-R, Private release, 2002 In 2000, composer Michael Neil was commissioned to write the incidental music for the Derby Shakespeare Theatre Company’s production of “The Tempest”, to mark the 70th anniversary Cornwall’s Minack Theatre in 2002. This event, staged in the summer of that year, brought the composer to wider…
Release data: Solar Fields – Movements CD, Ultimae Records, 2009 Swedish producer Magnus Birgersson, aka Solar Fields, wrote his sixth album “Movements” in the same period when he was composing a score for the interactive in-game score for Electronic Arts video game “Mirror’s Edge”. Was the heavy trance-dance music of his previous album “EarthShine” a completely different story, the musical…
Release data: James Murray – Where Edges Meet CD, Ultimae Records, 2008 “Where Edges Meet” is the debut release from British composer James Murray. James Murray is a London-based electro-acoustic sound artist, producer and multi-instrumentalist, who’s productions weave together elements of electronica, downtempo, jazz and dub in emotive explorations of how the organic and electronic interact. “Where Edges Meet”, which…
Release data: Michael Neil – Dies Irae CD-R, Private Release, 1997 The music on “Dies Irae” can be described as modern classical/orchestral in the realm of Penderecki, Arvo Part and alike. The album contains five tracks, opening with the almost 30-minute “Dies Irae”, which starts as silent music (the first five minutes of the track), followed by freeform darkening textures.…
Release data: Michael Neil – The Constellations CD-R, Private Release, 2001 “The Constellations” a spacey album (as the title suggests) and in fact a companion piece to Michael Neil’s release “Towards the Unknown Region”. It’s planetarium music, although containing rather short, fragmentary and the music itself sounds less melancholic to me compared to the outcome on most of Neil’s other…
Release data: Michael Neil – Moments of Heaven CD-R, Private Release, 1998 “Moments of Heaven” is a grand piece of work by English musician Michael Neil, of which the music sounds similar to his album “Cornubia”, but the outcome is more impressionistic and orchestral. The six-track albums opens with the major 34-minute title track, a great track of delicately sculptured…
Release data: Mind over Matter – Indian Meditation II CD, da Music, 2006 As the first album “Indian Meditation” was a big seller for the label, a second album under the same moniker was compiled Klaus Hoffmann-Hoock. Apart from one track from the album “On the Wings of the Wind”, all tracks on this cd are actually previously unreleased. The…
Release data: Mind over Matter – Indian Meditation CD, da Music, 2005 The music of Mind over Matter, aka Klaus Hoffmann-Hoock, has always been heavenly influenced by the music from India, a country he travelled a lot. “Indian Meditation” offers eight tracks, which are actually remixes of music from the first nine IC albums. For this purpose, Klaus chose appropriate…
Release data: Javi Cánovas – Eigenspaces CD-R, Neu Harmony, 2008 I can be brief about this release, as the music and overall approach of “Eigenspaces” doesn’t differ that much from what is found on his previous albums. Still firmly rooted in the Berliner School style, nice, fat sequencer lines are still dominant next to elegant soloing. But this time I’m…
Release data: Jeffrey Koepper – Luminosity CD, Air Space Records, 2009 On the threshold of the new year, I received the fourth album of “AnalogueJeff” Koepper which is due for mid-January 2009. With “Luminosity”, Jeffrey Koepper wanted to explore ambient emotional places. To achieve this, he made each track a unique atmospheric landscape on which he wanted the electronic textures…
Release data: Axess – Voices of Dawn CD, Spheric Music, 2008 If I’m right, “Voices of Dawn” is the fourth album by German synthesist Axel Stupplich, aka Axess, who’s also known as a member of the band Pyramid Peak. The album, released on December 8th 2008, contains seven accessible tracks of traditional instrumental and typically German sounding electronic music blending…
Release data: Ran Kirlian – Elements in Motion CD-R, Private Release, 2003 This release from Spanish ambient composer Ran Kirlian is another long form journey encompassing dark landscapes and ideas, taking the listener on an extended trip of 78 minutes. As Kirlian explained to me, synthesizers aren’t that prominent compared to his other recordings, they act more as support for…
Release data: Ran Kirlian – Sleeper CD-R, Private Release, 2003 The album “Sleeper” was born from two large floating sessions the Spanish ambientmusician Ran Kirlian recorded in the summer of 2003. Both are based on pure improvisation, with some treated field recordings played randomly. Later on, as Kirlian ran over the recordings, he added voice, some additional sounds and grooves…
Release data: Ran Kirlian – Melting Point CD-R, Private Release, 2001 Ran Kirlian is a Spanish ambientmusician who I came across surfing the site of Max Corbacho. Kirlian started loving ambient at the start of the ’90’s after he heard Steve Roach’s concept-albums “Western Spaces” and “Desert Solitaire”. In 2000 he started to explore his own musical pathways, and after…
Release data: Diatonis – An Abstract View CD-R, Private Release, 2008 Many starting elements on this album where created by Stuart White (aka Diatonis) after he came home from visiting abandoned townships, an extended walk, or a long drive. The sonic content of “An Abstract View” has moved away from previously executed dense and darkening soundscapes. It now focusses on…
Release data: Dave Luxton & Aaron Gates – Futurus CD, Wayfarer Records, 2008 “Futurus” is a concept album of electronic musicians Dave Luxton and Aaron Gates, which initially started with the goal of creating musical representations of prominent themes that the future might hold for life on planet Earth. Each artist contributed solo compositions to the album, the last three…
Release data: Numina & Stephen Philips – Descent of The Falcon CD-R, Dark Duck Records, 2008 “Descent of the Falcon”, listed as part one of two releases, is a recording taken out of massive six hour live collaborative jam in May 2008 between Stephen Philips and Jesse Sola at Jesse’s Denver-based Mysterium studio. The 61-minutes of music presented here is…
Release data: Australis – The Gates of Reality CD, Essential Noises, 2008 It took Australis, aka Oscar Aguayo, three years to compose a follow-up to his debut-album “Lifegiving”. For the new project, Oscar collaborated with young poet Virginia Luna, Andean musician/singer Alvaro Aguayo, composer/producer Roger Subirana, and singers Mornie Sims and Rebecca Farraway, which resembles the path of Amethystium took…
Release data: David Parsons – Earthlight CD, Celestial Harmonies, 2008 About “Earthlight”, David states there’s nothing particularly special about the music, as its just a continuing evolution of what he does. He had, of late, preferred to use synthesisers almost exclusively over samplers and therefore this release is almost 100% “synthetic”, or in other words almost no natural ingredients. To…
Release data: Numina – Sound Symbols CD, NuminaMusic Recordings, 2008 The first shapes of this album were put down almost three years ago as the “Almost Live” project for the Ambient Ping download project. Over the years, Jessa Sola (aka Numina) expanded the outcome with the intention of releasing it as a full-length album. As life got in the way,…
Release data: Brunette Models – Last Poem CD, Generator.pl, 2008 The musican behind Brunette Models is one Piotr Krzyzanowski of which “Last Poem” is his fifth release. It’s a work of edgy atmospheric ambient with crispy elements, offering a strange combination of occasional female voices, down-tempo break beats, dreamy textures and experimental/abstract sonic outings. Despite several harmonious chords and contemplative…
Release data: Robert Fox – Evergreen CD, AD Music, 2008 I was very impressed by Robert’s previous album “Adonai”, so I had high hopes for “Evergreen”, a 65-minute concept album inspired by his homeland England. What we got here is a kind of sonic storytelling, for which Robert focussed on his melodic, accessible and overall gentle style of composing. Next…
Release data: Steve Roach & Erik Wøllo – Stream of Thought CD, Projekt, 2009 “Stream of Thought” is the long-awaited outcome of these two skilled musicians, of which the first drafts were already put down in 2007. Spanning exactly 70 minutes, this “continuous stream of sonic conciousness in 19 parts” is a complex, emotionally charged and very diverse sound painting.…
Release data: Tomasz Zawadzinski – Follow Me CD, Generator.Pl, 2008 The Polish Generator PL label must have a lot of faith in the music of Thomasz Zawadzinski as “Follow Me” is the musician’s second release this year. On the other hand, the moody and well produced music of this guy is made up of nicely layered textural, highly cinematic soundscapes…
Release data: David Helpling & Jon Jenkins – Treasure CD, Spotted Peccary Music, 2007 “Treasure” took over six years in the making, but is certainly worth the wait as it offers the best of both worlds from these skilled musicians. Its musical content is highly cinematic, ranging from beautiful ethereal soundscapes to rhythmic spiced compositions. There’s a nice flow recognizable…
Release data: David Helpling & Jon Jenkins – Beyond Words CD, Deep Exile Music, 2008 “Beyond Words” -subtitled “rare live treasures”– contains six tracks originally from the duo’s 2007 release “Treasure”, but now recorded at a live concert on August 25, 2008 at the University of California San Diego. The album is released as a limited edition of 1000 pieces…
Release data: Max Corbacho – BreathStream CD, Private Release, 2008 “BreathStream” is the first of a series of releases made available as digital download only. The sonic content is described by the Max Corbacho as “seven atmospheric spaces built out of synthetic textures and floating harmonies” which also graced the previous album “The Talisman”. This 73-minute work indeed is a…
Release data: Acheloo – Ishtar CD-R, AD Music, 2008 On “Ishtar” (the follow-up album to “Sirens”) Carlo Luzi intended to deepen his search for the sound, getting closer to the essence and the core of sounds in a more minimalist style. On the concept, Carlo explained the dualist aspect continues as well: the beneficent goddess and terrifying demon at the…
Release data: Ian Boddy – Sid Smith – Jane Molloy – Other Rooms DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, DiN, 2013 “Other Rooms” is a digital-only release to accompany the three-vinyl box set “Spectroscopic”, featuring four early tape delay experimental tracks Those of you who wondered about the formative years of UK-synthesist Ian Boddy hereby have the chance to learn more. It comes with…
Release data: Acheloo Sirens CD-R, AD Music, 2008 “Carlo Luzi is an Italian musician who started playing instrumental music around 1980. He founded the band “Terra della Sera” with Paolo de Gregori (Kaj Norrijus) and the project “SeraSidereA”, again with Paolo de Gregori and soprano Daniela Massi in 2008. That same year, Carlo also started releasing music under the alias…
Release data: Redshift – Turning Towards Us CD, Distant Sun, 2008 Those who know or own the previous Redshift releases will be surprised as the cd-cover has been completely overhauled for the bands 10th release, for which the typical Redshift also has left the scene. Recorded between March-September 2008, “Turning towards us” contains five tracks, three longform and two short…
Release data: Bluetech – Phoenix Rising CD, Somnia, 2008 Bluetech is a project by Evan Bartholomew, whose last release under that monniker came out in 2005. Referred to as a sort of “mini album”, the exactly 51-minute “Phoenix Rising” is the precursor to an expansive album entitled “The Divine Invasion”, coming early 2009. I’m not familiar with Bluetech’s previous music,…
Release data: Klaus Schulze & Lisa Gerrard – Rheingold DVD, Synthetic Symphony/SPV, 2008 After their surprising strong album “Farscape”, Klaus Schulze and Lisa Gerrard did a live concert on July 18th, 2008 at the “Night of the Prog III” on the open air stage “Loreley” in St. Goarshause, Germany. The double-dvd “Rheingold” contains the full concert on the first disc…
Release data: Enya – And Winter Came CD, Warner Music, 2008 November 7th, 2008 saw the release of Enya’s seventh studio album “And Winter Came”, an album reflecting the feel of the winter season. Don’t expect anything new here, as the typical, at times sweeping and orchestral instrumentation has remained exactly the same, as has the velvet voice of Enya…
Release data: Patrick Schouten – Soul of the Mountain CD, Private Release, 2007 Patrick Schouten is a Dutch sound designer, composer and producer. “Soul of the Mountain” is a moody (“emotionally charged”) ambient release, which explores airy environments, on which one can’t miss the slight influence of Vangelis. “Heights” lifts off in slow pace, carefully taking the listener to higher…
Release data: Joe Frawley – A Book of Dreams CD-R, Private Release, 2008 Joe Frawley hails from Norwich, Connecticut, who’s album “A Book of Dreams” (subtitled “works for processed found sounds and piano”) comprises two previously released EP (“The Hypnotist” and “Tangerine”). Imagine the processed piano sounds of Brian Eno or Harold Budd, to which a wide range of environmental…
Release data: Abandoned Toys – The Witch’s Garden CD, Mythical Records, 2007 Abandoned Toys is a one-man project of American film music composer Brett Banning. “The Witch’s Garden” contains nine tracks, of which the style shifts between new age, contemporary electronic and film music. Containing lots of nice piano work, the music consists of haunting melodic melodies and orchestral, string…
Release data: ModularWhite – Canada CD-R, Private Release, 2007 For the concept album (Four Visions of) “Canada”, the four members of the Dutch electronica band ModularWhite decided to present musical ambiences which would transfer their own feelings, visions and ideas of Canada in four separate 15 minute solo tracks, paying a tribute to its landscape and certain (historical) aspects. The…
Release data: Dan Pound – Night Watch CD, Private Release, 2008 Mr Pound keeps up releasing music in quite a high tempo, as November 2008 saw the release of “Night Watch”, music made for inner transformation and mind expansion. The 70+ minutes on this album realm in the ambient/space genre, but infused with lots of tribal influences. Next to field…
Release data: Gert Emmens & Ruud Heij – Journey CD, Groove Unlimited, 2007 The sound of the duo’s previous two vintage albums continues on the follow-up “Journey”, nicely venturing in more interesting corners of the Berliner School style. The 8-minute title-track opens with great vintage sequencing, dressed by warm soundscapes and a grabbing solo by Gert. The sound of dripping…
Release data: Spectral Lore / Underjordiska – split CD-R, New Age Dawn/Stellar Auditorium, 2008 This is a split instrumental ambient album of 67 minutes, divided in two parts made by two “experimental black metal one-man bands”. The press sheet states the album is of a cyclical nature, visualizing the descent into the abyss and subsequent returning ascent into the world.…
Release data: Glyn Lloyd-Jones – From Time to Time DIGITAL DOWNLOAD, Private Release, 2008 Many years after his last release, Glyn Lloyd Jones (who now resides in Italy) surprises us with his new release “From Time to Time”. The biggest part of the 57-minute album is filled by the two-part title track, which consists of 20 minutes each. Part one…
Release data: Vir Unis – Mercury and Plastic CD-R, AtmoWorks, 2002 Vir Unis, aka John Strate-Hootman, is known for his interesting new approaches in the field of ambient music. The ten tracks, making up a total of 76 minutes of music, is another well executed effort, displaying great fractal groove/rhythm creation, pulse beats/percussion and expanding textural landscapes as displayed on…