MORPHEUS MUSIC REVIEWS

Delicate ambient minimalism. Traces delivers a suite of six tracks where muted drones and edge of perception melodic forms well and waver in rhythmic fluctuations. Soft synthetic textures form an undulating sonic fog wherein dulled piano touches or swelling pads lazily unroll into sparse, reverberating themes. There are sometimes multiple patterns playing at the same time, their individual measures overlaying one another - hard to pick out at first, emerging in time as the ear comes to rest. A layer of faint crackle at times sleets into the sonic haze or lightly sibilant disturbances shift across the relative smoothness, remote suggestions of percussion. The occasional peculiar noise blooms almost imperceptibly as if afar off - lost within the music - just traces.

This is the debut album from US ambient artist Kevin A Brooks otherwise known as Jesus in Japan. A download only release, Traces comes as a series of six related compositions of glowing minimalism. The open, hazy nature of the music is very transportational, inspiring the listener to daydream, reminisce or imagine. Currently the album is available through iTunes (US, UK, Japan, AU/NZ), Amazon, Napster and other online music shops. The artist's Myspace page also has some samples that you can explore.

MORPHEUS MUSIC REVIEWS

Long-form electro-acoustic ambient. The natural sounds of air movement and the wind disturbing leaves and branches, along with other less distinguishable environmental noises, act as a constant thread through Motets For Michelangelo. The ongoing hiss, rush and gentle turbulence rises and falls in wave-like undulation, flows in rippling currents, bathes the expanse in sonic haze. Atop this tranquil soundcanvas are overlaid a variety of musical effects that often have a similar sense of random distribution and delivery to the breezes beneath. The jangle of chiming metallics, welling pads and atonal surges, vocal strains distantly reminiscent of far off choral chants, deep muted bell tones, plaintive strings and synthetic effects all ascend from the air forming each track into a distinct passage of the unfolding story. Percussive ephemera and sibilant motes along with a wide variety of peripheral detail enhance the main structures so that this minimal album is never without plenty to catch the ear. Melodic content is sparse and very much understated when present, yet there are moments of quite touching beauty as passages of harmony do float to occasional prominence.

Robert Scott Thompson releases his latest 2009 album Motets For Michelangelo once again via his own Aucourant Records label. This disc is divided into eight tracks ranging in length from just under three minutes to almost fifteen, yet the interconnected flowing nature of the music is clearly intended for continuous playback with each piece seamlessly running into the next. The foundation material for the album is a field recording of wind in trees that runs throughout the whole composition, intended as the sleeve notes point out for listening at relatively low volume - a mood, an atmosphere, an ambience. Since the material was developed as a tribute to the late Michelangelo Antonioni with open references to Blow-Up - the mood of the film bears strongly on the slightly haunting tenor of the music. Robert Scott Thompson's broad range of experience is clearly evident both in production quality and in the confident, experimental nature of this album - when we spoke about it, he said this release is "a bit out there" - so it is. Have a listen at the website.

MORPHEUS MUSIC REVIEWS

MORPHEUS MUSIC REVIEWS

Smooth beatless ambience (mostly). The Call is a silky soft album of delicate pads and airy textures where subtle synthetic melodies and understated phrases unfold in graceful, ponderous restraint. Ambient but not quite minimal, there is plenty going on among the shifting undulations, tonal flushes and the rise and fall of the drones - ethnic rhythm elements: shakers, rattles and padding drums - sequencer patterns that burble effortlessly or distantly, afar off in the atmospheric distance of the music - environmental sounds: the twitter of birds, insect-like chirrs and susurration. A number of tracks drift with a tranquil fragility as if immersed in radiant cobwebs of sound, gossamer sheets wafting in the undertow of unseen celestial currents - luminous, tranquil, calm. Plaintive strains well up here and there vaguely suggestive of the cries of sea creatures, breath-like movements heave as if heard from within, chime lattices clank in cycles, barely discernable low booms and static motes punctuate and pierce.

MORPHEUS MUSIC REVIEWS

Downtempo chill and melodic instrumentals. Weeper On The Shore is a beautifully tuneful album of cinematic electronica that draws on elements of dub, worldbeat, ambient dance and sunset lounge. Tranquil beats drive most tracks at an easy pace - lazy downbeat dance and breakbeat patterns with a bright crunchy feel to them. Most of the compositions here have strong melodic content - dreamy piano lines, thick echoing flutes or lush synthetic tones. The dub oriented pieces naturally see the basses come to the fore, pumping blunt pulses supported by reggae influence drum rolls and off beat stabs - although Dimitris tends to soften the impact with tinkling vibes or layered harmonies. Acoustic guitars are present in many places, lightly fingered phrases and crisp strumming rolling across smooth synthetic pads. Global instrumentation adds further colour to the music - violin strains, pipes, international vocals deftly threaded into the mix.

Weeper On The Shore has a warm, tropical evening vibe about it, a subtle Mediterranean lounge flavour running through much of the album. The generous ambient spaces that introduce a number of the tracks in combination with the chilled piano themes and faintly wistful melodies establish a somewhat filmic quality, an evocative mindscaping that invites the listener to drift to imagine.

This is the second full length CD from Greek born Dimitris Batistatos and follow-up to his debut Architect back in 2006. Sticking with the Cosmic Leaf label for the latest album Weeper On The Shore contains eleven tracks including remixes by Cydelix and Zero Cult s well as a remix of the Red Eye Express track Vin Del Mar. Having a broad musical background in sound technology and audio engineering as well as playing various instruments himself Dimitris has worked with a number of popular artists and Greek singers beyond his own solo projects.

MORPHEUS MUSIC REVIEWS

Downtempo electronica and spacey ambient dance. Dreams In Stereo is a dynamic album of lush synthetic sound that has its roots in chilled psychedelic trance. The beats are mostly blissed out programmed affairs with various digital blips and manipulated hits incorporated - in places the intensity of the rhythms rises to the edge of techno, but more frequently the tempo takes a less hurried pace. Zero Cult is perhaps less dependent on arpeggiators than some in the genre, yes the basses pulse and throb in sequenced patterns, but the synth structures are mostly melodic - brief secondary phrases and lead lines are carefully played and overlaid creating a strongly emotional sense. There are generous ambient passages and abundant use of atmospheric pads as well as diverse enhancements such as birdsong, echoing voice syllables, strongly effected guitars, ethnic hints.

Emil Ilyayev aka Zero Cult from Israel began electronic music making in 1997 and having passed through various stylistic experiments settled into downtempo forming Zero Cult in 2002. The debut CD Art Of Harmony came in 2006 with the follow-up Ikebana being released the next year. This latest offering is delivered again via Cosmic Leaf Records and contains ten energetic chillout tracks including a remix of Side Liner’s Once Upon A Time. High sound quality and musical inventiveness are assured from Zero Cult as this ascending artist draws on his considerable experience and musical maturity to deliver a very powerful third album. The label's website contains sound samples if you'd like to know what you're getting. The intention is for the album to be presented live 12 July 2009 at the chill out stage of the PNF Festival in Israel.

MORPHEUS MUSIC REVIEWS

Face To Face is a set of five dance-floor oriented tracks - the original recording with Ken Loi of Elucidate plus four additional remixes. The original mix sets the tone from the start with the regular thump of a kick drum: - the synth work is clean and often quite subtle. Light arpeggios trickle against sweeping pads, beaming swishes and deep, grumbling, buzzing basses. In places space is given to allow a slightly oriental lead line to come to the fore or to pass pretty much the whole sound through broad morphing effects. The tempo remains consistent, yet the intensity straddles a wide range - dying away to beatless synthetic percolation, thinned out tonally until all the low frequencies have evaporated, and pounding at full pace. Kirsty's vocals are confident and strong - a little of the trademark wispiness is gone, yet none of the emotion is missing. Sinking in places to reverberating whispers spun into ethereal layers, then low - a little above spoken word, into powerful climactic peaks. Of the five tracks here, the Seba remix is most distinct from the others - the flickering d n b beat contrasting some airy atmospherics, the Matt Lange mix pounds in solid dance beat measure as does the Timothy Allen arrangement. The Ken Loi reworking opens the expanse up somewhat, more ambient elements, some drifting interludes among the grooves, more heavily effected vocals, some dreamy piano phrases.

Kirsty Hawkshaw releases her latest single as a new collaboration with Elucidate. The first cut is eight minutes fifty seconds long with the four additional mixes each not far short of that. Other versions included are by Matt Lange, Timothy Allan, and Swedish Drum & Bass label owner of Secret Operations, Seba as well as a reworking by Ken Loi. The music is released directly via Kirsty's online store with the intention to utilise also the services of Beatport, iTunes, Audio Jelly and Amazon etc.