Steven Rutter - BrainFog

FireScope: 2018

A significant album for Steve Rutter, in that this was his first full-length under his own name. He'd already tested the waters with the From Me To You EP the year prior, even as B12 records were still being released, but if he didn't want to continue relying on that bit of legacy, it was time to go all in, fully committed to producing as 'Steven Rutter' from here on out. Unless Michael Golding hooked back up with him for some more music. No sense not dusting the B12 moniker off then.

BrainFog would also commit FireScope to the LP format. The label had already put out Morphology's Traveller (a criminally overlooked outing of spacey electro), but for a print primarily making its hay with digital EPs and collector's vinyl (not to mention vinyl-etched novelty CDs), upping the ante with double LPs could be a risky business vent- and they all sell out in an instant. I swear, this hobby sometimes...

So, BrainFog, Steve Rutter's first full-length album (and the first B12 LP since Last Days Of Silence, if you want to get weird about it). I dunno, I'm having a bit of a, erm, brain fog in how to start this one, in that I feel like I'm utterly tapped out of anything fresh to say about Mr. Rutter's brand of stripped-down IDM-leaning techno. I suppose it is more active and involved than the downright minimalist outings he was doing while shopping the B12 brand about other labels, but a good chunk of this album's middle portion seems taken up by sound experiments over bare-bones electro rhythms.

Let me start with where BrainFog shines, when Steve provides a solid techno thump leading the charge. Opener Sleep Gives Freedom mostly works the moody, slow-burn of a track, all about eerie atmosphere, while follow-up Statuesque goes about its business with 808 thuds and a simple synth lead that easily lodges in your head as bleeps and blips dance about. Then it's not until track nine that we get back to the techno, Infinity Engine a nice little trancey number, while Takedown gets its electro robot-groove going with a bassline that's utterly infectious. Damn, do I ever want to hear this one on a massive system, such separation of sound going on here. Final track Hand In Hand's rhythm is more classic Detroitism, but retains the tempo of BrainFog's techno predecessors while keeping mysterious sci-fi feel the rest of the album has.

If anything, that theme is what keeps BrainFog at least an interesting play-through. Yeah, the middle portion has a lot of tracks more interested in sound experiments wrapped around spare IDM rhythms, which keeps with the ol' school Artificial Intelligence ethos. There's also a sense of strange exploration about them though. Like, as though you're navigating through alien caverns, each track some strange, new scenery unseen by human eyes before. Well, except for Squad Free Force. I keep thinking Annie Lennox is about to start singing when that one starts.

B12 - Bokide 325

Soma Quality Recordings: 2015

Steve Rutter and Michael Golding gained a decent amount of prestige with their B12 alias back in the '90s, so the story goes. Before that decade ended though, their partnership with Warp Records ended, and seemingly too did the project. Nearly ten years after their final record, however, the duo re-emerged with a new album on their own label, plus a bevy of archive material. Guess someone was paying attention to FSOL's marketing strategy. In any case, it looked like the B12 saga was primed to carry on into the '10s. Except it didn't, Last Days Of Silence instead serving as a cap on their careers, the duo going quiet once more.

Except that's obviously not the whole story, since I've talked up B12 and Steve Rutter's continued exploits quite a bit on this blog. I bring all this up only to put into context where this particular EP stands, as the re-relaunch of the B12 brand, appearing on a totally different label. Oh yes, we're in the 'wandering label' years with Steve Rutter, before he got FireScope off the ground. I mentioned in the Transient Life review that this may have been a means of shopping B12 around after being absent from the techno scene again, but whatever the case, I find it fascinating that his first port of call ended up being on Soma Quality Recordings.

The label that Slam built were no strangers to techno, but vintage 'intelligent techno'? Aside from their signing of The Black Dog, not so much. As Soma was never shy from hitching its wagon to whatever trends were happening in the genre, they were fully committed to the purveying bang-on Berghain style by the time B12 entered their sphere. Was there room for a little slice of pure Detroitism in their catalogue then?

I don't think it even matters, because Bokide 325 is downright minimalist for a B12 outing. I don't mean 'minimal techno', for the classic sci-fi bleeps and IDM bloops are present, just performed in a chill, unassuming way, as though soundtracking the lonely traverses of interstellar flight. Not the usual fare from what folks familiar with B12 then, much less Soma's typical output at the time. Would have made more sense on De:tuned than Transient Life, is what I'm saying. But hey, at least Soma could claim to have had another Artificial Intelligence alum on its roster.

Particulars, then. Into The Void is an aptly named opener, lonesome, mysterious pings echoing through the emptiness before a simple electro beat and ominous synths join in. Descension gets a little busier in the rhythm department, but maintains the general mood and minimalist songcraft. Unsound Mind adds a little acid action, and closer Terra Incognita strips things right back to mysterious pads, spare beats, and subtle bleeps. All said, Bokide 325 is an interesting little EP of dark space electro from B12, but hardly the sort of dancefloor weapons Soma was churning out. A strange addition to Slam's label, all said.

HIA & Biosphere - Birmingham Frequencies

Headphone: 2000/2019

Bobby Bird had tagged with Geir Jenssen to the Norwegian's remote hometown for the Polar Sequences performance, which creatively turned out quite well for the two. I'm assuming, then, that the man behind HIA told the man behind Biosphere that should he ever find himself in his own Birmingham hood, he should check out his crib for another collaborative project. Two years after that Tromsø trip, Geir indeed found himself in the birthplace of ambient dub, so off with Bobby he went for another session of field recordings trips and music making magic.

Only... what sort of sounds would Mr. Jenssen gather? Birmingham is a rather stark contrast of location compared to the cold tundras that had come to define Biosphere's realm of sonic influence. Heck, even for a British town, Birmingham doesn't seem terribly interesting. I looked for it on a map, finding it stuck between where all the cool music locations are (to its north, the Big Three cities of the midlands; London to its south-east). I'm sure there's been a few famed names from there (Steve Lawler, Duran Duran, ELO ...UB40? Erm, no), but judging by the Google Earth images of industrial, brutalist architecture, it doesn't surprise me that budding musicians fled the city as fast as they could. Which makes the fact something like the ambient dub scene of the early '90s could even blossom in such a place all the more remarkable.

So out and about Birmingham Bird and Jenssen went, collecting samples and sounds such as geese in a river, building alarms, the reverb and echo of channel tunnels, and... Okay, what exactly are they doing in Augusta Road? It sounds like they grabbed a large stick and dragged it along wooden planks, which is amusing for a little, but did I really need to hear it to the extent we do here? Still, the sound of rummaging through brush, with it being manipulated in such a way that it becomes almost like white noise static, is a nifty little sonic trick. Plus, this track has one of the best examples of the two's unique styles playing off each other, an ultra-minimalist outing where Biosphere's echoing dub pulses serves as the rudder for HIA's playful dub bleeps to ride, and that's all. Just a shame about that obnoxiously loud tree-branch thingy.

There's only six proper tracks here (Daddylonglegs is but a pure field recordings interlude), wherein two apiece offer differing examples of music making. The aforementioned Augusta Road and Narrowboat do the minimalist thing, whereas Gas Street Basin and Midpoint have brisk HIA rhythms, with less featured samples driving things along. Cannon Hill and The Rotunda, on the other hand, sound more organic, especially with jazzier percussion in the latter and gentle acoustic guitar strums in the former. In fact, given how urban and claustrophobic much of Birmingham Frequencies comes across, Cannon Hill in contrast almost sounds pastoral. Well, until HIA's clickity rhythms enter. Gotta' let ol' Bobby get his stuff in, amirite?

Various - Touched By Silence (The Compilation)

Touched: 2019

As I was poking about HIA's extended Discoggian network, I stumbled upon a new entry within their compilation contributions, this here Touched By Silence. B-Theory, is that a new track? I never recalled seeing such a title from ye' olden days. And gosh, look at the killer's row of talent on this twenty-one tracker! The Orb, Lorenzo Montanà, Gabriel Le Mar, Si Matthews, David Morely, Richard H. Kirk... Ooh, Dub Tractor! I remember him from that Ambient Ibiza CD!

Honey, if you think this digi-comp is something, you should see the eleven CD box-set from which this sprung. Full-length outings from FSOL, Autumn Of Communion, Mick Chillage, Scanner, and many more who've been at this ambient techno game for many years. When Touched does a charity drive for Macmillan Cancer Support, they don't mess around.

So the purpose of this compilation is straight-forward enough. Let's get into some musical details then, should the good cause and sweet assortment of artists not be enticing enough. Oh, and in case you feel you're missing out on that aforementioned FSOL action, fret not, for the opening track from Apertures is a collaboration between Brian Dougans and Ross Baker. They apparently have an album in the works, but Lord Discogs has yet to list anything, nor did I spot anything on the FSOL website. It's a moody modern classical piece with echoing pianos and shimmering psychedelics. Tickle me intrigued.

Okay, the acts I do know. HIA is here, and B-Theory... actually sounds like something that might have been released on B12's Firescope print? I mean, both come from a similar heritage, but I'm missing the playful dub of vintage Bobby Bird. The Orb's cut sounds like it could have been on a Youth-contributing album. David Morley's Vertical System does the cascading Berlin-School synth thing. Si Matthews' Nocture does more a chill, pastoral ambient techno thing. Lorenzo does his bleepy, skittery-rhythm thing in Hola Morning. Le Mar goes almost full world beat with Ingo Ito in When The Trees Are Gone. And Dub Tractor's Blo Rlx One is rather Balaeric and dubby, while Mr. H. Kirk's Dereliction is almost experimental, an utterly empty piece with sparse sounds and effects. A weird addition to a compilation filled with mostly pleasant ambient tones, though not unexpected from the Cabaret Voiltaire member.

And if there's anything I have to quibble about Touched By Silence, it's the wild variance in tracks, including how quiet some go compared to others. Yes, even for a supposed assortment of downtempo artists. For instance, The Orb's upbeat dub-house cut is track three, and surrounded by several beatless, blissful ones. Other rhythm-heavy tracks break up the pure ambience along the way, but not in a fashion that seems conducive to a flowing playthrough, rather half-haphazardly sequenced. Heck, many tracks here could be cappers on a regular release.

Again, that's just a quibble, and doesn't really detract from the whole. There's plenty to enjoy from this compilation, even if the Random button seems turned on.

Norken & Nyquist - Synchronized Minds

Intellitronic Bubble: 2020

Aha! There was another Lee Norris alias I had yet to cover. (no, Man-Q-Neon doesn't count; nor Nei Lorken) Norken's been around almost as long as Metamatics, emerging about the same time as Nacht Plank. I don't think this one gained quite the cult following as his others though, in that Lee never released Norken records on his own labels. Which makes sense, the Norken material not fitting so tidily on Neo Ouija or ...txt, as this is Mr. Norris' serious techno muzik alias. Okay, not that serious, but from what I sampled of his earlier albums, there's heavier emphasis on deeper, almost minimalist tech-house rhythms. That just wouldn't do for those labels plying more of a continuum of ambient techno IDM, nosiree.

Despite having mostly mothballed the project since the mid-'00s, Lee kept Norken around for sporadic items, eventually dusting it off with more regularity half a decade ago. Somewhere along the way, he became buds with Futuregrapher, and started releasing a whole bunch on his Móatún 7 print. And then, still feeling that proper techno twinge, he teamed up with Futuregrapher to start up another label together, Intellitronic Bubble. Gads, how many labels does Lee have running right now? Seven?

Okay, that's Norken sorted, so how about _Nyquist? Not nearly as much history, and much of it is in conjunction with Lee on Móatún 7. When Intellitronic Bubble started expanding into artist albums, it was decided their combined powers were a perfect kick-off for the throwback techno print. Doesn't hurt when you're part label-runner too. Of course, I knew very little of this, just that there was an interesting new label that Lee Norris was part of, and here's a cool piece of cover art featuring Arctic wastelands. Ooh, might it be experimental tundra drone?

Nah, it's techno, ol' school and stripped down with machine-jackin' rhythms, floaty synth leads, and deeper than thou basslines. Like, holy cow, are these basslines ever low on the low end! Some of these frequencies are in the technobass domain, though the surrounding production keeps things in the realms of crisp 'n' clean techno. If that crisp 'n' clean techno carried with it those heart-melting melodies Mr. Norris' body of work is known for. Sometimes a little acid action is thrown in (Aux Patch, Auxxx Thatched), other tracks opt for a vibe in other genres' realm (tech-house in Mutual 2, electro in Track 11, Detroit funk in The Far Center, ambient techno in Love Simulation), but the general sonic aesthetic of each track remains mostly consisted throughout Synchronized Minds.

And I can't deny, that does lead this album to sounding a little samey when I play it back. Nothing ever slips in quality, but little leaps out as the highlight track, or the intriguing leftfield cut, or the instant earworm. Which is fine, Synchronized Minds clearly not that kind of album. Does feel like this could have been broken up into separate EPs though, giving each track more space to stand out.

Vector Lovers - Solstice EP

self released: 2015

So this EP's taken on a bit more poignancy, now that I know what Martin Wheeler was going through around the time of its release. When I first spotted all these self-released Bandcamp singles, I just assumed it was a trickle of items while other things ate up his time. Boy was I ever right, just not in a way I ever suspected. Still, game development takes time, especially when essentially doing it all on your own. But if some Vector Lovers folks weren't keeping tabs on Mr. Wheeler's other ventures (*cough*), the occasional Bandcamp EP would do in a pinch. I mean, no sense carrying on with Soma Quality Recordings if an app for personal self-promotion is available.

If the timeline is accurate, this Solstice EP was the first of a yearly run of EPs that's more or less carried on to this day. I can't imagine it gaining any sort of attention at the time of its release, the market on Vector Lovers singles all but dried up by that point. There was a lone vinyl with Soma in 2013 supporting iPhonica, plus an MP3 digi-single, but aside from that, the fruitful year of 2008 was the last time Martin contributed much to the EP market. Folks just weren't looking for Vector Lovers records anymore, is what I'm saying, so it's no surprise to me that this one wasn't even on the Discogs database yet. Excuse me while I do my duty for The Lord That Knows all now.

Okay, that's sorted. So what else can I blag about before getting into this EP? Well, it was apparently made solely on an iPhone, using some softwear called NanoStudio. That's kinda' cool, and fits with the whole 'iPhonica' theme Martin's music was all about prior to those years. I wonder if these were done as a lark during those sessions, ready to be used for b-side consideration, or just on his spare time while getting his game developer muse on. Either wouldn't surprise me.

I'm dallying again, mainly because I feel like I've said just about all I can say regarding Vector Lovers music. Unless there's something truly unique in the release I'm covering, I'll just be reiterating points I've previously covered. Solstice EP sounds about as typical a tiny collection of Vector Lovers tracks as there can be, which is great if you can't get enough of his melancholy electro, which I can't!

So key differences between tracks then. Almost Human does the aforementioned 'melancholy electro', while Glacial treads more the sentimental ambient-pop route, if that's any way to describe a tune. The titular track is more along his tech-house lane, with beats that softly pitter-patter and crispy-crunch along with a heart-tugging melody. Okay, it's a little 8th notey, but at least it's not McProggy in the process. Crestfallen carries on the Almost Human vibe, with a moody lead-in, followed upon a tender melody and electro rhythms. How much more vintage V-L can one get?

ACE TRACKS: October-November 2020

So I made a Topster.

And you may be wondering, what even is a Topster? Just a simple little chart app that lets you put images of music albums however you want. Most have been doing it to make Favourite Albums collages, which I figured, “When in Rome...” Only, I have no idea what my favourite albums are. For sure there's one's I like quite a bit, but I've never thought about ranking them or paring things down to a Top 40 (or 100, or 1000). There's just so much in my collection, it'd take some serious study to figure it out, and I don't care to rank my albums that much.

Fortunately, there's a handy little place that tracks which albums you listen to the most often, and while not the most accurate of apps, should be representative of what my favourites are. So off to the Last.dot.fm I went, scoped out which were my top scrobbled albums, and selected just the top from each artist that came up (there'd be quite the bunching of FSOL otherwise). The result... wasn't what I expected.

Oh, absolutely many of these albums are favourites, but I can't say they're my absolute favourites from each artist. I'd put Big Men Cry over Maya any day, or Demon Days over Plastic Beach, or Dead Cities over Environments 2, or U.F.Orb over The Dream. Plus, I'm missing whole genres here (house, techno, d'n'b, rap, almost all of rock), which is just ridiculous. What gives?

Methinks this scrobble information is so skewed because this is a lot of stuff that I tend to play at home, on the downswing, sometimes when I'm ready to nod off. I generally don't get scrobble information for music blasting on my main stereo or MP3s on the go. Others likely got high scrobble info because they have so many tracks to scrobble from (I see you, Pete Namlook tribute box-set; you too, Neil Young box-set).

Still, I feel like this is an app that could be toyed around with some more, given the time to do so. Stay tuned for future Topster pics! For now, here's the ACE TRACKS for the past two months of reviews. Seems like enough to make a decent playlist out of now.


Full track list here.


MISSING ALBUMS:
Autumn Of Communion - Reservoir Of Video Souls
Various - Recycle Or Die (Electronic Mind Music)
Skanfrom - Postcards
Vector Lovers - Pale Blue Star EP

Percentage Of Hip-Hop: 0%
Percentage Of Rock: 0%
Most “WTF?” Track: Nope, can't think of one. Even the dark ambient stuff is comparatively tame.

Aw man, I go and say downtempo, ambient, IDM-chill stuff really isn't my only port of call, and here's a playlist that's filled with it! At least there's a little more variety in here though, what with Technical Itch, UNKLE, and, um, Fictivision. Wow, relying on eurotrance to break up monotony. Strange days forever more.

Autumn Of Communion - Reservoir Of Video Souls

Fantasy Enhancing: 2018

It appeared that Lee Norris was shifting his music ventures down different avenues, stepping back from managing ...txt while consolidating his Autumn Of Communion works into a box-set. He followed that up by establishing Fantasy Enhancing, debuting the fresh label with another Autumn Of Communion album. Everything old is new again!

Naturally, I had to get in on that action as soon as it was announced. Who knows how limited and rare these albums might become? Firsts of anything in these post Fax+ ambient techno circles always end up with ridiculous prices on the collector's market, and this particular outing from Lee and Mick looked to be a very spiffy first indeed. Why, they even went the DVD-sized package route for Fantasy Enhancing, making them something akin to a book on your music shelves. Boy, am I ever glad I sprung for it when it first came out. Shame I somehow, inexplicably lost it.

No, really, how does one lose a CD with packaging that big? It's not like there's a lot of space in my apartment for it to wander off to. Did the mice in the walls steal it? A nosy landlord nabbing it as a deposit for all the shelving holes I'm leaving? Will it miraculously appear when I finally move, unearthed from some impossibly deep couch cushion? Mysteries upon mysteries!

Okay, enough belly-moaning about my music collecting tribulations. Is Reservoir Of Video Souls any good? Sure things it is – it's not like Misters Norris and Chillage had taken a long break between this and Metal such that they'd lost their songcraft synergy. If anything, this album feels like something of a return to an older style, a simpler style, a 'not-quite-so-experimental-drone' style. A lot of Autumn Of Communion 4 feels, is what I'm saying, what with those spaced-out melodies and soft rhythms, conjuring long nights spent gazing upon stars slowly circling the heavens above.

Five tracks make up this album, each hovering in that sweet spot of twelve-to-twenty minutes of runtime. Plenty of room for the AoC lads to indulge in some freeform music making before striking upon a lead melody, and not so long that the plot gets lost along the way. Well, except opener Metacognition, so abruptly switching gears midway through, I keep thinking it's an entirely different track, and that Reservoir Of Video Souls is a continuously mixed album. It's the only track on here that does it though, making it an odd-man out.

And speaking of oddities, was I the only one that thought Reservoir Of Video Souls would end up being a DVD release? Something like BT's This Binary Universe, with little movies accompanying the music? It's right there in the title, plus the whole DVD packaging to go along with it. Heck, no lie, I assumed Fantasy Enhancing itself would feature such releases, taking the world of ambient techno into an untapped realm of modern audio-visual media. Alas, t'was not to be. Yet...

Various - Recycle Or Die (Electronic Mind Music)

Planet Earth Recordings: 1994

You couldn't be a techno-trance label of the early '90s without an offshoot of ambient-leaning downtime music. Warp Records had Artificial Intelligence. R & S Records had Apollo. Suck Me Plasma had Aural X-Perience. Even Fax+ had Seasons Greetings (wait, what?). Naturally, Eye-Q Music got in on that action, Recycle Or Die the print's contribution to the overstuffed spaced-out chill-out market. This would not be some mere ambient or pseudo New Age outlet though, oh no! Recycle Or Die would be a continuum of the German avante-garde, carrying on the legacies of Tangerine Dream, Klaus Schulze, and so forth. Just, y'know, with artists from their own Eye-Q roster and all.

Which artists you ask? Oh, the usual suspects: Ralf 'Soul Of Eye-Q' Hildenbeutel; Oliver F'n Lieb, stalwart Stevie B-Zet, plus Dominc Woosey and Baked Beans. Definitely a strong opening salvo with that roster, but the sub-label's fortunes kinda' sizzled out after. Some more Baked Beans, a little more Ralf (with Gottfried Tollmann), obscurities in Solitaire and #9 Dream, plus... oh hey, MIR. I recall seeing MIR's Welcome Spacebrothers in shops way back when; that human figure on the cover at least.

Anyhow, despite the Recycle Or Die story being short-lived, you cannot deny its first act was one of the strongest for a trance-techno label jumping on the chill-room bandwagon. This particular compilation, released in America for a little cross-continental promotion, rounds up their contributions to the Recycle Or Die launch.

And you couldn't ask for a more perfect pair of opening tracks than two pieces from Mr. Hildenbeutel's debut album Looking Beyond. Follow Me is all meditative woodwinds, soothing pad work, and subtle bleepy electronics, properly steering things just out of the range of New Age into something space-aged (the Techno Age!), while Coming Back... Okay, this one dips its toes into world beat, so not really all up on that German avante-garde the Recycle Or Die manifesto claimed. Still a nice tune, just would fit more snugly rubbing shoulders with Enigma and Deep Forest, is all. Heck, at least those tracks are still immaculately produced for what they are, whereas #9 Dream's Summer Offering really does sound like the sort of thing found on New Age tapes in crystal shops. Is there anything on Recycle Or Die that hints at the techno-trance of its parent label?

You bet your chakra there is! Dominc Woosey's sixteen minute long Stray Dawn, First Light is straight from the big book of Berlin School synth minimalism, subtle arps and breathing synths slowly building to... Look, it's not about the destination with such music, just the journey, yo'. Meanwhile, Oliver Lieb's Spice Diving sounds like the Liebermeister having his own kick at Berlin School weirdness, but filled with all the sci-fi synth sounds anyone familiar with his Spicelab work will recognize (plus pitter-patter conga drumming). And finally, Be-Zet's Closed Eye View does the 'trance as ambient' thing quite common in Harthouse and Fax+ circles. Probably what folks diving into Recycle Or Die raw expected.

The Higher Intelligence Agency - Preform

self-release: 2020

Bobby Bird's been a bit of a busy-body on Bandcamp this (b)last half-decade, slowly releasing his back-catalogue with upgraded fidelity. This has seen the availability of long out-of-print and rare items again, including his collaborations with Pete Namlook and Biosphere. There were a few, scattered HIA items from the project's earliest days that had yet to be re-issued though. I've covered some of these as they appeared on compilations, but others were exclusive to tapes of the original Oscillate shows. Basically a lot of very hard-to-get stuff for completists, unless one was willing to scour Discogs for them. I mean, it's not like these assorted early tracks were available on a tidy collection.

So Bobby gathered all these stray tunes into a tidy collection called Preform. Aw, now isn't that nice of him.

Three of the eight tracks included here, I already have: W.H.Y. (from Ambient Dub Vol. 2), Harmony Angel (from One A.D.), and Alphanex, which was the name of the short-lived pairing of Bird and Brian Duffy, for the one-off track Planet Hoskins on Ambient Dub, Vol. 1. Not sure why this change was made for this compilation, but whatever, it's great to have that in such spiffy remastered form. Seriously, d'at bass! HIA got its rep from being purveyors of bleepy dub, but back in the day, they squeezed some serious juice out of those low ends. Having a higher fidelity version of Why ain't such a bad thing either. Harmony Angel is fine, but was never one of my 'must hear' tracks on One A.D.

Two other 'compilation exclusive' tracks are on Preform, one of which any follower of the Artificial Intelligence series should know, Selenite. I... kinda' feel like I've heard variations on this track before. Then again, many of WHY's elements were re-purposed into the Colourform track Re-Echo, not to mention bits of Harmony Angel could be heard in Speedlearn. Hence this collection of tracks being called Preform, I guess.

Anyhow, the other compilation track is Genius Island, which appeared on one of those gargantuan charity-driven collections on Touched Music, a quite lovely, spaced-out slice of ambient techno dub (Spectral's chimes help). There's actually an earlier version that appeared on the tape Totally Ambient Groove Volume 2 – Live From Oscillate, but I assume this version was plucked instead since it already had a re-jiggering for a 2014 release.

Speaking of those tapes, the remaining three tracks on Preform all come those sessions, and yeah, these definitely sound like tunes intended for a live audience. Sub Oscillate 2 is little more than an acid techno workout with dub flourishes. Meanwhile, Alien Mind feeds of that ol' school HIA vibe of dancefloor efficiency while working all the pulpy, bleepy sci-fi sounds and samples you can indulge. Juju Love is sillier, though that twisting bleep noise sure harkens to the sort of leads weeaboo trap loves. Interesting curiosos for the HIA completist, but well removed from the minimalist electro-dub that'd mark Bird's later work.

Atomine Elektrine - Nebulous (Expanded Edition)

Essence Music/Old Europa Cafe: 2007/2016

I came into contact with raison d'être because I saw a reissue of one of his albums with an aged picture of a boat on the cover. I dug a little deeper into his other works because I liked what I heard and wanted to hear more. Exploring through the Old Europa Cafe Bandcamp pointed me to an assortment of other items that caught my eye by an Atomine Elektrine. 'Cool,' thinks I, 'a chance to branch out into another untapped vein of dark ambient producers.' Turns out, nope, that's not the case at all, as this is a side project of Peter Andersson, whom I've already name-dropped in this paragraph as raison d'être. You'd think I'd pay more attention to these sorts of things, especially if I write about them in older reviews.

Best I can tell, Atomine Elektrine was Peter's outlet for music that skewed closer to the realms of techno. I don't know so much about his first album under the guise, Elemental Severance, the scant clips I've heard coming off like so many Enigma clones of the time. Still, kinda' interesting that it appeared on the fledgling Cold Meat Industry. He self-released a couple more items before the end of the century, then seemingly put the project into mothballs.

Nearly a decade later though, he dusted Atomine Elektrine off for a new album on Essence Music, the very record I'm talking about here! He's kept it active ever since, releasing a new record every few years, all the while coupling some of his older works with expanded editions filled with unreleased material. Man, I know some artists cultivate quite the dedicated followings, but are there really that many die-hard raison d'être fans who'd indulge in double-disc collections of side-projects? Yes, yes there is. I'm assuming they're also the sort who have every noise Merzbow's released.

Anyhow, Nebulous. Atomine Elektrine has often taken to the cosmic grande for inspiration, and this album's no exception. Track titles include such items like Transforming Space, The Eye Of The Nebula, Deep Sky Twilight, and, on this expanded edition, Plasma Core Of The Quasar. The music, such as it is, mostly amounts to experimental drone pieces with hazy melody drifting among the interstellar medium. Some of it, such as where the dronescapes are richly layered into something more dubby, is quite nice as it plays, though doesn't really stick much to the memory membranes after. It all rather reminds me of Biosphere at his more minimalist, though even colder in a space station laboratory sort of way. I want to like this more, but coupled with the second CD of live recordings, it all feels like too much to take in all at once.

Speaking of, CD2 of this reissue does have some nice little ambient numbers on offer, a surprise considering the dark ambient Mr. Andersson typically peddles in. If you like your bleepy, Forbidden Planet soundscapes, there's some cool stuff here. Bet the visuals were dope too.

RX-101 - Like Yesterday

Suction Records: 2016

What good is a label relaunch if it doesn't include expansion from its older days? It's fine and dandy to get some of the old gang together again, but even better is an opportunity to bring new artists to the light. So while Solvent, Lowfish, Skanform, and D'Arcangelo came back for the Suction Records re-up party, joining them were some old schoolers (Digital Poodle, Locust), and fresh blood too (Beau Wanzer, Celldöd). Most prominent of these new cats is RX-101, who received a special multi-EP roll-out for his debut. Gosh, this guy must be super special indeed for that to happen.

Not really, though it is an interesting story if you enjoy ones about over-coming The Odds, persevering in the face of an uncaring music industry. That one day, you too, can have your demo tapes discovered and brought to the light for all to hear and see. Even if it takes nearly two-decades. And is released on a semi-obscure Canadian label. Just like it happened with Aphex Twin, yo'! Okay, not like that, but the whole 'discovered tapes' thing tracks.

The fact it was music that sounds not unlike RDJ's early ambient techno works (selected, if you will) led to a couple assumptions that this 'RX-101' might be some long-lost items from the AFX vaults. Nah, Erik Jong is a real human being from Zwaag, simply inspired by way-early Artificial Intelligence music. Like, very inspired. Super heavily inspired. To the point of sounding like it was made in that era, which may be why he never sent these tapes to a record label way back when.

I know the early ambient techno scene is filled with a near mythical level of nostalgia, but that sound was almost as quickly abandoned as it sprung up. The major players of the time moved on, evolving their sonic craft in a constant state of staying ahead of their peers. Anyone sounding like ol' school Warp or Apollo were brushed-off for not moving on with the times, understandable for an era when every new year was bringing ever more convoluted tricks and gimmicks to the party (ooh, we can now splice glitch noises down to the jiffy!). Maybe Mr. Jong's stuff could have found a home on a label that didn't give a fuck about such things (say, Rephlex?), but likely wouldn't have escaped the nitpickery. We were too spoiled in the '90s.

Anyhow, fast-forward nearly two decades, and what once would be considered dated and dusted now can come off retro and coolio'. And that's what this debut album from RX-101 does, a consolidation of the first two EPs worth of unearthed late '90s tape material. I'm not saying I feel like I'm transported back to those halcyon rave days, but this does sound like a natural progression from SAW 86-92 if time had completely stopped at that point. There was plenty of untapped sonic potential from that era, and its warming to hear a little more of it.

Lars Leonhard - Deep Venture

self-release: 2015

Straight off, this is definitely different. Less moody, more a sense of subtle awe and graceful beauty. Even the trademark dubby production comes off softer and inviting, not so darkly atmospheric that it sounds like you're in a fog. Which makes sense since Dark Tales From The Woods was all about that setting, whereas Deep Venture is not. Thus we can conclude that, yes, each Lars Leonhard album is distinct from one another, and the only reason they sort of blend together in my memory is due to the time-gap I have between listening to each one. And, as a result of the generally subdued nature of his songcraft, it's his sonic aesthetics that typically stick to my membranes rather than any particular rhythmic pattern or melodic hook. We scienced this up hardcore, y'ah bwoyz!

(to find out what ever it is I'm going on about with this train-of-thought, oh ye' souls of future tense, scope out my previous Lars Leonhard album review right now!)

While Deep Venture isn't about any specific thing, it does have a general theme of exploration in the most mysterious domains of our little ball of rock and water. A significant chunk of the tracks here come with titles like Bioluminescence and Photophore, plus name-drops like Vampire Squid, The Singing Opah (a warm-blooded fish), and Osedax (bone-burrowing worms that feed on whale skeletons), all creatures of the bounding main, lurking deep within unfathomable fathoms.

Not to be outdone, even technical terms like Pelagial, Hydrogen Sulfide, Negative Termal Expansion, and Trophogenic Zone all bring to mind things that occur in bodies of water. Only two track titles don't specifically tie into these themes, Northern Stargazer and Retroreflector, but they can if you tilt your head the right way. Ah, yes, looking upon a clear, dark night before sending your recording instruments deep into the darkest waters below. Lovely mood setter, that.

As befitting an album with its sights set on deep aquatic ventures, Lars' distinct dubby production feels more tranquil his other albums. There's even breathing space for his subtle melodies, which I know is a weird thing to say for a producer's who's made his lane in dub. Sometimes they get overwhelmed by the layers of sonic depth in his other works, but not so much here. It's like he wants you focused on whatever particular critter his sonic camera has focused on, no time for getting lost in one's headspace.

In fact, the music on Deep Venture feels so custom-made for video accompaniment, I'm surprised there haven't been any aqua-related YouTubes with this used as a soundtrack. It's because NASA already gobbled up a bunch of these for one of their Ultra-HD 4K vids of the sun, isn't it. Yeah, the space agency had been plucking tracks here or there from Lars, but this one's a full half-hour long, half of Deep Venture. Now when folks hear Osedax, they won't think of bone-burrowing worms, but of solar eruptions.

Astral Engineering - Chronoglide

Worm Interface: 1994/2012

I don't normally follow Bandcamp suggestions. Not that I doubt they'll lead me somewhere interesting, but as my Discogs digging already takes up most of my exploratory attention, there couldn't possibly be any avenues not already covered there that Bandcamp offers. Well, not entirely, the deepest depths of that streaming service a mysterious domain of The Unsigned. At least there's some official capacity with Bandcamp, where folks expect their efforts could earn them a few bones, unlike the constant demo reel of Soundcloud productions. Lacking the time to explore that realm, however, I simply pass on whatever unfamiliar names crop up in Bandcamp's algorithms.

Except this one, for some reason. I can't recall which release it was tied to, but the cover art got my retro-senses tingling, so gave it a click. Lo', my senses proved accurate, for I'd stumbled upon a gem of an artifact in ancient ambient techno and dub. Astral Engineering emerged from the post Artificial Intelligence / Beyond Records era of British downtempo techno, finding a short-lived home on Worm Interface. Folks of the here and now may not recognize the label, but the London shop it based its operations out of – Ambient Soho – will certainly bring a flood of memories back to those vibing on the chill side of electronic music. Sadly, the label remained one of those hopelessly obscure prints that didn't generate much in the way of future Very Important talent (save a Tom Jenkinson), but has its dedicated fans floating about the perimeter of scene interests.

So Chronoglide. It's something that could possibly have made its way into the early Fax+ catalogue, though less on that pure, noodly spaced-out trip Pete Namlook and his associates often dabbled in. It's got the ultra-dorky sci-fi fetishism the IDM wonks were all about (Wave Part, Beyond The X-Ecliptic). It's got naturalistic sounding tracks that remind me of Delerium during their more experimental phase (Neural Net). It's got rather subdued, meditative pieces for those proper chill-room experiences (Ring, 2010). It's got some proper ol' school trance (Brainstrobe) paired with proper ol' school ambient dub (Bios ...such bass).

And finally, it has a low, dubby synth lead in NGC 4512 that I cannot but help feel Underworld jacked for their first post-Emerson single Luetin. A coincidence, I'm sure, but man, if Underworld had ever gone ambient dub instead of prog-house, this is probably what it'd sound like. Also, what a strange namedrop, NGC 4512. Far as I know, it isn't a terribly remarkable galaxy, merely a smear of light in the Draco constellation. Why Simon Rees would feel inspired by it, I haven't a clue.

Ah, right, I should get into who Astral Engineering is, and all that. Sadly, Lord Discogs says he didn't do much else after this, though re-emerged this past decade to, along with this Chronoglide re-release, put out some unreleased material, plus a new album just this past year. Only a quarter-century in the making!

Cryostasis - Between Static And Distance

...txt: 2017

It shouldn't come as a shock, but I don't necessarily listen to every CD I get the moment I get it. This endless project of mine has created something of a psychological tick, wherein I'd rather let my anticipation build and build and build until said album's properly, orderly, alphabetically-determined listening time arrives. And this one, I've been waiting on for nearly three years now! Like, I knew I was getting it the moment I saw the cover-art. There's just something about seeing radio receivers in silhouette that tugs at the emotions in me. Maybe it's from that one episode of Cosmos that had similar beauty shots, with Vangelis playing in the background. Yeah, that's the stuff. Erm, but that album title, tho'. When I decided I would review my remaining items after all, that shuffled all 'B' acquisitions into future reference, so the Cryostasis debut had to sit pat for so many months, just so many months.

I won't lie though, I also had some hesitation going into this one. For Cryostasis is a side-project of Si Matthews, whom had yet to capitalized on the potential folks assumed was ahead of him following his debut of Tales Of Ten Worlds. Not that his follow-up on ...txt, Aurora, was weak, it just didn't light the discourse up quite the same way Tales did. I sense the ship's righted as of late thanks to his double-LP effort Across The Ether, but there was a shaky in-between there, from which this album sprung forth during. And the fact his partner in this project, Aoide, is a near-blank within Lord Discogs' archives doesn't help matters. No frame of reference to compare and contrast, how their styles mesh and mingle. All I can do is take the album the ol' fashioned way: on its own merits.

And for an ambient techno album on that vintage Fax+ tip, it's fine. There's a spacey vibe going on here, with a loose theme of exploration beyond our solar system. Tracks mostly run in the a nine-to-eleven minute range, plenty of time to weave a nice sonic tapestry without over-indulging it. Along with feeling retro without feeling dated, one of Si's strongest attributes is his use of subtly building rhythms, and tracks like Another Perfect Earth, Pulsating With Life, and The Destiny Of Man (fifteen minutes to work it helps) offer this superbly. Elsewhere, things go more subdued and reflective, with softer beats and charming acid melodies, or entirely beatless at all (-455°F).

Sounds like all the audio catnip for these ears I could hope for, right? Then why doesn't Between Static And Distance stick with me after it plays? It honestly feels like the same issue I had with Aurora, missing that little extra something that separates 'good' from 'great'. Or maybe my expectations were just too damn high again, which happens with greater frequency now that we're utterly spoiled for musical options. Ambient techno consumers are no longer the forlorn beggars of electronic music.

Susumu Yokota - Sakura

Skintone/Leaf: 1999/2000

(a Patreon Request from Omskbird)

It wasn't much to go off from just one track, but Susumu Yokota's contribution to Tangent 2002 was a highlight among a compilation filled with highlights. Such skill in weaving a simple nouveau disco tune, I mentally bookmarked the name, figuring he'd be one to scope out more of at later date. Then I saw how wide-ranging and expansive his discography was, and realized a proper deep-dive would be quite the undertaking indeed. The dude started out on Harthouse, for crissake. Harthouse! I assumed he first popped up in the wake of emergent disco deep house of the late '90s, yet there he was, already releasing material that must be among the most obscure items the Frankfurt print ever put out.

But yes, Yokota-san truly came to prominence toward the end of the decade when his house records were getting attention across seas. It didn't turn him into a house-hold name or anything (hefty import fees from half a globe away didn't help), but house-heads in the know would always tip their hat and stroke their beard with a nod should a Susumu tune make an appearance.

Thus I was eager to hear Sakura, a request finally getting me on that overdue deeper-dive. Then I realized, oh dear, there's so much more to his catalogue of music than nifty house and retro techno. So very, very much more. Ambient! Modern classical! Odd sound experiments! That harmonic Japanese thing that only they seem capable of doing and are so good at doing that no other culture has come close to doing, thus forever owning it, mang. They own it!

So this is a very chill album, which I was not expecting, but definitely something Susumu dabbled in from time to time. The fact this came out at the height of his 'peak house years' makes it a rather interesting record, almost a companion passion project wedged between 1998 and 1999. Then again, it does come back to that 'self-release' option, Sakura coming out on his own Skintone, while his house records were released through Sublime Records (no, not that Sublime Records; a Japanese one). Interestingly, the album saw a release in the UK under Leaf, a rather eclectic print where I see Manitoba residing (aka: Caribou; aka: that actual Canadian who sounded like Boards Of Canada).

*whew* How about some actual music talky-talk then, eh? Ah, I'm afraid it's one of those albums that are difficult to detail, what with abstract loops, deep pleasant tones, and lovely minimalist harmonies dominating the songcraft. There are a couple outlier tracks, like Genshi with its steady techno pulse, Hisen with a trip-hop thing going for it, the nu-jazz business of Naminote, and Kodomatachi predicting what 'dream pop' may sound like. Beyond that, however, Sakura's musical eclecticism mostly amounts to sonic doodles and sketches. It rather reminds me of Omnimotion's debut album (oh hi, obscure name-drop), though less emphasis on the dub and a clear Japanese lean. Will probably grow on me just as much that lush record did too.

Various - Back To Mine: The Orb

DMC: 2003

Sure is a nice coincidence that the alphabetical order of my Back To Mine CDs is also in chronological order.

Folks who came around to the series later in its run may have noticed something different about the first couple I've covered. Indeed, when DMC launched Back To Mine, the cover art wasn't too distinctive from many other DJ-featuring compilations out there. Sure, Warren and Seaman were lounging in comfy chairs, while Tenaglia and Armada had cute little lights, but it still felt run-of-the-mill where chill-out CDs were concerned.

Following Faithless' entry, however, DMC commissioned illustrator Tommy Penton to shake things up, giving Back To Mine its distinct, abstract comic look for many years after; I hated that look. Yeah, it was unique, which undoubtedly helped it stand out from overcrowded compilation racks, but gads, the artwork reminds me of bad lucid dreams, not at all feelings of being chill. Whatever happened to the soft, inviting mood lighting?

So I wasn't too keen on picking up more Back To Mines with the art change. Compounding things further was the fact Ultra Records lost the domestic distribution rights after the seventh (Morcheeba's, for the record), leaving DMC to handle it themselves. They... weren't very efficient at it, leading to few copies, if any, found on my local store shelves. And whenever one did happen by at those slightly inflated prices, always was I met with that butt-ugly cover art. You understand why I let the series pass me by, then.

Still, when I heard The Orb had been tapped to head up a Back To Mine, I knew I had to get my hands on that! The O.G. chill-out maestros, who's early sets were well known for unearthing all sorts of weird, blissy records of yesteryear, compiling a CD that's right up their lane? How could this fail? It could not, is how! No, Muzik Magazine and their middling 2/5 score had to be wrong. It... had to be good...!

Back To Mine was primarily billed as showing off one's personal collections, and you'd think chaps like Dr. Alex Paterson and Thomas Fehlmann would have ludicrously deep crates to pull music from. And maybe compared to typical punters of the U.K., that's true, but I was stunned that I already had so many of these tracks in my own collection. Two Aphex Twin cuts, yep. Julee Cruise's go with Falling (aka: the Twin Peaks theme), uh huh. And why on Earth is Juno Reactor's Nitrogen Part 1 on here, and at the third position no less? Okay, Alex helped produce that, but no way does it fit as a 'chill-out' option.

The remaining selections are definitely an eclectic sort of stoner chill and indie-techno, but lacks much of a unifying theme to them. It's as though The Orb rounded up a pile of tracks they happened to like that given month, arranged them in alphabetical order, and called it a day. Who'd want to listen to something like that?

Autumn Of Communion - Autumn Of Communion

Fax +49-69/450464: 2012

I mentioned a few reviews back that I lucked out on a Discoggian source that had a mountain of Fax+ material, and this was what led me to it. Yes, in my never-ending hope that an affordable copy of Autumn Of Communion's debut album would eventually appear there, it finally happened! And not only that, but the seller had more, oh so much more! Was so tempted to crack open an RRSP for a ridiculous splurge, believe you me. What I got will suffice for now though. No need to be greedy with all these limited-run items, is there?

Of course, another reason I'm thankful/dumbfounded for the luck in finding this is that it assuages that lingering FOMO feeling in skipping out on the Autumn Of Communion box-set. I felt it a tad redundant picking that up when I already had some of the albums first-run, but who knew if any of their older works would make it to hard-copy at reasonable prices again, especially this. Not only is it the debut album from this long-lasting partnership between Lee Norris and Mick Chillage, but it's the final item released from Fax +49-69/450464, before Pete Namlook's passing forced the label to shutter doors. You'd think this would make Autumn Of Communion one of the biggest collector's items on the second-hand marketplace. Then again, the Fax+ community never was that big compared to some of the other cult-like followers of famous record labels. And it's not like they're gaining new members anymore. It's all about that Carpe Sonum hit nowadays.

Anyhow, what's most important is that I finally get to hear the germination of this surprisingly durable pairing between Misters Norris and Gainford, one I have to wonder if even they thought would go this long. Like, I'm sure they felt some synergy from whatever situation brought them together (crossing paths at a show? Sharing war stories of former labels? Chance paired seating on a flight across the the Atlantic Ocean?), but even they couldn't have thought they'd be over twenty albums deep from these humble beginnings. Because these are some humble beginnings indeed.

Honestly, this could have gone one of two ways: an immaculate debut that could never have been replicated again, or a feeling-out process, with later works bringing their collaborative ideas to better fruition. Given the amount of music that has emerged under the Autumn Of Communion banner since, it's safe to say we're in the latter territory with this album. Even for Lee and Mick, this is one super mellow CD, with long, gentle passages of subdued synths and repeating melodies. Aside from End (Sunrise For Claudio), there's barely any rhythm, and what does come about is the most minimalist of minute beatcraft.

For sure there are some gorgeous moments on Autumn Of Communion, including the titular track, but I doubt I'd say anything shocking in pointing to the duo's future works as even better than what's offered here. Still, absolutely worth the monies I paid for it!

Alien Community - Alien Community 2

Fax +49-69/450464: 1994

Looky-looky what I got! An honest to God, original print, ultra old-school, limited-run copy of a Fax+ CD! Not a rip, not a reissue, but an O.G. version with the classic cover-art. And with the Earth photo too, not triangular logo. Such releases were part of the 'PW' series, or 'Peter's Worldlabel', where all of his famed, globe-trotting collaborations took place. Not surprisingly, these are highly sought items, releases from the likes of Fires Of Ork, 2350 Broadway, and From Within fetching stupid amounts of money on the collector's market. Sometimes though, you get lucky on the Discogs Marketplace, and I scored myself a source that had all manner of classic Fax+ items up for offer. True, many of them were re-issues on Ambient World, but beggars can't be choosers, and I nabbed me some albums I never thought I'd land without dropping upwards of triple digits for.

One such release I always had my eye on was Namlook's pairing with Jonah Sharp as Alien Community. Their featured track in the Coldcut mix CD Tone Tales From Tomorrow Too made it among my earliest internet explorations (d'at title alone! ...not to mention the sci-fi electro), but discovering it was part of this ca-raaayy-zee catalogue of rare ambient techno, I resigned myself to wistful glances here and there. I mean, the project hadn't even been tapped for reissue with Ambient World. I guess the Spacetime Continuum tie-in just wasn't enough for consistent interest.

Even now, Alien Community doesn't rank terribly high on the list of Fax+ essentials. Well, the first album does, as there is some mighty tasty ambient electro going on there, but not their second (and last) outing under the alias. Why, one can find this for the same price of a regular CD on the used market. Strangely, the same goes for Pete and Jonah's other collaborative project, Wechselspannung, which I haven't really listened to. Its artwork is mighty familiar tho'...

Anyhow, as with many Fax+ releases of this era, Alien Community 2 features a singular sixty-minute composition titled A Long And Perilous Voyage, broken up into twelve parts around five minutes in length for handy CD skipping. Because not everyone is down for those super-noodly, feeling-out, abstract ambient segments these jam sessions often entailed. Seriously, it's like when guitarists spend time tuning their instruments, but instead with twiddly knobs on gear racks.

Also a common feature with these LP-length outings was how they were structured, with rising escalation of the various sounds in use, a mid-section of downtime with various sonic doodlings, each player doing their thing, then a bigger peak-out with everything coming to the fore. It's effective ambient techno jamming, especially if you enjoy Namlook's distinct synth pads and transistor tweeps with Sharp's spaced-out acid tweaks and electro rhythms. Still, it's just following upon the same ideas as the first album, and I can understand why some may feel it the lesser of the two Alien Community releases.

Si Matthews - Across The Ether

Carpe Sonum Records: 2018

Been an age since I last talked up Si Matthews. Chap seemed like one of those promising new talents the current era of Fax+ influenced artists who were gonna' lead us into a post-Namlook era. He's taken a 'slow and steady' approach to his release rate though, settling on about an album a year rather than the twenty-dozen items some of his peers churn out. Slow and steady wins the race, I guess, but what are we racing for? Can making music be considered a race, against the limited time we have to create all that our muses allow us to express? Can the sonic soul even be sated, when there's infinite possibilities before us, countless that which have yet to be discovered? Just some thoughts as I stare into the Pillars Of Creation for the umpteenth time.

I felt Si's sophomore album, Aurora, was a good enough follow-up to his applauded debut Tales Of Ten Worlds, if a bit slight in content compared to the richness offered in the former. No chance of similar feelings with his next album, Across The Ether, a whopping double-LP outing from Mr. Matthews! Interestingly, this is one of the few times Carpe Sonum Records has ever released a 2CD album, and remained a lone example of the format until just this year's release of Sven Kössler's Bck t· Lvng. Coincidentally, Si and Sven have been working together this past year, though their release on Fantasy Enhancing wasn't a double-LP, so I can only imagine should they also cook up something for Carpe Sonum, it'll be nothing less than a 4CD box-set! Maybe wait until they can nab the impossible catalogue number SEIZE-XXL though. (yes, I find it hilarious that the first Carpe Sonum double-LP release is SEIZE-XL)

CD1 is subtitled Ambient, and that's what you're gonna' get, by g'ar. Nine tracks of spaced-out, cosmic synth pads with occasional splashes of soft rhythms. Real planetarium stuff, in other words, which shouldn't be of any surprise with the head of the Eagle Nebula plastered across the cover art. Admittedly it can get rather samey throughout, though folks diving into this style of ambient music aren't looking for much variation either, so it works out. Except for In Stone, a minimalist bleepy ambient techno track that sounds like it drifted in from the FireScope label.

I initially thought it had drifted in from CD2 though, what with its subtitle being Beats and all. And yeah, th'ar be beats here, though not of the IDM-leaning variety B12's print is known for. I mean, this is still a Fax+ influenced artist releasing music on a Fax+ inspired label, so the rhythms are mostly in service of gentle, spacey pad melodies with light dubby effects. And that's fine, another serving of familiar sounds that release the exact amount of endorphins I hope to get from cover art like this. Across The Ether is ambient techno that goes down like a nice cup of hot chocolate. In SPACE!