The 54-minute concept album "The Lost World" is a gem of cinematic ambient music which sees accomplished ambient sound painter Michael Stearns deliver another stunning piece of sonic art. Inspired by a trip into The Lost World of Venezuela, this highly textural work is acts as a time capsule, being able to paint a vibrant picture of grand natural surroundings with the many sounds collected during the journey and assorted electronic sounds. The outcome is an impeccable sounding, vast and overall rich sonic tapestry interweaving complex synthesizer layers, assorted percussion, flute, voice and diverse natural soundscapes, in which the Mighty Serge is also clearly present. The expert merging of acoustic and electronic sources into impressive ominous and highly cinematic atmospheres of grand design is fascinating and at times breath taking…
The 54-minute concept album "The Lost World" is a gem of cinematic ambient music which sees accomplished ambient sound painter Michael Stearns deliver another stunning piece of sonic art. Inspired by a trip into The Lost World of Venezuela, this highly textural work is acts as a time capsule, being able to paint a vibrant picture of grand natural surroundings with the many sounds collected during the journey and assorted electronic sounds. The outcome is an impeccable sounding, vast and overall rich sonic tapestry interweaving complex synthesizer layers, assorted percussion, flute, voice and diverse natural soundscapes, in which the Mighty Serge is also clearly present. The expert merging of acoustic and electronic sources into impressive ominous and highly cinematic atmospheres of grand design is fascinating and at times breath taking…
This Gil Scott-Heron double album, roughly two thirds of which was recorded live in Boston on July 2-4, 1976, makes the most of its Centennial-centric time frame. Between the American flag striped cover art and Heron's spoken word spiel on an 8-and-a-half minute poem/rant "Bicentennial Blues," the album loses little of its impact, regardless of how the years have mildewed once fresh political topics like Nixon, Agnew, and Watergate.
Following the release of his solo debut, Joy of a Toy, Kevin Ayers created the Whole World to take the album on the road. In retrospect, the band was a kind of Brit supergroup, comprised of young Mike Oldfield (bass/guitar), Lol Coxhill (sax), Mick Fincher (drums, occasionally subbed by Robert Wyatt), and David Bedford (keys/arrangements). Following the tour, the band found itself in the studio, and in October 1970 Ayers introduced the world to the Whole World with the release of his follow-up, Shooting at the Moon. A snapshot of the era, the album is saturated with original ideas, experimentation, and lunacy, all powered by the bottled grape. It is this very "headiness" that propels and simultaneously hinders the work, resulting in a project overflowing with potential, much of which remained underdeveloped…