[tortoise]

I haven't been this excited about a new release in a long time. Mystic Chords and Sacred Spaces is a brand new 4 disc collection of deep ambient soundworlds by the master of the form, Steve Roach. I have been totally immersed in Darkest Before Dawn since its release, and Steve said that DBD was sort of a "prequel" (paraphrasing) to Mystic Chords.

Anyway, even though the set won't be officially released until June on Projekt, you can pre-order it now (or just find a bunch more info on it, including several reviews) from Steve's website:

www.steveroach.com

They are supposed to ship sometime this week. I'll be back here with my impressions of the work when it arrives and I start to digest it (a process which will probably take years to fully complete).

 

[tortoise]

Oh, and I meant to add, though in a perfect world it would go without saying: I have absolutely no affiliation with Steve Roach, apart from being a fan of his work.

 

[Guardian]

Wow. You have awesome taste, judging from your profile--I'll check this guy out. Thanks.

 

[Dusty Chalk]

I have a tendency to like his more drone-oriented stuff than the "tribal" stuff. Do you happen to know which this is?

 

[FalconP]

Once upon a time I collected the works of Steve Roach (and those of Vidna Obmana) with an almost religious zeal, but then came a time (mid-2001 perhaps?) when I realised that I couldn't possibility keep up with all their stuff, which seemed to pour out from half a dozen different labels. I'd decided to take a break from them. The stuff I got, fortunately, should sustain me for quite a while

A question for all Roach frantics: what do you thing is the best work of Roach post-Early Man ? -- or the best work of Obmana post-Subterrean Collective? -- see that's where I stopped.

 

[Nick Dangerous]

The CD's he released from the Electronic/ambient phase are my favorites: Core, Light Fantastic, Blood Machine, and ESPECIALLY Body Electric which to me is beyond spectacular.

Also own Structures From Silence, Dreamtime Return, and The Magnificent Void when I'm ready to drift into the ether...

Steve Roach is as much of a genius in this genre as Rachmaninov or Bach were in theirs...

 

[tortoise]

Quote:

Originally posted by Dusty Chalk I have a tendency to like his more drone-oriented stuff than the "tribal" stuff. Do you happen to know which this is?

Since he said that Darkest Before Dawn is something of a preview of Mystic Chords, I would say definitely in the droney, drifting soundworlds realm.

And, to answer Falcon P's question, I'd have to say that Darkest Before Dawn is easily my favorite post-Early Man Roach release to date. Just a pure deep soundworld, deeper and darker than anything he's done before. I guess the closest comparisons to DBD would be Dream Circle and the amazing Atmospheric Conditions, combined with "Altus" from Magnificent Void.

 

[Dusty Chalk]

Quote:

Originally posted by tortoise Since he said that Darkest Before Dawn is something of a preview of Mystic Chords, I would say definitely in the droney, drifting soundworlds realm.

Yeah, but since I wasn't familiar with that recording either (at least not by name -- I'd have to see the cover), that's why I asked the question. Thanks for the response (and to both you and Nick Dangerous for the additional title suggestions).

 

[tortoise]

Quote:

Originally posted by Dusty Chalk Yeah, but since I wasn't familiar with that recording either (at least not by name -- I'd have to see the cover), that's why I asked the question. Thanks for the response (and to both you and Nick Dangerous for the additional title suggestions).

No worries. I didn't mean to sound like I expected you to know what Darkest Before Dawn sounded like, just sorta explaining my assumption about the droney nature of Mystic Chords.

As for the cover of DBD, it's just unadorned pitch blackness:

Uninspired, perhaps (especially when compared to amazing covers like Atmospheric Conditions), but it fits the "theme" of the music quite well.

 

[Dusty Chalk]

Quote:

Originally posted by tortoise As for the cover of DBD, it's just unadorned pitch blackness:

No worries here either, mate. Thanks. Looks like I'll have to get that one, too. I'm pretty sure I would remember that one (and I like it [the cover]).

 

[FalconP]

Thanks Tortoise. I do enjoy Altus and the whole of Atmospheric Conditions, but my attention inevitably wavers in a 73+ track...

I'm actually more impressed with Blood Machines amongst his recent works; and of course Dreamtime Return and Well of Souls are all-time classics.

 

[tortoise]

Quote:

Originally posted by FalconP Thanks Tortoise. I do enjoy Altus and the whole of Atmospheric Conditions, but my attention inevitably wavers in a 73+ track...

If there's anyone out there that can give rapt attention to a complete 73+ minute track, they possess an attention span FAR in excess of mine. For me, all of his hour+ tracks, which consist of Dream Circle, Darkest Before Dawn, To The Threshold of Silence (from World's Edge), Slow Heat, Somewhere Else and Revealing the Secret (both of which are from Ascension of Shadows), are more about setting one singular, sustained atmosphere. Still, I do know what you mean, and I'm glad that he doesn't work in the long form exclusively.

While I'm blathering about hour+ tracks, I must have a weakness for the genre, as have a smart playlist set up on my iPod called "Hour", which collects all of my tracks that are 55+ minutes. I currently have 8 such tracks, all but 2 of which (Steve Reich's Music for 18 Musicians and Lustmord's The Place Where the Black Stars Hang) are Roach (or Roach/Obmana) works.

I'm glad you mentioned Well of Souls, as that's the first Roach work that absolutely floored me, the one where it all just clicked in my head.

 

[tortoise]

By the way, only one of the 4 discs in the Mystic Chords set contains a 73+ minute track. All of the others are broken up into bite sized morsels of Roachy goodness. You can find the complete track listing here.

 

[Dusty Chalk]

Quote:

Originally posted by tortoise If there's anyone out there that can give rapt attention to a complete 73+ minute track, they possess an attention span FAR in excess of mine.

I listen to a lot of hour+ tracks:

Chris Meloche - Recurring Dreams of the Urban Myth, Urban Myth 2, Distant Rituals
Mike Oldfield - Amarok
Lull - Continue (also Moments, but technically, that's 99 tracks, but I always listen to it as one)
whatever I have by Steve Roach that qualifies
Klaus Schulze -- has put out several 10-CD box sets and such, many of which are one track CD's

To be fair, I'm usually doing something else at the same time, like working or reading/posting on Head-Fi, but I am listening.

 

[tortoise]

Quote:

Originally posted by Dusty Chalk To be fair, I'm usually doing something else at the same time, like working or reading/posting on Head-Fi, but I am listening.

Which of course is the beauty of ambient music... it rewards both "active" and "passive" listening. To me, the best ambient blends into the environment, yet enhances it at the same time.

Hey, if ordinary smells can spawn the booming industry(?) of aromatherapy, surely we can (re)package these sounds as "aural environment enhancers."