ambient / modern classical
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We don't often review compilations for some reason. I really have no idea why exactly that is. It's not that we ignore compilations. We just don't seem to get a lot of them over here. A while ago, we finally received one, or better yet, two. This review covers both albums because they're actually one project, a collaboration between the respected labels Eilean Records (France) and Dauw (Belgium). They linked artists from both labels together and asked them to record songs together.
So on one album Ruhe works together with The Humble Bee and on the other he recorded a track with Twincities. Humble bee is also present on the other album, working with Aaron Martin, who collaborated with David Andree on the first album. A full list of artists might be interesting, so here it is: Aaron Martin, Danny Clay, David Andree, Dudal, Leigh Toro, Masaya Ozaki, Miguel Isaza, Monolyth & Cobalt, Ruhe, Sokkyo (Heine Christensen + Ciro Berenguer), Stijn Hüwels, The Humble Bee, Twincities, Wil Bolton.
I know, it sounds a bit like a five-star logigram which is damn difficult to solve but I hope you get the picture by now so we can start focusing on the music on these albums. Of course, that's the most important part of a review: how does the whole thing sound? Well, it sounds great, a soothing blend of electro-acoustics, ambient and modern classical music, reminding me of countless of acts, including Biosphere, Olafur Arnalds, Sebastian Plano to Zoviet France and Brian Eno.
Besides being great collaboration between two different acts each time, there's this overall blissful atmosphere, turning the whole into one enormous conceptual listening experience. Writing about the tracks individually is difficult so I'm not going to go into that. Hell, I'm not even going to tell you which of both albums is the best. There is not best on these compilations. Both are great overviews of the vast amount of talent that both stables possess, turned into a highly successful experiment.
As an ambient fan, I always feel that the music is prior to the people behind it and I love my ambient records to maintain a certain mystique. In that, these labels certainly succeeded. All I can do is recommend getting your hands on both compilations because both of them are brilliant pieces of work. Whether it is the dark drones of David Andree & Miguel Isaza, the jazzy feel of Twincities + Sokkyō or the piano & strikers of Danny Clay + Wil Bolton, this is a high quality ninety minutes of musical tranquility.
Serge
So on one album Ruhe works together with The Humble Bee and on the other he recorded a track with Twincities. Humble bee is also present on the other album, working with Aaron Martin, who collaborated with David Andree on the first album. A full list of artists might be interesting, so here it is: Aaron Martin, Danny Clay, David Andree, Dudal, Leigh Toro, Masaya Ozaki, Miguel Isaza, Monolyth & Cobalt, Ruhe, Sokkyo (Heine Christensen + Ciro Berenguer), Stijn Hüwels, The Humble Bee, Twincities, Wil Bolton.
I know, it sounds a bit like a five-star logigram which is damn difficult to solve but I hope you get the picture by now so we can start focusing on the music on these albums. Of course, that's the most important part of a review: how does the whole thing sound? Well, it sounds great, a soothing blend of electro-acoustics, ambient and modern classical music, reminding me of countless of acts, including Biosphere, Olafur Arnalds, Sebastian Plano to Zoviet France and Brian Eno.
Besides being great collaboration between two different acts each time, there's this overall blissful atmosphere, turning the whole into one enormous conceptual listening experience. Writing about the tracks individually is difficult so I'm not going to go into that. Hell, I'm not even going to tell you which of both albums is the best. There is not best on these compilations. Both are great overviews of the vast amount of talent that both stables possess, turned into a highly successful experiment.
As an ambient fan, I always feel that the music is prior to the people behind it and I love my ambient records to maintain a certain mystique. In that, these labels certainly succeeded. All I can do is recommend getting your hands on both compilations because both of them are brilliant pieces of work. Whether it is the dark drones of David Andree & Miguel Isaza, the jazzy feel of Twincities + Sokkyō or the piano & strikers of Danny Clay + Wil Bolton, this is a high quality ninety minutes of musical tranquility.
Serge
