The Ambient Thread

Tangerine Dream - "Zeit" (1972)

A true classic of the space ambient subgenre & one that I believe to have been the best thing to come out the new ambient scene to the time. It was certainly more minimal & unstructured than previous ambient releases & therefore requires patience & isolation to fully take in, preferably across multiple listens & in different settings because you'll rarely find a record whose appeal can change as drastically depending on your headspace but, for people like myself who crave ever more deep & cerebral music, you'll rarely encounter anything so otherworldly. It can easily take you outside of your body & have you floating in space which is kinda the whole point of this niche subgenre. Recommended emphatically.

For fans of Ashra, Albergo Intergalattico Spaziale & Klaus Schulze.

4.5/5

Klaus Schulze - "Cyborg" (1973)

The second album from this Berlin School pioneer sees Klaus expanding on the space ambient sound of his high-quality 1972 debut album "Irrlicht" by upping the spaciness with a more overtly synth-heavy feel that borders on progressive electronic music a lot of the time. "Cyborg" comes in a similar one-track-per-side double album format to Tangerine Dream's wonderful "Zeit" release from the previous year & pulls it all off amazingly well, even managing to upstage his German peer's classic effort to become the finest example of the ambient sound the world had heard to the time. The second sides of both discs is simply incredible, particularly "Conphära" which sits amongst the most imposing pieces of electronic music ever recorded. "Cyborg" is nothing short of a triumph & should rightfully sit alongside the greats of the genre, particularly the space ambient subset. In fact, I've had to find space to include it in my Top Ten Ambient Releases of All Time this week (see below).

For fans of Tangerine Dream, Edgar Froese & Ashra.

4.5/5

01. Biosphere – “Substrata” (1997)

02. Robert Rich – “Somnium” (2001)

03. Steve Roach – “Mystic Chords & Sacred Spaces” (2003)

04. Brian Eno – “Ambient 1: Music for Airports” (1978)

05. Stars of the Lid – “The Tired Sounds of” (2001)

06. Stars of the Lid – “And Their Refinement of the Decline” (2007)

07. Steve Roach – “Structures from Silence” (1984)

08. A Winged Victory For The Sullen – “A Winged Victory for the Sullen” (2011)

09. Klaus Schulze - "Cyborg" (1973)

10. Gas – “Pop” (2000)

Fripp & Eno - "(No Pussyfooting)" (1973)

The first of four full-length collaborations between King Crimson guitarist Robert Fripp & Roxy Music keyboardist & ambient music legend Brian Eno. It comprises of two lengthy pieces, both around the twenty minute mark. Fripp's contribution comes in the form of extended jazz fusion improvisations which present the listener with an element of danger given that he takes plenty of melodic risks, often straying in terms of key but ultimately coming across as more inventive than incompetent. Eno's accompaniments were pretty groundbreaking for the time. "The Heavenly Music Corporation" is a twenty-one minute drone piece while nineteen-minute closer "Swastika Girls" falls more into the tape music category given that it's built from a short tape loop that's repeated throughout the full length of the piece. Both are high-quality efforts that keep me well entertained throughout & have seen me returning to Fripp & Eno's debut a number of times over the years.

For fans of Brian Eno, Harold Budd & Cluster.

4/5