Stephen Bacchus Ambient Origins

The Mirage label have compiled some of Stephen’s ambient compositions from between 1983 and 1987 and released them on this album. They appear for the first time on CD having undergone 20 Bit digital remastering (In other words they sound bloody good). There is also one track included that was especially created for this release but we will get to that later. We start with ‘The Returning’, a very gentle laid back piece predominantly consisting of drones with just the odd note or two placed over the top as if water is slowly dripping from a tree onto the river beneath. Apparently it was inspired by Brian Eno’s ‘Thursday Afternoon’.

‘Winter’s Way’ is an even more minimalistic and as its title suggests, cold piece. It starts very quietly almost like the wind sighing across a barren landscape then we get the faint sound of a female voice as if the wind was taking shape and trying to make itself understood. Swirling synth drones provide the backdrop on ‘Echo Shadows’ for gentle pin sharp sonic splashes. ‘Rosebud Revisited’ is dedicated to Brian Eno and was originally done as a parody of ambient music but later Stephen changed his mind about it and thought it was rather good. There certainly are some clever sounds used but it is far from the best track here.

‘Subterrania’ is much better. There are some superb textures and the feeling of being underground is captured perfectly. ‘A Separate Moment’ is a very short piece consisting of a simple melody with faint synth touches. ‘The Form of the World’ is a deceptively simple piece that flows along with what appears to be little change but if you play a segment and move on a minute or so you will notice that the sound is really very different. The final track ‘From the Ashes’ is the one recorded specifically for this project. You wouldn’t believe it is a new piece however as it seems to use a very similar technique to the other tracks on the album. (DL)

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