Various Artists Awakenings 2008 Vol 1.5 CDR / 6 Tracks / 74.38 mins Please go to the Store to buy this item.

Over the last three years the 1.5 and 2.5 volumes have been vehicles for the more 'ambient' contributions to the series. The first track however has a bit too much syncopation (though still laid back) to be strictly thought of as ambient in the traditional sense but I am very grateful for its inclusion all the same! The Glimmer Room (aka Andy C) is a rare breed in that he can compose very catchy upbeat numbers (as on his 'Tomorrows Tuesday' album) but also heart felt slower laid pack pieces (as on sections of 'Grey Mirrors'). 'E32' is a really beautiful example of the latter, creating the most gorgeous sounds then weaving them around tinkling sequences and subtle percussion. The next few tracks however are most certainly in the ambient tradition. Peter Tedstone shows his prowess in this style (as apposed to his recent Berlin School successes) with the decidedly spooky 'Plasma'. The subtlest of sonic shimmers and metallic drones are given loads of uncluttered space to create the most vivid of images in the mind- spectres floating through graveyards, that sort of thing. Brilliantly done. Phrozenlight follows straight on in a very similar mood, with the occasional slightly lighter sounding interlude. There was something rather spiritual and even 'Gothic' sounding about it but now rather than being out in the open to me it seemed that we had entered some vast cathedral at night. Seren Ffordd gives his own ghostly contribution but this time the sounds are more airborne, like a gentle but still potentially powerful Arctic wind. The baton is passed to 4m33s whose fizzing hissing soundscapes continue our eerie adventure which now, if anything, becomes even darker as we progress. Tracks two to five amount to a superb spaced out journey that I could well believe had come from a single artist, instead of four. They fit that well together. The final part of Russell Storey and Rudy Adrian's 'Trilogy' (the first two parts being on 2008 Volume 1) finish off this album and see a return to laid back sequencing which provides a pleasant and gentle conclusion. (DL)

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