Tuesday 3 April 2012

Sven Schienhammer - Altostratus Translucidus (2012)


I've had this kicking around the hard drive for some time now and only recently decided I should move it into some sort of rotation. I'm glad I did. I knew nothing about it at first, it had a vaguely architectural looking cover and the title was a kind of cloud formation. Those two references alone speak volumes about the music contained therein.

I subsequently did some research and came up with this;

Luxurious album of dub-techno ambience from Sven Schienhammer, who's probably best known for his Quantec releases on Echocord. As the title suggests, 'Altostratus Translucidus' is a meteorological metaphor for Sven's subtle convective diffusions, focussing on the processes of volume - concentration - discharge shared in Dub and weather systems. The first third of the album builds a misty mass of shimmering, effervescent dub chords, precipitating the gently padded 4/4 release of 'Sound Signals For Other Planets'. At the centre of the album is the the gorgeously evocative sound scenery of 'Night Over Mojave Desert', before the mood begins to feel more clammy with the closing chords of 'When Night Meets Day.

Well, I have to say I'm a huge fan of Quantec's output, the whole Echospace label stuff and Rod Modell but this has knocked me sideways. a beautiful album of ambient reductions, incredible textures and wide open spaces.

Recommended for pretty much any occasion, i've fallen asleep to this incredible album all week which is damn fine praise indeed.


Altostratus Translucidus cloud formations

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