Derek Pierce - Beatsystem 2297
From binaural recordings of fireworks through to one of the coolest sounds I've ever heard, an amazing backwards tearing sound, made me realize just how awesome our new JBL's really are.
Beatsystem2297 is the latest (at time of upload) in the em:t series which is rapidly becoming the "must have" addition to every serious collection of recorded electronic music around the world.
This particular offering takes you on a voyage through a myriad of soundscapes where, thanks to modern technology, almost every sound you could ever imagine (and a few you never could) will bombard and then soothe your overworked senses.
I guess this could be called ambient if it had to be categorized, but the range of emotions that this album is capable of producing in the listener would definitely exclude it from the "put it on and fall asleep" variety of common or garden household ambient.
Created by Derek Pierce (Walk On The Wild Side) with various contributions ranging from recordings of the Dali Lama through to a well played blues guitar, this recording certainly helps dispel the myth that you have to have racks full of gear and multi-tiered synthesizer setups to make great electronic music.
The amazing backwards tearing sound mentioned at the beginning is a good example of what Granular Synthesis is capable of producing. At first I thought it was a sample, and said so in this review until Derek himself emailed me to let me know that apart from a few actual samples the rest of the sounds were created entirely by computer.
This is made possible by the production of sound using small circa 100ms grains, hence the name. These grains can be obtained from slicing up an already existing sound or made from scratch. A book called "Dodge and Jerse's Computer Music book" is available for those who want to find out more about this remarkable sound production method.
Beatsystem2297 was found to be an excellently crafted and most enjoyable album, yet another t:me recordings masterpiece.
Rating - 811,927 (out of a possible 1,000,000)
