Environment FIVE: out 8-Sep-2014

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Jack Absorb.
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Re: Environments 5 coming soon...

Post by Jack Absorb. »

I personally felt Environments 1 was a bit of a disappointment. It almost felt like a pastiche of the '90s sampledelic FSOL sound, but whereas Lifeforms and Dead Cities had strong controlling ideas, Environments was just, well, a bunch of random environments all stuck together. From Environments 2 onwards the mood of each disc became much more coherent for me. Environments 3 does feel a bit scatter-shot with lots of tracks, samples and snippets of musical ideas coming and going, but to me it conjures a more utopian version of the post-apocalyptic landscapes of Dead Cities. Listening to Environments 3 I feel like I'm walking through some alien desert encountering glittering fragments of some forgotten civilisation, the orchestral swells bringing to mind shattered statues and sculptures, grand architecture eroded and disintegrated.

Granted that's a very subjective and fanciful interpretation I wouldn't expect anyone else to share, but I loved E3 from first listen. And the primordial grandeur of Environments 4 followed on perfectly, the return to a prehistoric savannah suggesting some kind of grand cycle of human evolution across the series. Again: probably all bollocks, but what is ambient if not music that fires the imagination?
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Pandemonium
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Re: Environments 5 coming soon...

Post by Pandemonium »

You're right Jack, E1 did feel a little bit light...
But that's because it is not the album intended for 14 years before it's release.

The E1 that we got was... leftovers and B-sides from the intended E1, because the (lets call them) important parts from the original E1 ended up on Lifeforms, ISDN and the singles surrounding them. That's probably why we only got 2 big tracks instead proper tracks like the other E-series.
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Ross
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Re: Environments 5 coming soon...

Post by Ross »

I'd be interested to hear what was originally intended to be on Environments - I wouldn't even be surprised if they never made a 'final' version before scrapping it back in the day. Obviously a lot of what is Environments now went on to be on ISDN, and other bits were remixed bits of Lifeforms. For me it works as one alternative path the band took after Lifeforms (the other being the more ethnic / percussive sounding Paths EP) - both of which converged again on ISDN. I also love the Berlin School-type sequencey bits, quite unusual for them. But yeah, it's not as different as the others in the series.

Those descriptions are cool - the guys' music is so detailed that it's easy to conjour so many different images listening to it, always good to read other people's experiences. For me, if Dead Cities is the sound of decay and death, E3 is returning to the city once it's died out completely. Ruins of buildings, eerily desolate, nature taking over once again.

Never imagined 4 as being 'prehistoric', but I completely get that now. For me, it's the only FSOL record which seems to be entirely untouched by human beings. Lifeforms has sinister human goings on at its fringes throughout, but E4 is completely cut off, nature left to its own wild ways. So prehistoric works quite nicely for that...
nanio-tine
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Re: Environments 5 coming soon...

Post by nanio-tine »

currently due august 2014

photo session -- recording the album

https://www.flickr.com/photos/grumphick ... 827602653/
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Ross
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Re: Environments 5 coming soon...

Post by Ross »

Wouldn't mind having that setup, to be honest.

August eh? Will this be featuring 'Loft Insulation' this time?
nanio-tine
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Re: Environments 5 coming soon...

Post by nanio-tine »

no -- previous info was from an unreliable source -- no track list given yet
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dell1972
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Re: Environments 5 coming soon...

Post by dell1972 »

Nice pictures, quite a set up.
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seedy
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Re: Environments 5 coming soon...

Post by seedy »

myeah i'll take that studio thx
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Ross
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Re: Environments 5 coming soon...

Post by Ross »

Looks like a Korg MS2000 in the middle there - one of those turns up on Photographic Reflection, and a couple of collaborative things I'm working on with Noisesurfer and Off Land. Lovely thing.
Of course, it's the Synthi I'm really looking at there...
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mcbpete
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Re: Environments 5 coming soon...

Post by mcbpete »

That's their setup in Somerset right ?
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Ross
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Re: Environments 5 coming soon...

Post by Ross »

I would imagine that's only a small part of it, but yeah, guessing it's Brian's church / house / studio.
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dubmasta
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Re: Environments 5 coming soon...

Post by dubmasta »

there is one pic there that brings back memories, hope its a sign cos we've been waiting too long :)
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LooseLink
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Re: Environments 5 coming soon...

Post by LooseLink »

Cool setup.

As long as we get the full uncensored version of ****** from Sampler 2 on there, I'm happy :)
Mr Royale
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Re: Environments 5 coming soon...

Post by Mr Royale »

nanio-tine wrote:currently due august 2014

photo session -- recording the album

https://www.flickr.com/photos/grumphick ... 827602653/
Nice. I can lust after the Synthi, but I have a pretty healthy set up myself, so I'm not that jealous. ;)

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Pandemonium
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Re: Environments 5 coming soon...

Post by Pandemonium »

Nice refreshing news, thank you nanio-tine :)

Have you noticed - there's a big camera on one of the pictures... facing the synths...
Makes me wonder...
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