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Review by Bill Binkelman Martin Mayer is the man behind "sounds that soothe" and Silver Streams is his first release. However, despite the artist's pseudonym, you may discover that this CD doesn't contain your typical serene low-key new age music, although it's not uptempo or energizing either. Instead, this is yet another recording in what apparently is a rebirth of interest in classic new age music, of the type that dominated the genre back in the mid to late '80s and early '90s. It joins Wayne Kelling's Observations in the Woods as recent attempts to recapture that special type of innocence and melodic sensibility that helped the genre enjoy the success it did back then. However, unlike Kelling's album, Silver Streams is less minimal and more filled with a joyful sense of drama, such as on the celebratory track, "Highland Sunrise" which opens with cascading crescendos of synth strings and a strummed guitar-like repeating refrain, taking turns with a gently lilting flute and lightly plucked harp notes. "Springtime," which starts the album off in fine fashion, blends birdsong with a more muted series of strummed acoustic guitar chords, playful bell tones that lively pepper the track with a sense of fun, and multiple piano and keyboards falling down the musical scales like a gentle sunshower. Seven tracks make up the album, ranging from "Springtime" at 6:30 to "Night Swimming" (10:49). Each one is quite distinct in flavor and melody, although there is an overall vibe to the recording so that every song fits in nicely with the others. Mayer takes no abrupt turns into either ethereal ambience or catchy pop song structures. Mostly, the songs have a light-hearted warmth and cheeriness to them, and consist of refrains repeated on assorted electronic keyboards (both typical new age sounds and also as sampled "real" instruments), with an evolving backdrop of accompanying keyboards or textures, and occasional nature sounds added into the mix (but less than you might expect for this kind of recording). I suppose the lack of overt development of some musical themes, such as on "Morning Sunshine" (refrains on piano with harpsichord-ish and strummed guitar accompaniment, sometimes featuring synth strings and pleasant whistling tones) might prove monotonous over time if the music was directly listened to through headphones. However, when played as a musical backdrop to activity or to aid with relaxation without consciously concentrating on the music itself, I think this relative simple composition style will actually prove to be a benefit (just as it does with ambient music). Silver Streams impressed me with its engineering and production (both of which are excellent) as well as the overall positive feeling that flows through the entire album. Songs like "Soaring" (well-titled for its sensation of gliding over hills and pastures on a sunny day, buoyed by air currents), "A Walk Through the Forest" (which derives its relaxed yet jaunty tempo from plucked harp strings) and the closing cut, "Distant Shores" (an uplifting finale but still in keeping with the mostly relaxed feel of the CD, not so much energetic as simply optimistic in feel) provide varied musical soundscapes which illustrate their titles, offering a more engaging view of nature-inspired music than is typically heard by yours truly. For new age music fans who are eager to hear something besides the usual (albeit excellent) recordings from labels like New Earth, New World and Real Music, Silver Streams offers solid proof that independent artists can still create music in the genre that is of high quality and also offers something other than the norm. Those of you who, like me, have a nostalgic love of the genre (i.e. you were introduced to this music in the '80s and early '90s) will also, I believe, be delighted with this release. Hopefully, for Martin Mayer, a.k.a. sounds that soothe, this is just the beginning of his musical offerings. |
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