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review by Bill Binkelman Dino Pacifici could easily be nicknamed "the chameleon" due to his extraordinary ability to compose and record music that covers many different genres. While his previous album (The Blue Velvet Lounge) was a mixture of funk, jazz and chill-out, The Float Zone heads straight for dark ambient/spacemusic soundscape territory. Full of long stretches of deep space washes and echoed textures that speak of both subterranean mysteries and the boundless emptiness of the cosmos, The Float Zone is perfect for late night excursions into territory that is at times ominous but never so scary as to be uninviting. The appropriately titled "the currents of space pt. 1," offers slowly undulating waves of drones, as reverberating tones come and go and eerie alien vocalizings sometimes break the mesmerizing spell over the twelve minute duration. "when it came" (another twelve minute long track) is darker, moodier, and suggestive not of space but of caverns where even a single sound can echo on forever. Intermixed among the bassy drones and washes are cyber-synthetic noises, as if you had a robot along for the downward voyage into the bowels of whatever rabbit-hole you have stumbled into. This cut may be the most abstract piece Pacifici has ever composed, but it still offers accessibility and never strays into either overt dissonance or ponderousness. The album continues down a path of dark textures on "spectre." Warm washes of synthesizers wafting elegantly over reverberations and drones speak of outer space or vast expanses of landscape at dusk. "undercurrents" is a wonderful deep ambient track featuring booming noises in the background, densely echoed ethno-tribal percussion, coalescing drones and high-pitched but pleasantly retro-EM washes and synthesizer noodlings. This song made me think of o yuki conjugate crossed with Jonn Serrie, if you can imagine that! The title track is fantastic, opening with drones, echoed whistling tones, strange rumblings, and clicking percussive noises. A deliciously warm retro analog synth rises lazily from this mix, sounding a little like Kevin Braheny's EWI. I love the playful sensuality of this main instrument, especially when it is counterpointed by background twinkling cascades of keyboards. The track has a softness and warmth, yet also a pleasant quirkiness. Eventual appearance of lively udu drums does not detract from the appeal of the music, it only serves to increase the friendliness of the vibe. A closing short "epilogue" track offers soaring electric guitar prog fusion, the stinging lead lines meshed with washes of retro EM keyboards and echoed piano. How this conclusion will play to the average listener after the relative minimalism of the previous tracks is anyone's guess. Those guitar licks are really "in your face" so die-hard ambient-philes may hit the "stop" button before heading to this conclusion, although the overall affect of the track is appropriate to the album's climax, as far as I'm concerned. I never fail to be amazed at Dino Pacifici's diversity or his musical talent. The Float Zone is proof that he can stand toe to toe with the "big boys" of spacemusic and deep ambient and hold his own. I recommend this CD to darker/spacier ambient lovers and I also suggest you dim the lights when you listen to it to fully appreciate its many moments of dark cosmic intrigue. |
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