So much has been said about Biosphere’s “Substrata” that I’ve held off on reviewing it until now.  It’s by far Geir Jenssen’s most well known work, and the perfect example of his “arctic ambient” style.  I do find it to be less interesting than later, more original records like “Dropsonde” for this reason - the sound you’d expect, hearing the words “arctic ambient”, is probably a lot like what’s here, even if you’ve never listened to anything along these lines before.  That said, it’s hard to deny the flawless flow and listenability of this record, especially in the first 7 tracks.

And indeed, the latter is a lot of what Biosphere has had going for him all along - listenability,  memorable tracks and melodies.  These are not slow moving, formless or lengthy soundscapes…  indeed, they are almost “songs”.  Average track length is about 5 minutes.  They have obvious melodies, created by guitar and shimmering synth.  Sure, muffled, peaceful drones are a constant in the background, and everything’s been given a thick coat of reverb, but really, nothing here feels alien, huge, deep or truly mysterious in that way only space ambient can.  It’s as ‘pop’ as ambient gets.  It’s as if Jenssen simply wants to remind of us of a specific environment, rather than take us there and completely immerse us in it.

It’s up to the listener whether or not that’s a problem.  Indeed, such an experience of immersion can be unpleasant or frightening, and yes, on “Substrata”, the melodies and sounds themselves are gorgeous.  For you, is ambient music about conventional elements, such as melody, used in an ambient context?  Or will obvious melodic patterns just make the songs too easy to memorize and jar you out of whatever zen-like state you hope to achieve?  Each listener will have different answers to these questions, but suffice to say, for me the latter is often true.

Biosphere’s music seems incredibly calculated.  The thematic consistency is sometimes forced rather than natural.  It never allows itself to simply drift or hang in space, with the exception of some of the more adventurous final tracks, such as “Sphere of No-Form”.  It’s here that the feel of the album is allowed to become a little more ambiguous, no longer so obviously comforting.  A little darkness creeps in around the 8th track, “Antennaria” (it’s actually a little jarring, but starts to make sense with the following tracks), and lives there for the rest of the running time.  Then, 40 minutes into the disk, Jenssen has nothing to prove.  The loops are less catchy, the songs become worlds.  We are immersed in “Substrata”.  Pity it took so long.

In conclusion, “Substrata” DOES relax me, and it’s very pleasant to listen to.  Does it take me somewhere?  Sometimes.  Does it take me to the arctic?  Well, it certainly feels “cold”.  It’s a great album, but I find myself wondering what about is supposed to blow me away.  If you’re new to ambient music, I recommend “Substrata” whole-heartedly.  If you’re already into some of the ‘deeper’ stuff out there (Steve Roach, Robert Rich, Lustmord), “Substrata” may be a little bit of a letdown, what with all the hype.  If you’re already into Biosphere, you’ve probably heard it already.  If you haven’t, well, it’s a solid release, but I’d pick “Dropsonde” over it any day.

The cover of the original LP... most people have seen the reissue cover. I find this one fits the album more.

Despite being one of Roach’s oldest works, this album stands out as timelessly fresh, listenable and intense. These pieces have a focus and fluid progression often missing from Roach’s work… rather than hanging in the air for extended durations in disorienting stupor (something Steve’s music often does these days, seemingly intentionally), this music is filled with youthful persistence. It is a powerful statement against lazy hopelessness, it screams out against apathy in airy violet blue beauty. Nowhere in ambient music are the extended track lengths more justified than here, and never has ambient music had this sort of insistent energy. The attitude of this music will rub off on you, leaving you contemplative and calm but deeply empowered.

There is emotional clarity and sobriety here that Steve rarely, if ever, embraces anymore. There are watery, beautiful synth textures, which may not be as perfectly produced as his recent work, but hardly sound dated or cheesy. There is real melody, perfectly placed. Each new idea in each piece is introduced exactly when needed.

By comparison, similar works in Roach’s catalog, such as “Quiet Music” (or even “Dreamtime Return”, although that one still belongs in the category of “brilliant”) are overlong and emotionally one dimensional. “Structures From Silence” says so much with so little. It is indeed an ambient masterpiece. 5 stars.

Here is yet another lengthy 2 disk set (originally released as 3 cassettes in the 80’s) from my favorite ambient musician, Steve Roach. Potential listeners may wonder what makes this one important… This is on the opposite side of the spectrum from his dark, alienating pieces such as “The Magnificent Void”. On no other release is Steve Roach so comforting, well-adjusted and comfortable in the cateogory of ‘new age’. Unlike some of Roach’s more recent, strangely massive, overwhelming and alienating work, “Quiet Music” will take your mind nowhere it doesn’t want to go. Effectively, Roach is playing it safe; he is not being experimental and ambitious… However, he is doing something he does well.

Thus, the album has its upsides and downsides. Like many have said, this works fantastically as background music; peaceful and entirely consonant, possessing the emotional clarity and simplicity typical in his 80’s work. Beautiful major key synth washes and flute passages dominate a lot of the music, especially the 30 minute epics “Air and Light”, “Sleep and Dreaming”, and “The Green Place” (which contains pleasant, if cliched, nature sounds such as flowing water and the chirping of birds). These repetitive epics in particular seem content to express a quite bland and typical sense of New Age “peace”, and don’t hold up as well under focused listening as the more fast moving, short pieces on the first half of the first disk, which also seem to possess more emotional diversity and depth. I don’t find these epics to be as distinctly ‘Roach’ as I’d like, reminding me a lot of Eno’s “Ambient 1: Music for Airports”, which, while a classic and a great album in its own right, is not Steve Roach.

5-10 minute ventures such as “See Things” and “Something in Tears” have a lot more of the intensity, expert use of pacing and haunting drive that made “Dreamtime Return” a masterpiece. They seem more personal, and aren’t afraid to take mildly ominous turns on occasion. They feature more interesting use of synthesizer textures than the longer tracks, which almost sound as if they could have been made with preset synth pads. For all of the these shorter tracks, I give this album 4 stars.

In general, I find I experience less visual imagery listening to this than other ambient music by Steve Roach or other artists… It’s very grounded in the physical world and every day human life, although it’s a much more relaxed view of it, obviously. It will not draw you into distant realms of space or into elaborate fantasy worlds reminiscent of the colorful cover art. To put it bluntly, it’s not as ‘trippy’ as this man’s usual fare.

In conclusion, “Quiet Music” is a beautiful, relaxing collection of ambient music, but is most definitely Steve Roach playing it safe, and sometimes feels bland and unimaginative. Whether you’ll like this album really depends on which qualities you like ambient music for… if you’re looking for an album of background music to relax to, “Quiet Music” is one of the best. If you’re looking to take an interesting, challenging, engaging and surreal mental journey, I’d recommend some of Roach’s more adventurous work… The aforementioned “Dreamtime Return” and “The Magnificent Void”, as well as “Mystic Chords & Sacred Spaces (part 1)”, and “Early Man”.

For doing what it sets out to do, and for the wonderful shorter tracks on the first disk, I give “Quiet Music” 4 stars.

Originally published on Amazon.com on January 3rd, 2009.