abasio Posted November 28, 2008 Share Posted November 28, 2008 Pan Electric & Ishq About Time Absolute Ambient.com November 2008 Ambient Pop Tracklist 1 Clox (3:25) 2 6 Minute Festival (6:00) 3 Being There Pt1 (6:40) 4 Being There Pt 2&3 (12:36) 5 Metronomique (5:07) 6 Neverland (14:22) 7 Everchange (7:14) 8 Forever (9:45) Being a big fan of Ishq for a long time & in fact loving just about everything that Matt Hillier has gifted up with, having loved last years debut by Pan Electric and remembering the greatness of Elemental Journey which was the last time I heard Matt Coldrick & Matt Hillier collaborate I was of course very much looking forward to this release. Sometimes two great artists struggle to work together as well as they do alone but I've heard these two do such great things before that I had butterflies when I first received the packages. Initially I was disappointed to tell the truth but thankfully this is a grower & it seems to get better & better with every listen. 1. Clox We start of with what sounds like church bells ringing & are quickly into a steady beat & funky bassline. This track sounds very much in Matt Clodrick's Pan Electric summery cheerful style. The little plopping rhythm and electro pop melody create a warm feeling. A little on the pop side, I could see this appearing on mainstream albums like best chillout vol.26, but it's well produced and acts as a nice short intro. 2. 6 Minute Festival With this track of exactly 6 minutes we start to see a tiny bit of Ishq's influence, it still has the Pan Electric feel, it's pretty beaty and has that acoustic atmosphere I so enjoyed from the Pan Electric debut Conscious Pilot but it also seems to have a deeper ambient atmosphere. The sample is short & sweet, sets my mood into that of an old movie, it hits my sweet spot as I am obsessed with time myself. This track manages to have a darker feel to it. There is something lurking beneath it's joyous facade like one man in a festival of hundreds of shiny happy people with a glum expression. Interesting track for sure. 3. Being There Part 1 Another step forward in the trippy stakes. The little runs of soft acidic melody run up and down through the track, sometimes sharp & metallic, sometimes dull and wooden. The dreamy melody is accompanied by a soft drone that could be a tribal flute that comes in every now & again. It's one of those sounds that is so enjoyable that it has you anticipating it. As if they new this they have it morph in from other sounds. The sample which is longer than I usually like samples but it's definitely in the background adding to it's trippiness. The content of the sample hits my time travel loving senses with a monologue of some time traveler from early last century. The track seems like a mix of both Matts, both atmospheres are blended extremely well with Pan Electric's acoustic summer being mixed with Ishq's darker ambient feeling. 4. Being There Part 2 & 3 Seamless from the first part but I instantly know it's changed as the chilled synth line cuts through my conscious thought like a silk knife. It slides through but feels oh so good. The melody that comes just after it is really nice, beautiful like Pan Electric deep like Ishq. It is really a joy to listen to as its ever changing, subtle nature manages to stay fresh in you mind while not letting you remember what it sounds like. Just perfect for a melodic track of this nature as they always have the danger of getting stuck in your head & ending up annoying you, this one will not! The synths change too as they get sharper & oscillate on higher frequencies. The mood gets more melancholic as the track progresses with a deeper and spacier sound more reminiscent of Ishq but with an earthy middle eastern feeling that is unshakable. This and the preceding part are among the best chillout sounds of this year. All in all Being There is over 19 minutes long but with it's evolution & movement it never gets boring. Go Matt, and Matt! 5. Metronomique Getting a little funkier now with a definite Pan Electric feel. It's fun it's pretty upbeat and has that beach playtime feel. Sounds of light electric guitar and synths that play a cool summer melody give this it's playful edge. This track would be perfect for a early summer day at the beach before it got to hot but warm enough to expose some flesh. Pretty cool if a little too short. 6. Neverland A much softer track really brings us down from the energy of the beach party to a hammock somewhere nearby, like you can still feel the taste of revelry but it's just a memory as now the cool sea breeze blows over your skin & you can look up to the sky watching the clouds in their various shapes pass you by. The melody is very wide with huge holes in you can see the ocean through, the sound of the electric guitar is nice and relaxed and fits in well. The samples you can hear are so distant as to almost be a dream. 4 and a half minutes in the beat arrives and has brought a case of beer and a couple of spliffs, very relaxed and dreamy and the energy manages to pick up while still remaining in the relaxed vibe of hammock drinking beach weed! As it is a 14 minute track it has a license to completely change atmospheres & this track manages to get much darker almost without you noticing it. It's like you've fallen asleep on the hammock to have nice warm dreams only to wake up & it's already dark. The moment of panic ebbs away as you realise it's still warm & you are surrounded by the beauty of familiarity, friends & loved ones, sand & sea. The last 3 minutes are more melancholic but still beautiful with all the sounds slowly fading away leaving just the drone to end on. Very nice! 7. Everchange Probably the most poppy track on the album. The "Everchange" vocals are quite cheesy & the electric guitar much more involved. This probably will appear on mainstream chillout albums but it'll be among the best on them in this reviewers humble opinion for while it is cheesy & poppy it has this underlying edge of psychedelia that when you first hear it might not make itself so apparent but give it time, listen carefully and there are very nice trippy sounds to enjoy. The vocals at the end, Nature's only promises everchange almost crosses the line into making me want to rant about cheese in chill but just balances itself on that line without quite falling over. 8. Forever The nigh on 10 minute track missing from the back cover (printing error or hidden track I don't know) is a perfect example of the 2 styles of Ishq & Pan Electric. It sounds both summer acoustic & deep and trippy at the same time. It has that summer beach vibe going on but it sounds like you are experiencing it from Atlantis, underwater but civilised, tropical fish mingling with people enjoying the serenity forever. It's a very relaxed ending to the album, the acoustic guitar is played sparingly and the dreamlike bubbles of melody that appear at the end just float my feeling to the surface of the ocean into the dying evening sun. Excellent stuff! This album is a lot longer than it seems and I'm not just talking about the track missing from the back cover's tracklist, while listening to this you get the feeling that just about 30 minutes have passed when in reality about an hour has passed. It really is about time, you can make it go more quickly with this album, it's dreamy, it's summery (kind of think the release was a bit late to be honest) and at times very trippy. Part beach chill, part ambient sometimes poppy sometimes deep & psychedelic and the contrast is one of the most psychedelic elements of this great release. This is the sort of release that psy-heads can enjoy but also their non psy friends, their non electronica friends and maybe even their mum could enjoy. It is definitely a worthwhile purchase. Essential if you like Matt Coldrick or Matt Hillier & recommended even if you don't. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
p(sy)ayam Posted May 11, 2009 Share Posted May 11, 2009 This is for me one the most played albums of last year. I just love it. very relaxing and the variation between the tracks makes it very interesting while maintaining the flow of the album. Being There is one of my favorite tracks from last year if not the favorite. Neverland and Forever are also brilliant tracks which i love. So far four releases from Absolute Ambient.com and I love all 4 of them. :clapping: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yard Hippie Posted May 11, 2009 Share Posted May 11, 2009 I bought this last year and just havn't managed to get into it. Hardly ever reaches my soundsystem. Perhaps I need to give it more of a chance but from the few listens I have managed it just seems there is so much better out there... I also find this very surprising since generally I love anything that Abasio rates highly Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trance2MoveU Posted May 14, 2009 Share Posted May 14, 2009 Gotta agree with the hippie here, there is so much better stuff out there. Mdk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yard Hippie Posted May 14, 2009 Share Posted May 14, 2009 Gotta agree with the hippie here, there is so much better stuff out there. Mdk Actually... I've given this another couple of listens since I wrote that and although it's still by no means a favourite I think I slagged it off a little too much. It's not bad, just not immediately gripping. It's strength could very well be in it's subtelty and for that I'm wondering whether this is going to be a grower for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trance2MoveU Posted May 15, 2009 Share Posted May 15, 2009 For me the best song was the final track; not only for its very moving quality, but because it was the final track. Mdk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abasio Posted May 18, 2009 Author Share Posted May 18, 2009 Take this out when it comes to summer then report back Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
murphythecat Posted May 19, 2009 Share Posted May 19, 2009 Take this out when it comes to summer then report back what does it change, summer or winter, it doesnt matter, when music sucks, even if its the sumer, it stills suck! and if you like it a little bit more in the summer, imagine stuff you love in the winter! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
murphythecat Posted May 19, 2009 Share Posted May 19, 2009 Okay about this album, this stuff is almost amazing, i love the minimal feeling but with such details that it become something else then minimal, wow awesome job, its intriguing and IMO one of the few albums of 2008 in term of chill or at least influences by psy and chill that worth the listen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sawfly Posted May 19, 2009 Share Posted May 19, 2009 what does it change, summer or winter, it doesnt matter, when music sucks, even if its the sumer, it stills suck! and if you like it a little bit more in the summer, imagine stuff you love in the winter! Well if you haven't noticed some music has an atmoshpere that fits in certain season Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abasio Posted May 19, 2009 Author Share Posted May 19, 2009 what does it change, summer or winter, it doesnt matter, when music sucks, even if its the sumer, it stills suck! and if you like it a little bit more in the summer, imagine stuff you love in the winter!This album would really fit on a warm summers day at the beach. The atmosphere is very fitting with a brilliant summery feel. You might like it winter but I reckon you'd love it in summer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yerg Posted May 29, 2009 Share Posted May 29, 2009 On the rainy spring day it sounds great too. I like the way it changes styles - sometimes it's almost new age and sometimes gets into synth-pop and after sounds as deep as ambient can be. Some melodies are very catchy. Overall is a very competent work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Helios909 (rx7style) Posted December 11, 2013 Share Posted December 11, 2013 Wow. This album is a gem. I've owned Pan Electric's "Conscious Pilot" for years before hearing this album (even though that came out before this), and I must say this album is equally blissful. I can clearly hear both artists’ influences peppered throughout each track, and enjoyed the interweaving of their styles. There’s superlative production value and sound quality with such effortless creativity. There are so many little details, nuances, and surprises in each track that add to the imagery and depth which are already fantastic without them. Here’s hoping to a second collaboration between these two in the future!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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