Darkest Before Dawn
Steve Roach
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| Name | Artist | Time | Price | ||
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Darkest Before Dawn | Steve Roach | 1:13:58 | Album Only | View In iTunes |
| Total: 1 Song |
Album Review
Darkest Before Dawn is a long-form composition that is meant for continuous play. It is from Steve Roach, a master of that technique. His activity that preceded this CD had been electro-tribal and experimental, with forays into some forms of rhythmic ambience and classic space music. The title of this disc says it all. This is dark, sinister minimalism as — and this is a reminder — only Roach can do it. This is serious space music with no grooves, no fractals, and no percussion. The atmosphere does have its own rhythm and its own pace. The continuous form is the soundscape; there are no breaks or interruptions. This is a marvelous work and is destined to become a classic of the genre. For now, it rates as excellent, but time will earn it a "best of genre" rating. While this piece is unique, Roach has performed dark ambience before — The Magnificent Void and Structures From Silence are classics of the style. He has also created several continuous-play pieces that work well on multi-disc units in shuffle and continuous modes. That would make for a fairly adventurous day — a dozen Steve Roach CDs on continuous shuffle play.
Customer Reviews
Listening to Silence
This is a very difficult musical piece to describe. It is almost the sound of silence, vast and unobstructed. There is very little variation but a distinct background hum. The singular track is almost disappointing at first, almost like somene left a machine running. But then it becomes evident that this track is difficult to listen to because, you yourself, are what you are hearing. I have come back to this track and sat with it and found it peacful, serene, quiet, setteling, and at other times I find it ominous, dark, foreboding, depressing. I can certainly understand anyone who is disapointed with this, but it is a spooky meditation piece, like looking into a dark canvas that mirrors your own experience.
A perfect exemplar of ambient's long form
Darkest Before Dawn is an excellent exemplar of the ambient long-form format. Unschooled listeners may ask, why must this seemingly monotonous drone persist for so long? Because once you pay attention to what you are listening to, you begin to realize: It's not so much a drone (although it is structured on that most basic of ambient textures) as it is an ever-changing tapestry of sound. The length of the piece is meant to immerse the listener in that period of time that is the dark before the dawn. The piece is gothic, cavernous, and chilly, but it also contains clear implications of the light to come. Roach's works do not shy from describing the awesome and unknowable, but within what otherwise might cause fear or despair Roach always affirms the essential positiveness in these things. The dark exists for a reason, so that we may know the light.
Not for the impatient.
Darkest Before Dawn is, at the same time, both a brilliant and a difficult piece. It's brilliant in that it's one of those few long-form tracks that really takes you in and never seems to let you go. It's difficult in that it is very repetitive and, therefore, representitive of the "drone" genre. For newcomers to this style of music, this will most likely be very hard to listen to, and the song time might seem way too long. Be patient and give this piece a chance, because once you dive into its dark, mysterious form, you won't want to resubmerge. A good relaxer piece, especially when going to sleep.
Biography
Born: 1955 in California
Genre: New Age
Years Active: '70s, '80s, '90s, '00s
Top Albums and Songs By Steve Roach
- $9.99
- Genres: New Age, Music, Electronic, Alternative, Classical, Modern Composition, Ambient, Minimalism
- Released: Jan 01, 2002
- ℗ 2002 Timeroom Editions
