Latest reviews on PLA CD: darker ambience -- glurp
SourceCodeX Project
Samples and sales here:
http://www.SourceCodeX.com
May experience nightmares while or after listening to this album
author: Hannah M G Shapero
...there is no doubt where "SourceCodeX" John Patterson is coming
from. Just a minute or so of PRIMORDIAL LANDS ARISE will make it
obvious that John Patterson is a fan of H.P. Lovecraft as well as
other horror-fantasy world-spinners. With track titles
like "DroneMass," "HellDream Vimana," and "VainTraditionsAbyss,"
Patterson wants to accentuate the darkness and bury the light alive.
This is an album which depends more on textures and unholy evocations
than on tonality or melody. Listening to this album you will
encounter scaly hissing, distant monster fog horns, alien digestive
glurp, hideously distorted voices, buzzing cybernetic insect noises,
and deep fuzzy drones, and this is only in the first three tracks. As
the album goes on, Patterson zooms in on you with what sounds like
old warplanes, and then plunges the listener into a suffocating hot
night filled with toneless industrial drones, looping sonic horrors,
and finally an oncoming giant throbbing entity announced by the crash
of gongs and a muffled howling. The last track,
"AlphaOmegaAdInfinitum," does not offer tonal relief or rays
of returning light, but it is at least empty of looming threats, in
fact is just empty which might be a relief in itself. I don't want to
see the movie that this would be the soundtrack for. Composer
Patterson, who might love that kind of movie, fortunately has a wry
sense of humor which offsets the scariness of it all. The graphic
packaging for this album, all of it designed by Patterson himself,
offers helpful advice such as "We are not responsible for blown
speakers or shattered objects," and "Do not drive on long trips or
operate heavy machinery while listening to this CD." I would also
add, "May experience nightmares while or after listening to this
album."
[Sounds like]...could be the antechamber of hell ...
author: Giovanni Paper
With "Primordial Lands Arise" we go around ourselves from the parts
of the first Robert Rich, the dark ambient in style Cold Meat
Industry (Raison Of etre), Vidna Obama... This disc could be the
antechamber of hell . . . The maniac[s] of the ambient-dark they
could however find moments of enjoyment in this cd...
...grim-edged soundworlds formed of falling tones crafted into
landscapes coverered in murk . . .
author: John Shanahan
The first time I reviewed work by SourceCodeX (aka John W.
Patterson), it was his rookie work and I noted that I was interested
in hearing what he would do further down the road, and how far from
the world of "look, my computer has a synthesizer" mindset he could
move. While admittedly still addicted to the soft synth, Patterson's
sophomore work definitely shows improvement. Primordial Lands Arise
is a dark CD of grim-edged soundworlds formed of falling tones
crafted into landscapes covered in murk and unpleasant emotions. It's
almost strictly atmospheric with no real pretension to being music
per se; but Patterson excels at creating mental pictures. In many
cases, though, he overdoes. The bullfrog-sounding croaks
in "InnerWorldStopTime Remix" rapidly come to grate on the nerves.
The over-echoed vocal on "SilbeallahEblis" could have been more
subtle. In many spots, though, Patterson gets it right-and it's when
he's not using a heavy hand. "AlphaOmegaAdInfinitum" coasts quietly
along on graceful drifts with just a hint of darkness at the edges;
the hypnotic pulse of "DroneMass" feels like an on-off switch for the
conscious mind; and the vaguely disturbing but superbly
constructed "HellDreamVimana" pulls many of Patterson's existing
elements together for a 10-minute nightmare that's the highlight of
the disk. Patterson also gets points for showmanship. His tunes are
listed on the inset as "Visitations herein"; the print on the disk
warns that he's not responsible for "blown speakers or shattered
objects" and that the disk may generate alpha waves and thus the
listener should not "drive on long trips or operate heavy machinery."
All in all, Primordial Lands Arise is a very strong effort from an
improving sonic craftsman. Worth a listen if you're heavily
atmospheric, drone-based ambient.
"You won't need any drugs . . ."
author: Lee Gaskins of progrock.homestead.com
`Primordial Lands Arise' is the follow-up to `CodeX Hypnos,' by the
SourceCodeX project. Created solely by John W. Patterson, the ambient
album is dark. John uses many technique to create his heavy-toned
ambience which include: loops warping, sound effects and manipulating
single wave forms. The majority of the tracks are in the 7-11 minute
range, they create a total immersion into dark and mystifying
soundscapes, sometimes beautiful, as well as calmly foreboding.
Though the sounds and creation of the pieces had to be a huge
undertaking, the songs are simple, minimalist, almost as if created
for (or during) the beginning of the world. In his music I can
invision a multitute of images, barren landscapes, ocean being born,
the power of the earth upheaving, creating; a primodial soundtrack.
Mainstream progfans be forewarned, this is NOT pulsating rhythm
electronica- ala Tangerine Dream, it is dark, solemn, simple yet
complex, brooding primordial soundtracks drenched in deep bass. Many
progfans might be turned off by the lack of dynamics or `progressive'
time changes. But I believe that given the chance, many will attune
to this recording. Consider a darker Brian Eno, creating an
electronic symphony about the genesis of a new world. When I received
the CD, the disc stated- Do not drive on long trips or operate heavy
machinery while listening to this CD. How true. This is music not for
dancing, grooving, or parties. It showcases Patterson's `stick-to-his-
guns drive of staying away from pounding rythyms and exploring a
infinite of worlds, from planetary births to your inner soul . If you
would like your music to take you to new realms and imaginations,
then this is a great album to try. I love to create my commercial
illustration and game design while listening as it does not distract
from my tasks at hand, though if you simply relax and close your
eyes, the track's nuances open up to a far more complex manner than
simple insight. Is this commercial music? Not in the conventional
radio-based sense, but I can see this being this used for television
(science channels). It's the musical communuties close-mindedness and
peer pressure, not this artist, that limits the exposures of creative
composers. Aside from Patterson's sense of humor on the disc, the
album art is interesting, though in black and white. IMHO, it's dying
for a grander scale that would reflex the music's feel, but it also
shows a inner primordial sense that makes you think, so there you
have it. Give dark ambiance a chance, though I would like to hear a
greater use of dynamics, I enjoyed this recording. Let Mr. Patterson
take you to another land, another time, and you won't need any drugs,
his soundscapes suffice. Just make sure your speakers can handle the
bass. Thanks, John Rating 8.7
SourceCodeX...The Final Frontier!
author: Gayle Ellett of DJAMKARET
COOL CD! I've been listening to your cool disc, its
bitchin'! ...thanks for ... this cool disc! I'm a big fan of this
type of music. Its well made, balanced, and I dig it! ~ Gayle Ellett
www.DjamKaret.com
An excellent example of Cinematic Ambient.
author: diatonis
Primordial Lands Arise is a good name for this album as it describes
exactly what this music sounds like. At times while listening to it I
felt there were lava flows falling into a primordial ocean just below
my feet. An excellent example of Cinematic Ambient!
Giving voice to the haunting side of ambience . . .
author: Chuck Wild aka LIQUID MIND (noted Ambient composer)
. . . What a wonderful creative feast! . . . your music is really the
soundtrack of the intense lives many people live today in America.
Thanks for giving voice to the haunting side of ambience... (feed
back from Chuck via excerpta from e-mail correspondence)