pianocircus with Bill Bruford: skin and wire

Summerfold Records
Released September 7th 2009

This is an album of somewhat pulsatile, gently percussive music constructed from mesmeric, rhythmical dilatations and contractions, that sits somewhere along the borders of Phillip Glass and Steve Reich country, but with the addition of electronic generations and echoes of Eno-esque writing. Brian Eno explored his understanding that environmental music could be produced without its being compromised and began to use the term Ambient Music to distinguish his experiments from the outpourings of Muzak Inc. Please see his inner-sleeve notes to Music for Airports, (AMB 001, Polydor/EG Records, 1978).

The music on this album is from British composer Colin Riley, who has experimented for years with the integration of avant-garde, classical, electronica, jazz and rock and has moved off from traditional scoring to investigate what lies behind its veil.

The group in this manifestation is formed of David Appleton, Adam Caird, Kate Halsall, and Samra Kurutac: piano, keyboards; Julian Crampton: bass guitar and Bill Bruford: drums, percussion, with Colin Riley programming.

The album for me is one of indisputable beauty and fully achieves Eno’s concept of music that ‘induces calm and a space to think’.

Reviewed by

ken cheetham
September 2009