EER-MUSIC.com HOME PAGE
Hard Particles
by Dave Fulton
Eurock, 1999
Eurock Contact Address:
P.O. Box 13718, Portland, Oregon, 97213, USA
The sequencer-driven rock of the late ‘60s and 1970s, especially that of
the Germans and the French, is still echoing clearly in electronic music
from 30 years later, as can be heard in this 1999 album by Dave Fulton. This
fin-de-siecle album is untouched by the trends of those last thirty years:
no “tribal” percussion, no “nature” sounds of birds and streams, no Celtic
pipes or voice samples or industrial clanks. It’s pure electronic sound,
created from an impressive array of both custom and ready-made synthesizers,
and it sounds as futuristic as it did thirty years ago.
The ambiguity of that last sentence was deliberate. The future isn’t what
it used to be, and Fulton’s sound tends toward the “retro,” using the same
hard, open tones and modal rock-based harmonies that were used in the late
‘60s and 70s, especially by venerable artists like Tangerine Dream and
Jean-Michel Jarre. You get that déjà vu feeling listening to this. His drone
and ambient pieces move along well, his sequences cruise, but you’ve heard
this before.
The album title and some of the track titles suggest the language of modern
physics, a field which has been evoked by other electronic composers such as
Richard Burmer (the delightful track “Physics” on his 1990 album
Mosaic) and by “Vir Unis" on his apocalyptic 2000 album Aeonian
Glow. You’d think that electronic rhythms and sequencing would be just
right for this physics metaphor, and indeed this album picks up both speed
and interest in its second half. On his track 8, “Clouded Flats of
Radiations” and the following “Particle Reversal,” track 9, some of that
dynamic subatomic quality comes through. But often, Fulton’s musical
particle accelerator seems to be working on well-worn theory which needs
some updating.
HMGS rating: 6 out of 10
Hannah M G Shapero, EER-MUSIC.com
8/4/01
GO BACK
RETURN TO:
To purchase this recording and get more info, soundclips, etc.
CLICK ON ARTIST'S NAME ABOVE
OR . . .
Please visit my BUY IT E.E.R. NOW INDEX PAGE
OR...
Please try my brand spankin' new EER and AMAZON.com QUIK-LINKs
buyer's guide to recommended music.
OR ...
go to my LINKS page and find the vendors' section.
Happy hunting!