Tim Motzer and Markus Reuter – Descending Review by Gary Hill
Moody and ambient music creates the format for these sedate soundscapes. There aren’t huge variants here, and everything moves very slowly, but it never feels redundant or samey either. This isn’t for everyone, but it is quite cool.
This review is available in book format (hardcover and paperback) in Music Street Journal: 2010 Volume 5 at lulu.com/strangesound.
Track by Track Review
1200 Sundays
Nothing moves quickly here. This is a slowly morphing slab of progressive rock that’s probably more post prog. There are layers of texture and backwards tracked elements making a measured journey across a landscape. At times it feels barren, while at other points there are definite signs of life.
Emanuella
At over twelve and a half minutes in length, this is the longest cut on the album, by far. It’s evolves slowly, too, but has its own unique character. There’s an awesome section in the middle of the track that’s still quite sedate but very jazz oriented. An echoey, bouncing segment comes in after that, but it’s still very mellow and stripped down. It continues to alter and change and later we get some jazzy music blending with an almost Hawkwind-like space.
We Were
A little more like an intricate guitar based piece, this features a lot of the ambient elements we’ve heard on the earlier numbers.
Sound of the Sun
There are no big surprises here, but this has its own unique identity, too. The early portions are very sedate but it gradually rises up further. It gets a little on the noisy side later on.
Ritual Observance
Arguably the weirdest and most textural cut on show, this is intriguing, if strange.
Descending Not quite as strange as the previous number, no one would call this “mainstream” or “fast moving,” though.
