Roedelius
Aquarello
[All Saints/Thirsty Ear]
Rating: 5.2
Hans-Joachim Roedelius' career in ambient music has been a long one. In
the late 1960s, he formed the German electronic band Cluster with ambient
pioneers Dieter Moebius and Konrad Schnitzler. The band recorded a few
albums on their own and one with ambient forefather Brian Eno. Roedelius
also collaborated with Eno and Moebius on other records, and eventually
formed Harmonia with Michael Rother of Neu! and Kraftwerk fame, and that
band also recorded with Eno. Sound confusing? Er... yeah. But suffice
to say, Roedelius was an important figure in shaping ambient music as
we know it.
Three and a half decades later, Roedelius is still going strong. He's
returned with Aquarello, an album whose sound isn't all that
different from the stuff he was recording in the 1970s, despite the
incredible advances we've had in technology since then. Of course, his
tape looping days are over; instead, he's brought in more traditional
instruments such as saxophone, e-bow and piano to create a more mundane
sound.
Like most records in the genre, Aquarello's extreme length is a bit
difficult to wade through; a few songs in, the minimalist, other- worldly
atmosphere becomes somewhat tiring. Luckily, the record also makes for
excellent sleep music.
-Ryan Schreiber