Customer Reviews

Images from Earth (A History of the planet through music)

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Rating: ***** (out of 5)

The first full-length album from composer and producer Michael Thomas Berkley is a unique -- and uniquely effective -- concept. "Images from Earth" is a musical interpretation of the history of the planet. That's right, 4.6 billion years of geology and evolution packed onto a single CD. As overly ambitious as that might sound, the result is a modern classic of ambient and world music. Berkley's original training is in European classical music, and that sensibility is reflected in the meticulousness of the composition -- but his ethnomusicology field studies in remote parts of Africa seem to be the more dominant influence, along with threads of rhythm and melody from the Middle East, Asia, and the realms of imagination. The cuts on this recording center around electronic-based instruments layered in with acoustic piano, violin, voice, North Indian flute, and an incredible diversity of percussion. The tunes themselves range from purely atmospheric to heavily rhythmic, all serving to evoke a sense of awe at the vastness of Terran history. "Images from Earth" ranks as one of the most vividly evocative albums of recent memory -- highly recommended. -Philip Farber, Daily Freeman July, 1998

While at first I was skeptical about the ambitious concept of the album (setting the evolution of earth to music), after hearing the album all the way through I have to admit that Berkley does a superb job of encapsulating all 4.6 billion years of earth history in a single, hour long CD. This is not to mention that the actual music is very powerful and moving.

I think "Images from Earth" is a very well composed work, bearing a fullness of both artistic and creative expression with a thematic experience that is bold and present throughout. I thoroughly enjoyed the CD and highly recommend it.

Published in the Daily Freeman (New York)

Rating: ***** (out of 5)

The first full-length album from composer and producer Michael Thomas Berkley is a unique -- and uniquely effective -- concept. "Images from Earth" is a musical interpretation of the history of the planet. That's right, 4.6 billion years of geology and evolution packed onto a single CD. As overly ambitious as that might sound, the result is a modern classic of ambient and world music. Berkley's original training is in European classical music, and that sensibility is reflected in the meticulousness of the composition -- but his ethnomusicology field studies in remote parts of Africa seem to be the more dominant influence, along with threads of rhythm and melody from the Middle East, Asia, and the realms of imagination. The cuts on this recording center around electronic-based instruments layered in with acoustic piano, violin, voice, North Indian flute, and an incredible diversity of percussion. The tunes themselves range from purely atmospheric to heavily rhythmic, all serving to evoke a sense of awe at the vastness of Terran history. "Images from Earth" ranks as one of the most vividly evocative albums of recent memory -- highly recommended.

-Philip Farber, Daily Freeman July, 1998