Customer Reviews

Streams & Currents

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Roach's second guitar based work proves that is it not always the equipment or instrumentation that makes the artist or his works. Primarily known as a master of the synthesizer, Roach's guitar worlds flow with just as much emotion and impact as his classic 'Structures from Silence'.

With only one track containing any sense of rhythm, the album is a blissful drift, like the title suggests of gently flowing waters of emotion and currents of meditation.

Upon hearing, some might wonder if it actually is a guitar being used, as the signature Roach sound treatments apply to morph the sound away from any conventional guitar tonality.

A fantastic late night disc.

The approach Steve Roach applies to ambient music often resembles that of Mark Rothko's static expressionist paintings: huge blocks of pure color which seem to blur at the edges at which they meet. The difference is while Rothko's paintings are always static, Roach's "blocks of sound" move through an auditory space, at times melding with each other to create chordal tapestries that are as haunting as they are soothing.

For two decades, Roach has applied this approach to synthesizers and samplers (as well as sending the sounds of ancient acoustic instruments through a plethora of electronic processors) but recently has started using electric guitars to achieve the same trance-inducing results. It started with his collaboration with Roger King "Dust to Dust", but really started coming into focus with 2000's "Midnight Moon", which was received admirably by music critics but left many listeners scratching their heads (according to numerous reviews on this particular site).

"Streams and Currents" is a considerably lighter affair (in tone, not in quality) and while it is a refinement of the glacial flow of "Midnight Moon", there are some notable exceptions: Roach incorporates a rhythm loop on the 28-minute "Spirit Moves" and there is a greater sense of melody here than on "Moon", in particular the noticable plucking sounds on "Present Moment". Roach's intent is not to hide the fact that guitars are in use but instead to show how they can be assimilated into his musical vocabulary. With pieces like "Almost Touching" and "Slow Rising", Roach's guitar-based ambience vaugely resembles the recent collaboration between David Sylvian and Robert Fripp ("Approaching Silence"), but while Fripp's approach is rooted more in loud tonal clusters which erupt repeatedly but very slowly, Roach's endeavor achieves a more restrained effect, gliding though various emotional states in a manner almost akin to the work of Lull (Mick Harris' ambient persona) and Lustmord. The album becomes even more textural towards its end, and compositions like "Ebb" and "Flow" show Roach coming awfully close to creating a kind of textural electronic music similar to the works of Thomas Koner. But unlike the occasionally chilling effect of Koner's experiments, Roach adds just the barest hint of emotion to allow the pieces to resonate even more deeply within our imaginations. The sense of drama here is even more subdued when compared with the quietest compositions on "Midnight Moon", but no less probing. One senses Roach moving into increasingly quieter spaces with each new release within the ambient realm: the symphonic flair of the atmospheric pieces on "Dreamtime Return" and "The Magnificent Void" is being slowly replaced by a deepening sense of introspection, with "Early Man" and "Atmospheric Conditions" (on Projekt and Timeroom Editions, respectively) as perhaps the standout examples of this new approach. After listening to this, it seems natural for Roach to work with guitar ambience virtuoso Jeff Pearce...only time will tell if this comes to pass.

Follow the instructions on the back of the CD: "created for low volume continuous playback."

When you set the volume correctly for your environment, Streams and Currents orchestrates all the structured (clock ticking) and unstructured (dog barking) ambient noises into a single perception. (If you listen with headphones, use the open-air style that lets in outside noise.) When the volume's too high, the music will intrude on whatever else you're experiencing. When it's too low, it'll still be intrusive, because you'll be aware of it as a background distraction from the task at hand.

You're not listening to the music, but you're not NOT listening to it either--particularly the last 2 cuts, "Ebb" and "Flow." When you walk out of the room/environment where Streams and Currents is playing, you'll feel as though you've entered a world with one less dimension.

Steve Roach is the master at ambient and ethereal sounding music. On this album he took basic instruments such as guitars and the such and dostorted and changed notes and made other alterations to create a new world of ethereal beauty. With the exception of my favourite track (the over twenty minute "Spirit Moves") there are no drums. This is the kind of music that will calm, inspire, and project your mind, body, and soul into another dimension of feeling and wonderment. The music will take its time getting to where it's going and it is purely amazing.

I don't feel qualified enough to make judgements about the intricacies and complexities of this work of art, as I have experienced it only a few times... All I can say is, pieces like "Almost Touching" augmented my artistic definitions in innovative directions!!! It is good to see that Steve Roach is still extrapolating fairly challenging artistic theories... shall write an adequate rewiew for it after enough thought and aural experience... for now, my immediate reaction is... PHENOMENAL!!!

steve picked up where midnight moon left off in 1999 with the guitar he borrowed from roger king in his bouts of insomnia during the making of dust to dust. it was a foreign object, but steve has been teaching himself how to use and incorporate this sound into his latest album. recorded all live in the timeroom in tuscon, az, he created lots of emptyspace ambient using guitar and etheral movements. this is not steve's best work, far from it, but it is a solid work of ambience. the album is meant for a late cold winter night, listening to it while thinking about whatever comes to mind. however, it's easy to be distracted from the music. roach fans will love it, but this is definitely not an album for the unitiated.

I appreciate the more subtle nature of this cd which is predominantly on tracks 4,5 and 6. When listened to closely, there are truly some beautiful moments on this cd.

With the massive amount of material in the Steve Roach discography, it's easy to overlook any particular album. Streams and Currents is one of those that seems to be often overlooked. Being the second of only two guitar based Roach albums, I like to think of this one as a sequel to Midnight Moon. While Midnight Moon was rich, warm, and mysterious...Streams and Currents' atmosphere is much the opposite. I find the overall feel of this album to be very cold, crisp, and really rather sad. Most of the tracks have that pure drifting quality, except for the second track which incorporates some percussion. The drumming is however pretty subdued in the background and never gets too intrusive.

I'd say that fans of early 2000's era Roach (Midnight Moon, Early Man, etc.)will be very satisfied with this album. If you're considering buying this one take a listen to the samples on the official Steve Roach website. It might not be a five star smash hit like Dreamtime Return, but it's definitely worth purchasing if you're any sort of Steve Roach fan.

'Streams and Currents' does not compare to 'Dreamtime Return' (1988) or 'On Ritual Ground' (1992) or any of his other, more original works, but it is still worth having. I listened to this album at Silver Platters before I bought it, and read the accompanying notes on the screen. It said that 'Streams and Currents' had no overdubbing, that they were basically recorded on one take, and for that reason alone I was not disappointed. Roach's work is consistent, focused and spontaneous, just the way I like it. I learned today that he is responsible for a MIDI sequence code that other ambient artists use--he really knows what he is doing with his synthesizers. All jargon aside, this album along with his better works are theraputic: I use them to relax, to fall asleep and to meditate. I'm not into vocals during these times, just pure ambience. Anything else included in the background, such as rhythmic home-made drums or the pleasingly bent pitches of his guitar licks are all part of the plan.

'Streams and Currents' is just another delicious flavor of ice cream for the mind. 'Quiet Music' and 'Mystic Chords & Sacred Space' are my two favorite alternate flavors, not counting the must-have 'Dreamtime Return.' I'm planning on getting 'Immersion: One', the first in a planned series of eight discs that are each one track over 70 minutes long of more tantalizing electronic bliss, along with 'Mantram', which I also gave a pre-listening to. Highly preferred over the works he does with Vidna Obmana, which are utterly too dark for my interests. Roach also works well with Michael Stearns and Kevin Braheny ('Desert Solitare,' for instance).

Eh. Thats basically my response to this work by Roach. It just didn't do anything for me. Some people really liked this one, but I just found it uninspiring---it just didn't grab me like some of his other albums. The treated guitar sounds were a bit annoying at times. Still you may think it worth having if you're a Roach fan.