Customer Reviews

Warm Sound in a Gray Area

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

 

 

This is a milestone record. One of my all time favorites in my collection. I got this when it had just come out, and ever since have looked for more music by Peter, but alas, he just does session work with friends.

This all instrumental collection is great to either use for background, or to seriously listent to. The textures and depth in this ablum are awsome.

Trully ahead of its time. Highly recommended if you like music that:

- Engages the mind and the emotions

- Non-repetitive, well thought out progressions throught a piece and album

- Deeply textured and nuanced sounds

I first bought this album when it was first releast almost 15 years ago and to this day I still listen to it. Its a beautiful recording filled with awsome texures. Every piece is great. My favorite track is the title track. You can pick up some patrick o hearn influence here and there. This is for what I know peter maunu's only release.I love this album and will continue to listen to it. Buy it

Peter Maunu's only solo release for the Narada label is one of those overlooked gems. Honestly, it took me by surprise when I purchased it over ten years ago on the strength of Whirling Dervish which was included on a Narada Sampler. The rest of the CD is nothing like this piece and I retired the CD for several months. During a really stressful time, I put it on again and found the music brought peace and a centering of my troubled spirit. The guitar work of Peter is very smooth and relaxing but not so much as to put you to sleep. Many of the songs are in a minor key and very open which gives the tunes a mystical feeling about them. He also plays several other instruments and mixed them together into what I would call pre ambient music. Patrick O'Hearn and Mark Isham provide their touches to a couple of songs. The difference here is that you can actually hum many of the songs which isn't normally possible with most ambient music.

Peter creates musical sound scapes with broad, sweeping chords and harmonies that he bends and slides from one note to the next in an electric guitar style that sounds vaguely influenced by Alan Parsons and Pink Floyd. Unfortunately, the 1990 release has been out of print for close to eight years and one of the more interesting pieces, Corridors and Cathedrals, isn't sampled here. This song has a slight African influenced percussion line and very impressive use of three splash cymbals to start the "chorus" of the song. Each song has its own unique style but Peter holds them all together with his guitar. Like most other 30 second samples of New Age Music, there just isn't enough time allowed to hear how the song will finally evolve. Of all of the samples provided here, Three Spirals is probably the better example of how the rest of his CD sounds. I really feel that Peter Maunu released this CD about eight years before the public was ready to receive it. It sounds as fresh today as it did in 1990. If you can get a copy of "Warm Sound In A Gray Field", I recommend you either skip over Whirling Dervish or play it first and get it out of the way as it really distracts from the air about the rest of the tracks. For that reason, I can only bring myself to rate this four stars.

Peter is now doing studio musician work and hasn't released any other solo projects, to my knowledge. If you like guitar music in this style, you may want to explore "The Wind In The Wheat" by Phil Keaggy from several years ago. It is closer to lite jazz with some fantastic guitar work. Phil Keaggy is a Contemporary Christian artist more widely known for his McCartney sounding voice and rock styles but this is one of his three or four totally instrumental releases.

If I remember correctly, I was first made aware of Peter Maunu and his music when I heard one or more of his compositions from Warm Sound in a Gray Field on a satellite music channel. "Broken Blossoms" was the piece that not only hooked me, but it also displayed to me how talented he was. It took awhile for me to finally get around to acquiring this debut album from him, but I am glad that I finally have it in my possession because it is a nice-sounding release. To sum up Warm Sound in a Gray Field, I would say that it is refined, atmospheric, and soothing. There are eight compositions, and the album was released in 1990. It sounds like new age music to me and also sounds similar to Patrick O'Hearn; in regard to O'Hearn, he contributes to this album. In addition, Maunu plays more than one musical instrument. The album contains no vocals, and only certain tracks display percussion. Even though I like all of the compositions, my favorites are "Warm Sound in a Gray Field," "My Sky at Twilight," and "Broken Blossoms." "Warm Sound in a Gray Field" is a nicely crafted, pretty piece with nice melodies--the bass guitar work is smooth and charming. "My Sky at Twilight" is marked by serenity and spareness. "Broken Blossoms" reminds me of the German band Popol Vuh. It is a spare composition that is airy and sleek. In reference to the CD packaging, there is a color photo of Maunu that is included. Also, the disc is just over 44 minutes. I actually rate Warm Sound in a Gray Field 3.5 stars. It is enjoyable, and I recommend it.

I've been wanting to have this CD for years since I had recorded two themes by tape from the radio: 'Warm Sound in a Gray Field' and 'The Passenger'. I discover that they weren't the only good ones, although I stay impressed by the sinuous epicness of the first one, and the emotional intensity of the second.

I specially find evocative the soft, dreamy 'Three Spirals' and became amazed by the strength and happiness of 'Out of the Red Mist', a song that recalls liberation and a sense of freedom and victory. Highly influenced in style and instrumentation by Patrick O'Hearn, a Peter Maunu's friend that plays bass in this album, of course.

The whole album is conceived as a trip and it takes you far away from where it picked you up. If you like instrumental music with instruments that speak on their own, this album is a great one to try. Even the cover and the title evoke you the intensity and warm of the record.

This CD gives the full version of the title cut (unlike the version on Narada sampler3) and features a terrific fretless bass line, which is why I purchased this album. The balance of the album is very typical of late 80's, early 90's new age music published on the Narada label. If you like those lush soundscapes created back then, this album may be a great choice for you.