Surface Tensions

Surface 10 (Artist)

Product Details

• Audio CD (July 4, 2006)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: DiN
• ASIN: B000G04UKK
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #315,084 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Review
OK - let me tell you that, in terms of electronic music categories and pigeon-holes, there simply isn't one that exists into which you could place the music on this CD. Too complex for techno, too busy for space music, too easily accessible for avant-garde, too adventurous for synth - you get the picture? - in fact it is one gloriously over-the-top melting pot that has resulted in a unique musical form that no-one's even gotten close to identifying. Across its 11 tracks and sixty-six minutes of music, it destroys every musical convention known to man, while at the same time embracing them too - a contradiction? You'd better listen to this album and see what I mean. There are passages that are truly sublime, positively eloquent, mingling with passages that will get on your nerves and make you want to hurl the CD player out of the nearest exit. To say this CD's inventive is like saying the Pope's Catholic, but in its adventurous travels, such as on the gorgeous track 6, it positively sings to you as the stuttering rhythms, bouncing bass and almost ambient dub qualities are overlaid with seas of serene space synths, the only nod towards avant-garde coming from subtle drones down below. But don't be fooled - track 7 starts like some ethno-ambient piece that's been recorded too fast, mixed with a downtempo slice of ambient jazz that's been infused with the wrong lead synth as this somewhat "old skool" moog-like melody wales away on top. This, my friends, is one bizarre world of electronic music; it's challenging but, mostly, it's not unlistenable and, in many places, it actually becomes extremely hypnotic. It does, however, remain unique, both a plus and a minus, depending on your musical taste and standpoint. Myself, I think Boddy's (for 'tis on his Din label - you might have guessed!!!) doing this just to test my reviewing skills - so it's 4-3 to Boddy right now!! --UK Distributor

Product Description
SURFACE TENSIONS On July 4th, 2006, SURFACE 10 released the new experimental/ambient CD on DiN Records entitled Surface Tensions. This latest work by Surface 10 (sometimes referred to as Surface 10 Activity) is a 1997-to-2006 selection of Dean De Benedictis's slower-groove, experimental-ambient pieces, a few of which were created with the assistance of Eddie Loyola (aka Niture) and members of the Fateless Flows Collective. Traces of glitch and IDM music can be found throughout the disc, but overall the music of Surface Tensions is meant as another chapter in the unspoken genre of the techno-tragic sound. Personal feelings and experiences yet again lurk within this newest of Surface 10's work, claiming nothing for itself, but rather seeking to share with its audience that which can rarely be shared from one person to another. http://www.fatelessmusic.com/surface10.html

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Surface 10 - Surface Tensions, July 17, 2007

By	J. Jury "Morpheusmusic.co.uk" (London) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

STYLE
Dynamic electronica ranging from amorphous ambient to rhythmic IDM. Surface Tensions delivers eleven varied pieces of synthetic experimentation where melody is often prominent; brimming with evocative atmospheres and augmented by the presence of unique organic elements. A violin, a piano, vocal snatches, operatic performance, effected voice samples and other assorted less readily identifiable sounds. Beats are lively throughout much of the album - crisp digital affairs for the most part driving the compositions into brisk movement - at times more chilled patterns lulling the music into restful serenity, there is even some jazz influenced drumming on the rolling X Tension. Surface 10 lays out rippling sequences against textured drones, delicately harmonious lines draped across spacey programming, swimming effected wavs cut into repeating loops, human peculiarities sunk into artificial fluidity.

MOOD
The mood varies across the CD - there are upbeat sections with lively structures approaching dance beats, moody passages where peculiar noises create mysterious depths, techno-ambiences and night club smokiness. At times mechanical or jerking through twisted glitches, at others smooth and drifting, occasionally dark and brooding. Moments of graceful beauty merge into uncomfortable sonic terrain without warning - gradually relenting and softening once more into restfulness. Truly Surface Tensions is difficult to pigeon hole and difficult to pin down - passing as it does through so many stylistic phases.

ARTWORK
A glossy, sharp macro photograph fills three panels of this package - glassy beads of water clinging to a metallic blue green surface their diverse domes dark with shadow on one side, touched with light on the other. Amid the larger droplets are myriad tiny liquid hemispheres - wandering the spaces. The impression is one of natural organisation, irregular repetition, unintentional artifice. The familiar DiN arrangment is employed with white panels holding titles and info. Within we find a large monochrome portrait of the artist and a second tracklist in addition to the back cover. Also thanks, credits and contact information and relevant website addresses.

OVERALL
Surface 10 is one of Dean De Benedictis' projects - here released via the highly respected U.K. DiN label. This is the second album from this partnership DiN 8 being Surface 10's In Vitro Tide back in 2000. The album is again limited to 1,000 copies. Dean has released a number of other albums under the Surface 10 title through various labels. He has also produced music under his own name and other aliases such as Cathexis, along with collaborative works as The Strato Ensemble and putting together compilations as The Fateless Flows Collective. This album fits well with DiN's growing catalogue of high quality, unusual electronica - individual, unpredictable and alternately beautiful and sombre.

WHO WILL LIKE THIS ALBUM
DiN fans will find this another worthy release from the label and Dean's supporters will not be disappointed. If you are unfamiliar with either - try this one if you enjoy ambient electronica with plenty of detail, clear beats and ample melodic content.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Surface 10 - 'Surface Tensions' (DiN), January 6, 2007

By	Mike Reed (USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

A good 2006 effort by 'experimental/ambient' composer Dean De Benedictis.Liked this CD about as much as I fully appreciated his 1996 self-titled opus and 2000's 'In Vitro Tide' (see my reviews of both). Even though this title clocks in at 65 minutes, a bid shorter than the two previously mentioned discs, 'Surface Tensions' still very much holds it's own. Total of eleven tracks, with the most impressive cuts being "847 Chain Reactions", "No One Was Invited,But Everyone Came" and the heavily techno laced "See You On The Other Side" (possibly the CD's best tune here).