One of the most perfectly recorded ‘live’ electronic music albums known to man. This is a 141-minute document of Roach’s live work during 2002. The first CD is, in essence, a vast interstellar voyage. It begins with fifteen minutes of the engines running and the craft lifting off, as huge swathes of cosmic synth layers and textures build to the most almighty deep bass you could get – so deep it rattles the fillings in your teeth! Then its off into an ever intensifying wall of space synth splendours, setting the scene for the journey that is to follow, as the unbroken music travels out into the cosmos on a dark, dense, vast trip to parts unknown. It’s a huge sounding piece that is only occasionally punctuated by some magnificent drum work that, at its peak, adds to the towering strength of the synth panorama that the musician has created. This is vast, booming, loud and dark space music, with so many components that you are riveted to it for the duration of its sonic journey, and it is quite simply one of the finest examples of music of this kind you’ll hear, and it is one that you will want to repeat over and over again. Disc 2 is all taken from one concert, but again it’s an unbroken track - A kind of voyage through everything that makes Steve Roach the pioneer he is and the best at what he does. From a huge cosmic beginning, it moves into electronic rhythmic territory, with rhythms swirling, booming and bouncing all over the background, while a gorgeous river of string-like synths flows to perfection in the foreground. From there we move through darker, deeper territory, then into a strident percussive-backed section that is simply awesome. A soothing relaxed sequence of beautiful space music and all points in between ends CD2, and it’s yet another side to the musician’s repertoire that perfectly complements the first CD, and together they make up one of the finest ‘live’ electronic music CD’s you could possibly ever wish to hear.

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Weight: 250.00 g

Ideally, this should be purchased together with the ‘Origins’ album, not because we want to relieve you of all your money, but because they really are companion pieces. However, ‘Artifacts’ is taken slightly differently - First of all, you get an eight-minute synth piece that is suitably cosmic, followed by a nine-minute track that's is more ethnic based with didges and percussion. Then comes the highlight of the album in the form of a near twenty-six minute epic track full of those trademark Roach flowing synths with a slightly eerie and moody, but multi-layered effect playing alongside the drums that, while in the background, perform a largely non-traditional role, and give the impression of rolling thunder, fitting in totally with the atmospheric synths part of the work. Track 4 is largely keyboards dominated, and again, generally spacey and spacious, while track 5 adds a more percussive (not drums) element to the sound layers. Track 6 is well subdued and calming with some very haunting synths droning and floating away, slowly twisting and turning through a slowly drifting soundscape. Finally, track 7 is also a synth-dominated piece, ending the album in fine fashion with sweeping string synths booming bass undercurrents, plus a magical lead layer that is straight out of the classic 80’s ‘Western Spaces’ LP, with which a lot of this CD shares a similar feel. So, partner it with the ‘Origins’ CD and you’ll have one predominantly electronic, and one predominantly acoustic, in terms of the leading layers and textures, showcasing the two faces of one seriously talented musician.

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Weight: 150.00 g

The undisputed world master of the creation of deep, emotive synthscapes with an album on the spacey/cosmic trail, and it is positively one of his best works. As opposed to the ‘Slow Heat’ album that evokes a ‘desert-at-noon’ feel in its endless miles of drifting soundscapes, serving as a reminder of the conditions as well as an oasis from them, ‘Atmospheric Conditions’ is a breathtaking mix of directness and complexity. By that, I mean that the foreground layers and textures are embellished by all manner of subtleties from further synths and keyboards, giving a sense of structured infinity to the music as it weaves its magical spells and provides a new space synth path that, even for the tried and trusted area of cosmic music, is both new and addictive. A whole new canopy of sounds, layers and textures opens up before you, while not losing sight of the deep resonance and flowing drifts that take centre stage as music that oozes both feeling and atmosphere in equal quantities. If you are like me, this 5 track/seventy-three minute CD will occupy a place in your CD player for a long, long time to come. Essential listening.

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Weight: 150.00 g

This 12-track album was recorded after Roach's second trip to Australia and it was documented as another breakthrough release that was held in high regard by the people in the country that influenced the music. For the sonic travelogue down under, David Hudson (didgeridoo) and Sarah Hopkins (cello) feature alongside Roach’s instruments. The music breathes heat and perfectly depicts the scorching atmosphere of the red and rainless landscapes of Australia. One local reviewer said that this was music “built on a bedrock of unearthly ambience – the kind of night bush sounds that would make even the most fearless and sceptical of travellers move closer to the fire". The ‘Sydney Morning Herald’ commented: "It is somewhat ironic that one of the best Western-Aboriginal fusions has been the work of the highly regarded American ambient musician, Steve Roach”

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Weight: 150.00 g

This is possibly one of the most unusual CD’s from Steve Roach. It’s got 12 tracks that span just under a fantastic seventy-four minutes playing time, with largely rhythmic foundations, but it’s not sequencer or ethnic or drums - more electronic programming and sampling, although as a non-musician I could be wrong there. You can forget any preconceptions about electronic drums or drum machines sounding flat and stilted, because the rhythmic forces at work here are solid and strong. The multi-layered soundscapes are still there and it is the meeting of the two elements where the music succeeds or fails. Luckily it works well, coming across as a quite powerful album that is not overbearing or pretentious, but an interesting departure from the norm that is accessible and certainly one to be played often, showing us that he has still a lot of musical tricks up his sleeve.

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Weight: 150.00 g

If you’re the kind of person who likes nothing more than a session of deep, dense, flowing, dark, non-rhythmic spacey/cosmic music with no melodies, no tunes, no ‘sweetness’ - Music that is simply a totally engaging, amorphous cloudscape of ever shifting, immense proportions. Then look no further than this CD! It consists of one seventy-four minute track; this is the finest of its kind you could wish to hear. Musically speaking, it lies somewhere in the same field as say, the Rich/Lustmord ‘Stalker’ album, but in all honesty, that seems tame by comparison with ‘Darkest’. Huge booming, bass rivers, seamless string-like synths, awesome cosmic electronic dimensions all unfold to create one of the most atmospheric dark ambient, deep cosmic albums of all time – it really is THAT good.

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Weight: 150.00 g

The complete soundtrack to the ‘Time Of The Earth’ DVD and here Steve Roach illustrates that, like his not too distant spiritual partner to the east, Pete Namlook (now wouldn’t THAT be one incredible duo to produce an album?), he can take his own works and re-mould, re-shape and re-assemble them to create a wholly new piece that at no time has you thinking or feeling that it is music you’ve heard before! However, to make things even better than you’re thinking (no – this is not just tracks from other albums), well over half the tracks are taken from compilation appearances or items that are long out-of-print, so that you’ll find tracks here that are unreleased. These include selections from albums such as ‘Flotation’, ‘Amplexus 1’ and ‘Storm Of Drones’ as well as the magnificent ‘Dreamer Descends’ track that is long out of print. Together, it all serves to make up one fantastic, deep, slowly evolving, building and flowing Steve Roach epic. Again, the construction and delivery are served up to perfection as layer upon layer of sounds and textures move over, against and in conjunction with one another, providing the listener with a constantly changing, slowly developing, highly engaging and magnificent sounding predominantly cosmic slice of sheer musical magic. From deep bass through hinted and actual percussive elements to awe-inspiring, high-flying space synth textures, this is simply stunning music and another essential addition to Steve Roach’s work that you really have to hear.

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Weight: 150.00 g

‘Dream Circle’ was first released in 1994 as a signed and numbered limited edition digi-pak, restricted to just 2500 copies. Since that edition sold out a few years ago, the requests and feedback from fans and musicians have shown this piece to be the most admired infinite repeat soundworld created by Roach so far. The word continued to spread and requests turned into demands. Through the inspiration of listener feedback, the CD has now been re-released on Steve’s own label and this one is not a limited release. It comes in a jewel case, not signed or numbered, so now is your chance to feel the slow heat of the dream circle, which is just one long seventy-three minute track of cosmic eloquence.

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Weight: 150.00 g

The beginners guide to Steve Roach as two CD's of mostly previously issued music are laid on to the market in a package that also includes nearly twenty-minutes of previously unreleased music. If you've never really discovered fully, or at all, the glorious cosmic/melodic music of this leading USA synth musician/composer, you should look no further than this incredible package, which gathers together a selection of his classic tracks, taking either complete pieces or sections of much longer works, to produce an album that is utterly superb from the start of disc 1 to the end of disc 2. Divided into one disc of more melodic, up-tempo pieces and one of the more flowing, spacey variety, the music featured throughout is alive, vital, full-sounding, immaculately played and produced and the perfect collection all on its own. There are some great offerings from classic albums such as ‘Empetus’, ‘Western Spaces’, ‘Desert Solitaire’, ‘Dreamtime Return’, ‘World's Edge’, ‘Structures From Silence’, ‘Quiet Music’, ‘Now/Traveller’, ‘Origins’ and ‘Artifacts’. For anyone not in possession of a complete Roach collection, this is over 145 minutes of his classic material is essential synth music listening.

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Weight: 250.00 g

A much-extended CD release in comparison with the original vinyl issue, and it’s one of his most consistent releases to date, travelling across the many musical lands that are the territory of Steve Roach, as you’ll find in this feature. With 14 tracks ranging from three to thirty-one minutes in length, this set offers a vast range of synth-led musical dimensions, and with a production to complement the quality of delivery, composition and arrangement that is second to none, this is one of those two hour double albums that you can just sit and enjoy virtually any time of the day or night. For it’s length, it’s one of the most varied, yet consistent doubles of the catalogue, and as a bonus it features guest spots from the likes of Kevin Braheny & Robert Rich, who both add their own brand of exotic delights to the immense sonic cauldron. It is as warm an album as they come, avoiding the ‘sweet-sounding’ tag and instead serving as the perfect complement in a much more solid, purposeful and structured way to the simple perfection that is the ‘Western Spaces’ album. With some of the most beautiful music to be found on a Steve Roach album, this 2CD set simply cannot be faulted, and to say it’s essential listening is as obvious as saying ‘don’t forget to breathe’ – and just as life-sustaining. “Fantastic” doesn’t even come close – Try “Immaculate”!!

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Weight: 250.00 g

Over the years album after album from Steve Roach keeps coming and still the quality level stays right at the top. The whole of this nearly two and a half-hour long set illustrates that point to perfection. So, how does this one differ and what makes it so special? Well, disc1 is the main album, while disc 2 is a sort of reconstruction, or deconstruction, of the first, but both are space music gems that each consist of essentially over seventy minutes of music that comes over as one single organic track. What makes the first CD one of his finest is the variety and textures of the electronics and keyboards that he is using, allied to the fact that he has at last achieved the perfect combination of ‘space’ with selected ‘rhythmic’ passages, all of which are entirely in keeping with, and are, vital components of the assorted cosmic layers that are occurring all around you.

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Weight: 250.00 g

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This is a beautiful video originally produced in 1989 – Produced by Georgianne Cowan, these are wonderful images that merge the sensuality of the female form with primeval desert dreamscapes. Rippling sands, and rock paintings become the palette from which her evocative visuals emerge. Stirring ancient memories, this is a timeless mythological journey into the beauty, power and renewing qualities of mother Earth. The music come from selected tracks taken from Steve Roach’s ‘Dreamtime Return’ album and the atmospheric soundscapes from that timeless album would seem to be the perfect partner for such an ethereal collage of sound and visuals. The only downside is it’s only twenty-three minutes long, but it is deleted now, and the copies we have will be our last, so if you want one – please move fast!

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Weight: 275.00 g

THE Roach sequencer album! 8 of the 9 tracks are propelled by layers of cyclical synth rhythms, with a mix of clipped melodies and flowing, stretched string-like synths flying away on top. In a sense, it's almost a 90's answer to the organ/loop works of Terry Riley from the 70's – It’s music with a similarly spellbinding nature, only here obviously, its all played on synthesizers and is therefore more full-sounding than you would imagine. But anyone who gets off on this whole spellbinding looping stuff will really enjoy this album. In addition, it also has a sound rooted in 70's Tangerine Dream sequencer sounds, giving that extra depth to the rhythms that take centre stage throughout, except the final track which ends on a slowly drifting sea of synths and electronic sounds, with not a rhythm in sight.

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Weight: 150.00 g

Roach is one of the most prolific and consistent electronic musicians of the 90's but also one of the most misjudged. Mention his name and most people think of sprawling cosmic epics at one end of the spectrum, and ultra-fast sequencers in the middle, with ethnic at the other end. Admittedly, there have been a few 'extreme' releases in the pipeline, but there are also some timeless gems such as ‘Structures From Silence’, the ‘Western Spaces’ collaboration, ‘On This Planet’, ‘Desert Heat’ and this one. Yes ‘Light Fantastic’ is a cert to add to the classic album list. Throughout its 6 tracks / fifty-eight minutes you'll find the whole Roach musical arsenal - drums, samples, sequencers in the rhythm dept, and cosmic, full-flowing, real space synth layers on top. The sheer spectacle of the streaming keyboard textures on top of the crystal clear, yet crisp and solid multi-layered, mostly (electro) percussive rhythm base, is a complete delight. There are vast aeons of spacious rhythmic and real space textures that cast shafts of light in all directions, with the sum of the parts being a whole that is totally mind-blowing. Featuring contributions from Vidna Obmana and Vir Unis, this is music that has all the right ingredients from the booming dynamics welling up from below to the gorgeous high-flying synth clouds that pass overhead. With its infinitely vast textural range, the mood is an amazing one of darkness and beauty at the same time. It’s a classic album for those that want it to flow superbly, and to dramatic effect, but don't want it too intense, and still like plenty to be happening at the same time – In other words - Music into which you can totally submerge!

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Weight: 150.00 g