Ambient music is something I’ve never written about. I have been listening to it – or actively not listening to it – for a few decades now, ever since I was first turned on to one of Eno’s ambient releases (knowing me, I probably started with Ambient 1!) Trying to describe it really puts my writing and communication skills to the test, so when I saw that Independent Project was putting out a reissue of an ambient release by A PRODUCE called Land of a Thousand Trances, I decided to give it a listen. If I liked it enough I’d give it a go. And so here we are.
One thing you can say about ambient music is that it has the power to transport you to any number of places. Indeed, the more influences that seep into the music, the more likely you are to be taken out of your somewhat dark apartment with light blue carpet (hey, I’m renting this place!) and gently placed in a lightly breezy desert landscape, on top of an iceberg floating in the Antarctic, or among a large group of people beating out drums and other percussive objects to a heavy groove. Some ambient music I’ve heard is literally ambient: you almost wouldn’t know it was there if you didn’t see the record spinning or see the CD player’s digital counter showing the track and time info. But A Produce – the name Barry Craig used for his ambient projects – created music that could transport you somewhere exotic or put you in a trance right there in your living room.
Craig passed away in 2011 but this 1994 release (reissued and expanded in 2007) has continued to intrigue those who have come into its midst. Land of a Thousand Trances has now been re-reissued as a deluxe 2CD set with the full Independent Project treatment, including letterpress cover and a nice booklet giving you a little more information about A Produce and Craig’s philosophy about his music. What comes through listening to this release, including its bonus tracks like “The Dreaming Room” (both studio and live versions) is that there’s just as much room for Gilmour-ian electric guitar as there is for long, contemplative keyboard pads and textures or African drums and Aztec flutes. As attributed to Craig in this package, in relation to producing such music in the cacophonous atmosphere of L.A., “I like being near so many environments: the oceans, the desert, the mountains. These things influence me as much as the urban side of Los Angeles.” That all comes through on Land of a Thousand Trances. It’s highly worth your attention if ambient music floats your boat… or wisps you away on a desert breeze. – Marsh Gooch
3.5/5 (Independent Project IP090SECD, 2023)
NuDisc 