Karl Bartos: Communication

Following up from a previous feature by The Sonic Music Review of 'Lifestyle' by Karl Bartos, available here, the field of focus turns to the artist's most recent release, the 2003 release 'Communication.' Bartos' following will undoubtedly be aware of his prior involvement with the highly influential German band Kraftwerk, a quality which is audible, but this album shines as a great example of music with character, a credit to the talented composer.

Karl Bartos: Communication

The album opens with 'The Camera,' an initial illustration of Bartos' inimitable writing style which has been constantly refined over a number of years. The track in question uses purely electronic instrumentation, a feature throughout the album, underpinned by strong rhythmic percussive elements and a particularly interesting synthesiser sequence. As with many other tracks, the song is led by synthesised speech, an uncommon production choice in much contemporary music.

Much of the material is centred around major themes of celebrity and everyday lifestyle, ides which in the past have also given an ideological foundation to Bartos' music. Of the 10 tracks which make up the 45 minute album, 'Electronic Apeman' stands out as a highlight. The track seeks to combine a live sung voice and synthesised vocal elements to great effect, complemented with fine harmonic sequences and very interesting interaction between harmony and bassline. Being a percussionist, the percussive elements are very well programmed throughout. The track 'I'm The Message' embellishes this rhythmic interest with a discontinuity of pulse between the introduction and main material.

The album concludes with 'Another Reality,' a fitting title for this concluding track which sees a much more peaceful feel, a quality provided through the sustained chords and wavering synthetic lines. The speech synthesis in this piece also serves as one of the best recent examples of the technique, unsurprisingly perhaps given the artist's prior ability demonstrated the previous decade in 'Lifestyle' as one example. The final seconds inevitably fade, drawing some of Karl Bartos' finest material to a close.

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Jean Michel Jarre: Geometry Of Love

During the early 00's, inside a market much more diverse than when Jean Michel Jarre first began composing in the 70's, Jarre released several works which deviate from his pre-established style seen in earlier releases. 'Geometry Of Love' follows the lounge jazz 'Sessions 2000' and dance 'Metamorphoses' releases, this time creating an Lounge Ambient influenced album.

Jean Michel Jarre: Geometry Of Love

Important for this release is the manner in which it was conceived. Rather than Jarre's early releases which were made from hardware synthesisers, this album was created primarily via the means of digital software sequencing. This creates a drastically different soundworld compared to all of the artist's previous output, creating a more 'open' sonic environment which employs timbres more congruent to Ambient music.

The album begins with a fusion of sampled strings with more conventional synthetic writing in track one, 'Pleasure Principal.' To its credit, this is a rare example of ambient music to employ drum and percussive elements without a breakbeat influence, which can detract from a composition's ambient quality. In lieu of clear melodies, this track uses more subtle musical material to lead the piece.

The album contains a two-part title track, interestingly separated, with 'Geometry Of Love part 2' only coming at the end of the album. These tracks have become part of several live sets by Jarre, including his 2005 performance in the Forbidden City in China.

This album contains a wealth of good material which fans of ambient music would enjoy. When the album concludes with the second part, which is written in a similar style but developing the musical ideas seen in part one, the nostalgic effect created proves highly calming and pleasantly disorientating.

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