US-based ambient producer Rudy Adrian has been releasing albums since the late nineties, both as limited CDR runs and through labels such as Groove Unlimited, and Moonwater represents his first release on Pennsylvania ambient specialist imprint Lotuspike. Originally conceived as the result of unforeseen studio mishaps; both Adrian’s newer computer setup and sampler stopped working more or less simultaneously, forcing him to work only using a 512k Macintosh and a single synthesiser, the Yamaha SY77, in many senses, Moonwater shows Adrian returning by necessity to the sonic landscapes that coloured his earlier works. From the outset, the murky sleeve art depicting full moon rise over a beach landscapes suggest the familiar stock-in-trade totems of New Age ambient music, preconceptions firmly backed up by the contents of this disc.
The opening title track certainly sounds akin to the sort of atmospheric yet calming music that Michael Stearns might have selected to soundtrack a magnificent time-lapse scene of clouds moving over the Utah desert in “Baraka’, warm harmonic synth pads bleeding out beneath ringing tones and the distant whir of insects. “Midnightfantasyangel Part 1′ meanwhile manages to inject a somewhat more foreboding edge, with exotic, vaguely Middle Eastern tones and dark looming sub-bass swells adding a tangibly ominous edge, but throughout proceedings are tempered with an overall reassuring vibe. Indeed, pretty much all of the nine tracks gathered here are aglow with warm harmonic tones and a reassuringly optimistic vibe that’s often a little more Ken Davis than Tangerine Dream. As late-night chilled background listening, “Moonwater’ certainly fulfils its purpose, but I personally found that it veered frequently a little too close to pastel New Age crystal shop ambience to prove a truly engaging listen.
Chris Downton
