JAMES JOHNSON and STEPHEN PHILIPS
Lost at Dunnıs Lake
Zero Music (2001)

When I played an excerpt from James Johnsonıs and Stephen Philipıs
collaboration, Lost at Dunnıs Lake, on my radio show last weekend,
I stated emphatically that, even though itıs only March, I didnıt think Iıd
hear a better minimal-style ambient recording this year. This CD is...well,
itıs special in ways I donıt know that I can describe..

Being from Wisconsin and Minnesota, the affinity I have for what this
recording embodies plays a large part in my review. I have been at lakeıs
edge in the rain and fog and have experienced the solitude and serene
mystery that floats on the green-blue surface. While standing there,
surrounded by hundred-year old firs, pines, birches and oaks, I never felt
closed-in; instead I felt a sense of my place in the greater scheme. If this
recording can elicit these kind of visions and emotions from me, well, do I
need to say more to recommend it?

The CD begins with the faint sound of rolling thunder in the distance.
Rain is falling on water and a bird cries out plaintively. A soft-as-a-sigh
synthesizer caresses the first minute of this recording, while gentle piano
notes, held and sustained for an eternity, exchange the moment with a
³glacier bell² tone. Thunder now and then erupts, but the rumble is calming
and comforting, rather than threatening or ominous. The music starts to
breathe with an organic purity, as if this fog-and-rain-shrouded lake has
come alive within the confines of my back sun-room. This, ladies and
gentlemen, is what true musical artistry is all about.

Literally, this is one long piece of music, like Jamesı Entering Twilight.
But itıs also always subtly shifting, like both Stephenıs and Jamesı more
ambient and minimal work. James plays piano and synthesizers, plus by
crediting him with ³location resonance,² I assume these are his field
recordings. Stephen plays the aforementioned ³glacier bell² and adds
atmospheric textures. Sometimes, the textures and synths predominate,
taking deep breaths of slow washes and exhaling patient sighs that invite
comparisons to the warm romantic tones of Kevin Brahenyıs EWI work on
The Way Home. Stephenıs glacier bell is an amazing instrument; its pealing
tones resonate with a deep sense of yearning and remembrance - cold in
form but not in substance. The complete and utter symmetry of the various
electronic textures and synthesizers is wondrous. Throughout the album,
various different synth sounds and atmospherics are brought into focus,
entertained, and then they fade away like phantoms, blown into nothingness
by an imperceptible breeze coming off the rainy lake.

The engineering throughout Lost at Dunnıs Lake is a marvel. Whether played
on headphones and savored or used as accompaniment to reading or to fall
asleep to (I enjoyed all three modes), the music only intrudes at your behest;
but itıs always patiently waiting should you wish to journey to that lonely
body of water, embraced on all sides by the somber but welcoming forest.

The ever-present sound of rain falling on water, combined with those
solitary piano notes, that glacier bell, and the subtle synthetic ambient
washes combine to tug at my heart strings with an intensely nostalgic force.
This is a recording that connects with me on a deeply personal level because
of my deceased fatherıs great love of fishing in the north woods of
Wisconsin and Minnesota. I can almost smell the rain from inside the screen
porch of a rustic cabin, as he and I wait out the storm, hearing the loons
and jays, and enjoying the quiet companionship of our shared solitude. A
wood stove glows with just enough heat and light to warm our souls against
the damp air. There is no need for talk at moments like this; silence is our
method of communication as we sit drinking in the richness of our
surroundings through all our senses.

Thereıs not much more to say about this album. I could try to describe the
music in some kind of detail, but it would be like breaking down a Van Gogh
or a Renoir into individual brushstrokes or dissecting Steinbeck or
Dickinson word by word. That is the province of scholars, of which I am not
one, I assure you. While I can identify the elements of that which I like
(and I have done that here somewhat, as I do in all my reviews), with an
album this evocative and personal, I prefer to just sit back and admire the
whole. In the case of Lost at Dunnıs Lake, I expect to be admiring it for
the rest of my life. James and Stephen, thank you for taking me back to the
lake one more time.

Bill Binkelman - Wind & Wire
http://www.windandwire.com


AVAILABLE THROUGH

Zero Music
http://www.zeromusic.net
Dark Duck Records
http://www.darkduck.net
HYPNOS Recordings
http://www.hypnos.com
Groove Unlimited
http://www.groove.nl
Backroads Music
http://www.backroadsmusic.com


-----------------------------------------
Zero Music
Ambient/Space/Atmospheric Music
http://www.zeromusic.net
sound@...
-----------------------------------------