2350.org - Compilation - The Ambient Cookbook II

Compilation - The Ambient Cookbook II - MP3 009 (also PKPWPS 6) Release Date: 4 June 2007 Limitation: 500 Silence (Pete Namlook & Dr. Atmo): Omid/Hope Air (Pete Namlook): Clearing Your Head Escape (Pete Namlook & Dr. Atmo): Trip from Mars Pete Namlook/Hubertus Held (Pete Namlook & Hubertus Held): Missing You Psychonavigation (Pete Namlook & Bill Laswell): Telepathy II Sequential (Namlook): Sequenchill Sequential (Pete Namlook & DJ Criss): Lost in the Sea Coeur Atomique (Coeur Atomique): Tuff Transmitter Namlook (Pete Namlook): Noise Atoms Shado (Pete Namlook & Bobby Bird): Begend Jet Chamber (Pete Namlook & Atom Heart): Clearing your Head Syn (Pete Namlook): The Flight Virtual Vices (Pete Namlook & Wolfram Spyra): We Don't Mind the Rain Namlook (Pete Namlook): The Real World Dreamfish (Pete Namlook & Mixmaster Morris): Fishology Air (Pete Namlook): Elle a du shell From Within (Pete Namlook & Richie Hawtin): Silent Intelligence - Part 5-6 The Fires of Ork (Pete Namlook & Geir Jenssen): In Heaven Silence (Pete Namlook): Dreamtime Syn (Pete Namlook): Night Time Pleasures The Dark Side of the Moog (Pete Namlook & Klaus Schulze): Set the controls for the Heart of the Mother - Part VI Psychonavigation (Pete Namlook & Bill Laswell): Telepathy II Shades of orion (Pete Namlook & Tetsu Inoue): Beteigeuzian Ritual Ambiant Otaku (Tetsu Inoue): Magnetic Field 2350 Broadway (Pete Namlook & Tetsu Inoue): Morning Spirit Move D/Namlook (Pete Namlook & David Moufang): False Decodings Koolfang (Pete Namlook & David Moufang): Counter EMC (Pete Namlook): Environmental Observation Post Jet Chamber (Pete Namlook & Atom™): Tightness Air (Pete Namlook): Est ce que l'amour fait mal? Air (Pete Namlook): Je suis triste et seul ici Silence (Pete Namlook): Hello from the Children of Planet Earth Air (Pete Namlook): Travelling without Moving - Trip I New Organic Life (Pete Namlook): Interview with New and Native Organic Life Pulsation (Pete Namlook): Pulsar Jet Chamber (Pete Namlook & Atom Heart): Tightness Silence (Pete Namlook): Into the Desert The Fires of Ork (Pete Namlook & Geir Jenssen): Talk to the Stars Syn (Pete Namlook): The Flight Psychonavigation (Pete Namlook & Bill Laswell): Mind over Matter Planetarium (Pete Namlook & New Composers): Spirit Preparation Miles Apart (Pete Namlook & Peter Prochir): Soft CRD Silence (Pete Namlook): Bedouin Love Outland (Pete Namlook & Bill Laswell): African Virus - Part III Sequential (Pete Namlook): Sonne Possible Gardens (Pete Namlook & Peter Prochir): Breeding Machine Jochem Paap (Jochem Paap): DX Synth Psychonavigation (Pete Namlook & Bill Laswell): Life Eternal Hearts of Space (Pete Namlook): Drawn Sultan (Pete Namlook & Burhan Öçal): Gel gör beni ask n'eyledi Psychonavigation (Pete Namlook & Bill Laswell): DSPill Psychonavigation (Pete Namlook & Bill Laswell): Trautoniolo S.H.A.D.O (Pete Namlook & Bobby Bird): Secret Location 2350 Broadway (Pete Namlook & Tetsu Inoue): Rich Drums EMC (Pete Namlook): Vocal Atoms Virtual Vices (Pete Namlook & Wolfram Spyra): Last Dance on Luna Silence (Pete Namlook): While Angels Sleep Silence (Pete Namlook): Master of the Sky Seasons Greetings (Pete Namlook): Winter Sultan (Pete Namlook & Burhan Öçal): Yenilik #8

The original Ambient Cookbook came out back in 1995, and gave the listener a good cross section of the music available on Fax at the time. There was a mixture of music from not just Namlook, but also from the numerous other artists and collaborators on the label.

Now, to commemorate the tenth anniversary of the label, the Ambient Cookbook II has been released. Comparisons with the original release are of course inevitable, but in reality this new 4 CD set is something entirely new. Whilst still featuring an excellent selection of music from Fax, the majority of the tracks are by Namlook or Namlook & Collaborators. The only non-Namlook tracks are Atom's "Tuff Transmitter", Inoue's "Magnetic Field" and Jochem Paap's "Dx Synth".

The most noticable thing about this release is that the vast majority of the tracks are continually mixed with crossfades of significant length. Unlike the first Cookbook, the tracks here are mixed in such a way as to compliment each other, and to create "new" tracks. On the fourth disc for example, the track "Gel Gor Beni Ask N'eyledi" from the Sultan album, plays by itself for the first few minutes, before further tracks such as "DSPill" and "Trautoniolo" are brought into the mix. Only when "Rich Dreams" from 2350 Broadway starts, does the initial Sultan track finally fade. Similarly mixed sections appear throughout the four discs, but there are also sections that are relatively unmixed. The aforementioned "Magnetic Field" from the Ambiant Otaku album only has a very quick crossfade at beginning and end, but then in my opinion, this particular track is just too devine a listening experience to mess about with!

Overall, this is a highly recommended release, which would serve as a good introduction to the label. In the main though, it is a worthwhile part of any Fax devotee's collection. Familiar tracks are put together in a new context, so even if you do have most or all of the original releases, this is still worth getting. Here's to the next ten years of Fax!

(review by Andrew Firth)