Liquid Sound Volume 1 - Liquid Sound / Freeform

Don’t know much about this one, possibly because the press release is in German (and while my language skills allow me to buy a paper and order a beer, the finer points of bringing together an album is all beyond me.) Whatever, this is a veritable cocoon of smooth ambient, with the emphasis slightly more on the mood music aspect than the downtempo / smokedown side of things (i.e., expect whale noises rather than tricky acid lines.) The effect of this CD is very pacifying, and very soothing – instantly it’s like being submerged in cool blue sounds, fitting with the cover image of submersion in rather pleasant-looking deep water. It’s got a firm foot in the spiritual / eco-friendly side of this culture, which will prove annoying and distracting to some of the dancefloor crowd, but to the open minded ear this is cute, clever, soothing music most notable for its effect on the listener than anything else. Whale noises, running water, glorious sustained pads and subtle key changes are the order of the day here, and while names such as Orbient, Kookoon and Ohm-G may mean little to the seasoned trance listener, the whole album sits together in a neat way that progresses deeper and deeper. There’s a place for this in every collection, so as such it’s well worth checking out.