MELT

Dirk Jan Müller is back with some more modern Berlin School of Progressive Electronic Music, this one very much founded in the sequences and familiar soundscapes of Classic Era TD or Klaus Schulze but enriching the music with new 21st Century sounds, samples, and techniques.

1. "planet dirt" (13:28) traditional Berlin School sequenced song with rich and unusual, even what you'd call "earthy," sounds and textures woven into the atmosphere. (26.375/30)

2. "eternal autumn" (4:05) extraterrestrial planet exploration, on foot, complete with chatter between the scientists and scraping, scratchy noises of their boots walking through the gravelly touraine. A sci-fi soundtrack extension of Brian Eno's work from the mid-1980s. (8.66667/10)

3. "revelation" (5:12) slow development and rise of what sounds like a variation on the Run, Lola Run sequencer theme. Why does s/he keep running by the industrial parks--along the train tracks? Definitely a Klaus Schulze connection here, as well. (8.75/10)

4. "black rain" (18:30) odd droning loop for the first three minutes, then Eno "Lizard Point"-like scratchy "outdoor" soundtape feel for the next three, moving underground into subterranean worlds for the next part of the journey (perhaps the catacombs beneath Naples, Italy: Napoli Sotterranea), before resurfacing on one of the planets in the Hyperion universe: the lush, swamp-world known as God's Grove. As a matter of fact, from this point on I am feeling as if a soundtrack has been laid while I wait, hiding, watching and waiting (in fear and trepidation) for the arrival of the TechnoCore assassin, Rhadamanth Nemes. Awesome (yet unnerving)! (35/40)

5. "melted past" (7:56) a very traditional, smooth Berlin School sequenced song that feels quite indistinguishable from the great soundscapes of the past masters--except in the more-modern sound treatments of the final two minutes. (13.25/15)

6. "scab" (16:50) more expansion and variation upon Brian Eno's work from the On Land period of his Ambient Music series evolution. The final four minutes is the best part. (30.125/35)

Total Time 66:01

B-/3.5 stars; rated up for excellent production and intention. While I always like the music Dirk Jan Müller makes, I seldom find myself drawn to bring it back into my world for repeated listens. This is partly due to the fact that I do not choose this type of music for either my aural backdrop to my day--or to my meditations--but also because it often, like this album, lacks the moments and effects that surprise, interest, or excite me. It is, however, almost always quite excellent musical representation of the 21st Century Progressive Electronic sub-genre.