BASS COMMUNION

There is no doubt in my mind that Steven Wilson has been one of the most important progressive musicians over the last few decades, but I have also learned to treat each of his albums as a separate entity as while he has released some masterpieces there are also others which I have felt to be quite poor, even though others have raved over them. I even once used the horrific phrase "prog by numbers" with one of his solo albums, but no-one could ever say that about the latest release as Bass Communion. Even though I have reviewed albums of his for the last 30 years I have not previously come across Bass Communion, even though the debut came out at the end of the Nineties and this is his sixteenth album since then. Here we find Steven in a very different place to what I have come to expect from him, as he brings together ambient, drone, noise and other sub-genres to create something which is seeing him being likened to SunnO))), Earth and Merzbow.

When I played this I had not read the press release, so did not actually realise it was from Wilson, something I am pleased about as that knowledge could not impact my view of the music contained within, which to me is some of the most interesting and fascinating work I have heard from him in some years. There is a layered depth within which is intriguing, yet it is also somehow ethereal like a deep fog which feels heavy yet has no substance as one walks through, but it masks everything behind and coats everything with the same dank and dark colour. It is a fog horn in the distance, a warning of danger yet unseen, but menacing as even things of no import become creatures of the night with teeth and fans ready to take our souls, even though it is all in our imagination. It is a scary album in that respect, as one is taken deep into a troubling world, with the cover art tying in as we wonder what happened to the people who once enjoyed being on that boat, now a wreck lying in the mud. Was there a catastrophe or was it just age which condemned it to where it is now? What are the stories behind it?

I first started listening to Wilson with No Man Is An Island Except the Isle of Man and cassettes of Porcupine Tree, following him through Blackfield and his solo works, and there is no doubt this is one his most intriguing, complex and complete works to date. It will not be to everyone's tastes as he left the well-trodden path of mainstream prog far behind and is now seeking his way through the misty marsh where dangers are ever present. Play it on headphones, with the lights out, in the middle of the night, to understand the majesty which is Bass Communion.

Warning: This album is not for the faint of heart.

In February of 2004, Steven Wilson released his Bass Communion album "Ghosts on Magnetic Tape". This album of minimalism was inspired and based around a set of recordings made by Konstantīns Raudive, a scientist who studied parapsychology, of alleged voices of the dead. Contrary to popular opinion, this Bass Communion album did not actually have any "ghost voices" on in, though it is a dark and spooky album.

In June of 2004, a companion album was released which contained a reconstructed version of this original album. These radical reconstructions were done by Andrew Liles who has also worked with the bands "Current 93" and "Nurse with Wound". Taking his experience with the subject of the paranormal, Liles reworked the orginal Bass Communion album and took things even farther by actually adding in some of the original Raudive recordings of spirits communicating with the living through the medium of magnetic tape.

If you have listened to the original album, you know how creepy it is. This reconstruction of the album multiplies the creepiness factor by 100. You still have reworked versions of Wilson's eerie compositions, but now, alleged voices from the afterlife are also added in for real. These sounds do not distract from the original at all, but actually add to it.

If you are looking for something really scary to do this Halloween season, then get a good pair of headphones, turn off all of the lights, and immerse yourself in this reconstructed album. I guarantee you, you will get the heebie jeebies. You will not only get an eerie sensation, but you will get startled and, I dare say, scared. There is no way to prepare yourself for this either, if you think you can outsmart it by being ready for it. The minimal music will draw you in and sudden outbursts and noises will seem to come right out of your headphones and will make you jump with fright. I have done this a few times, and even though I know whats going to happen, it never fails to frighten me.

This is more than just a novelty album. It is completely serious, and that is what makes it so scary. But, you will find yourself coming back to it. The music is a master work in minimalist study, drones, sound manipulation and what not, as most of the Bass Communion albums are, but in this case, you have the sounds of the undead rolling around in your brain. It's a tough one to simply just put it on and listen to casually, it's best to hear it through headphones and lose yourself in it. This time will actually fly by if you don't have a heart attack first.

Bass Communion is a solo project for Stephen Wilson, lead man for Porcupine Tree who also releases solo projects under his own name. Bass Communion is much different from what most fans are used to as far as his music goes however. Typically, under this moniker, Wilson makes experimental, musique concrete albums which uses electronic manipulation and effects to create some interesting soundscapes which are not based on melody.

The EP 'Sisters Oregon' is a four-part composition which uses a boys choir for source material. The choir was originally recorded at Air Studio in London on September 2014. The final mixing and assembly of the EP was done in June of 2017, and this was released on 10' and 12' vinyl in October of 2017, and then later made available as a FLAC download in 2019.

Parts 1 and 2 take up the first side of the vinyl which lasts 14 minutes. The music is very ambient consisting of low drones that fade in and out while oscillating and while airy effects swirl around. There are distant tones that occasionally make themselves heard, but they are soft and almost indiscernible. Listening closely, you can hear some interesting manipulation going on in the low drones which gives it all an intriguing sound and texture. Later on in the track, sustained tones ebb and flow having more of a notational sound and slowly increase in intensity as soft, percussive noises mark the passage of time. The tonal drone continues, and one can hear the buried human vocal element come through from time to time, but this is usually hard to pick out as the sounds are manipulated to sound more like instrumentation than vocals. All the while, this stays sparse and ambient-like and after the tone-drones reach a peak, they begin to fade more quickly as they recede into the distance.

Parts 3 and 4 are combined on the second half of the disc and have a duration of just over 12 minutes. This time we fade into a drone that retains its chordal tones and is more of a medium pitch with the tones more discernable but also more unchanging. As the track nears 4 minutes, there is a sudden heavy and low sound that reverberates until it disappears, and then sustained tones create a slow and mesmerizing series that could almost be considered melodic. The notes are so sustained however, that it isn't possible to pick out any real melody, but they definitely vary and swirl around each other in random sequences and durations. The vocal aspect becomes more clear as it continues, especially in the higher notes.

This particular recording is one of the better Bass Communion albums in that the music is very peaceful with a sense of longing or solitude. The soundscapes are more variant and don't dwell so much on singular sounds, but add variation in tones and textures keeping things interesting and moving forward. The best way to experience this and pretty much any of the Bass Communion recordings is with headphones so you can totally immerse yourself in the soundscapes. Wilson is definitely a talented musician and as such, he has many outlets for his creativity, and even though some don't always understand his music, you can't debate the fact that he is inventive. His use of electronic manipulation with the use of interesting and sometimes unusual source material is what makes him one of the unique talents in the progressive electronic genre, but unfortunately, it tends to get ignored compared to some of his more accessible music.

Bass Communion (Steven Wilson) and VidnaObmana (Dirk Serries) released two collaborations which were called "Continuum" Volumes 1 and 2. After the success of their first collaboration, VidnaObmana used that album and an unreleased Bass Communion track and the tracks from the 1st volume as source material to produce what they called Recyclings, new imaginings of the original tracks that stood on their own for another album. "Continuum Volume 2" was released and it contained 3 new tracks with the same collaboration, but this time, the tracks not only had the same drone style atmosphere, but also incorporated more dynamics (especially in the first track) that gave the soundscapes an even darker and heavier tone.

Finally, in 2010, a Recyclings album for volume 2 came out. But this time, the reconstructions of the volume 2 tracks were done by Justin K. Broadrick from "Godflesh". The heaviness of the source material comes through in these recyclings plus the also have an unsettling, almost industrial feel to them this time. Overall, this makes them much more interesting and not as devoid of time as the ones from the first volume. Don't expect any melodies or standard song structures however. The music is still trance-like, and probably even more so with the repetitive patterns that appear throughout. At least, the second volumes of source material and recyclings are quite distinct from each other, the first relying mostly on drones, the second relying on drones and patterns.

One thing that doesn't change much is that this material is only going to be appreciated by fans of the artists or the genre, and even then, you have to be in the right mood. This album has a much more unsettling result, however, and it can either make it easier or harder to listen to. After this, there were no other continuum recordings made, and its doubtful the second set would have been missed. But yet, here they are. If you are curious, then just know that you are getting into some interesting soundscapes that really have very little semblance to traditional music. If you love drone work created from layers of sound, then you will enjoy these, but the tracks are quite long, around the 20 minute mark. As with the others, I would consider this for fans only.

Bass Communion (Steven Wilson) and Vidma Obmana collaborated together to create an album of soundscapes in 2005. There were three long tracks on that album which were drone style soundscapes. These soundscapes are very ambient and sparse, consisting of slow moving drones and very little percussion. The tracks had very little forward movement and one has to be in a particular mood to listen to them.

The third track on that album was called "Construct III". Steven Wilson did an immersive mix of that track which was an hour long, but this mix was never released. Vidma Obmana used that track, with reference to the other Continuum tracks and created what they called "Continuum Recyclings". Both artists felt that these recyclings stood on their own as far as new and distinct soundscapes, so, in reaction to the success of the Continuum release, they decided to release these reconstructions of the Continuum tracks. Thus we have the creation of The Continuum Recyclings, Volume 1 .

This album consists of 4 tracks, each one with a duration of just under 20 minutes each. Again, these tracks are also very ambient and drone like, soundscapes with little forward movement and no rhythm. Just like the original versions, you have to be in the right mood to bliss out to these. The album come in the form of a double vinyl with a track on each side. Some of the copies also had a CD included which had the unreleased hour-long immersive mix recorded by Steven Wilson. There really isn't much to say about the tracks, they are soundscapes mostly made from drones created by layers of sound. The reworkings are complex and detailed, yet most listeners will miss the details and probably won't hear a lot of difference, because they are subtle and can only be heard with a lot of concentration. This is not music for everyone, and probably only of any interest to collectors or completionists. This is ambient drone music to the max. I have a hard time listening to this at any random time, but there are times when I find it enjoyable and relaxing. However, putting my own viewpoints aside which change from one day to the next, I have to admit that these recordings are only for the hardcore enthusiast.

Chiaroscuro (an Italian word signifying the contrast of light and dark) is a live album from Steven Wilson's solo electronic project Bass Communion. This album only contains two tracks.

The title track "Chiaroscuro" is a 37 minute live recording of Bass Communion's first concert performance. Steven was invited by Dirk Serries from "Fear Falls Burning" to be a special guest at his "Frenzy of the Absolute concert in 2008 in Antwerp, Belgium. The title track is a result of this appearance. It was created using the combination of a laptop and a guitar, all performed by Steven Wilson. The track is a beautiful and harsh recording, and the aptly named track definitely explores light and dark, The music is an ebbing and flowing drone with atmospheric effects similar to the fuzz of electricity with manipulated guitar. This is not music in the traditional sense, but is a soundscape. It can get rather loud and harsh at times leaving you tense and alert, but can sweep you away in psychedelic textural waves in others. To fully appreciate this long musical tone painting, it is best to just let the music take you away while you close your eyes and let your mind paint a picture. While the first half of the track has the loudest sections, the 2nd half is calm and minimal with a very minimal drone and percussive noises that leave behind them a glowing tone. Around the 29 minute mark, the somewhat melodic line intensifies a bit and higher metallic textures swirl around. Guitar noises intensify more and start to become harsh again but it soon slowly fades into the distance.

The 2nd track is called "Fusilier". This track was recorded earlier that same year and was included on the 7" split single (Fear Falls Burning and Bass Communion) that was given to all of the attendants at the previously mentioned concert. It is almost 8 minutes of more guitar and laptop generated sounds, but this time other layers and textures were added and parts were edited during post-production. This track builds slowly until the halfway point when it reaches a fuzzy, heavy and deep climactic drone and remains there while it emits dark and eerie sounds until it abruptly ends.

This music isn't for everybody, but those that give it a chance should give it their attention and not just use it for background music. There are many sounds and textures buried within these soundscapes. For those that love this type of electronic music, this is an excellent album to get lost in. If you go into it knowing that the music is more of a soundscape than traditional music, then you shouldn't be disappointed.

By now, most people know this is Steven Wilson's experimental/ambient/minimal/electronica/avant-garde project. I always find this music somewhat soothing when it isn't too abrasive, beautiful at times and other times too minimal. It is nothing like Porcupine Tree, Blackfield or SW's solo albums. It is not accessible at all. These are soundscapes, however, of the highest caliber, sound paintings.

There have been many albums and EP's released under the moniker of Bass Communion. This collection is simply known as 'Box Set', but it contains 4 CDs, most of it is rare material that has only been available on vinyl, or unreleased material. If you are a Bass Communion fan, then this collection is a must have. I'm going to do this review a little differently however. BC fans will want to know if they have already got this material on other albums, so that is the basis for this review, to let you know the other ways that these tracks are available. If you want information on the actual makeup of the tracks, then check out the reviews (many of them I have already done, or will be doing soon) on each specific album.

Disc One of this collection is called 'Vajrayana/Indicates Void'. The first two tracks (Vajrayana and Aum Shinrikyo) are previously available on a 7' vinyl released in 2004, however they are in edited form. On this collection, they are released for the first time in unedited form. 'Ghosts on Magnetic Tape - Outtake' was previously only available on the 2006 2LP vinyl version of the 'Ghosts on Magnetic Tape' album. 'Indicates Void I-IV' were all previously released on a limited edition (300 copies) vinyl LP in 2005.

Disc Two is named 'Pacific Codex' and is only made up of one 40 minute track. This is taken from source material recorded by Theo Travis and Steven Wilson with the instruments being metallic statues only. This was released in a limited edition (1,000 copies) CD/DVDA box set in 2008.

Disc Three is named 'Reconstructions'. These are all remixes of previously released BC tracks and most of them have been made available on other vinyl releases. The first one is 'After Dark' which is a remix of 'Darkroom' from 2003 previously released on a CD-R as the 'DAC Remixes' in 2004. 'Mousehill' is a remix of 'Use of Ashes' which was released on a 10' vinyl in 2008. 'Behind These Silent Eyes' is originally from Theo Travis' album 'Slow Life' released as a 2 LP vinyl in 2007, however, the version on this collection is an alternate version not available anywhere else. '537171NR848492C' is a reconstruction of 'Andrew Liles' released in 2007 on the CD 'Black Sheep'. 'Wvndrkmmer' is a reconstruction of 'Pyramids' and was originally available on the 'Wvnderkmmer' 5 cassette box set.

Disc Four is called 'Litany/Temporal'. The first two tracks are 'Litany 1 and 2'. They were previously released on the 'Litany' 12 inch vinyl single in 2009. 'The Flight of Song' is a reconstruction of '3 Seconds of Air' released on the 'Flight of Song' vinyl LP in 2009. 'Temporal A and B', the last two tracks, are previously unreleased tracks. These tracks are inspired by Harrison Birtwistle's piece 'Chronometer'. The tracks consist of sounds derived by clocks and other time keeping devices.

This collection definitely has some atmospheric material on it that works well for chilling out, relaxing, meditation or background noise. Unless you are already a BC fan, I would recommend you start with one of the other BC recordings to see if this is something you would be interested in. The music/soundscapes won't make much sense unless you already understand what this type of music is. If you are just starting out with Bass Communion, I would recommend getting Bass Communion I, II, or III before venturing beyond. As far as this collection goes, however, if you are a fan then you can decide for yourself if it is worth it to you or not, but since the original editions are mostly hard to find if you don't already have them, then it is definitely a valuable collection worth the price.

"Vajrayana" is a two track EP from Steven Wilson's Bass Communion project written originally in 2001, but released in 2004. It is quite rare in that only 200 copies were released. Of course, Bass Communion is all Steven Wilson performing and playing everything. Typically, the music is made up of manipulated sounds, loops and/or field recordings and are always experimental and, in most cases, quite minimalistic. Both tracks are a little over 6 minutes.

The first track, "Vajrayana", is quite eerie with electronic tones and a throbbing percussion and some hardly discernible crackles. Sustained tones are soon added to the repeating pattern. At about the 2 minute mark, percussion stops and there are some louder tones, then the repeating pattern starts again without the throbbing percussion at first, then it fades back in. Intensity builds in what sounds like manipulated choir sounds, but they are processed so much it's hard to tell. This ebbs and flows for a while as other tones come and go. Eventually it all fades out.

The 2nd track is "Aum Shinrikyo". A pattern of 2 quick bass notes repeats with a subdued drone. This is replaced by some strange clicks and pops and then it returns again. An electronic melody made of sustained notes slowly plays over the top of this. Though it is very ambient, it has a dark cast to it with a tense atmosphere.

I find that I experience Bass Communion best when I close my eyes and just let myself get immersed into the sound. It can be like getting transported to being able to visualize scenes in my mind always being influenced by the sounds and experiences in my life at the time of listening. Otherwise, just listening to this for the sake of listening doesn't really accomplish much. I find it strangely beautiful, no matter how minimal it is, and it may seem like a waste of time to a lot of listeners, but I tend to get immersed in it.

Regardless, this EP is completely minimal, so don't expect anything except a nice soundscape. It is reminiscent of previous Bass Communion music, so it really offers nothing other than a few more soundscapes. It is hard to find, thus it is probably best suited to collectors or fans of this style of music.

This EP is the continuation of the Bass Communion and Muslimgauze collaboration started in their album. This EP takes the last two tracks that were completed by the pair, each at almost 10 minutes.

"Six" is more of a trance-like composition with a repetitive tribal rhythm and the atmospherics from BC's ambient music. As with the album, there are plenty of electronic clicks and pops added into the mix. It definitely has a danceable trance vibe throughout it's entire length.

"Seven" is more ambient and experimental, with the tick, tick, pop, pop pattern. Soon, a drone comes in and takes over the pattern and a backward sounding rhythm starts and stops along with a looped electronic sequence. The drone appears and disappears at different times, but the rhythm pattern remains most of the way through.

Again, as with the album, it is impossible to determine what No-man source material was used as it is processed and manipulated to the nth degree. However, this EP is easier to listen to because it is not in such a large dose as the album. If you can find this EP, it would be smart to begin with it to see if you like this combination of Muslimgauze's noise rock and Bass Communion's ambience and then you can progress to the longer album. As for me, again, it is too repetitive and abrasive with the electronic noises and percussion patterns, but it's easier to take in a smaller dose.

While recording the first 3 Bass Communion albums, Steven Wilson got his hands on a copy of one of many of Bryn Jones' (Muslimgauze) albums and was impressed with his ability to explore so many different types of music, that he sent him some of his music recorded with No-man, hoping that he would re-imagine it with his style. Bryn did this and returned it in 4 days with all the songs reworked. Steven then reworked it again and sent it back, after which Bryn did that same thing again. This went on a few times, and eventually, they came up with 7 tracks that they were both happy with. However, with the both of them busy with their own projects, those tracks got pushed to the side. After Jones died in 1999, Wilson polished them up and released 5 of them on this album. Later, the other 2 were also released on an additional EP. Originally, they were going to only make them available on a CD-R at Muslimgauze conerts, but there were so many people interested in them that they made them more widely available.

Over the 15 years of Bryn's musical career, he released over 100 albums on small labels, so the original concept fit in with his recording style. Unfortunately, I'm not very familiar with his work other than the double CD 'Blue Mosque', which utilizes a lot of world music styles centering on percussion. I have heard that his music spanned a lot of different and odd styles. 'Blue Mosque' was also the album that Steven Wilson heard that impressed him. For me, it was an okay recording, but nothing really special or ground breaking.

Which brings us to this album. The five tracks are simply named One, Two, and so on. There really is no telling which No-man songs were used since these tracks have been altered so much, that you can't tell what they are. 'One' starts out with a lot of atmospheric sounds swirling around, each one increasing in volume only to be suddenly cut off. There is a lot of percussive sounds going on too. Suddenly, around the 2:30 mark, a fuzzy rhythmic beat takes off driving this track forward. A bass riff starts off and you get a nice, upbeat modern electronic style that is almost accessible compared to most other Bass Communion music. You can hear pretty much all the instruments at one time or another in the swirling music. But one would be hard pressed to figure out what the specific source material is. It does have more of an earlier Porcupine Tree feel to it than any of the other Bass Communion albums.

'Two' starts off with some really cool electronic sounds. The sounds seem literally electronic and among them, you even hear snippets of a vocalist, but they mix in with the other sounds. This one is definitely more experimental. Some processed music glues it all together, but the tones are subdued, as if playing in another room. A pattern gets established eventually, as the effects take on a more percussive role, but not in any traditional sense. The music remains more of a repeating loop of sustained notes that slightly change pitch. This all disappears eventually and we're left with those strange electronic sounds again.

'Three' is the longest track at over 13 minutes. It takes right off with a crazy percussion pattern that starts and stops with no warning. A fuzzy tone and synthesized sounds accompany this beat. This stop/start pattern continues until you get to the 5 minute mark, then you are left with electric pulses that are subdued with sudden bursts of noise that can scare the living daylights out of you. A new, tricky percussive pattern starts at 7 minutes with the pulses continuing. A lot of the subtle differences and layers are all percussive except for some indiscernible voices and electronic sounds. Later in the track, there are what sounds like some middle eastern influences buried in the mix. The percussion gets less evasive as it continues.

'Four' is the shortest track at just under 5 minutes. It starts out quite minimal with what sounds like astronaut voices. Percussion and metallic noises fade in a looping pattern that stops suddenly and starts again. This fades out and you get a drone, some percussion and a backward sounding percussion.

The last track 'Five' has a compelling rhythm right off the bat and a repetitive guitar hook. You get the cool processed music turned into percussion on this also, making some very interesting textures and sounds. The rhythm slowly gets disassembled and reassembled with new textures and sounds added throughout.

Right away, you hear Muslimgauze's influence on this Bass Communion album with all of the experimentation with percussive sounds. This is almost always present with the atmospherics of Bass Communion. It adds an interesting layer to the music, plus it is also relies more on repetition, sometimes with subtle changes and other times with sudden and very apparent changes. It's a nice dynamic, but sometimes it can be too repetitive before there is a sudden change. Also, Muslimgauze's noise rock influence almost completely takes away the ambience and minimalism of BC's sound. Yes it is there, but harder to find among the percussive textures.

All in all, it's an intriguing listen, but not something that I can listen to very often, because mostly of the repetitive percussion. It can also be abrasive at times. I definitely prefer the Bass Communion solo albums over this, but it is still interesting to listen to on occasion. If you like experimental noise rock, then this is something you would definitely want to check out though.