New netlabel assembles a collective sonic dream
As the newly founded UK-based netlabel's first official release, Phantom Channel Presents... Part 1 effectively gathers all of the greatest ambient artists you've never heard of into one cohesive, digestible and highly captivating compilation. Consider it a sampler of sorts for minimalist-electronic enthusiasts, featuring the freshest sounds in the genre from all corners of the globe, with artists hailing from the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, USA, and more.
While most music compilations are worth only as much as the tracks they feature, Phantom Channel Presents... Part 1 offers a deliberate and effective presentation which makes it really "work" as a whole piece. The track ordering is flawless, each song having been mixed and mastered to allow the entire album to flow together as one fluid composition. Indeed, this compilation acts much less like just a collection of tracks and more like one hour-long ambient epic with nine movements, each contributed by a different artist in his own unique style.
In addition to its effective arrangement, Part 1 is also noteworthy for the impressive quality of music it features. It's unfortunately rather easy to "fake" minimalist compositions these days, as is evident by the fact that everyone and their mother now seems to have an ambient side-project. Despite this reality, Phantom Channel clearly has no tolerance for anything but the very best, and it shows greatly on this release. With so many phonies floating about on MySpace, Part 1 is a must-listen for those who really want a taste of the "real deal" when it comes to ambient electronica, whether amidst the ethereal soundscape of Parhelion's "Forgotten Outpost," the calming tones of Mosca's "Brand New Polaroid," or any of the other amazing compositions which grace this album's contents.
If this compilation's quality tells us anything, it is certainly that Phantom Channel has taken a bold first step towards becoming one of the web's next great netlabels. With such a stacked roster of artists already on display in Part 1, it seems likely that the label will only continue to dazzle us with their next compilation, Part 2, which should appear sometime in the coming months.
The album is available for download FREE from Phantom Channel: http://www.phantomchannel.co.uk/releases.html
| Reviewer: Sean Butze Added: April 2nd 2008 |
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