Rameses III Basilica

release date february 2008

label: Important Records
artists: rameses, robert horton, keith berry, greg kowalsky, neil campbell
format: double CD

Basilica is Rameses III´s eagerly anticipated follow-up totheir acclaimed release Honey Rose (Important), Basilica is a double album of live recordings of new Rameses material accompanied by re-interpretations of those same recordings by contemporaries Robert Horton, Keith Berry, Gregg Kowalsky and Astral Social Club.

Each artist approached to contribute to the Basilica disc was given free range to experiment with the live files, to re-invent and re-interpret the recordings as they saw fit.

Minimalist sound-sculptor Keith Berry rolled out the slow-motion waterfalls of Basilica and gave the album an early focus and provided inspiration for the glacial artwork.

Gregg Kowalsky played the Rose Blood remix as part of his own performance at the OVERLAP 02 event in San Francisco using its tuned sinewave oscillators, cassette tapes and loops to induce, to quote the man himself, "a psychoacoustic listening experience".

Our subtle textures were pushed way into the red when noise veteran Neil Campbell sandblasted the original tracks into the howling mirror of Astral Social Club. His Tigers In The Snake Pit was remixed live in the very same venue in which it was originally performed and finessed with some post-performance layering.

And Robert Horton was open-minded and kind enough to allow Rameses III to remix his remix, leading to the gentle trumpet curlicues and electronic birdsong entwining the original drone of After The Red Rose.

Although Basilica was originally envisioned as a single disc album, once the remixes were complete it slowly became evident that they should be paired with a disc of live recordings in order to put the Basilica disc into context. In contrast to the heavily-produced and painstakingly-constructed Rameses studio albums, all five of the previously-unreleased tracks on the Origins disc were recorded directly to stereo at various venues around London. As such, they fully represent those moments in performance where the trio strive to make the most beautiful music they can.

Ramesses III ruled Egypt for thirty years; Rameses III has ruled my headphones for three weeks. Thanks, Wikipedia. The nomenclature is abstruse and inexplicable and probably just as well. The pharaoh's reign was marked by conspiracy and conflict, but this music is all snowdrift and hush, the calm center of the universe, even in its loudest moments. The disparity is fine. As with most music of its kind, we are free to read into things here what we may.

I believe in two dirty secrets of ambient music, and that is the importance of process and packaging in their overall artistic success. Basinski's Disintegration Loops—ambient's high point this decade, perhaps—are magnanimous and wrenching on their own, but knowing the physical process of decay that worked upon them and having the context reiterated by the New York skyline packaging makes their 2002 release all the more felt. Likewise, as a music that acknowledges and attempts to become part of the physical world (hence the name) ambient's packaging should be appropriately well-thought; it is the music's ambassador to the physical world it attempts to influence. These principles hold true on Rameses III's excellent Basilica.

The release contains two short discs. Disc two (dubbed Origins) is all live performances from various venues in London. The first disc is the album proper, and is comprised of four remixes of the live performances into greater wholes. I'll cut to the quick: the first disc—the remixes—is a

sanguine and frequently astonishing affair. I might even call it beautiful and just let that word hang, unverified and woefully overused, because defining or qualifying the term in the context of a straight ambient record is moot. Sometimes ambient works, in other places it does not, and on Basilica we find scintillating sonic inspiration working all over your face. Its sounds are less haunted by melody than pregnant with them, aglow, perhaps because of the subsumed Origins they portend to remix.

Although, seriously, "remix" is a term loosely applied here. The discs contain no discernible trace of one another. If the titanic wintry waterfall of the album's packaging is a visual symbol for the music of Basilica, all grandiloquently beautiful, think of Origins as an indoor swimming pool, tones playing softly against one another and quiet patter and home. Album standout "Rose Blood" (from Basilica) features in its sixth minute of spiraling choirs a single celestially pitched tone—when it comes it hits like an alarm clock but lingers upon that moment of awakening before more sine waves crash and recede for another ten minutes. "Origins III," probably the most full among the Origins pieces, maintains its calm, and when it hits notes they are played lazily and as accented as feels pleasurable.

And, like I said, it's good ambient. It works. Let it have its space among your possessions.

cokemachineglow [Clayton Purdom]

We had a friend over last night and around 11pm my 3 year old son Henry woke up and came downstairs. He saw 'Basilica' out and asked me to play it saying that it was his favorite record. When I put it on he said "This isn't music, it's a movie." I thought that was pretty well said, myself.

Important Records [John Brien]

Here english Ambient/ slowed post-rock  guitar and synth duo return with their second releases on Important after the simply stunning  rural tinged 'Honey Rose' ep from last year. This double disk set brings together a disk of live recordings of new material and an remix/ re-contextualized versions of the live tracks by the likes of Robert Horton, Keith Berry, Gregg Kowalsky, Astral Social Club.

I'll have to admit the original and live tracks initially under whelmed me alot after the distinctive, atmospheric and tuneful Honey Rose. I expected more of the same but this is a much more slow, dreamy and less structured, the tracks drift with sun warming guitar drones, expansive shimmering melodic strums that hint of country, blues and slowed post- rock-isms, With the odd brush of synth textures and slight touches of environmental sound. When I excepted the pace and slow unfolding-ness of it all it certainly made more sense. Though I  do enjoy it I still feel a little under whelmed- it's pleasantly enough but still somehow wanting.

The second disk of the remixes are far more rewarding and appealing, thankful the are no major changers or sudden use of beats(thank god) but the tracks just seem to blossom and develop more. As each remixer finds and investigate new textures and sound movements. The tracks managing to keep their own original feel and personality, never really taking on much of their remixers ones. It's just like the sonic ideas and textures have been watered and let to grow into fuller formed perfume heavy and beautiful sonic flowers.

So in summing up passable collection of  live ambient tracks and their more rewarding, detailed, rich and remixed cousins- certainly worth a look if you enjoy guitar ambience and mellow soundtracking.

Musique Machine [Roger Batty]

Approaching atmospherics outside the glen, Rameses III, the UK trio of Spencer Grady (guitar and noise), Steve Lewis (guitar), and Daniel Freeman (keyboard and processing), are set to release a double album on Important. The collection pairs live Rameses recordings from the Red Rose Club on March 2, 2006 with remixes of that "source material" by Gregg Kowalsky, Robert Horton, Keith Berry, and Astral Social Club. The remixes are complexly riveting, but the purity of the live records are my favorite. For instance, the majestic "Origins II."

As far as the remixes go, the minimalist treatment by Keith Berry seems most in line with the group's regular, untouched presence.

Stereogum

A wonderful collection of remixes and live recordings from the Rameses III camp, conveniently divided between two discs offering two very different listening experiences. The Basilica set features remixes by Robert Horton, Keith Berry, Gregg Kowalsky and Astral Social Club, all of which somehow feel like they've been undertaken with the same goal in mind. The steady, profound ambience of these works could hardly be more immersive, with Digitalis regular and Tom Carter collaborator Horton introducing a subtle ebullience, laying down major key experiments as an introductory composition. Next comes Keith Berry, an artist who began his career recording for Bernhard Gunter's Trente Oiseaux label and his since gone on to compose such widely acclaimed microsound works as The Ear That Was Sold To A Fish (a beautiful album, but one that came packaged in fresh tea leaves, meaning period of fairly intense dusting was necessary every time you wanted to play the thing). In his reinterpretation of the title track Berry occupies an intense stillness, like a cascade of subtly modulating cold liquid drone. Gregg Kowalsky's treatment of 'Rose Blood' is rather more extroverted, tackling his source material in an almost celebratory fashion, with overtones in the background sounding like church bells. Neil Campbell is less upbeat on his 'Tigers In The Snake Pit' reinterpretation, allowing more aggressive dissonant sounds into the mix. Between the four re-compositions on the disc there's plenty of variety and quality on offer to justify a purchase in its own right, but given the addition of the second, live disc, Origins -

offering the rawest possible perspective on the haunting Rameses III sound - there's an abundance of material to make this release worthy of your investigation.

boomkat

More drifty droney gear is in order as we just can't seem to get enough of it. Fortunately Rameses III is at hand with their new 2CD set 'Basilica' on Important Records. The 2nd disc (who says I have to do the 1st disc first?) is new tracks recorded live.... the 1st disc features re interpretations of those tracks by folks like Robert Horton, Keith Berry, Gregg Kowalsky and Neil 'Astral Social Club' Campbell. Long middle name right...... This is lush stuff indeed. I've heard the reinterpretations disc twice now and the Keith Berry reinterpretation is one of the warmest pieces of Drone music I've heard in ages. It's well Kranky..... with a bit of Eno. The Origins disc (ie the live tracks) is completely beautiful warm ambient music with layers and textures that lull you into this lush 2 disc set.... Again I can hear lots of Eno.... but with a healthy dose of Loren Connors chucked in. On both discs there are some of the most gorgeous ambient atmospheric pieces of music I've heard in ages. Fantastic stuff!!

normanrecords [Phil Norman] record of the week 25/03/2008