Feb 10, 2013

Sundaze 1306


Hello, as the North-East of the Americas is remembered once more of global warming and that it means a couple of extra feet of snow with an extra windchill factor and not shorts weather all year around. That said I do find it baffling that Americans persist in having their electric infrastructure above ground, time and again people are blacked out when simply laying the cabling underground would solve that problem, yes it's more expensive short term, but safer and cheaper in the long term. Then again maybe it's nostalgia, not wanting to loose that third world look.

Today's artist won't have that problem as he's all solar energy, good thing those London fog days are over. He's got two faces an acid-trance side but a fantastic chill out side as well, here to ...N'joy..

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Solar Quest is a one-man ambient and acid trance music project founded in 1993 by George Saunders and its aim is to combine renewable solar energy with electronic music. George Fleming-Saunders was born as Seoras Saunders (Seoras is the Scottish Gaelic form of George) in Scottish Redlands and grew up in the county of Stirlingshire.

Fleming-Saunders began his career under the pseudonym Solar Quest in 1993, when he got interested in acid house in the beginning of the 1990’s. The track Acid Air Raid, released in 1993, is one of the classics of acid techno. In 1993 and 1994 he had at least nine releases, of which two were full length albums (the other under alias Entropica). Saunders has had cooperation with e.g. British DJ Choci, under whose record label Choci’s Chewns most of Solar Quest’s early releases were published. The British singer Kirsty Hawkshaw’s vocals can be heard on many of them. He is credited as introducing Phil Ross and Chris Deckker at a 1993 trance party in North London's Dome Club which was being held to raise legal fees for a friend languishing in an Indian jail. Between 1993 and 1994, published Fleming Saunders nine singles and maxis and two albums . An album from this period called Sonic Bloom Entropica Prolifica but he published under his pseudonym alternative Entropica .

Solar Quest made regular performances at the Source parties and contributed tracks to three Return to the Source compilation albums - Deep Trance and Ritual Beats (1995) and The Chakra Journey (1996) as well as Ambient Meditations 1 (1998).For the annual Glastonbury Performing Arts Festival Solar Quest has often produced a solar energy powered ambient concert tent and a lot of its music has been recorded and mixed in a studio powered by solar energy.

As a musical instrument he uses, among other things one analog synthesizer -type TB-303 . His music has been predominantly from the label 's releases Choci Chewns (1993-1995), SSR Records (1993-1995) and Entropica (since 1998). Fleming-Saunders alternative pseudonyms: Benkei and Entropica . Variations and alternative spellings of the artist name Solar Quest are The Solar Questionmark? , The Solar Questionmark! , Ed Solar Quest , Solaquest , Solar Quest and Solar Quest .

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Solar Quest's "Orgship" is one of those desert island discs that you grab when all that matters to you is your relaxation and you're peacefullness. The ease and depth of "Belle of Atlantis" nicely brings you to that place. Imagine yourself laying in a boat (with this kind of depth it would have to be an ocean), you are looking towards the heavens and you are floating about to it's dream like flowing synth that sounds as if it's brushing the skies while the percussion rings out like shooting stars. Adding elements like thunder, soft waves, wonderful analog percussion and pads, you quickly see why this is one the of best island discs off all time. Then to go on saying this isn't even my favorite song on the disk tells you what a classic this album is. "Save the Whale" nearly brings me to tears everytime i hear the first 20 seconds and to know what is about to come in the next 8 minutes. It's one of the best tracks i have ever heard and I'm not over-exagerating. The rest of the album has it's moments but whenever I put on this cd i end up playing "Save the Whale" for hours and i never get to appeciate the other songs. I guess that tells you in a nutshell how much i love this track. Thank you George Saunders!



Solar Quest - Orgship (flac  276mb)

01 The Belle Of Atlantis 11:28
02 Singtree 6:20
03 Awaken Kundalini 6:42
04 Liquid Sky 8:50
05 The Open Path 9:02
06 Save The Whale 8:14
07 Requiem For A Lily 3:55
08 Flying Spirals 17:11

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"To be used with caution...
These are not sounds...
They are seeds...
Plant one in ambient space
and marvel at its growth.

Generated by Solar Quest"



Entropica - Sonic Bloom Entropica Prolifica (flac 160mb)

01 Alignement 8:52
02 Immersion 10:06
03 Leviathan Mind 10:38
04 Sea Of Tranquility 9:48
05 Solar Wind 8:05
06 Entropica 9:56
07 Realignement 9:27

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This is warm, subtle and smooth chillout, the music that is produced is of the 'organic' sound with plenty of atmospheric natural noising, thoroughly chilled and with a mixture of beat and beatless tracks, a fabulous ambient journey. There is not really much point dwelling on the tracks one at a time as they are soft-mixed together, and it is the overall effect that is so pleasant. Certain tracks do stand out however - notably Anchors in the Mist which has a divine flute swirling and wafting the ears downstream. Absolutely blissful. The flute is back in Switch off your Mind - this time with a snare beat and plenty of weirdness. In fact the general intensity of the Orgisms cd builds as the tracks go on with more beat structure until the wonderful Ceremonial which just launches the imagination onto another plane. This is the proper length for a chillout track in my mind, and you may still be sorry when the album comes to a stop.



Solar Quest - Orgisms (flac 395mb)

01 Cherchez La Lumiere 6:06
02 Dubblet 6:48
03 Lucid Beauty 7:22
04 Levitation 10:03
05 Walking Tree 5:53
06 Anchors In The Mist 8:39
07 The Groove Merchant 4:57
08 Switch Off Your Mind 7:20
09 Misanthropy 4:00
10 Seven Veils 2:29
11 Ceremonial 14:46

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5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Any chance we can get a re-up for the FLAC version of Solar Quest - Orgship?

Rho said...

Well seeing that it's just 4 months ago, you can. Good luck with it

Anonymous said...

You're a prince amongst men!

Thank you so very much!

Emblem said...

Rho, after reading your review:

"Save the Whale" nearly brings me to tears everytime i hear the first 20 seconds and to know what is about to come in the next 8 minutes. It's one of the best tracks i have ever heard and I'm not over-exagerating."

I want to ask if you could please re-upload the albums!

Thank you.

Emblem said...

I have been listening to Orgship. Nice downtempo album. I especially like the first and last two tracks (and "Save the Whale" too, of course, which reminds me of certain songs by Moby).
Thanks for the album.