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Book of Shadows is a spacy ambient project by husband-and-wife team Carlton and Sharon Crutcher, from Austin, Texas. Carlton has years of experience as a keyboardist in the space rock band ST 37, and though I haven't heard the latter, I presume a lot of elements from that music have seeped through into this project.
The music on this long album is based mainly on Carlton's keyboard sounds (mostly creating relaxed drones and waves) and the heavily manipulated vocals of Sharon. These wordless vocals are very particular, and I expect them to be a love-it-or-hate-it affair for many people. On the one hand, they remind me a bit too much at times of dolphin new age music, but then again, they fit the music quite well, and mind you, this album is a much darker affair than the previous comment might suggest. Quite often, Sharon really freaks out and then the vocals turn quite unsettling and original, like on the title track. They also remind me slightly of Aaron Hurley's high-pitched vocals on Phantom Dog Beneath the Moon, which is a good thing. Besides these two main elements, there are a lot of effects and noises, effective use of the theremin, and bits and pieces of guitar and synthesizer. Most of the tracks are very abstract, fitting well within the space ambient niche, though not sounding like any other project out there. The use of many unconventional sounds, like the very faint music sample at the end of "Music for Cocoon Bearing Animals and Insects Part 2" contributes to this. At times, the space rock influence seeps through, as in the synthesizer part on "Malkuth".
Sadly, though, the album is a bit overlong, and especially the second half of the album is a bit less exciting than the first. Besides that I wouldn't have minded a slightly clearer production, as it's all a bit murky right now, which never does spacy music any good, in my opinion. However, this doesn't keep ...and then we all woke up from being quite the interesting trip, not to mention original. If you enjoy space music with some nice experimental touches, and an 'out there' feel to it, be sure to check this one out.
O.S.
The music on this long album is based mainly on Carlton's keyboard sounds (mostly creating relaxed drones and waves) and the heavily manipulated vocals of Sharon. These wordless vocals are very particular, and I expect them to be a love-it-or-hate-it affair for many people. On the one hand, they remind me a bit too much at times of dolphin new age music, but then again, they fit the music quite well, and mind you, this album is a much darker affair than the previous comment might suggest. Quite often, Sharon really freaks out and then the vocals turn quite unsettling and original, like on the title track. They also remind me slightly of Aaron Hurley's high-pitched vocals on Phantom Dog Beneath the Moon, which is a good thing. Besides these two main elements, there are a lot of effects and noises, effective use of the theremin, and bits and pieces of guitar and synthesizer. Most of the tracks are very abstract, fitting well within the space ambient niche, though not sounding like any other project out there. The use of many unconventional sounds, like the very faint music sample at the end of "Music for Cocoon Bearing Animals and Insects Part 2" contributes to this. At times, the space rock influence seeps through, as in the synthesizer part on "Malkuth".
Sadly, though, the album is a bit overlong, and especially the second half of the album is a bit less exciting than the first. Besides that I wouldn't have minded a slightly clearer production, as it's all a bit murky right now, which never does spacy music any good, in my opinion. However, this doesn't keep ...and then we all woke up from being quite the interesting trip, not to mention original. If you enjoy space music with some nice experimental touches, and an 'out there' feel to it, be sure to check this one out.
O.S.