Tor Lundvall - The Seasons Unfold

A box set from Tor Lundvall. Say that with me again... an entire boxed set of music from Tor Lundvall. I have to blink a few times just to take it all in, but here's a little synopsis about Tor first: he lives in East Hampton, New York, and if you've ever been to that part of the United States, what he does is an obvious soundtrack for the place. The rustle of leaves, the crackle of bark under one's nails, the pale moon sitting above a motionless lake on a cold, crisp night... it's all there. This is the setting he operates (and paints) within. It is his musical endeavors, however, which have given me the greatest pleasure to collect over the years.

If a man's worth is determined by his love of solace and reflection then Lundvall is cast from solid platinum. This set comprises two of his insanely out of print albums "Ice" and "The Mist", an available one: "Under The Shadow of Trees" and an unreleased goldmine of basic tracks replete with never before heard ambient pieces from the sessions which ended up becoming the triumphal autumn celebration he did with Tony Wakeford, "Autumn Calls". This bonus album is titled "Turning" and it surely is that. You can almost feel the cold, cutting winds of fall catch at the back of your throat while you play it. Heavily reverbed vocals are the order of the day on all of this work, that is when they even appear. The lion's share of this thing is purely instrumental and undeniably regal in execution. With this release, Tor joins John Foxx and Gas in the elite vanguard of ambient, dreamlike aural escapism. Unlike Foxx, he doesn't compose symphonic visions of drowned cathedrals; and while Gas create stately minimalist techno atmospheres, Lundvall does not confine himself to being dis-associative... his is a style of total immersive ambiance. The living, breathing marrow of existence itself.

This, believe it or not, is the standard edition. There was also a first-run collector's version which came with a fifth disc of outtakes and hidden work on it. Twenty seven copies were sold to the public, the other rumored twenty five were given away to friends. I'll be grateful for what I have managed to find here, because even though I own the three albums previously available, he's remastered them all. On top of this, he's corrected the original artwork and tacked on additional compositions which only magnify the depth and expand the range of this release. Tor holds nothing back and giddily tears down the walls of consciousness through all manner of sounds, it is similar to being in an aviary when the rains begin to fall... all heaven is in a rage.

I had almost given up hope of "The Seasons Unfold" ever seeing the light of day. The original label he was on where this was conceived folded some years ago and with it, a lot of incredibly vivid excursions were thought lost for all time. Here, for a little while, you can procure these rather elusive phantoms before they vanish yet again, this time probably for good. If you're a fan already and own the three albums re-released on here, do not let this pass you by. There are a myriad of details, minor keys and effects which even I had not heard before. "The Seasons Unfold" is absolutely mandatory for anyone who desires to find their own hidden world, it is the rarest of auditory currencies: one which expands in whatever space it is played in and then becomes part of it's surroundings. Listen long enough, and you'll simply become one with it. Magnificent artistry. Mar 27 2011