1. The Summon
  2. Explorations In Space
  3. Galileo
  4. Hummel
  5. Dialogues Of Energy
  6. Astrollenium
  7. De Profundis
  8. Domes Of Light



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review		 I first heard a track from the Hummel album on the "Echoes" late night program on NPR and immediately knew I had fallen on a gem. As a big fan of Tangerine Dream era '73-'77, I keep hoping to come across more albums that display the same unique sound of "deep space" made legendary by TD (think Ricochet, Rubycon, Encore). Well, look no further. Hummel is as good as, if not better, than anything TD ever put out. Clearly, the Hummel album is a loving tribute by Spacecraft to TD. The album starts of with The Summon, a 15+ min. track that starts off slowly with an atmospheric guitar solo and eventually finding its rhythm in a nicely-done sequenced piece. Explorations in Space is aptly-titled and reminiscent of the mood found on the "Spacecraft" debut album. The title track is without a doubt the best track on the album, another 15+ min. piece, more urgently and densely sequenced than The Summon. What can I say, this is the very best you will find in today's "space music" genre, bar none. The rest of the album is very good as well, although it cannot match the outstanding quality of the first 4 tracks.Spacecraft is fairly prolific, and has issued several albums since, none of which have matched the quality of Hummel However, the Cybersphere album issued in 2001 comes very close and is in my opinion the true worthy sequel to Hummel.Meanwhile, enjoy the deep pulses, sequencers and screeching guitar solos that will be reminiscent of that certain German space music pioneer band. Hummel is a 70 min. masterpiece of space music. By all means, BUY THIS!
2000. © Paul Allaer



review		 This live recording at Eastern Kentucky University's Hummel Planetarium captures the music reflecting and directing laser light refracting within the sky-vault dome. Those of us fortunate enough to have come across Tony Gerber's Blue Western Sky will hear a strong echo of that earlier work here.Joining Gerber is John Rose and Diane Timmons on synthesizers. And going a delightful step further we have Timmons' angelic, wordless choir vocals adding an ethereal human dimension There is a definite Tangerine Dream sequenced Tangram structure to The Summon which comes off quite well. Explorations In Space is more of a Jonn Serrie/Steve Roach thing but evokes strongly the darker galactic atmospherics of Spacecraft, another Gerber, Rose, Timmons, et al project. Galileo returns to a sequenced T. Dream/ Kitaro snippet. Hummel, the title track opens with phased cosmic winds and a very Edgar Froese solo feel. I heard Aqua, Stuntman, and even that T. Dream classic, Rubycon. This is a great track, letting one hear what Tangerine Dream could be doing if they weren't noodling around doing dance mixes or worse. Gerber adds guitar in this track's outro. Dialogues of Energy is a percussive, ethnic-tribal, chime-vibes, Water Music-ish piece with Nik Tyndall tendencies that is a nice rhythmic change-of-pace. A bit of Peter Buffet piano is woven into the crystalline passages. Astrollenium crawls all over you in the thick heaviness of a droning, resonant mass. Gerber solos on an overdriven, infinite-sustain guitar. The effects on your head with this one are near maddening with delight. When you think you can stand no more ecstasy, Timmons' lilting and haunting voice peels away another layer of your spinal column. This is the light-at-the-end-of-the-tunnel. Timmons' voice is like a riding out a positive NDE. "Oh man, this is good!" We are treated to more of Timmons on De Profundis as she chant-sings in Latin, a psalm to the reigning King of the Universe, Jehovah God, Yahweh of Israel. Beautiful synth keys accompany her in a David Lanz, Peter Buffet, T. Dream style with the slightest touchof reggae mixed with a sombre Middle Eastern flair. Very nice. I'll save the last track, Domes of Light for you to experience without any of my opinion. Enjoy!This is a wonderful way to experience ambience and electronic music. I heartily recommend this offering. Folks, this is a must-have.
2000. © John W. Patterson



review		 Spacecraft sets the controls for deep space with music recorded live in the Hummel Planetarium in Kentucky. This trio of synthesizers and guitar recalls early - '70s Tangerine Dream, when that group was still using live performances as free-form explorations rather than pre-programmed computations. Befitting the planetarium environment, this is music more of design than melody, and it has a pulse more than a rhythm. From the amorphous textures of Explorations In Space to the tugging sequencer patterns of the title track, sounds and forms shift and morph through each other, gradually revealing broad chordal structures, gentle pulses, and the interlocking patterns that have long been the hallmark of space music. Spacecraft does it better than many contemporary practitioners, and Tony Gerber's sinuous guitar leads add another dimension to this sound.
2000. © John Diliberto