Apollo Atmospheres & Soundtracks

by

Brian Eno

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I was 16 when I first heard this lp (1986). A friend and I were to do an astronomy project together in high school, talking about Novas, supernovas, the moon, the sun, the whole works. We easily got footage together for the project, and we quickly went to work splicing and dicing to get exactly what we wanted for our 15 minute presentation- but we both wanted music to use for it. I wanted to use Pink Floyd's "Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun," in its own right a great piece of music. But my buddy's friend had the solution- a Brian Eno lp that fit perfectly. I was no stranger to Eno, having already bought "Music for Airports" a few years earlier. So, he threw his lp on, and man, it was eerie- and perfect. We got an "A" on that report, and I had inherited an lp unlike any other.

This lp personifies all things spacy and ambient, yet sophisicated and exact in science, yet also moving and emotional. Not many lps of any grnre can mesh it so much in so few tracks, but Eno, Eno and Lanois did just that.

The tracks are barely pieces (save "An Ending(Ascent)", a piece who's beauty still makes me cry to this day, and we used for the Moon landing shots we had in our project. I'm sure Eno would have aproved), which adds to the amazing beauty and textures they create. Simply astounding.

I could babble on for years talking about this lp, but the music speaks better than I ever could for it. I still play it several times a week at night, and it still moves me to tears- almost 15 years later. That's the sign of great music. This lp is that good.

Composed as the soundtrack to a documentary about the Apollo missions, "Apollo: Atmospheres & Soundtracks" is an evocative and intriguing entry in Brian Eno's catalog. Assisted by Daniel Lanois and Roger Eno, the album, similar to "On Land", is an exercise in mood. Moreso than "On Land", it also seems to be embracing conceptually loose themes within the music, there's hints of melodies, admittedly heavily deconstructed, that flitter in and out of the music. There also seems to be less emphasis on looping than in previous works, while the loops are present, they tend to be longer, providing a lot more movement to the music.

The pieces conjure a number of moods, mostly anticipation of various sorts, but raises through the sort of elation to a near panicked state, and yet without ever getting above the quiet din the genre "ambient music" implies.

While not as good as several other of Eno's ambient releases, "Apollo" is an interesting listen. Start somewhere else, but as you explore Eno's catalog, this one is worth checking out.