New Music Tuesday: Brian Eno's 'Small Craft On A Milk Sea'

Brian Eno is one of those guys I've known about forever. Heard about forever. Probably even laughed at jokes about his ambient records and talent in recording an album with everyone ever. Hell, the only album I listened to with his name on it before was his 2008 project with David Byrne. I tried to listen to some Roxy Music, but it didn't pull me in right away.

But this. Wow. When I heard 'ambient' and 'instrumental', I didn't think of music that would be very volatile or moody. I thought of light, thoughtful soundscapes barely above the par set by those Target ambient CD booths. Obviously I'm an idiot.

The textures and sounds on this album are full and all encompassing, no matter what the mood is. While I enjoy the more whimsical beginning, I REALLY enjoy the descent into the darker moods in the title (and third) track. The album itself works as an emotional roller coaster with '2 Forms of Anger' being the emotional downhill speeding car. It builds emphatically from a tense thumping to a cacophony of sound and adrenaline at ~2:09.

The album works itself back to a greater, but suspicious calm with the immediately following 'Bone Jump'. The most I can say about this album is that each song elicits a specific and intended emotion and I love the way this 'background' music and influence the particular mood that I am in face experiencing. A very interesting album to drive with at a loud setting, and it definitely should be digested as a WHOLE. Not in single track snippets.

Brian Eno - 'Small Craft On A Milk Sea' -> 4.4/5

Listen to the whole album streaming here.