#2176 Laurie Spiegel - The Expanding Universe (Original 1980 Edition)

A masterpiece of tone, shaping simple analog parts into graceful acts of warmth, texture, imagery.

The centerpiece is the sidelong title track, an endless minimal raga of slow, deep electronic drones, so patiently paced, so richly realized, capable of removing your body, of becoming void and light, of shifting your thinking, removing your priorities. Gorgeous, simple, quietly perfectly realized.

But the other 3 tracks are brilliant in their own right, and help ease you into place for your intergalactic disintegration. You drive to the facility to Patchwork, bleeping with light futurism and blinking lights and passing cars, beatless motorik eutopia. And as you pass through the halls and settle into your suit, Old Wave and Pentachome split the difference, falling further and further into pure tone exploration till you're gone.

(So yes, stick with the original 4-track release: the 2012 CD release packs 5 tracks in the middle (and plenty on the end) that disrupt the well-paced original)

4/5