Stream Of Conciousness

Tempest Recodings (2009)

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Tempest RecordingTempest Recordings/ CUT Music is proud to present “Stream Of Consciousness”, the fifth album for NZ’s Terra Nine.

The brainchild of violinist/ producer Michael Westcot, “Stream Of Consciousness” sees Terra Nine expanded from a solo project to a full band in their most accessible and engaging work yet.

Westcot’s technologically enhanced violin and programming nous is joined by the soaring vocals of Aviatrix, the groove of bassist Cath Dragenovic & the genius of multi-instrumentalist Al Dragenovic along with special guest appearances from Ott (Liquid Sound/ Twisted Records), Pete Ardron (Orchid Star- Liquid Sound/ Archangel Records), Stickleback (Tempest Recordings/ Cosmicleaf Records) & Arcane Trickster (Tempest Recordings/ Cosmicleaf Records)

Strange Craft

Tempest Recodings (2007)

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1. Interluded
The opener track to this stellar downtempo album highlights gossamer pads and scintillating dewdrop synths forming relaxing tonal layers and soft musical scales. Perfect for lowering your heartrate and brainwaves, this one really sinks you into the mood to repose and enjoy this music to its max.

2. Circlemaker (Hesius Dome Vs Arcane Trickster Album Mix)
Picking up precisely where its predecessor left off, the pads evolve, mutate, and expand. Some groovy tribal drums kick in for filtered tribal goodness, with a touch of classic Pink Floyd and reggae which gives you something to analyze while the rest of your perceptions drift away on ethereal violin strings.

3. Pearl
This track represents mideastern inspired electronica at its finest... Combinations of synth strings and percussion are your snake charmers here amongst a soundscape quantized by intricate, unobtrusive precussion arrangements, which take you to another world both human and alien.

4. Brain (Side Liner Remix)
This breaksy track emphasizes its drums and bass and keeps the tones and melodies simple and delicate. Happiness-evoking synth pads fit in nicely with the chilled out breaksline, making for a bittersweet atmosphere of general good vibes with a touch of lonely humanistic longing.

5. Temple
Terra Nine flips the coin on us here. Contrasting the audio optimism of the last with a dark underbelly of slightly sinister soundscapes, this piece consists of acidic synths and dissonant chords and scales. The abundant pad layers and edgy drum lines really make this one work.

6. Momentary
"Strange Craft" diversifies itself even further with an abstract, IDM-esque approach to the drum segments. these in turn lay the foundations for backdrops of organic tones which wash about your senses and give you a sort of otherworldly-swamp-at-twilight vibe... a very intriguing approach.

7. Raj
The drums make a turn towards simplism here, making room for the appearance of vocal chanting and carefully manipulated strings-based soundworks caught imperceptibly between the organic and digital realms. Overall a highly ethnic, uplifting track which is very soothing on the senses.

8. Synchro
This one is surprising! Stepping away from the moods set earlier, this piece waxes urban and futuristic, and does it with class and ease. The drums are crisp and clean, and a duet of rhythm synth and effected guitar paints an audio panorama depicting dancing feet and smiling souls.

9. Ancestors
This dubtastic track takes you on a formless global journey with elements of music inspired by every continent. Between the trance inspiring didjeridoo backdrops and delayed guitar all pulled along by a thick bass undertow, this one quiets the pulse and excites the neurons masterfully.

10. Promise
A highly appealing melodic riff and softspoken drums engage your senses and vehicle an audio safari to parts unknown... expect to encounter anomalous alien wildlife nesting within these soundwaves; the moods and textures are more rich and diverse than a virgin rainforest of sound.

11. Axiom (The Omm Squad in Dub Remix)
Terra Nine wraps up this colorfully heterogeneous collection of masterfull chillout tracks on a strong note... this epiphany inspiring piece takes some from dub-electro and fuses it with pioneering synth melodies and gender-spanning intonations geared straight for tickling those mental delta rays.

Axiom Remixes (Maxi)

Tempest Recodings (2005)

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This latest single is a tune taken from Terra Nine’s critically acclaimed Zero Point album: Axiom. This stand out track gets the remix treatment from Ran Van Hippy, Random Designers and the Ohm Squad along with a previously unavailable mix from Terra Nine.

The first of two mixes included on the single by Random Designers is the huge sounding Breaks Mix which has a deep big room sound. Full of deep grumbling basslines and atmospheric use of the vocal cuts from the original track. The Gypsy Remix from Rip Van Hippy focuses strongly on the Arabian feel strings fused into a manic psy-break beat which carries an intense hypnotic energy throughout the track. Terra Nine provide a second take on their own tune with the Electro Deluxe Remix. This tune is a percussive treat that has a good amount of ambient energy thanks to the complex patterns working away in the background, while the sultry vocal cuts add a smooth touch.

The Trance Remix from the Random Designers immediately booms out a stomping kick and great psy-trance take on the original. Trippy effects and relentless bass make this a highlight mix. Last but not least is the Dub Remix from The Ohm Squad. This ambient mix focuses strongly on the melodies and soft relaxing sounds. Overall, a single jam packed full of quality mixes which span a variety of style ranging from breaks to psy-trance to ambient dub.

Technogeekery, www.inthemix.com.au
Rating ****

Zero Point

Tempest Recodings (2003)

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I used be a huge fan of trance music but eventually moved onto the darker, more structured sounds of techno – the increasingly commercial, happy, vocal-driven trance just didn’t do it for me, and the trippy excesses of psy-trance were all a bit mystical for my taste. So it was interesting to review Zero Point, the third and latest release from Terra Nine – a.k.a. Michael Westcot, Clan Analogue member and long time trance producer.

While definitely trance, this album is far from being either commercial or psy-trance, and tends towards the techier end of the spectrum, with a liberal sprinkling of d’n b. Westcot combines slamming techno drum programming with bubbling, trippy synths and punctuates these with live electric viola/violin. The beat gives his music real edge and weight, the synthesizers provide the “journey” and the strings give it live excitement and texture – altogether a winning combination. The ideas flow thick and fast – some of these tracks should really be two or three tracks – but generally he keeps on top of them, taking you on a barnstorming ride through his imagination – a space-scape populated with strange creatures, experiences and emotions.

The opening track Andromeda has the energy and power of a Crystal Method track – surely one of his influences, as the track shares the drive, power and even the smell of singeing electric guitar of the Method’s Busy Child – but with Terra Nine’s own trance twist and opening whale-song. Axiom features his electric viola, a curiously eastern, plaintive touch on a track that develops power and gravity as it progresses.

Lyra is the standout – an old-fashioned trance epic in the mould of one of the old Platipus artists like Union Jack or Art of Trance. This is a monster of a track – more than 10 minutes of bubbling, rolling, travelling trance. It is a huge journey that escapes a charge of self-indulgence only because of its sheer quality – I’d also have hated to cut anything from it. This track has made me determined to give trance another try – I’d love to spend a night dancing to this sort of thing again. Floaty, dreamy passages, slamming hard beats, reality-distorting sections, this track has it all – gradually it grows, pulsing and swelling and swirling into a gloriously triumphant crescendo of sound. Lovely.

That was definitely the highlight of the album though, and the rest of the album is less notable. If you are a drum and bass aficionado, you’ll probably get more from it than I did – I personally don’t think that the two styles blend very easily. Propitious Beat is an example of this style, with the heavy beats and almost broken rhythms contrasting oddly with the lighter trance sounds. I didn’t enjoy the piano on Prism – but then I have a real thing against pianos in dance music. Zero Point itself is pretty, swirly trance and closes the album in a positive way. Overall this is a mixed bag, but definitely coming out on the recommended side of the equation. It’s worth buying for Lyra alone – and I’m going to keep an eye out for gigs where Terra Nine is playing as I think he will sound fabulous live. Check it out.

Technogeekery, www.inthemix.com.au

Paranormal

Air Recordings (2002)

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The second release from terra nine (aka Mike Westcot) - Paranormal is a rare, and cut above, dance treat. Westcot is smart about his techno, paying respect to the days of rave, while realizing the need for a contemporary edge. And you can almost picture him doing this with glee, grinning at the contradictions.

He cross-pollinates the basic form with elements of ambient, big beat and trance - styles which on their own can nullify the urge to move. But Westcot creates a seamless flow of tracks that inspire movement, mentally and physically, lazy and bouncy.

Sidereal is the prime example of the Terra Nine agenda. Starting with a chunky big beat, he builds not so much to a crescendo, but a plateau, driving the beat home. But he won't hear of a listening lull, swiftly pulling the rug form under you with his interruption of electric viola and minimal drums.

Paranoia is simultaneously trancey and industrial, with uneven beats and a little backstepping. Son of Z Rave: The title says it all, right? Wrong. Sure, it's a masterful piece of pulverizing techno, and the highest track bmp scale. Yet on closer inspection we see an arrangement running circles around its self. Westcot knows it's not enough for a track to overheat and cleverly gives it respite with smooth electro dissolves. Nostalgic maybe, but future techno definitely.

Planet of Choice

Tempest Recodings (1999)

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Sydney electronic musician Michael Westcot - aka Terra Nine - works the contradictions in his music hard. At one end his brutal techno beats verge into raw percussion and shades of hardcore. At the other, his ambient pieces take on a warm experimental softness. At the point where these opposing ideas finally intersect - on the track "Supreme 42" - a strange, oriental jigsaw of electronic sounds gives way, in time, to dense techno, alive until the end. And "Atman", has its own kind of intrigue; the darkest, heaviest kind of ambience. But his roughest tracks - "Z Rave", "Rise" and "Progression" - are hardcore, and uncompromising, while the true ambience of "Tiny" and "Magic" run, electronically, on the spot.

Chris Johnston, Rolling Stone
Rating ***

From the brainchild of Michael Westcot comes a captivating journey into electronica from Sydney's own Assemlage Records. Combining the unique sounds of electric viola with a production ranging from ambience through to bangin' techno, this merge of styles produces a beautifully flowing sound with a diversity to appeal to almost every musical taste.

Best suited to the more downbeat tracks, the presence of the viola adds an organic feel to the percussive breaks and melodies, while never dominating with its subtle presence. A fine example of live instrumentation's place in electronic-based music.

Daniel Stinton, Mu Magazine

Escape From Chaos

Tempest Recodings (2006)

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1. Terra Nine / Foxtrot Alpha
2. Spies Vs Red Eye Express / Sogno D'Oro
3. Eridani / Zero Crossing
4. Random D. Vs Arcane T. / Golden Triangle (Terra Nine Remix)
5. Emu / Homeland
6. Side Liner / Moonlight
7. The Omm Squad / The Exploration Of Deep Bass
8. Terra Nine Vs Random Designers / Entelechy
9. System 7 / Alpha Wave (Mirror System Remix)
10. Zero Cult / Utopia Train
11. Geo / Glow Motion (Short Edit)
12. Red Eye Express / Aqua

Global Slowdown

Tempest Recodings (2006)

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1. Red Eye Express / Vin Del Mar
2. Sunsaria Feat. Lulea / Life Is A Dream
3. Potlatch / Too Many
4. Kay Nakayama / Cast Away
5. The Nun Project Feat. Hideyo Blackmoon / Tears Of Joy
6. Stickleback / Jilted
7. Arcane Trickster / Forever (Red Eye Express Remix)
8. Sunsaria Vs Wind Up Toys / Revolutionary
9. Rip Van Hippy / Drums Of Mer
10. Arcane Trickster Vs Terra Nine / Dub Atomica
11. Sunsaria / Interstellar Filtersweep (Wind Up Toys Remix)
12. Zero Cult / Desolation
13. Side Liner / Fading Life
14. Hesius Dome Vs The Omm Squad / Pluma Bianca

Nova Natura

Cosmicleaf Records (2005)

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1. Minos / Reconditus
2. Not Drowning Waving / Cold and the Crackle (Arcane Trickster Remix)
3. Side Liner vs Will-O'-The-Wisp / Soul Path
4. D.Batistatos / Sparclin Coconuts
5. Zero Cult / Blur (origin mix)
6. D.Batistatos / Crazy Sick Monkeys
7. Will-O'-The-Wisp / Echoing Melodies
8. Kick Bong / Landscape
9. Side Liner / White Wisdom
10. Cydelix / Over The Western Lake
11. MLT / The Blue Razzphonica
12. Sunsaria feat Lulea / Life is a Dream

A Magical Journey

Ajana Records (2005)

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01. Capsula / World Of Information
02. Ovnimoon / Jabarei
03. Dejan / Error
04. Derango / An Ancient Tale
05. Terra Nine / Axiom (The Omm Squad In Dub Mix)
06. Kukan Dub Lagan / Psychedelic Child
07. Cell / Asian Morning
08. Electrypnose / Perce Oreille
09. Psyfactor / Realiens
10. Capsula / Crown Ethers

Goa Trance Spirits

ZYX Music (2001)

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Disc: 1
1. Artgerecht
2. Andromeda - Terra 9
3. Organic Imprints - Dopamine
4. Nanobot
5. Force [Goarilla Remix] - Baphomet
6. Slap My!
7. Sonnenblumenkerne
8. Gelfing's Wonderland
9. Puff

Disc: 2
1. Raum und Kälte Theme
2. Siren Cosmos - Steve Dragon
3. Black Plasma - Xploring Inner Space
4. Symbiont
5. Mi Alma [Club Remix]
6. Der Grosse Kumpo
7. Dogs by Bus - Gus Till
8. Not Human
9. Micro.com - Codex

Ambi-Ant Beatz: A Chill-Out Journey

Green Ant (2000)

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Disc One: Ambi-Ant
1. Marianella Gaia
2. Agg Seven Baths in Heaven
3. Ito Muscat/1
4. Terra Nine Subliminal
5. The Spartacus Barraworn Ecosystem
6. Dose Afreka Jazz
7. Signal to Noise Money Part I
8. Dumb & the Ugly Atmosphere 145
9. Angler Wet Diamonds
10. Robin Whittle Cloud 18 Edit
11. Tr Storm 3l6

Disc Two: Beatz
1. Psyburbia Drifting On forever Through Space
2. Harmonic 33 The Wow Signal
3. Northcore Florida 62
4. Don Peyote Dharma
5. Phutureprimitive Resonance
6. Urchin Wired Boy
7. Spirit Wind Come Join Me
8. Sugar Digital Clouds
9. Wonderfeel Swaierd
10. Ganga Giri Nunga Boonda
11. Tripitaka with Jean Paul Wobatai Pygmy Skank
12. Beam Up Uh Huh
13. The Hug Bug Conjugating Paramecia