Brian Eno is MORE DARK THAN SHARK

INTERVIEWS, REVIEWS & RELATED ARTICLES

Record Collector JANUARY 2019 - by Oregano Rathbone

BRIAN ENO: MUSIC FOR AIRPORTS

A runaway success.

In which 1978's Ambient 1: Music For Airports gets the full 45rpm, heavyweight vinyl, 2LP, half-speed remastered treatment, along with Eno's other ambient benchmarks, Discreet Music (1975), Music For Films (1976) and On Land (1982).

Reportedly inspired by a lengthy wait at Cologne Bonn Airport, and designed to quietly unroll into infinity on a continuous loop, the warm and calmative surfaces of Music For Airports seemingly eschew detail and embrace stasis. But that's actually wrong. The separate cycles of sung rotes which constitute 1/2 are incommensurable - confirms Eno - so they never quite sync up again. Similarly, 1/1 subtly interposes a piano motif pleasingly reminiscent of the theme from The Flowerpot Men. Gentle, dignified and neutral, this is music which allows you to bring your own emotional baggage to it, provided it fits under the seat in front of you.