: foundry indices : reviews : sounds : : : news : pictures : words : : : the foundry : hypnos REVIEWS from Niagara Gazette Thursday, December 09, 2004 written by Aaron Besecker http://www.niagara-gazette.com/story.asp?id=886 Jonathan Hughes & Guests Fluidities Various Artists Bibimbap A true listening experience. There is no other way to really describe what it¹s like when you listen to "Fluidities." With most CDs, hitting the play button is usually all you need to do. The rest will take care of itself. But not here, not with "Fluidities." I mean you can just hit the play button ‹ and when you do you will still find a richness in the soundscape ‹ but it's definitely not as fun as when you really play with the music. The 22 songs on "Fluidities" can be played together in pairs, simultaneously. Any two tracks on each of the two records can be played at the same time as another track. The empowering result ‹ you, the listener, control the final product. (As long as you have two CD players available.) Each song is six minutes long, and artists performed their song in a similar key. Thus, when you put any two of the songs together, the blend is harmonious. The mix is miraculous. In the end, you don¹t have only 22 individual songs. You have the chance to hear 121 combinations of oozing, hiccupping ambient flows. Stepping inside the ambient double album is like being whisked away into space, and you¹re leading the interplanetary tour. It¹s a world away from the inane, cookie-cutter pop music of any top-40 radio darling (see Ashlee Simpson). Think of it as the same kind of fun as playing Pink Floyd's "Dark Side of the Moon" while you watch the Wizard of Oz. Jonathan Hughes is the mastermind behind this project. He performs with the Alex Lynne band in and around Buffalo. In the past, he¹s been involved in many projects, including Lotusflower and Subspace.