Did somebody say, "Ramrock Noir Again"? Did somebody say, "Darren Morris"? Did somebody say, "Darren Morris (he of keyboards, mastering engineer, producer, North Street West, Black Science Orchestra, Steve Mason Band and loads more) releases an LP on the new label Ramrock Noir has a follow up to Union I called Union II"?
'Union I' is something leftfield even for the ambient leftfield cinematic fans as imagine again Darren Morris at the Henry Willis Organ at the Union Chapel in Islington improvising in grand gothic tones. And then he's added studio embellishments later that take the sound further into early Tangerine Dream, Edgar Froese, Klaus Schulze et al (see review HERE).
In the studo his got Solina string machines that recorded the cellos, violas and violins separately along with "Arpeggiated performances on the Nord Lead II add a bit of sci-fi movement, plus pings and pops from a random rhythm generator synth made lovingly inside the Nord Modular Mk1 - both keyboards I’ve owned since 1998 by Swedish company, Clavia” and throw in a tape echo and some vibes!
This sounds rather Wendy Carlos/Keith Emerson/Rick Wakeman to most of us but on the 3 lead tracks, 'The Big Debussy', 'Stick Children' and 'Unwinding Vision' it's what we've been calling for.
A trip on the Jean-Michel Jarre spaceship via your nearest Cathedral organ and you're ready for a best OST nomination.
If you've ever listened to Moz Walsh's All.FM show on a Sunday Morning that has strong classical / spiritual links, 'Union I' would form a 'Best Of' selection and if you stay tuned to the station, you'll know that the Ray Conniff fan club (Jason Cook et moi) are big on the version, 'An Improvisation On "Dance Of The Sugar Plum Fairy" - watch out for the No'west Xmas remix!.
Artist: Darren MorrisTitle: Union IIRelease date: 30th June, 2025
Label: Ramrock Noir Records
Cat. No: RRNLP002
Format: Digital / Bandcamp
Label: Ramrock Noir Records
Cat. No: RRNLP002
Format: Digital / Bandcamp
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