Steve Roach | |
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Background information | |
Born | La Mesa, California, United States | February 16, 1955
Genres | Ambient, electronic [1] |
Occupation(s) | Composer, musician |
Instrument(s) | Synthesizers, didgeridoo |
Website | steveroach.com |
Steve Roach (born February 16, 1955) [2] is an American composer and performer of ambient and electronic music, whose recordings are informed by his impressions of environment, perception, flow and space. His work has been influential in the trance and new-age genres. [1]
Roach has received two Grammy Award nominations for New Age Album of the Year: His 2017 album Spiral Revelation for the 60th Annual Grammy Awards., [3] and 2018's Molecules of Motion for the 61st Annual Grammy Awards. [4] Roach's work has also been listed on "1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die." [5]
Roach was born as a single child in La Mesa, California, less than 10 miles from San Diego. He developed a passion for Motocross racing in the early 1970s, experiences from which he incorporated into his composing and performing later on. "You have to be fully awake and present ... All of those things relate right over to what would become my path in music. You're completely in; you're inside of it, your life depends on it. That set the tone." [6] Having grown up near deserts, mountains, and the ocean, these became key aesthetic influences in Roach's music. [6] Roach was greatly influenced by electronic music as a teenager, particularly Timewind (1975) by Klaus Schulze and works by Tangerine Dream and Brian Eno. He was also influenced by progressive rock, namely Close to the Edge (1972) by Yes and Ummagumma (1969) by Pink Floyd. [7]
Roach taught himself to play the synthesizer when he was 20; among his first instruments were a Roland SH-3A and Vox Continental. He went on to purchase a Micromoog, ARP 2600, and ARP String Ensemble at once with a "super high interest loan". [1] [7] He lived in Hollywood, California for a brief time, during which he worked at the Licorice Pizza record store alongside future The Simpsons creator Matt Groening, and became a part of the electronic music community in the Los Angeles area. [7] [6] He moved to a bungalow in Culver City, in which he built a recording studio named the Timeroom and worked odd jobs while creating music. [6] [7]
His debut album, Now, was released in 1982. Two years later, he released his best known album, Structures from Silence (1984). He had pressed a run of cassettes of the album, which caught the attention of Stephen Hill who played it on his Hearts of Space radio show on KCRW, which generated further interest in Roach's music. [6] In 1986 he released his acclaimed Quiet Music series. In 1988, he released what has been described by critics as his masterpiece, the double-album Dreamtime Return . [1]
In 1995, Roach signed with Projekt Records, which has since been his primary label. [6]
As Roach's approach to ambient music has matured, his compositions have typically [8] been beatless. His rhythmic and trance-based groove and tribal-ambient releases, however, are nearly as numerous [8] as his more atmospheric releases. Some recordings are strictly synthesizer-based, whereas others include ambient guitar experiments.
Other pieces, however, cross over with more ethnic and folk influences. Roach learned to play the digeridoo during his extended trips to Australia in the 1980s, and he became an early proponent [9] of its use in ambient music. His work with Mexican musician Jorge Reyes introduced Roach to Prehispanic musical elements, which he has also included in his music. These fusions established Roach as one of the founders [8] of the tribal-ambient sound.
Roach is married to author and equine teacher Linda Kohanov [10] , who provided vocals on some of his albums. In the early 1990s, Roach moved to the Sonoran Desert near Tucson, Arizona. [6] [11]
Vidna Obmana is a pseudonym used by Belgian composer and ambient musician Dirk Serries. The name Vidna Obmana, a phrase in Serbian, literally translates to "optical illusion" and was chosen by Serries because he felt it accurately described the music. Serries created music under the Vidna Obmana pseudonym from 1984 until 2007, when he officially retired the name. Most of his current work is released under the Fear Falls Burning pseudonym.
Projekt Records is an independent record label established by Sam Rosenthal in 1983, the label focuses on darkwave, ambient, shoegaze, gothic rock, ethereal, dream-pop, and dark cabaret releases.
Structures from Silence is the third studio album by American ambient musician Steve Roach. It was released in 1984 on Fortuna.
Dreamtime Return (1988) is a double album by the American ambient musician Steve Roach, based on Australian Aboriginal culture and the concept of the Dreamtime. Described as "one of the pivotal works of ambient music" and "groundbreaking," the album has been included on a number of lists of the world's best music, including 1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die.
The Serpent’s Lair is a two disc collaborative album by the American ambient artists Steve Roach and Byron Metcalf.
Spirit Dome is a collaborative album by ambient musicians Steve Roach and Vidna Obmana. It was recorded in a live studio session in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on May 24, 2002, beginning at around 1 AM. Although there are eight tracks on the CD they are not individually titled, making Spirit Dome a single 73 minute piece of music.
PBK is a composer that works in the genres of Noise, Drone and/or Ambient music.
Thom Brennan is an American electronic ambient musician, composer and synthesist. Active since the 1980s with his first album Mountains (1987), he belongs to the scene of Californian pioneers of electronic music. His style encloses the principal traits characterizing the evolution from Terry Riley's and Morton Subotnick's minimalism to the form of electronic new-age suite.
Continuum is a collaborative ambient and drone music project between Bass Communion and Dirk Serries. The project looks to expand on the artists' "collective ambition and vision, motivated by their immense passion for a wide-range of musical styles, ranging from spacious ambience to pounding doom metal."
Loren Nerell is an American composer and performer of ambient American music and Balinese gamelan.
Erik Wøllo is a Norwegian composer and musician, guitarist and synthesist. He has a background in various genres in music. As a solo recording artist, he is most known for his electronic and ambient musical soundscapes. Music that can be classified in the genres of space, drone, new age, and electronic music. Through his many albums he has gained recognition for his unique sound and style. Using guitar as the primary instrument in a highly imaginary and emotional music, building a bridge between grand symphonic realms and gentle, minimalistic and serene atmospheres.
Landmass (2008) is an album by the American ambient musician Steve Roach.
A Deeper Silence (2008) is an album by the American ambient musician Steve Roach.
Immersion: Three is a 3-disc album by the American ambient musician Steve Roach, released in 2007. It is the third album in the Immersion series.
Jeff Pearce is an Indiana-based ambient/new age musician. He has been called "one of the top two electronic guitarists of all time" by Allmusic, while reviewer John Diliberto wrote in Billboard magazine that Pearce is "one of the best" guitarists to follow the solo electric guitarist concept. Pearce started playing guitar at age 13 and discovered the music of Brian Eno and Harold Budd while in college.
Cavern of Sirens is the second collaborative album by the American ambient musicians Steve Roach and Vidna Obmana.
InnerZone is the fifth collaborative album by American ambient musicians Steve Roach and Belgian Vidna Obmana, containing a echoes of desert ambience, rhythmic ambience, space music, and electro-tribal ambience.
Terraform is the collaborative album by ambient musicians Steve Roach and Loren Nerell, who became friends in 1982 in Los Angeles. After years, they decided to create an organic, surreal and ambient soundscape environments. Mixed and structured at the Timeroom. Originally released on Soleilmoon Recordings in 2006 as a limited edition DVD-sized Digipak with 3 postcards. It was later released in 2009 on Projekt in a traditional jewel case.
The Shaman's Heart II: The Healing Journey is a collaborative album by ambient musicians Byron Metcalf with Steve Roach, as guest. This is the second of Byron Metcalf's The Shaman's Heart series album, focused around a continuous "heartbeat" pace. Unlike the first volume, this disc contain ten seamless untitled tracks. The track numbers on the physical CD described as "way points" and not as individual tracks as on a typical CD. Produced, recorded, mixed & mastered at The Lair, Prescott, Arizona. Steve's elements recorded at the Timeroom, Southern Arizona.
Low Volume Music is the sixth collaborative album by ambient musicians Steve Roach and Dirk Serries. It was their first album after a ten-year hiatus following the release of InnerZone in 2002.