Suspended In Air

Interestingly enough the man behind Biosphere (Geir Jenssen) takes his artist name literally. All of his albums take on an environmental edge towards that very notion. Much like the title suggests, Microgravity gives away the safety of gravity and the album thrusts you into the feeling of being physically suspended. Biosphere's debut really is a predominately consistent ambient album with small splices of minimalistic techno dance. I really cringe when I say "dance", since the few songs that are actually applicable to that term aren't sufficiently though-after that very word. It's not like you can pop this baby in and start moving, it's just that some of these songs are more upbeat then others, which isn't what you'd expect since most of Microgravity is quite leveled within its whole concept.

Emitting the sense of suspension is immediately felt once you get your feet wet with Microgravity. Each track contains some sort of whisper-like sampling mixed with low bass tones that are often glossed over with sparse keyboard arrangements. The type of seclusion that is brought into Microgravity can be attribute to the serene, sometimes air-like electronic waves that pulse ever so often within the album and the various static noises that pierce ever so softly within the core of Microgravity. The title track is an easily digestible piece and is extremely comforting for the listener. The low bass tone assorted with that air-like electronic arrangement give the listener enough room to settle in. Even the movement between each long sequence isn't palpable enough to raise your ear instincts allowing it to be a smooth ambient listen.

The movement for most of Microgravity is extremely slow and gradual, the best word would be steady. Although the production value may seem a bit dim, this may be for the benefit of the listener. If you consider the low volume gives the listener a sense of freedom then this definitely helps the overall concept. Despite most of the buildups being heard, they are exceptionally odd for being anti-climatic. They never progress or burst into a wave of liveliness that you would assume. Even the more energetic tracks are consistent enough not to raise the level of the entire album. "Fairytale" brings in a minimalistic techno beat that is more deeper then it seems, being completely masked by a space-like synth and astronomy-referencing samples to boot. Other tracks such as "Baby Satellite", "Baby Interphase" and "Chromosphere" keep the comfort level intact, while generally being more livelier, splashing the occasional static charge and small cycled bleeps. The overall mood is never broken within Microgravity, which is quite amazing. Much like most ambient music if you're not in the mood then you'll feel that this may be a bit repetitive. Luckily the music runs exceptionally quick, almost like a quick lecture with slight piques of interest here and there.

Grade: B
Download: V0(VBR)