Track Listing

Disc 1:

1. Too Little Too Late
2. I Knew Happiness Once
3. Forever a Stranger
4. Getle Hand to Hold
5. Chance to Start Over
6. White Clouds Drift on and On

Disc 2:

1. White Clouds Drift on and On [Intrusion Shape I]
2. Chance to Start Over [Intrusion Shape II]
3. Gentle Hand to Hold [Intrusion Shape III]
4. Forever a Stranger [Intrusion Shape IV]
5. I Knew Happiness Once [Intrusion Shape V]
6. Too Little Too Late [Intrusion Shape VI]

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #142603 in Music
• Released on: 2009-06-23
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .21 pounds

Customer Reviews

pillowy puffs of beautiful ambience
Although he's released a slew of deep ambient music on a variety of different labels over the course of the past couple years, White Clouds Drift On And On is the debut full-length from San Francisco musician Brock Van Wey (who also goes by bvdub). Released on the always-great Echospace label, it's a massive slab of dense textural soundscapes that fits perfectly with the title. Six tracks fill up nearly an entire CD (about 77 minutes if you're keeping track), with only a single cut clocking in at under 11 minutes.

But wait, there's more! Stephen Hitchell (Intrusion, Echospace) liked the album so much that he created his own interpretation of it, and that second disc of music (which runs almost 80 minutes) is included as well, making for 2CDs and well over 2.5 hours of brain-soaking sounds.

On a surface level, this is light, airy music that breathes with an organic quality that's removed from what one might expect on the Echospace label. At the same time, though, it's one of those albums that rewards seriously on a nice set of speakers or headphones. There's a density of layering that's revealed with closer listens, as Van Wey mixes filtered instrumentation, field recordings, vocals, and white noise into sheets of warm sound that seem to stretch time a bit.

So what's it sound like? There's a little bit of the work of Wolfgang Voigt (as Gas), a touch of the Basic Channel ambient sound in general, and some creative filtering of vocal snippets that blends in everything from world-music sounds to looped and treated samples (albiet longer ones) that are somewhat similar to The Field. "I Knew Happiness Once" includes just about all of those things, as warm electronic pulses mix with filtered guitars and multiple layers of different vocal samples (including one that sounds like Liz Frazier of Cocteau Twins), melding into a nearly 17-epic of disembodied voices and plaintive melodies.

On the flipside, this same song gets turned into a minimal techno gem by Hitchell, who strips almost all of the huge swells and adds his own slowly-creeping beat-build to it. It's about par for the course for the Intrusion versions, as they never crank things up as much as one would expect (at least, given The Seduction of Silence from earlier this year).

Recently at lunch, I fell asleep in the warm summer sun with this on the headphones, and had I not been awaken by some nearby construction I probably would have drifted well into the afternoon. The sounds that Van Wey only intensified the sun-baked daze that I found myself in, but I have a feeling that this is the sort of release that will work just as well when the cool weather and sharper winds of fall set in.

[...]

Headphone Commute Review
On his first full-length album, White Clouds Drift On And On, Brock Van Wey (better known as Bvdub) abandons dub techno conventions and returns to his West Coast chill-out room roots. It's a step in the right direction, making for some of his most emotional music to date. The opening track, "Too Little Too Late" is gentle and ambient with voices drifting in and out of the mix. "I Knew Happiness Once" features fuller vocal samples that sound Eastern in origin. "Forever a Stranger" is beautiful and relaxing, with slow washes of textured sound. Repetitive choral pulses guide "A Gentle Hand to Hold." I'm reminded of Philip Glass' soundtrack for Koyaanisqatsi (in a good way). "A Chance to Start Over" seems to ask a question. Its ascending three-note pattern is joined by plucked strings and echoey vocals. The title piece is awash in long drifting chords. All six pieces are airy and beat-less with little bass. They are perfect for summer's late twilight. I'm sure lazy afternoon or late-night post-party listening sessions would work equally well. Van Wey and Stephen Hitchell both played live at a LWE loft party in Chicago over the winter. They must have kept in touch, because not only did Hitchell publish this album, he also contributed a full disc of interpretations. These versions will undoubtedly please dub techno fans. The "Intrusion Shape" of the title track gradually reveals itself with full, deep bass and lingering chord caresses. It turns the uplifting original on its head, adding elements that are dark yet sensuous. At over twenty-four minutes, it's no lightweight. The Intrusion version of "A Chance to Start Over (Intrusion Shape III)" bears little resemblance to the original, but is pretty in its own right, with contemplative analogue synthesizers and wonderful surface noise that gives way to downtempo percussion. "A Gentle Hand to Hold" gently sways to congas like a pop song de-constructed. There is an entire world built into its subtle changes. "I Knew Happiness Once (Intrusion Shape V)" reminds me of The Orb, but for being serious (and more sparse). On "Too Little Too Late (Intrusion Shape VI)" metal shivers and beats tick while piano notes glisten. This double CD is an amazing two-and-a-half hours of quality electronic music. Listening to it straight through, I'm reminded of the good old days when synthesizers offered glimpses of an alien world, when bedroom producers created whole atmospheres in space and time. Sometimes you need to look back to move forward. It's a revival.