VINCENT CLARKE & MARTYN WARE SPECTRUM PURSUIT VEHICLE ALBUM MUTE, PLAYGROUND RELEASE: JUNE 4, 2001 REVIEW: JUNE 26, 2001

Do people in general listen to music in headphones? I really hope they do, because it always provides an additional dimension to the music, especially electronically based music. In the case of gentlemen Clarke & Ware though, the only option doing their compositions justice is listening to it in headphones, preferably late at night. That feels unnecessarily limited.
Ambience is a key word on "Spectrum Pursuit Vehicle", as is mood. Real life samples of seagulls over a layer of tender strings and well defined piano all sounds very nice, but we've heard it before, many times. The uniqueness of this release won't reveal itself unless you put on those small loudspeakers and allow yourself to listen slavishly to it. Still, it's nothing revolutionary.
The tracks all have colour names, eg "White", "Yellow" etc, with different explanatory subtitles, ("You Are in the Womb", "You Are on a Beach" etc.). So, imagine my surprise when I found myself, physically and mentally, in "the Bedroom" all along.

NIKLAS FORSBERG