Icecake

"...an ambient experience" CD

Supple Records

Genres: ambient, drone rock

Supple Records
PO Box 212
Hicksville, New York
11802-0212

Mar 10 - 16 2003

Boasting a nice, guitar-based instrumental drone sound somewhat like that of Landing and Surface of Eceon - minus the layers of fuzz - Icecake has a style that's hard not to like.  The four instruments involved - bass, guitar, effects, and samples - are all used beautifully, blended together flawlessly.  A track like "Pour Vous" is like a trip on a magic cloud; the chiming, mystical guitar reverberates against the walls of your room, all the while floating you off into a world of black and white film noir scenes barely visible through a dense, purple haze.

"That Train Is So Spacy," meanwhile, has a somewhat energetic, yet still relaxing sound.  "On Soft Ground I Sleep" also seems to relieve stress, feeling almost as if it's taking a load off your back. This zest for calmness characterizes much of the album, which can be categorized almost as a meditative record.  It's perfect for cooling down after a long day.  It's amazing that only one guy, Robert J. Kaminek Jr, is responsible for all of the music, because An Ambient Experience's full, beautiful grandeur has a very full sound to it.

Although some parts of the album can get a tad boring (like a repeated part of "The Astral Body" that keeps playing a sound sample of "the astral body" over and over), for the most part An Ambient Experience... is a beautiful ride.  One listen and you'll know what I mean. 

87%

Fun Fact: Hicksville, New York, where Supple Records is located, is a humourously-named town on Long Island.  Near the outskirts of New York City, it's the proud location of everyone's favourite landmark, the Long Island Reptile Museum!  

Note: Go here to listen to Icecake's entire album in RealAudio.

Matt Shimmer

[Vitals: 7 songs, distributed by the label, released 2002]