2008 • 12X50
Another album culled from the dark recesses of ambient obscurity, Carbon Series volume 5 is a sound collage / ambient / electroacoustic hybrid that creates some pretty pleasant atmospheric pieces. It has its flaws and less-than-interesting moments, but it also has its share of beauty that makes it worthwhile.
Carbon Series volume 5 is above all a texture-focused album, using its wide scope of sound clips to create a subdued but focused set of moods. I really like Leyland's combination of both melodic samples (violins, acoustic guitars, synths) and amelodic ones (found sounds and field recordings, drones, subtle noise, etc.), and the combining of these sounds is done really well. It's never too heavy or dense (although it can get very quite at times) but it is still a rewarding close listen as there is sometimes a lot of small things going on as the tracks evolve.
Sometimes there isn't, though, and when the music is in its quieter moments it can get a bit dull and more difficult to listen to. Such is the case with the closer "Duree", which is the longest at well over nine minutes but consists of some incredibly quiet metallic noises that don't change much over its running time. It's a bit of an exception, but it is disappointing to have the album close of with such a boring track after knowing Leyland is perfectly capable of really nice, beautiful pieces like "Taken" or "Harrow Fare".
I will say that this album is definitely a grower—I hated it the first time around, although that was years ago when I wasn't really into ambient or noise—and even though it doesn't have a ton of staying power it's worth one or two listens. Non-fans of field recordings need not apply, though.
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