DVD/DTS Poll Marshall, Steve - Bilocation 1 [DTS CD]

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Rate the Audio-DVD of Steve Marshall - BILICATION

  • 9

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • 7

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • 6

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • 5

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • 4

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • 3

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • 2

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • 1 Bad Mix, Bad Sonics, Bad Content

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Total voters
    3

Bob Romano

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I first read about this album in a copy of Sound on Sound magazine, where Steve was talking about binaural recordings. He went on to discuss in great depth how he took a whole slew of such recordings and used computer technology to try and recreate their three dimensional qualities. This album, which is a 5.1 DTS-CD, consists of one track and this one track blends together a wide and varied range of audio recordings made binaurally, featuring sounds of nature, blended with local musical sounds and singing from various cultures around the world, as well as urban environments. A musical album it is not, but there are lovely musical passages in here.

This is an album for turning off the lights too, pouring a glass of wine, lighting a jazz cigarette (if you're that way inclined) and immersing yourself in the ambience. Definitely something to relax and unwind to.

The DTS version does require some precise setting up of your system and Steve details this in the sleeve notes. You really will hear sounds from up above your head as well as in a full 360º soundscape. Whilst it's not as accurate as the binaural version, a copy of which I am very lucky to own as Steve only usually makes these to order, it succeeds in creating a larger, more truly three dimensional sound field.

Check out Steve's website for more info on the album's production as well as downloading some sample sounds.

Purely because it is so well executed and unique, this gets a big, fat 10 :)
 
How can i order a copy?. Sounds interesting. The link no longer works.

Ah, yes, so I see. It looks like Steve has updated his website and removed all reference to Bilocation.

I will drop him a line and see what the situation is with regards to acquiring copies of the CD. Watch this space :)
 
Ok, well, I just got off the phone with Steve and he has decided to put Bilocation back out for sale. Various things have happened over the last few years that led him to believe that his efforts were best focused elsewhere but after our discussion, Steve has identified a better way of distributing the package and so the website will be live again very soon. Once it is, I'll keep everyone informed and I would highly recommend that any multi-channel audio enthusiast adds this title to their collection. It truly is something very special and unique!

Steve has composed for film and TV and was once a member of the BBC Radiophonic Workshop. He's also worked with Steven Wilson in the past.

I hope to be able to make available some demo files soon that can be burned to a CD to playback in a DTS compatible player. This will give people some idea of how amazing this piece of work is :)

Watch this space! :)
 
Hi All,

As a result of reading about Bilocation here on QQ, I made contact with Steve last week to inquire about buying the recording. Steve responded quickly and said that in fact he was traveling to the USA the next morning, and could toss one in the bag to ship to me here within the USA. I emailed back and asked if he could toss 6 in the bag, and he did. To shorten the story, I now have 5 extra copies of Bilocation that I would like to offer to USA QQers for $18 each. That is $15 for the disc and $3 to pack and ship. I will be on the lookout for PMs on this, and would prefer to receive PayPal. Again, I will ship these domestically in the USA.

Feel free to contact me with questions. Happy listening!

Ken
 
Hi All,

As a result of reading about Bilocation here on QQ, I made contact with Steve last week to inquire about buying the recording. Steve responded quickly and said that in fact he was traveling to the USA the next morning, and could toss one in the bag to ship to me here within the USA. I emailed back and asked if he could toss 6 in the bag, and he did. To shorten the story, I now have 5 extra copies of Bilocation that I would like to offer to USA QQers for $18 each. That is $15 for the disc and $3 to pack and ship. I will be on the lookout for PMs on this, and would prefer to receive PayPal. Again, I will ship these domestically in the USA.

Feel free to contact me with questions. Happy listening!

Ken

That is excellent to hear, Ken! And kudos to you for helping promote this amazing piece of sonics in the U.S.

Steve is an incredibly talented and equally humble man. He's also an amazing person to talk to, something I've had the great pleasure of. So many stories, such wisdom and experience. The last time we spoke, a few weeks ago, he was preparing for his American trip to finish writing his book, and was then hoping to "relaunch" Bilocation, primarily because of the interest generated here and other places and also because I kept on at him until he did! LOL ;)

Bilocation is an astonishing sonic piece and can be a highly moving and absorbing piece. Steve's work in converting the original binaural recordings into something that works incredibly well on a 5.1 system is remarkable. This is definitely a piece that is best enjoyed at night, lights off and accompanied by your favourite "poison" ;)

Turn on, tune in, drop out.

Ken, I'd love to hear your thoughts on this piece. And I wholeheartedly encourage our American chums to get in touch and bite Ken's hand off for one of these discs.

My next challenge is to get Steve to start selling the original binaural stereo work. That too is something quite incredible!
 
That is excellent to hear, Ken! And kudos to you for helping promote this amazing piece of sonics in the U.S.

Ken, I'd love to hear your thoughts on this piece. And I wholeheartedly encourage our American chums to get in touch and bite Ken's hand off for one of these discs.

Hey All,

Two sold, three to go! Keep those cards & letters coming!

I have not yet listened because the day before they arrived my main speakers went in the shop. Please rest assured that when they come back on line this will be the first item in the player.

Ken
 
Hey All,

Two sold, three to go! Keep those cards & letters coming!

I have not yet listened because the day before they arrived my main speakers went in the shop. Please rest assured that when they come back on line this will be the first item in the player.

Ken

Great to hear about the sales, not so much about your speakers! Hope they get sorted soon ;)
 
Greetings QQers,

I can now report that my main speakers, Dahlquist DQ-10s, are back on-line and sounding beautiful. As promised I have now given Bilocation 1 several close listenings and I herewith present my findings.

Not exactly a musical album (in the sense of songs), certainly not a sound effects record, Bilocation 1 is a forty minute Aural Collage, presented by Steve Marshall as one single track. The piece contains creative musical and sonic compositions as well as blended found ambient and natural recordings. It is mixed exclusively to 5.1, with no stereo mix presented or intended. The inner sleeve of the package gives extensive coverage to speaker positioning and surround system setup.

During my communications with Steve, he forwarded me a Word document with full details of the recording sources, and these are not contained in the liner notes. I highly recommend these notes to anyone who owns the recording, and will gladly send them to anyone who asks. Please PM me with an email address and specify if you do not have Microsoft Word. I can easily convert this to a text only file.

What of the content? I would call this a well-constructed sonic journey, the latter term aptly used in the subtitle: 'this is a journey." It is almost a round-the-world trip on a disc, although on closer reading the recordings are mostly from England and India. But one might not know the geographical limitation from a listen, as there are many unique sonic sources here. Other geographic locations hinted at are Australia, The Orient, and south Siberia.

Some of the sonic delicacies herein include the requisite thunder (some at quite close range), vocal overtones, E-Bowed guitars, a Roland SH101 synthesizer, fireworks, a horse called George galloping up a hill called the Rifle Butts in Epping Forest, motorbikes whizzing around the Wall of Death fairground attraction, 30 didgeridoo players at the Glastonbury Festival contrasted against a Karnatic folk group in a park in Bijapur India playing Double Clarinets (each about 5’ long), a steam train near Tanjore India, a funny little kid on a fair ride, and some processed sitar for good measure.

Each of these is either accurately captured as a surround image or placed creatively in the surround space. Again, sound sources do not tend to be isolated as one might hear on an effects record, but rather blended creatively to form an impression. Part of Steve's mission seems to be to document unique sonic spaces such as a dome called the Golgumbaz in Bijapur, Karnataka, India and the Great Temple in Madurai, South India. There are also church spaces in England. Another technique Steve uses on some recordings is to take captured sound and reproduce it within a new sonic space with some added movement to create more of an ambient surround effect, this rather than pure studio mixing. Many of the movements include ambient musical interludes which tend to be meditative and not percussive.

To buy or not to buy? My personal preference in surround recording is musical. I just happen to be a music nut, so that is what I focus on. I do have a few ambient recordings such as Solitude - Thunderstorm and parts of Dr. Chesky's Magnificent… 5.1 Surround Show. In general these others are interesting for a single listen. Bilocation 1 belongs in a different category. It is a thoughtful composition, and I found it enjoyable through repeated listenings. If the descriptions above sound at all intriguing to you, I can recommend this disc as a good purchase.

I still have two copies available to mail to USA addresses for $18 each. The first two PMs get them, and then I am (for now) out of the resale business. I am not taking any profit on the sale of these discs, and the money went directly to Steve Marshall.

Thanks to Steve for making the effort to send these to me, and particularly for making the effort to fill our ears with interesting surround sound! The title is "Bilocation 1:" tantalizing as I am pretty sure this is the only one in the series so far. Maybe if we can sell out his stock he'll do another one.

See you around!

Ken
 
Very well put Ken! :)

I'm glad more people are getting to experience this disc. It's completely unique and a sonic treat.
 
Hi All,

I still have one copy of this disc for $18 via PayPal, shipping anywhere in the USA. PM me if interested.

Ken
 
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