Bass Communion (Steven Wilson) "Loss" on DVD-A

The new Bass Communion album "Loss" is not about the violent moment of loss, but its aftermath. The crushing melancholia, the endless questions if “what if?” and “why?”, as well as the concepts of regret, missed opportunity, or a feeling or moment in time that can never be recaptured.
But even in the midst of this gloomy scene, hope and light are born, for loss is never total. Memory lingers, a residue of evidence is left behind, and life goes on. Steven Wilson, the man behind Bass Communion, says “For me, the album is an extension of the previous release, 'Ghosts on Magnetic Tape', which relates to Electronic Voice Phenomena, or the idea that the dead can still communicate with the living world through recorded media. In order to try to capture this feeling I wanted the music to leave a spectral, ghostly impression, and to have an organic decaying quality, like something trying to break through from another world. To this end my musical sources were mainly 78 rpm records, a vibraphone and an upright piano. No synths or electronics were used, only organic sources or instrumentation that has been around for at least the last century.”
Steven Wilson sees Bass Communion as his personal labor of love. In Bass Communion we hear not only the music nearest to his heart, but the music closest to what he himself listens to: “In freeing myself from thinking in terms of melody or rhythm, and focusing purely on the texture and inherent qualities of pure sound, I believe the music achieves a purity of intent and spirit, as a means to express some of my innermost feelings, such as loss, at a much deeper level.”

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Soleilmoon have announced the release date for the digital version of Bass Communion's "Loss" as 13th November.

Loss is being issued in unlimited digital glory, as a two disc set consisting of a high resolution 5.1 surround sound DVD-Audio disc and a standard stereo CD. The DVD-Audio disc is compatible with all DVD players, but will sound best in a player with DVD-A capabilities and comes in a thick card gatefold sleeve similar to the one that houses Ghosts on Magnetic Tape.

Both are now available to order from Soleilmoon, but will also be available from Headphone Dust Mail Order nearer to the release date.

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neil wilkes said:

Just a quick plug of sorts:
If "Loss" does okay, then there is already a 5.1 mix of "Ghosts on Magnetic Tape" already done.....
Soleilmoon records need our orders.

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This is the third full length album by SW's Bass Communion project and is a one hour work divided into 5 distinct sections. The album is inspired by alleged tape recordings of the dead communicating with the living world, paranormal research most famously practised by scientist Konstantine Raudive in the 1970's. This is a spectral and brooding album, rich with dark clouds of sound, beautiful textures, creepy drones and eerie crackling. SW considers this to be one of the finest recordings he has ever made.

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neil wilkes said:

Just a quick plug of sorts:
If "Loss" does okay, then there is already a 5.1 mix of "Ghosts on Magnetic Tape" already done.....
Soleilmoon records need our orders.

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neil wilkes said:

If "Loss" does okay, then there is already a 5.1 mix of "Ghosts on Magnetic Tape" already done.....
Soleilmoon records need our orders.

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daved64 said:

I'm quite a chicken when it comes to paranormal crap!

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neil wilkes said:

there is already a 5.1 mix of "Ghosts on Magnetic Tape" already done.....

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Ge Someone said:

From what I understand although the idea of voices coming through from another dimension was the inspiration for Ghosts on Magnetic Tapes, it is actually almost entirely made from processed samples from 78 rpm records (played on different speed). So a lot of crackles and filtered noise in Hi-Res

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Ge Someone said:

Is Bass Communion II considered for surround? I mean, if the other two do well?
I know from interviews that SW feels that only from the 3rd album (Ghosts) he was confident enough to make them as creepy and minimal as he wanted. So ... maybe it's too much to hope for a surround release of BC(II)?

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neil wilkes said:

The best I can say right now is that others do actually exist in 5.1 - but releases are going to depend to a great extent on how well each one does. "Loss" as a DVD-A/V is really an experiment to see how it gets recieved.
After all - if it only shifts a few copies, it would hardly be worthwhile.
But I would expect that as lomg as the thing breaks even at least, we will see more.....

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rusinurbe said:

Would it break even if every member of the board bought a copy or will it take more ?

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DKA said:

Listening to this for the first time - very Harold Budd-ish in places. I'm very much liking how the ambience fills the room but, then, the footsteps and creaks find a specific spot within the soundfield. It's Wilson showing off what he can do in more subtle ways. I'd give this an 8 out of 10 if there was a poll, with points taken away simply for less degree of difficulty.

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LizardKing said:

FYI - You'll find the poll for Bass Communion - Loss here -> https://www.quadraphonicquad.com/forums/showthread.php?14023-Bass-Communiom-LOSS-DVD-A

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