Carpe Sonum are a relatively new label, born out of an unusual inspiration following the death of Pete Namlook a few years back. As the original North American distributor of Pete's legendary label, FAX, the Boulder (Colorado) based company looked to pay tribute to Pete with an 8-CD boxed set entitled Die Wel ist Klang, and since it couldn't be released on FAX, Carpe Sonum was born.
Scanning through the label's back-catalogue, they have a wealth of releases already under their belts. I've happened upon them a couple of times, now, but have never been drawn-in to the extent I have with this release by Motionfield, titled Luftrum.
Motionfield, real name Petter Friberg, has put together a brilliant ten-track album, rooted in lush electronics and varying from Boards of Canada-esque retro (in Luftrum 1), to Ultimae style psy-ambient we normally associate with the likes of Carbon Based Lifeforms (in Luftrum 3).
Given the influence of the label and its origins in early 90's ambient music, it's an album unmistakably influenced by the likes of FAX, and the many early ambient pioneers of the time - subtle vocal samples, spacey-synths, and the consistent feeling of floating in space. This is a timeless album that will invoke nostalgia, and remind you that there's an ever expanding wealth of music that was born from the great, late Pete Namlook and his notorious FAX label.
