Digital Moonscapes
Digital Moonscapeswas originally released in 1984. Reissued in tandem withBeauty in the Beast, these two albums present the extremes of Wendy Carlos.Beauty in the Beastis a work of rare originality and synthesis, both electronically and through its musicology. Fourteen years after its release,Beautystill sounds sonically rich and musically daring.Digital Moonscapes, however, sounded clumsy and contrived 16 years ago and little has changed. Carlos replicates an orchestra with her LSI Philharmonic (Large Scale Integration), but it sounds like a Tinkertoy with thin, whining timbres that wouldn't fool anyone as to their electronic origins. Yet, neither would the sounds ofSwitched-on Bach, but whileSOBhas attained a quaint charm,Digital Moonscapesjust sounds dated. The LSI Philharmonic consistently sabotages her compositions, which are by turns portentous and playful, although sometimes just corny. Pieces like "I.C." beg for a sonic terrain of their own, but Carlos only provides an approximation.--John Diliberto