Dr Paradiso meets Dr Space - 2026 - Liquid Planetscapes

(79:28; Dr Space)

In March 2025 Scott Heller went to Boston to spend three days with  Dr. Joe Paradiso, who over the last 50 years has built one of the world’s largest modular synthesisers. They spent three days recording 14 pieces of music (which they refer to as Movements), building layers of sound which somehow feels analogue and not digital, dated and certainly not at all modern. One can imagine lovers of Tangerine Dream getting quite excited about this. What we have here is Movement 13, “Swampworld”, which has been presented in three parts, although it is in reality a single piece of music.

This is a very unusual album to listen to as although it is all keyboards I found myself thinking firstly of bagpipes and then of a bugle, certainly not instruments one would immediately think of when listening to electronic albums. The bagpipes are present as there is an underlying bass/baritone electronic drone throughout (which does change pitch but is always there), while at times the lead melody can be thought of as being like a bugle (at one point I was sure I could hear a smattering of “Last Post” and then it was gone). At other times they move into Hawkwind-like aggression, as if the instruments are no longer things of beauty but are intent on destroying all before them as if in a futuristic science fiction movie. It often feels as if the listener is encompassed by a world of sound, and all that exists is what is happening between our ears (headphones are essential for the full effect).

It is an incredibly vital and intensely interesting piece of music, and one can only hope that if they recorded 14 different Movements then there is a lot more to come. 

Kev Rowland, July 2026

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