Despite the difference between ambient and dance music, Will Long manages to keep them somewhat related on Long Trax 4. Coming from a more minimal side of the house scene, the four compositions offered up in this latest instalment manage to get a lot said with less instrumentation. Recorded with completely analogue sources, the richness and vibrance goes a long way, making the most of each beat and synth line. This in turn allows Long the space needed to compose without having to pack the track with an abundance of sounds, leaving the listener to turn on, tune in, and drop out with the soothing grooves. Here is where the comparison lies - the hypnotic and welcoming compositions give the listener adequate material to create their own meaning and journey, much like his ambient work as Celer. Starting the collection off is "One in the Future," which is lightly constructed and dreamlike in tone. The higher synths are very bright and keep this one upbeat, with the light reverb helping to add substance to sparseness. This is where Will Long gets to shine, showing how to make sounds appear to fill spaces when they're really not, maximizing each note and allowing the listener to fill in the blanks. "The Right Choice" follows, but instead of reverbed notes leading the charge, the synths are held a bit longer, with mid-length, soft, warbling drones making the statements here. Despite a persistent rhythm, the synths have an overall slowing effect on the song and this adds a really interesting juxtaposition. Moving more toward the traditional, "You Cannot Reform a Sin" plays more like a thin bit of electronica, utilizing the sparseness of the tracks before it, but with less heft to the synths. Wrapping up the 2LP set is "Fingers on Fire," a very vibe heavy number that focuses on creating a "chill" atmosphere and allows its synths to shine. This is the most heavily layered of the songs on Long Trax 4, but even still, this one is built clean and lean.

 

Long Trax 4 is an intriguing look at how an ambient artist composes house music, where the focus lies, and which elements are the most important. Utilizing sparseness and blank space, Will Long creates four engaging pieces of electronica, each with their own strengths, but all with a similar motif. While this style of music may not be his most prolific, his work in the field is exciting and will definitely appeal to many fans of thoughtful electronic music. To find out more