Standing and Falling

Standing + Falling is the third collaboration between noted ambient texturalist Tim Story and Ohio guitarist/sound designer Dwight Ashley. Like its immediate predecessors, A Desperate Serenity and Drop, Standing + Falling is an aural gateway to the quieter realms of experimental sound composition that hover just beneath the grittier, more violent excesses of such post-industrial ambient engineers as Lustmord and Biosphere. The Ashley/Story symbiosis works to such perfection on Standing + Falling that it's often difficult to discern the relative contributions made by either to the ten tracks that comprise the album. More important, of course, are the tracks themselves, each of which seems to evolve its own specific environment according to the circumscribed principles of both the recording process and the instrumental apparatus used to bring the process to fruition. For instance, the delicate unresolved chords of "Wax Staircase" evoke the transient moments of clarity that often accompany a lucid dream. The hushed backdrop of gliding synthesizers and infinitely sustained guitar touches deep resonances far below the surface of waking consciousness. The same can also be said of the eerie "Ohmen," which offers a darker and more sinister route into the country of sleep. Oddly dissonant waves of fractured sound surge over an ocean of modulated electronics, numbing the listener into a quiescence that belies the track's aura of foreboding. The 21-minute "Dysnipsia," however, is clearly the centerpiece of Standing + Falling. Slowly emerging out of multiple crescendos of icy synthetic strings, "Dysnipsia" suspends one in a nether world of light and shadow, sound and silence, vision and memory that evokes a kind of "country surrealism." Standing + Falling is, in sum, a haunting voyage through an exhibition of impressionistic sound portraits that, when taken together to form a continuum, offers a compelling glimpse into the shadowlands of other worlds and other times.
- Reviewed by Charles Van de Kree
From Aural Innovations #32 (November 2005)


Here is the anticipated new collaboration between sonic alchemists Dwight Ashley and Tim Story that seems to be a concept album of sorts. It starts with deep sounds that are soon joined by sad atmospheres and more effects - an effective beginning. This track is called "Obstinato". True to the Ambient formula the composition sustains its mood throughout. This is perfect, melancholic Ambient, way deep and emotional. Enjoyed this track from start to finish. "Weights And Measures" introduces us to a darker mood with its strange sounds and ultra-low drone. Excellent stuff. "Poppies [for Irene]" is mysterious, deep, atmospheric... haunting, but at the same time bright... true sonic world. "Chicken Pot Pie" surprises with its strange rhythms and whistling textures. Later some other sharp and resonant electronic textures are added. Boy, this is by no means Ambient! Sounds more like some rave kid gone mad! Very original stuff and super cool at that.

"13th Station" starts with concrete sounds (railway, birds, voices...) but after a while a low drone makes its appearance and in no time it is joined by distant synth atmospheres - all very emotional and effective. All synth sounds are processed in a strange but compelling way. Everything calms down at the finale with only subtle ticking sound left. "Wax Staircase" starts with echoing noise waves and some complimenting synth effects. After a while a shimmering sound appears that is joined by ethereal piano notes. Other ingredients are ghostly fx / sounds and high-pitched strings. Some wailing guitar can also be heard in the background. This is true Ambient in the classic sense, although it's not as much relaxing as it is mysterious and melancholic. "The Curve of Spee" is the shortest number clocking at just under 2 minutes. It consists of nothing else than a synth pad, some effects and doomy orchestral / flute chords. "Standing And Falling" is next and boy how great it is - a slow percussive rhythm keeps things tight while some of the most beautiful synth atmospheres I've ever heard do unfold on top, along with some odd plonking sounds. "Ohmen" is next and lets see what we have here. Aha, it's probably the darkest piece so far. Low drones, raspy textures and obscure atmospheres are the key elements of this track. The longest (and the final) track "Dysnipsia" starts with subtle humming textures and what sounds like a distant sonar. During the next 20 minutes we are treated to melancholic synth wails and atmospheres in classic Ambient tradition. "Standing + Falling" is a great and diverse Ambient album that comes as highly recommended.
— Pugachov, Electronic Encyclopedia of Music

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