I was rather looking forward to hearing this album, unfortunately i shouldn't have bothered. 2 phrases from the blurb on this album keep sticking in my head, if I was doing this review in an audio format then they'd stick in my throat as well. These phrases are "Neo-Classic is a special musical composition that deserves recognition" and "Motion has produced an album that brings classical music to the masses, in a friendly, twentieth century approach". The first one is untrue. The second one is untrue, condescending and points out that this album sounds as out of date as the calendar in the blurb writer's office must have been on that day.
David Motion has scored films and TV shows, 3 since 1992 to be exact, and has also had music used in lots of adverts. That is what this album sounds like, but not in a good way. The album covers tells me that all the tracks were recorded between 1997 and 2003, it just doesn't tell me whether or not these tracks were originally intended for other soundtrack projects. I'm listening to the album for the third time and can't remember any of it, it really is that vacuous. I even found myself trying to work out which company might use which track in an annoying self indulgent advert. The other things which makes me think these tracks were intended for soundtracks are the track lengths, averaging 3 minutes, and the track titles. The 155 seconds of
Haste To The Wedding conjures up images of a very bad romantic comedy where someone even more irritating than Hugh Grant has decided he must rush to the church and declare his undying love for an American actress, whom he only met 3 days before, just as she's meant to be marrying his cousin.
Cloud Break could easily have been written for a Channel 5 show about a very dull day in the life of a field mouse that has just been rained upon, now his little nose is twitching away as he gathers twigs and leaves to build a crude shelter.
There is no real sign of the blurb's promised "pop-influenced classical album that strikes comparisons to the repetative style and structure of composer
Philip Glass, the ambient dance works of
Boards Of Canada and latter period
Eno". What you're actually left with is an uninspiring bunch of drumless tracks that don't really go anywhere, and definitely never get anywhere near ambient dance. Perhaps the blurb's reference to "ambient dance works" was a sarcastic nod towards the only track on the album that you'll pay any attention to,
View Of Hills. Well, you'll pay slight attention to it for a minute but that is only because the piano part sounds a bit like the hypnotic klavier part from track 3 on
Orbital's
The Box EP. Once you've worked out why it sounds familiar you'll go back to ignoring it, until the final minute which is just sampled church bells being laid on so thick you'll want to skip to the next track or simply turn it off entirely. If you don't turn it off then you'll have the enjoyment of trying to decide which documantary series you think would use
Twin Towers to go along with a sombre journalist talking while images of 9/11 flash across the screen.
David Motion has failed to bring classical music to the masses, in a friendly, twentieth century approach. If you want to hear his work then you'll no doubt manage to do so on television, in an advert for a service that you're not interested in. Neither does he strike any of the comparisons that his publicist would have you believe. My advice is to keep listening to Philip Glass, the ambient dance works of Boards Of Canada and latter period Eno, this album just isn't in the same league.
www.myspace.com/davidmotion www.davidmotion.com 
