AMAROK

First a bit of history. After the disappointing synth pop album 'Earth Moving,' Mike Oldfield felt like going back to progressive instrumental music with world influences. The record company he was with was pestering him about making a Tubular Bells 2, but he didn't feel like it at the time. Instead he made an album that pleased fans and at the same time upset the record company. How could they market a 60 minute song? It also contains a secret message in Morse code expressing his unhappy feelings towards the record company.

The music here can be compared closest to Ommadawn. The music is very wild and constantly changes to keep things interesting. There are a reocurring segments as well to make this a complete piece. Mike has brought a lot of things back from the Ommadawn days, including the singer (mainly used as an instrument), the pipe player and the African drummers. There's a lot of guitar, mainly acoustic, and lots of interesting percussion. There's even a toothbrush. Mike let his creativity run free; breaking though boundaries of normal, accessible music. The result is mind-blowing.

I can see that not everyone will be able to fully appreciate such a wild and complex album/song, and I understand. This album took me a few listens to appreciate but I ended up loving it.

Happy? Yes, very. 5 stars.