Following on from Billy’s 2019 album ‘Entering the Solar System’ we now find him moving further away from earth with six pieces, all just over ten minutes in length. Yet again this is an electronic album, but when we talk about that regarding Billy it could as easily be a vacuum cleaner or electric blenders as it could be keyboards. In some ways it is reminiscent of David Brenner and Gridfailure, but while that invokes the feeling of a post nuclear war dystopian landscape this lets us know we are out travelling in the stars. Musically it is difficult to describe, as it is almost hypnotic in nature, with elements that some will describe as dark ambient, drone or even industrial, yet realistically the album title tells you all yon need to know as this is the sound of the galaxy as we pass through it in our spacecraft.
This is a soundscape, not a collection of songs, but a collection of feelings which allow us to hear the cosmos in a whole new way. It is the perfect soundtrack to whatever science fiction takes your fancy, and one can imagine chunks of this being lifted and place in the next blockbuster movie, but whereas that would enhance the film I would much rather listen to it on headphones like this. Interestingly, this has been getting very favourable reviews from musicians who normally produce music somewhat of a heavier nature, as they find this the perfect response to their loud guitars. When things are loud, the only place to go is quiet, and this is reflective which allows the brain and mind to travel to somewhere else entirely. Yet another fascinating release from the man behind the Skylight website.
Rating: 8/10
