{"id":378,"date":"2026-03-03T21:02:28","date_gmt":"2026-03-03T11:02:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ambientden.com\/?p=378"},"modified":"2026-03-03T21:11:28","modified_gmt":"2026-03-03T11:11:28","slug":"2025-08-06-mlwz-review-1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ambientden.com\/?p=378","title":{"rendered":"2025-08-06 – MLWZ (Review 1)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

https:\/\/mlwz.pl\/recenzje\/plyty\/28040-ambient-den-ambient-den<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Translation:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

06\/08\/2025
Artur Chachlowski<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Born during the turbulent times of lockdown and the joy of spontaneous creation, Ambient Den is a new space rock band comprised of Australian progressive musicians Ben Craven (who debuted 20 years ago with the album “Two False Idols” under the moniker Tunisia), Tim Bennetts (Seven Day Mask, SUB INC), and Dean Povey (Frankenfido). It all started as an intimate jam session between Craven and Bennetts, but then evolved into a full-fledged band project, built on the dynamic musical chemistry of three exceptionally talented individuals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The band’s debut album, simply titled “Ambient Den,” is a concept album telling the story of humanity’s search for a new home among the stars, culminating in the construction of a new, distant world. The band’s chosen musical style is space rock and literary science fiction. The spirit of early Pink Floyd, Hawkwind productions, and, to some extent, Eloy, hovers throughout. All of this is maintained within an atmosphere of pleasant melodicism, created primarily by masterful guitar lines and powerful synthesizer sounds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Future History Part 1” is a two-minute cosmic intro, a launch into space, an escape from the Blue Planet, soaring guitar lines lift us into the air, leaving the earthly world behind\u2026 All this, so that the following eight-minute composition, “For All Mankind,” becomes one vast musical contemplation emanating from synthesizer keyboards, supported by the rhythmic beat of the drum kit, and the phenomenal, melodic airiness of the sounds emanating from Craven’s guitar could guide the band’s musical explorations. The memorable chorus is downright insistent, intoxicating, and drilling into the mind, interwoven with countless guitar interludes. It’s simply a brilliant track, straddling the border of space and prog rock, that dazzles and sets the bar high.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We catch a bit of a breather during the instrumental track “Provenance.” While it still maintains a high-quality sonic journey, it’s no longer at such a breakneck pace. The noble, stately, and seemingly unhurried notes from Craven’s guitar cleave the space with their intense sounds, and the final piano section, performed by Bennetts, is a fascinating sonic experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now comes the nearly ten-minute composition “Earthrise.” Ben Craven’s delightful vocals return, along with the symbiosis between the guitars and the synthesizer walls of sound, with recurring flourishes of piano, acoustic guitar, and gentle vocals. This is a calm, perhaps the calmest recording on this set, which doesn’t mean it doesn’t evoke any emotion. It does. And it brings to mind certain sonic techniques used by bands like Mike & The Mechanics, Manic Street Preachers, and even Electric Light Orchestra. And the electric guitar solo is a profound nod to David Gilmour.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It’s time for the musical giant and the album’s main course \u2013 the over 16-minute-long, monumental, epic in every respect, and mostly instrumental composition “Terraforming.” It could probably be considered a summary of everything that came before it on this album; its size gives the musicians ample space to demonstrate their interventions and showcase their technical artistry. Time and again, they take us to fascinating musical realms \u2013 whether it’s the stuff of gothic horror films (majestic choirs), Pink Floyd-esque madness straight from “One of These Days,” a swaying guitar entourage ala Andy Latimer, or the transatlantic expression remembered from “Duel With The Devil”\u2026 The clarity of the successive solos is astonishing, the tempo is astonishing, the dynamics of the musical events unfathomable, the guitars rushing in a mad chase after the synthesizers, repeatedly swapping lead positions, all while being cheered on by an equally fast-paced rhythm section. And just when it seems everyone is reaching the finish line simultaneously, when a chorus of, yet again Floydian, “ooh aaah” resounds, suspended on the sounds of Gilmour’s guitar, a long, calm, winding-down section appears. As if to catch one’s breath, to rest after a marathon run, after a heroic effort\u2026 Calm, cool down, calm down. The frame darkens. A sign with the words ‘the end’\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What’s interesting, however, is that this is a false ending. You’d think this would be the album’s finale. But it’s not. After this breathtaking tour de force, the five-minute song “Future History Part 2” appears, and with its swinging approach, brass section, and characteristic syncopated groove, it seems like something from a completely different world. It’s an interesting idea, but not entirely well-thought-out. I understand that the authors of “Future History Part 2” intended it to discharge the incredible emotional charge accumulated in the previous composition, but I admit that\u2026 I don’t fully understand this composition. I’m not saying it’s a disappointing ending, but, in my opinion, it’s the least successful section of this album. I admit that I would have preferred it to be an addition, a bonus of sorts to this otherwise very successful whole, rather than the culmination and finale of the album’s main body.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Because it has a second part. It’s filled with a section featuring single edits of four songs from the album’s main program. The longer compositions have been stripped of their epicness and trimmed to around four minutes, suitable for commercial radio. The question is: will radio stations even be interested in this kind of music? I doubt it. Certainly not here. Perhaps it’s different in Ambient Den’s home country of Australia, so perhaps this is a good step towards expanding their potential audience? Personally, I consider this a somewhat interesting development.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ambient Den is inspired by the space rock bands of the 1970s, and their debut album successfully captures the atmosphere of that era. The resulting album combines extraordinary atmosphere, powerful melodies, exquisite instrumentals, and a wonderful narrative, standing out from Craven’s previous work with its breadth (I recommend the small-scale reviews of his albums “Great & Terrible Potions” (2011) and “Last Chance To Hear” (2016)) while maintaining high quality. Ambient Den remains faithful to the rich arrangements and multi-layered instrumentation characteristic of the space rock era, taking listeners on a journey through space and sound. A journey full of impressions and emotions that won’t be easily forgotten.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Finally, for the curious, here’s one more interesting tidbit: the name ‘Ambient Den’ is more than just a simple phrase. It’s an anagram of the three band members’ names. This reflects the hand-in-hand unity and spontaneity that define this highly successful musical project.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

Original:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

06.08.2025
Artur Chachlowski<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Zrodzony w niespokojnym czasie lockdownu i z rado\u015bci spontanicznego tworzenia Ambient Den to nowy spacerockowy zesp\u00f3\u0142 z\u0142o\u017cony z australijskich muzyk\u00f3w progresywnych: Bena Cravena (debiutowa\u0142 20 lat temu albumem \u201eTwo False Idols\u201d pod szyldem Tunisia), Tima Bennettsa (Seven Day Mask, SUB INC) i Deana Poveya (Frankenfido). Wszystko zacz\u0119\u0142o si\u0119 od kameralnego jam session Cravena i Bennettsa, lecz potem przerodzi\u0142o si\u0119 w pe\u0142noprawny projekt zespo\u0142owy, zbudowany na dynamicznej muzycznej chemii trzech nieprzeci\u0119tnie utalentowanych jednostek.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Debiutancki kr\u0105\u017cek zespo\u0142u, zatytu\u0142owany po prostu \u201eAmbient Den\u201d, to album koncepcyjny, opowiadaj\u0105cy histori\u0119 poszukiwa\u0144 przez ludzko\u015b\u0107 nowego domu po\u015br\u00f3d gwiazd, kt\u00f3rych kulminacj\u0105 jest budowa nowego odleg\u0142ego \u015bwiata. Wybran\u0105 przez zesp\u00f3\u0142 stylistyczn\u0105 \u015bcie\u017ck\u0105 muzyczn\u0105 jest space rock i literacki gatunek science fiction. Duch wczesnego Pink Floyd, produkcji spod znaku grupy Hawkwind, a po cz\u0119\u015bci tak\u017ce i Eloy przez ca\u0142y czas unosi si\u0119 w powietrzu. Wszystko to utrzymane jest w klimacie przyjemnej dla uszu melodyjno\u015bci kreowanej przede wszystkim przez mistrzowskie partie gitar oraz pot\u0119\u017cne syntezatorowe brzmienia..<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201eFuture History Part 1\u201d to dwuminutowe kosmiczne intro, start w przestrze\u0144, ucieczka z B\u0142\u0119kitnej Planety, strzeliste partie gitar unosz\u0105 nas w powietrze, ziemski \u015bwiat pozostaje za nami\u2026 Wszystko to po to, by nast\u0119puj\u0105ca po nim o\u015bmiominutowa kompozycja \u201eFor All Mankind\u201d sta\u0142a si\u0119 jedn\u0105 wielk\u0105 muzyczn\u0105 kontemplacj\u0105 emanuj\u0105c\u0105 z klawiatur syntezator\u00f3w, wspomaganych przez rytmiczny beat zestawu perkusyjnego, a fenomenalna melodyjna zwiewno\u015b\u0107 d\u017awi\u0119k\u00f3w wydobywaj\u0105cych si\u0119 z gitary Cravena mog\u0142a wytycza\u0107 kierunek muzycznych poszukiwa\u0144 zespo\u0142u. Zapadaj\u0105cy w pami\u0119\u0107 refren jest wr\u0119cz natarczywy, odurzaj\u0105cy i wwiercaj\u0105cy si\u0119 w umys\u0142, przeplatany niezliczon\u0105 ilo\u015bci\u0105 gitarowych wtr\u0105ce\u0144. To po prostu \u015bwietny utw\u00f3r z pogranicza space i prog rocka, kt\u00f3ry osza\u0142amia i wysoko wiesza poprzeczk\u0119.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Odrobin\u0119 oddechu \u0142apiemy podczas instrumentalnego utworu \u201eProvenance\u201d. Wprawdzie wci\u0105\u017c utrzymuje on d\u017awi\u0119kow\u0105 podr\u00f3\u017c na wysokim poziomie, ale ju\u017c nie w tak zawrotnym tempie. Szlachetne, dostojne, jakby nie\u015bpiesznie dobywaj\u0105ce si\u0119 z gitary Cravena nuty rozszczepiaj\u0105 przestrze\u0144 swoimi intensywnymi d\u017awi\u0119kami, a fina\u0142owa fortepianowa sekcja w wykonaniu Bennettsa stanowi fascynuj\u0105ce soniczne do\u015bwiadczenie.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Przychodzi teraz pora na blisko dziesi\u0119ciominutow\u0105 kompozycj\u0119 \u201eEarthrise\u201d. Powraca bardzo mi\u0142y dla ucha wokal Bena Cravena, powraca symbioza pomi\u0119dzy gitarami, a syntezatorowymi \u015bcianami d\u017awi\u0119ku z pojawiaj\u0105cymi si\u0119 raz po raz ozdobnikami w postaci partii fortepianu, gitary akustycznej i \u0142agodnego \u015bpiewu. To spokojne, chyba najspokojniejsze nagranie tym zestawie, co nie oznacza wcale, \u017ce nie budzi ono \u017cadnych emocji. Budzi. I przywodzi na my\u015bl pewne brzmieniowe patenty, kt\u00f3re stosowa\u0142y zespo\u0142y Mike & The Mechanics, Manic Street Preachers, a nawet Electric Light Orchestra. A solo na gitarze elektrycznej to ju\u017c g\u0142\u0119boki uk\u0142on w stron\u0119 Davida Gilmoura.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nadchodzi czas na muzyczny gigant i danie g\u0142\u00f3wne tego albumu \u2013 przed nami ponad 16-minutowa, monumentalna, epicka w ka\u017cdym calu i w wi\u0119kszo\u015bci instrumentalna kompozycja \u201eTerraforming\u201d. Pewnie mo\u017cna j\u0105 uzna\u0107 za podsumowanie wszystkiego, co na tej p\u0142ycie dzia\u0142o si\u0119 wcze\u015bniej, jej rozmiar daje muzykom wystarczaj\u0105co du\u017co miejsca na zademonstrowanie ich interwencji i na pokaz ich technicznego kunsztu. Raz po raz zabieraj\u0105 nas w fascynuj\u0105ce muzyczne krainy – a to gotyckich film\u00f3w grozy (majestatyczne ch\u00f3ry), a to pinkfloydowego szale\u0144stwa rodem z \u201eOne Of These Days\u201d, a to rozko\u0142ysanego gitarowego antura\u017cu a\u2019la Andy Latimer, a to transatlantikowej ekspresji pami\u0119tanej z \u201eDuel With The Devil\u201d\u2026 Wyrazisto\u015b\u0107 nast\u0119puj\u0105cych po sobie partii solowych jest zdumiewaj\u0105ca, tempo pora\u017caj\u0105ce, dynamika muzycznych wydarze\u0144 nie do ogarni\u0119cia, gitary p\u0119dz\u0105 w szale\u0144czym po\u015bcigu za syntezatorami, raz po raz zamieniaj\u0105c si\u0119 miejscem na prowadzeniu, a wszystko to przy dopingu r\u00f3wnie\u017c rozp\u0119dzonej sekcji rytmicznej. I gdy ju\u017c wydaje si\u0119, \u017ce wszyscy r\u00f3wnocze\u015bnie osi\u0105gaj\u0105 met\u0119, gdy ju\u017c wybrzmi ch\u00f3ralne, jak\u017ce znowu floydowskie, \u201eooh aaah\u201d zawieszone na d\u017awi\u0119kach Gilmourowskiej gitary, pojawia si\u0119 d\u0142uga spokojna sekcja wyciszaj\u0105ca. Jakby na z\u0142apanie oddechu, na odpoczynek po marato\u0144skim biegu, po heroicznym wysi\u0142ku\u2026 Wyciszenie, och\u0142oni\u0119cie, uspokojenie. Przyciemnienie kadru. Tablica z napisem \u2018koniec\u2019\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ciekawe jest jednak to, \u017ce to koniec pozorny. Wydawa\u0142oby si\u0119, \u017ce tak w\u0142a\u015bnie powinien wygl\u0105da\u0107 fina\u0142 tego albumu. A wcale tak nie jest. Bo po tym zapieraj\u0105cym dech w piersiach tour de force pojawia si\u0119 pi\u0119ciominutowa piosenka \u201eFuture History Part 2\u201d, kt\u00f3ra ze swoim swinguj\u0105cym podej\u015bciem, sekcj\u0105 d\u0119t\u0105 i charakterystycznym synkopowym groove\u2019em wydaje si\u0119 by\u0107 utworem jakby z zupe\u0142nie innej bajki. Ciekawy, lecz nie do ko\u0144ca przemy\u015blany pomys\u0142. Rozumiem, \u017ce w zamy\u015ble autor\u00f3w \u201eFuture History Part 2\u201d mia\u0142 on stanowi\u0107 roz\u0142adowanie nies\u0142ychanego \u0142adunku emocjonalnego nagromadzonego w poprzedniej kompozycji, ale przyznam, \u017ce\u2026 nie do ko\u0144ca rozumiem tej kompozycji. Nie m\u00f3wi\u0119, \u017ce to nieudane zako\u0144czenie, ale, jak na m\u00f3j gust, to najmniej udany fragment tej p\u0142yty. Przyznam, \u017ce wola\u0142bym by stanowi\u0142 on dodatek, swoisty bonus do tej, sk\u0105din\u0105d bardzo udanej, ca\u0142o\u015bci, a nie zwie\u0144czenie i fina\u0142 zasadniczej cz\u0119\u015bci tego albumu.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bo ma on swoj\u0105 cz\u0119\u015b\u0107 drug\u0105. Wype\u0142nia j\u0105 sekcja z singlowymi editami czterech utwor\u00f3w z podstawowego programu p\u0142yty. D\u0142u\u017csze kompozycje zosta\u0142y odarte ze swojej epicko\u015bci i przyci\u0119te do oko\u0142o czterominutowych rozmiar\u00f3w nadaj\u0105cych si\u0119 np. do rozg\u0142o\u015bni komercyjnych. Pytanie: czy tak\u0105 muzyk\u0105 w og\u00f3le zainteresuj\u0105 si\u0119 stacje radiowe? \u015amiem w\u0105tpi\u0107. Na pewno nie u nas. By\u0107 mo\u017ce w ojczystej dla Ambient Den Australii jest inaczej, wi\u0119c mo\u017ce to dobry krok do poszerzenia grona potencjalnych odbiorc\u00f3w? Osobi\u015bcie traktuj\u0119 takie rozwi\u0105zanie jako swoist\u0105 ciekawostk\u0119.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Zesp\u00f3\u0142 Ambient Den zainspirowany jest kosmicznymi zespo\u0142ami z lat 70. i swoj\u0105 debiutanck\u0105 p\u0142yt\u0105 udanie oddaje klimat tamtej epoki. Otrzymali\u015bmy album, kt\u00f3ry \u0142\u0105czy w sobie niezwyk\u0142\u0105 atmosfer\u0119, dobre melodie, wyborne partie instrumentalne i wspania\u0142\u0105 narracj\u0119, wyr\u00f3\u017cniaj\u0105c si\u0119 swoim rozmachem na tle dotychczasowej tw\u00f3rczo\u015bci Cravena (polecam ma\u0142oleksykonowe recenzje jego p\u0142yt \u201eGreat & Terrible Potions\u201d (2011) oraz \u201eLast Chance To Hear\u201d (2016)), zachowuj\u0105c przy tym wysok\u0105 jako\u015b\u0107. Ambient Den pozostaje wierny bogatym aran\u017cacjom i wielowarstwowej instrumentacji charakterystycznej dla spacerockowej epoki i zabiera s\u0142uchaczy w podr\u00f3\u017c poprzez przestrze\u0144 i d\u017awi\u0119k. Podr\u00f3\u017c pe\u0142n\u0105 wra\u017ce\u0144 i emocji, kt\u00f3rych \u0142atwo si\u0119 nie zapomina.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dla dociekliwych na koniec jeszcze jedna ciekawostka: nazwa \u2018Ambient Den\u2019 to co\u015b wi\u0119cej ni\u017c tylko zwyk\u0142a fraza. To anagram imion trzech cz\u0142onk\u00f3w grupy. W taki spos\u00f3b odzwierciedlone s\u0105 id\u0105ce r\u0119ka w r\u0119k\u0119 jedno\u015b\u0107 i spontaniczno\u015b\u0107, kt\u00f3re definiuj\u0105 ten wielce udany muzyczny projekt.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

https:\/\/mlwz.pl\/recenzje\/plyty\/28040-ambient-den-ambient-den Translation: 06\/08\/2025Artur Chachlowski Born during the turbulent times of lockdown and the joy of spontaneous creation, Ambient Den is a new space rock band comprised of Australian progressive musicians Ben Craven (who debuted 20 years ago with the album “Two False Idols” under the moniker Tunisia), Tim Bennetts (Seven Day Mask, SUB INC), and… Read More »2025-08-06 – MLWZ (Review 1)<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":379,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"neve_meta_sidebar":"","neve_meta_container":"","neve_meta_enable_content_width":"","neve_meta_content_width":0,"neve_meta_title_alignment":"","neve_meta_author_avatar":"","neve_post_elements_order":"","neve_meta_disable_header":"","neve_meta_disable_footer":"","neve_meta_disable_title":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-378","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-press"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ambientden.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/378","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ambientden.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ambientden.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ambientden.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ambientden.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=378"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.ambientden.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/378\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":384,"href":"https:\/\/www.ambientden.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/378\/revisions\/384"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ambientden.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/379"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ambientden.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=378"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ambientden.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=378"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ambientden.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=378"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}