The Future Sound Of London: Environments II

Sometimes music doesn’t need to have a beat or vocals to be music. Sometimes it can be a feeling reflected in sounds, or a moment explained with noise. Music doesn’t need to go by its own rules to truly be music, it can be used as a tool to portray more than just a song or an album.

FSOL don’t make music that gets heads nodding or feet tapping, they make music to reflect and represent their own ideas and feelings. Epic landscapes are slowly built out of sparse beats all whilst ghostly blips and beeps interrupt the terrain, adding texture and ice to every track. You can see what we mean when we say this isn’t your typical affair.

Each track title represents a place or something that pertains to a place or feeling. It enters gently with Viewed From Above and Glacier Part 1, introducing us into the gentle intricacy that is immediately ahead. It’s minimalism done to the maximum and sets the tone for the rest of the album. 

Tracks like Colour-Blind and Factories and Assembly are brasher affairs that show more direct hints of electronica than some of the others. It breaks up the placid mood without ruining the overall effect which deserves a medal in itself. Achieving that sort of musical genius whilst sounding both creative and mature is a feat not seen by many. Last track Glacier Part 2 is this reviewer’s personal favourite and is a beautiful journey into everything that FSOL do right. It’s a gentle, cold, distant, twinkling piece of music that deserves every other musical based analogy that enters your mind.

Though the highlights of this album outweigh the low points, there are still a few that niggle a little too much to ignore. Some tracks truly don’t go anywhere and whilst not exactly sounding pointless, only seem to drag the album out a little further for no real reason. Chop two or three tracks off and it would be perfect. Another point worth making is how much more they could have done if they gave it more time. FSOL have been going a long, long time (21 years in fact) so they know what they’re doing but on this album, they seem too enclosed in what they know to warrant pushing any boundaries.

Environments II is a great album no doubt and sits wonderfully in FSOL’s discography. If it was just a little tighter, bolder and neater around the edges, we’d be entering the realms of classic albums. As it stands though, it’ll make do until the next future sound of London.