The Future Sound Of London – Archived : Environmental : Views

although this is a compilation it feels like a real album to me...i expected pure beatless ambient music and/or piano tracks like the "viewed" ones, but i was wrong.
there are ambient tracks, but also drums/beats, but all in a mellow way.
this is listening electronica i would say.
i am on my way to collect and listen to the fsol output from the last 5 or 6 years, there is so much going on with the duo and i am so happy to discover albums like this one.
sure, the style of music is one you can expect from fsol, but it has a slightly different sound and vibe for me.
anyway, i fell in love with it and with all the other releases by fsol from the last years.
their body of work became so huge, with all the other projects like blackhill transmitter etc. etc., you could spend the rest of your life only listen to their music...
fsol have created a own musical universe, they are the most visionary electronic musicians for me.
i highly recommend this one to any fsol fan and all lovers of decent listening electronica.

it is very often difficult to say, when fsol music was recorded, like aphex twin. that is a rare quality in electronic music and shows, that the music is timeless...

The perfect soundtrack to a Sunday afternoon or late night. Let the music take you away to another dimension.

I agree with bullfinchart's review - this CD version is very well-rounded, and IMO sounds more like a true album than the vinyl and digital versions. Obviously, that's going to be the result with a medium that can only up to 80 minutes of music, but I think the FSOL boys assembled this in a very interesting way and it's got a great flow throughout. Out of all the plethora of recent FSOL music, this one in particular resonated with me. As usual it's experimental and at times sparse, but it's also quite musical and a lot of the tracks have some strong emotions to them. Even my wife, who is not really into ambient or experimental music, commented on how good this was.

Archived : Environmental : Views is an album with a misleading title. It would be easy to simply dismiss it as a compilation of pieces from their various other projects that have fit under the three titles. Indeed, the 3LP version released for Record Store Day included a sizeable portion of already released material. This CD version, however, is an album in its own right, with no overlapping material from other releases, and based around a series of beautiful new recordings.

Fans of last year's Environment 6 and 6.5 will find a lot to love here. AEV feels like a natural successor to those, beginning with a similar palette of field recordings, subtle drones and analogue electronics, and driving it head first into new territories. The mood here is more subdued, more lonely and melancholic. From the haunted guitar strum looped in 'Unforth', to the sweeping synths of 'Its Very Existence' and the stark, reverberated piano of 'Viewed from Little Boats', a hugely emotive soundscape of desolation is present throughout. It's the soundtrack to vast expanses of unchartered landscape, or even a post-apocalyptic world devoid of human life all together. Grainy photographs of seashores and open spaces adorn the booklet, and match the music perfectly.

FSOL have been on a roll lately, and while some of the earlier instalments in the Environments series were criticised for being stylistic retreads, this album proves that volumes 6 and 6.5 were no fluke. Their third excellent album in the space of a year, Archived : Environmental : Views finds the duo on as solid creative ground as they have ever been. With plenty of new avenues taken (including two cover versions, something they have never attempted in the past), they have created another incredible sonic landscape to explore. It's just a shame about the title...