San Francisco-based sound artist James Devane is apparently not very fond of fancy titles.  His first and self-titled album contains nine tracks, the titles of which reveal their approximate length and the order in which they should be played.  For example, the first track, titled “00-08”, lasts eight minutes and thirty-four seconds, while the second one, which lasts one minute and forty-six seconds (thus starting in the eighth minute and ending in the tenth), is called “08-10”.  While a rather original way to name your music, it is also indicative of the artist's approach. 

Unlike most of his label-mates at Trans>Parent Radiation, who revel in the production, but not the harnessing, of white noise, Devane explores a side of ambient music where order becomes a priority over randomness, an approach that can affect the outcome in a number of ways, positive or negative.  Following in the footsteps of Brian Eno and Christian Fennesz, Devane makes music that is  relatively accessible (to trained ears at least, because my neighbors haven't been very happy with my late-night endeavors into exploring the space-ambient worlds of this album).  At the same time,  one who has been exposed to a significant amount of ambient music would be entitled to accuse Mr. Devane of playing it safe and not bringing anything new to the table.

The reference to Fennesz was not due to the fact that he is the most well-known ambassador of ambient noise, but because Devane uses a very similar technique in constructing his pieces.  By adding and subtracting sounds, he always aims at making music that is beautiful, but also stops before it exhausts the listener.  He usually succeeds in doing so, with the exception perhaps of “23-27”.  The piece that follows, however, “27-32”, sounds as if created in a different dimension, where music is made underwater; it easily demonstrates his ability to produce interesting music that doesn't necessarily remind you of something else.  As the album progresses, Devane manages to step further and further away from his influences (mainly Fennesz and William Basinski), which are more evident in the first half of the album.  The usage of field recordings is also very welcome and contributes to the creation of a peaceful, meditative atmosphere.

The recordings soon form into a whole and the listening experience can generate a number of emotions or thoughts.  Listening to it while riding the train home, or strolling through a crowded street and pondering over the futility of our actions, the endless cycle of failure and success which seems to mark every moment of our lives, is something that can only be done with wordless music.  James Devane's debut is a sample of such music.  While it is neither a monumental achievement, nor a truly original piece of work, it will certainly satisfy those with an appreciation of the art of sound manipulation.

-John Kontos