William McGee
One Time Around
© 2004 William B. McGee (634479040184)
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This Cd contains 12 tracks of New Age/Ambient instrumental music by electronic keyboard artist William McGee. Fans of McGee and his music, have stated that this cd is his best wor
tracks
- 1 RA
- 2 Burning Sands
- 3 Departure
- 4 Air Delay
- 5 Sol
- 6 An Opened Door
- 7 Dark Skies
- 8 Oasis
- 9 Equinox
- 10 Sunset Eyes
- 11 Appearance
- 12 Vixen
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"One Time Around" by William McGee...©Composure Music 2004 ®
Update 7/17/07:
This cd will no longer be available on Cd Baby.com...but digital downloads may be available thru this site.
Regards,
William McGee
reviews
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"a difficult album to classify"........
author: Dene Bebbingtonreview by Dene Bebbington (http://www.windandwire.com) 3/01/05 New age electronic musician Bill McGee (recording under the name Composure) is surely a busy man. Since 2003 he's put out several self-released albums a year, including a soundtrack to the independent film Lexie Cannes. Going by what others have said about his music, and including my impressions of this release, it seems that One Time Around is a further step in the maturing of this composer. Though I describe Bill as a new age EM artist this is actually a difficult album to classify, it certainly doesn't invite easy comparisons to other artists. Anyway, the album consists of twelve discrete tracks with the longest only being a little over six minutes. A mysterious atmosphere pervades most of the music, maybe that's partly because listening to One Time Around is kind of like the aural equivalent of being in a darkened room - possibly because of the extensive use of dull bass sounds. The first track to stand out was "Burning Sands", on this piece brooding deep male -- almost choral -- wordless vocals come and go like deep breathes as thudding drum beats also keep the piece moving. An occasional synth melody with a wistful lilt is heard, adding to the singular atmosphere of the album. It's not all heavy going though, the shortest track "Departure" doesn't shy away from a bass line (in this case it hints at rumbling) but is in my opinion the most optimistic piece on the album. The title of this track coupled with bright and hopeful melodies made me think of the pleasant anticipation of a departing flight to an overseas holiday. An interesting aspect of "Departure" is the repeating short melody that provides a structure a little like the piece "Bangkok" on Jon Mark's classic Asia Journey. Judging by One Time Around I'd say that Composure is an artist to keep an eye on in the future. There are occasional hints of amateurism, for example, on "Sunset Eyes" it was distractingly easy to imagine a guy sitting at his Korg Triton Workstation playing over preset rhythms; nevertheless it's apparent that he's an artist with substantial composing ability.
"I recommend One Time Around"
author: Bill Binkelman (wind and wire.com)---------------------------------------- "One Time Around"..... reviewed by Bill Binkelman.... (http://www.windandwire.com) Electronic keyboard artist Bill McGee (who releases albums under the alias Composure) continues to improve, both technically and artistically, and his latest recording, One Time Around, is his best and most professional recording to date. Operating in the realm of contemporary electronic music (the subgenre where electronic keyboards are used in the service of more traditionally structured contemporary instrumentals, as opposed to ambient, and also being more accessible than new age music), McGee's writing skills display more maturity with little trace of amateurism or cliché. He is one of only a handful of artists who inhabit this particular niche of instrumental music, which was (arguably) one of the starting points of new age music back in the days of Private Music and the Narada Mystique sub-label. I, for one, am glad people like Bill McGee and a few of his contemporaries (e.g. Richard Scott Schilling, Michael Walthius, Shirley Cason, Frank Van Bogaert, and Anthony Baskey, to name just a few) are composing in this somewhat forgotten subgenre. McGee starts the album off with what may be the best track, "RA" a sunshower of sparkling bell and chime tones, gently pulsing rhythms, and shimmering textures. "Burning Sands" veers into highly dramatic territory with pounding tom tom and snare drums, booming bass male chorales, and chugging undercurrents of synths. "Departure" is another winner, cut from classic new age music cloth with its midtempo beats, plinking notes, and swirling assortment of keyboards, all dressed up in an overall sense of cheeriness without any faux sentimentality. McGee uncovers a new side, showing he is adept at a more "modern" sound, on the chill-out number "An Opened Door, " (okay, maybe THIS is the best track on the album!). Lush strings in a minor key float along underneath Fender Rhodes-like piano while snappy beats lend the track that modernistic touch. The artist returns to one of his "trademark" sounds (that of a plucked/strummed guitar) on "Dark Skies, " which, despite its name, is quite pretty and not at all "dark." Besides the guitar-like sound, the track features delicate synth harp and well-layered washes of other keyboards. Few albums are perfect, and admittedly here and there McGee shows that he still has a few things to learn. "Sunset Eyes" is weighed down by some muddiness in the mix and a rather pedestrian blend of keyboards, as well as the only weak drum programming on the CD. The artist recovers nicely on "Appearance" which begins with spacemusic-like starshowers of twinkling synths and evolves into a cut driven by percolating beats. The album closes with a nod and wink as McGee brings out the high quality cheese with "Vixen, " a song designed to put a smile on your face with its uptempo in-your-face lounge-sexiness (actually, I think the cut rocks, but I have a sense of humor, unlike a lot of critics of the music).......