Search - Parks & Wilson :: Painting on Silence

Top notch representative of the new wave

Will Guo | Philadelphia, PA | 04/26/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"the new wave, proggy house which has little melody and vocals, is defined more by beats and percussion that slowly morph in and out of existence. some may criticize the cd as one that changes very little from the beginning to the end, but that criticism can also be twisted around to mean that parks and wilson are so subtle in their track choices and mixing that the result is a seamless cd of music that all fits together cohesively. this cd is a lot darker than most proggy house cds you'll find, including digweed's newer gus, so don't come here for cheer-me-up music, look instead to tiesto or perhaps van dyk for that. instead, this is a slow methodic energy thumping mix that will not command your attention, but is rather something that fades into the world around you.cd1 is impeccable. although sadly parks and wilson have fallen into the trap of having an intro song that seems to be nothing but filler to me, the rest of the cd thumps away at a consistency to be marveled. monotonous if you focus exclusively on it, but calmly soothing and very suitable to dance to if you just feel the music instead of analyzing it. cd2 is nearly as good, yet the last couple of songs, the letdown of emotion, so to speak, ruin the set because the vibe of the cd is completely changed. i praise parks and wilson for their consistency, but when that consistency is torn apart the last 10 minutes of cd2, i must criticize them.nonetheless, a high quality cd that should prove to be one of the best of the new darker strain of progressive house."

One of the best progressive mixes of 2001

Douglas A. Greenberg | Berkeley, CA USA | 01/04/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Deep progressive electronic house/trance music is an acquired taste, and certainly is not a style that appeals to any kind of mass audience. The music is characterized by a minimum of "melody," practically no vocals at all, and an emphasis upon beat-heavy musical and percussive textures that evolve through often-subtle progressions. Although it is classified as "dance music," most clubbers eschew progressive as excessively heavy, dark, and ponderous. Still, there are a few of us who find progressive to be gloriously absorbing, entrancing, and addictive.Certainly one of the best of the "proggy" releases of 2001 is this two-cd set by Mick Parks & Mick Wilson. They have done a superb job of creating a musical journey in which for the most part, the various tracks blend together almost seamlessly. The style and mood are not as consistently dark as say, Quivver's "Transport Five," but if one is looking for upbeat and uplifting music, this is certainly not the place.As is so (too?) often the case, the first cd begins with an odd, ambient-style "intro" which, oddly enough, features slightly-buried snippets from the bluegrass classic, "Dueling Banjos." The first track by Jas "belly" with Jade, is appropriately hypnotic, but represents yet another example of the overused "Apollo mission samples" theme within trance tracks. Enough, already! Still, the music is compelling, and the segue into Jade's exotic "Day in the Life of an Eastern Assassin" is fabulous. The entire first set, in fact, is masterfully crafted. The second cd is nearly as good, but I think that with the last three tracks the texture of the mix unravels just a bit. Breeder's "Carnival xiii" is a strange, perhaps experimental piece that I find a bit discordant, and although the Junior Vasquez mix of Pete Lazonby's venerable "Wave Speech" is certainly worthy of inclusion, the transition into the spoken-vocal excerpt from LSG's (Oliver Lieb's)"O Casualidad" seems a bit jarring to me. Still, I respect Parks & Wilson for taking some chances here, and overall this mix set is superb. People who have enjoyed recent mixes by the likes of John Digweed, Taylor, Jimmy van M., Kasey Taylor, and other progressive dj's should definitely pick up this cd set."

A great one for those who know.

Khaled | Seattle, WA | 11/19/2001

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Never heard the two live, heard enough about it though. The first few times I heard the mix, sounded really well but it did get boring at some points. Now it's addictive, but there are parts that would bore any listener at some points. CD 1 starts with deep sound with a Middle Eastern flavor added to it, (you'll hear what I'm saying in the third track by Jade) moves up slowly till you hit track 6 by resistance D (now the sound is more progressive and uplifting) and moves to the end using the classic NYC underground sound (track 8 remixed by Vasquez).
CD 2 is about the same in sequence but more to the trance sound wrapped around it. Some of the highlights of CD 2 are track 5 & 6. Although the material is a bit outdated, it's mixed and bundled together so well most listener's wont care, and the remixes used are not the typical ones that you hear in other sets. If you enjoy this CD I highly recommend following it by Transport 5 by John Graham A.K.A Quiver."