During the period 1979-1984,
Robert Rich was busy with psychology studies, Sleep Concerts and developing his musical style via a series of different experiments, ranging from solo work to performances that buried the audience in layers of sound from all directions. The music on Trances/Drones is drawn from that period, including all of the Trances and Drones material, plus the title track from Sunyata,
Rich's first release, and the previously unreleased "Resonance." The music here is wonderfully relaxing (more so with the Trances material than with Drones) and perpetually fascinating. There's a lot more going on in most of the material here than would be expected at first blush -- layer after layer of swirling textures and tones -- and you'll find that interrupting one of these pieces is generally a shock:
Rich has a talent for finding the internal rhythms of the body, which means you should allow the music to let you go gently (which, in the end, it does). ~ Steven McDonald, All Music Guide
