Conceptual Realizations by Aquariums

AQUARIUMS
Conceptual Realizations (FTP001, 10.02.2007)
Written by M Schneider

“Come on in and have a seat.” beckons the first line; inviting the listener to relax and listen in a comfortable environment. Starting softly with Aquariums and crashing into the heavily synthesizer based Escape with a glass rattling explosion sets the stage for the dynamic range and changes present throughout the album. Two Hundred and Seventy Five, a Tom Waitsish piano number with the atmosphere of a carnival is a jaunting ride down back alleys careening down dirty side streets and stumbling into the esoteric and ethereal Ghosts. Drums don’t make and appearance until about midway through and are highlighted in the chaotic and cyclical Far From Home. Taking the listener through several musical landscapes, Far From Home paints a fairytale-like picture of two travelers lost in a foreign place trying to find their way back together. The final track, Goodnight, coming almost full circle, brings the album to a close in a gradual decay and peaceful ma nner leaving you in a relaxed dreamy state.

Conceptual Realizations was recorded mainly in solitude at various houses and apartments occupied by Schneider between January 2006 and July 2007. Finding it helpful to remove himself from routine and the stresses of daily life, Schneider wrote mainly while on the road in different cities in the Southeastern United States often etching out lyrics on scrap pieces of paper while barreling down the concrete streams that form the Eisenhower Interstate System. Some took over a full year to reach their final form. A lot can change in a year, and these songs were allowed to grow and transform through the recording process into something wholly and totally different from the original idea. There were never any restraints put on this project. The ideas and emotions contained within 'Conceptual Realizations’ are what occurred naturally. They are what happened without guidelines or wires.