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Steve Roach (musician)

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Not to be confused with Steve Reich.
Steve Roach
Steve Roach in Tucson, Arizona
Steve Roach in Tucson, Arizona
Background information
Born (1955-02-16) February 16, 1955 (age 69)
La Mesa, California, United States
GenresAmbient, electronic[1]
Occupation(s)Composer, musician
Instrument(s)Synthesizers, didgeridoo
Websitesteveroach.com

Steve Roach (born February 16, 1955)[2] is an American composer and performer of ambient and electronic music, whose recordings are informed by his impressions of environment, perception, flow and space. His work has been influential in the trance and new-age genres.[1]

Roach has received two Grammy Award nominations for New Age Album of the Year: His 2017 album Spiral Revelation for the 60th Annual Grammy Awards.,[3] and 2018's Molecules Of Motion for the 61st Annual Grammy Awards.[4] Roach's work has also been listed on "1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die."[5]

Biography

Roach during a soundcheck at SoundQuest in October 2010, Tucson, Arizona.
Steve Roach performing at SoundQuest 2010.

Roach was born as a single child in La Mesa, California, less than 10 miles from San Diego. He developed a passion for Motocross racing in the early 1970s, experiences from which he incorporated into his composing and performing later on. "You have to be fully awake and present ... All of those things relate right over to what would become my path in music. You're completely in; you're inside of it, your life depends on it. That set the tone."[6] Having grown up near deserts, mountains, and the ocean, these became key aesthetic influences in Roach's music.[6] Roach was greatly influenced by electronic music as a teenager, particularly Timewind (1975) by Klaus Schulze and works by Tangerine Dream and Brian Eno. He was also influenced by progressive rock, namely Close to the Edge (1972) by Yes and Ummagumma (1969) by Pink Floyd.[7]

Roach taught himself to play the synthesizer when he was 20; among his first instruments were a Roland SH-3A and Vox Continental. He went on to purchase a Micromoog, ARP 2600, and ARP String Ensemble at once with a "super high interest loan".[1][7] He lived in Hollywood, California for a brief time, during which he worked at the Licorice Pizza record store alongside future The Simpsons creator Matt Groening, and became a part of the electronic music community in the Los Angeles area.[7][6] He moved to a bungalow in Culver City, in which he built a recording studio named the Timeroom and worked odd jobs while creating music.[6][7]

His debut album, Now, was released in 1982. Two years later, he released his best known album, Structures from Silence (1984). He had pressed a run of cassettes of the album, which caught the attention of Stephen Hill who played it on his Hearts of Space radio show on KCRW, which generated further interest in Roach's music.[6] In 1986 he released his acclaimed Quiet Music series. In 1988, he released what has been described by critics as his masterpiece, the double-album Dreamtime Return.[1]

In 1995, Roach signed with Projekt Records, which has since been his primary label.[6]

As Roach's approach to ambient music has matured, his compositions have typically[8] been beatless. His rhythmic and trance-based groove and tribal-ambient releases, however, are nearly as numerous[8] as his more atmospheric releases. Some recordings are strictly synthesizer-based, whereas others include ambient guitar experiments.

Other pieces, however, cross over with more ethnic and folk influences. Roach learned to play the digeridoo during his extended trips to Australia in the 1980s, and he became an early proponent[9] of its use in ambient music. His work with Mexican musician Jorge Reyes introduced Roach to Prehispanic musical elements, which he has also included in his music. These fusions established Roach as one of the founders[8] of the tribal-ambient sound.

Personal life

Roach is married to author and equine teacher Linda Kohanov[10], who provided vocals on some of his albums. In the early 1990s, Roach moved to the Sonoran Desert near Tucson, Arizona.[6][11]

Discography

Studio albums

  • Now (1982)
  • Traveler (1983 Domino)
  • Structures from Silence (1984 Fortuna) – remastered 2001
  • Quiet Music 1 (1986 Fortuna) -cassette
  • Empetus (1986 Fortuna) -cassette, CD, vinyl - 2 discs, (re-released on Projekt 2008) - CD, Digital (re-released on Projekt 2017)[12]
  • Quiet Music 2 (1986 Fortuna) -cassette
  • Quiet Music 3 (1986 Fortuna) -cassette
  • Dreamtime Return (1988 Fortuna) – 2 discs, (remastered 2005 Projekt)
  • World's Edge (1992 Fortuna) – 2 discs
  • Origins (1993 Fortuna)
  • The Dream Circle (1994 Soundquest LTD1) -CD (Limited 2000 copies)
  • Artifacts (1994 Fortuna)
  • The Dreamer Descends (1995 Amplexus)
  • The Magnificent Void (1996 Hearts of Space)
  • On This Planet (1997 Hearts of Space)
  • Slow Heat (1998 Timeroom Editions 1)
  • Light Fantastic (1999 Hearts of Space)
  • The Dream Circle (1999 Timeroom Editions) Re-release of 1994 CD
  • Atmospheric Conditions (1999 Timeroom Editions)
  • Early Man (2000 Manifold) - (1 disc Limited Slate Slab PKG)
  • Midnight Moon (2000 Projekt)
  • Early Man (2001 Projekt) - 2 discs
  • Core (2001 Timeroom Editions)
  • Streams & Currents (2001)
  • Darkest Before Dawn (2002)
  • Mystic Chords & Sacred Spaces (2003 Projekt) – 4 discs
  • Life Sequence (2003)
  • Fever Dreams (2004)
  • Holding the Space: Fever Dreams II (2004 Timeroom Editions)
  • Possible Planet (2005)
  • New Life Dreaming (2005)
  • Immersion: One (2006 Projekt)
  • Proof Positive (2006)
  • Kairos: The Meeting of Time and Destiny (2006) – CD + DVD
  • Immersion: Two (2006 Projekt)
  • Immersion: Three (2007) – 3 discs
  • Fever Dreams III (2007) – 2 discs
  • Arc of Passion (2007) - 2 discs[13]
  • A Deeper Silence (2008)
  • Dynamic Stillness (2009) – 2 discs
  • Immersion: Four (2009 Timeroom Editions)
  • Afterlight (2009)
  • Destination Beyond (2009)
  • Sigh of Ages (2010)
  • Immersion Five – Circadian Rhythms (2011)
  • Groove Immersion (2012)
  • Back to Life (2012)
  • Soul Tones (2012)
  • Future Flows (2013)
  • Spiral Meditations (2013)
  • The Delicate Forever (2014)
  • The Delicate Beyond (2014)
  • Bloodmoon Rising Night 2 (2014)
  • Invisible (2015)
  • Bloodmoon Rising Night 3 (2015)
  • Skeleton Keys (2015 Projekt)
  • Etheric Imprints (2015 Projekt)
  • Vortex Immersion Zone (2015 Timeroom Editions)
  • Skeleton – Spiral Passage (2015 Timeroom Digital)
  • Emotions Revealed (2015 Projekt)
  • This Place to Be (2016 Timeroom Editions 38)
  • Shadow of Time (2016)
  • Painting in the Dark (2016 Timeroom Editions 40)
  • Fade to Gray (2016 Timeroom Editions 41)
  • Spiral Revelation (2017)
  • The Passing (2017 Timeroom Editions 39)
  • Nostalgia for the Future (2017 Timeroom Editions 42)
  • Long Thoughts (2017)
  • Eclipse Mix (2017 Timeroom Editions 43)
  • Molecules of Motion (2018)
  • Return to the Dreamtime (2018 Timeroom Editions 44)
  • Electron Birth (2018 Timeroom Edition 45)
  • Mercurius (2018)
  • Atmosphere for Dreaming (2018 Timeroom Editions 46)
  • Bloom Ascension (2019)
  • Trance Archeology (2019)
  • Stillpoint (2020 Timeroom Editions 47)
  • A Soul Ascends (2020)
  • Tomorrow (2020 Soundquest Music)
  • Into the Majestic (2021 Timeroom Editions 49)
  • Zones, Drones & Atmospheres (2022)
  • What Remains (2022)
  • Rest of Life (2023)
  • Sanctuary of Desire (2023)

    • Live albums

    • Stormwarning: Live in Concert (1989 Soundquest)
    • All is Now: Steve Roach Live 2002 (2002)
    • Storm Surge: Live at NEARfest (2006)
    • Landmass (2008 Timeroom Editions)
    • Live at Grace Cathedral (2010) – 2 discs
    • Live at SoundQuest Fest (2011)
    • Journey of One: The Tribal Ambient Era Live 1996 (2011) – 2 discs
    • Ultra Immersion Concert (2013)
    • Live Transmission (2013) – 2 discs
    • Live in Tucson 2000 (2013)
    • At the Edge of Everything (2013)
    • Alive in the Vortex (2015 Timeroom Editions 35) – 2 discs
    • Live in Tucson: Pinnacle Moments (2016 Timeroom Editions 37)
    • The Sky Opens (2020)
    • Live at SoundQuest Fest 2021 (2021 Timeroom Editions 50)

    Compilations

    • Quiet Music (1988 Fortuna) -compilation 1-3 CD
    • Now / Traveler (1992 Fortuna) -compilation 1-2 CD
    • The Lost Pieces (1993 Rubicon) -CD (re-released on Projekt 1995)
    • Truth & Beauty: The Lost Pieces Volume Two (1999 Timeroom Editions 2)
    • Dreaming... Now, Then: A Retrospective 1982–1997 (1999 Fortuna) – 2 discs
    • Quiet Music: Complete Edition (1999 Fortuna) – 2 discs, re-release of 1988 CD
    • Time of the Earth (2001) – DVD
    • Pure Flow (2001)
    • Day Out of Time (2002)
    • Space and Time: An Introduction to the Soundworlds of Steve Roach (2003 Projekt)
    • Texture Maps: The Lost Pieces Vol. 3 (2003 Timeroom Editions)
    • Places Beyond: The Lost Pieces 4 (2004 Timeroom Editions)
    • Quiet Music: The Original 3–Hour Collection (2011) – 3 discs
    • Rasa Dance: The Music of Connection (2013)
    • The Desert Collection: Volume One (2014)
    • The Skeleton Collection 2005 – 2015 (2015 Timeroom Editions)
    • Bloodmoon Rising: The Complete 5–Hour Collection (2015 Timeroom Editions 34)

    Collaboration albums

    References

    1. ^ a b c d Jason Ankeny. "Steve Roach | Music Biography, Credits and Discography". AllMusic. Retrieved 2014-08-05.
    2. ^ "California Births, 1905 - 1995". Familytreelegends.com. Retrieved 2014-08-05.
    3. ^ "Steve Roach's Spiral Revelation nominated in New Age album category at 60th Grammys". Echoes.org. November 28, 2017.
    4. ^ Gardner, Jeff (January 31, 2019). "Awarding the Ambiance: Steve Roach". Tucson Weekly. Retrieved 4 May 2019.
    5. ^ 1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die by Tom Moon Workman Publishing, 2008, page 649.
    6. ^ a b c d e f g Woodbury, Jason P. (April 14, 2014). "Celebrating the Silences, an Interview with Steve Roach". Ambient Landscape. Retrieved January 26, 2023.
    7. ^ a b c d Zanca, Nick (August 30, 2022). "Structures from Synthesis – An Interview with Steve Roach". Synth for Breakfast. Retrieved January 26, 2023.
    8. ^ a b c "Stretch out and enjoy the soundscape" by Gemma Tarlach, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, April 21, 2000.
    9. ^ "Instrument owner lauds soothing effects," The Advocate (Baton Rouge) June 7, 1998.
    10. ^ Opdyke, David J (29 April 2000). "Steve Roach Interview". spiderbytes.com. Archived from the original on 20 August 2011. Retrieved 30 May 2012.
    11. ^ "Echoes On-Line: Steve Roach". Echoes. Archived from the original on 23 May 2012. Retrieved 30 May 2012.
    12. ^ "Steve Roach: Empetus (CD) | Shop Projekt: Darkwave". Projekt.com.
    13. ^ "Steve Roach Discography". Steveroach.com. Retrieved 9 April 2021.
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