Since the late Eighties, Ron Boots has been one of the crispest and most engaging electronic composers to export his music from the Netherlands. Boots' style of electronic music is deeply rooted in the Berlin School, but it reaches far beyond those influences, to achieve a sound that is uniquely his. Fusing elements of contemporary electronics, pop, and film soundtrack scores, Boots' music is as rich and powerful as it is atmospheric.
RON BOOTS: Area Movement (CD on Groove Unlimited)
This release from 2003 offers 65 minutes of electronic songs inspired by impressive geographic locations, like the Serengeti, the Dutch Wadden Sea, the Rocky Mountains, and more.
Boots is joined on this release by Harold van der Heijden on drums and Mighuel De Santos on additional guitar.
In the first track, stately piano accompanied by symphonic textures usher the listener into icy waters, where bass tones establish a sluggish pattering that stirs the aquatic abyss in readiness for Boots' elegant synthesizers. A stern melody rises from the depths, goaded into view by softly defined percussion. Nimble chords emerge to swamp the harmonic flow, generating a tension that employs uplifting sentiments in tandem with dire consequences.
The next track explores the African Serengeti during its dry season. Brittle E-perc and languid atmospheric tones hang in the air. Inventive riffs inject a mood of grandeur to the arid landscape. Popping notes and swooping textures drift through the resonant mix. Synthetic elements conspire to transform hissing sibilance into a fog of engaging demeanor.
For "Strand", Boots again turns his creative skills to generate an aquatic environment. Densely swaddled in serene mists, surging chords achieve an air of mesmerizing panorama. Sharp keyboards produce a crystalline euphony punctuated by electrified lines that bisect the sky with their luminous passage. Searing guitars pierce this spectacle with dazzling pyrotechnics. The melody builds to intense proportion, replete with sparkling flocks of birds rising into the active heavens.
With the next track, Boots return to the Serengeti, this time during the rain season. Lazy rainfall is joined by subtle-but-snappy percussion and symphonic electronics. Tonalities rise, thick with moisture, as bongos generate a sense of movement through the wet region. Clever electronics simulate environmental aspects while the melody chugs along the travel route. These elements accumulate power until a breathtaking crescendo is reached.
Next, Boots explores a river rapids ride, starting out with slowly coalescing textures which gradually lead to a pinnacle of dramatic scope as the waters grow increasingly turgid and threatening. Astral chords shed revealing illumination on the adventurous voyage.
The final track is a version of the Kansas tune "Dust in the Wind". Synthetic strings adopt ethereal qualities amid the keyboards and swaying rhythms, generating a decidedly mortal view of the American prairie lands. Shrill guitar strains are accompanied by uptempo keys, producing an inspirational finale. This track features haunting vocals.
Detailed liner notes describe the geographic locales painted by each song.
RON BOOTS: Different Stories and Twisted Tales (CD on Groove Unlimited)
This CD from 2004 offers 75 minutes of dynamic electronic music.
Joining Boots on this release are: Klaus Hoffmann Hoock on guitar, Harold van der Heijden and Guido Negraszus on drums, and Eric van der Heijden.
Even the most discriminating audiophile will be captivated from the onset of this CD. Crystalline keyboards tremble with icy clarity, while majestic drums delineate powerfully engaging rhythms. Sparkling electronic embellishments cavort in a gloriously twilight sky, evoking strong promise for an optimistic sunrise. A thrilling drama permeates this song, reaching deep into the human soul to stir legendary courage and bring such emotions cascading to the surface of the audience's mind. The melodic music is wrought with sinewy disposition tempered with humanitarian sympathy, a masterful fusion of strength and compassion that will delight as equally as it mesmerizes. This initial track lasts for 17 minutes, never once allowing its grandeur to abate or diminish for an instant.
The presence of Hoofmann Hoock's rock-styled guitar on the piece "The Call" elevates Boots' customary stratospheric ecstasy to a transcendental scale, injecting fiery riffs to the already vigorous sound. Enormous chords fill the air, creating a glimmering tapestry laced with searing guitar threads that make this a highly memorable and gratifying sonic experience.
All of the tracks on this release exude brilliant compositional talent. Boots' ability to combine atmospheric sensibilities with epic proportion is unparalleled and thoroughly delightful. Few contemporary electronic composers achieve this combination with such ease and rewarding results.
| Entire page © 2004 Matt Howarth. All rights reserved. |
Webpage design by
 |