In Greek mythology, Icarus was the son of a master craftsman named Daedalus. Daedalus knew too much and was a prisoner of the evil King Minos. So Daedalus constructed wings out of feathers and wax and taught his son how to fly so they both could escape the clutches of the evil king (insert evil king laugh here).

Daedalus warned his son not to fly too close to the sun. But Icarus, overcome with the joy and freedom of flight, forgot his father’s warning. The sun melted the wax, the wings fell to pieces, and Icarus fell to the sea and drowned. At least that’s how one story about Icarus goes.

On April 29 2013, Adam Fielding released his third album, Icarus, on the Distinctive Records label.

I guess I was expecting something else. In iTunes 11, the genre lists this album as “Dance.” I may have to change that, I don’t know. Because I suspect there is a little more going on here than just mere dance music.

This album blew me away the first time I heard it. There is a lushness and depth that at times is very dream-like, very cinematic. Do I dare use the word “haunting?” I myself would use the word “majestic” for certain passages, but then, I’m not you. All the tracks have loads of dynamics, something a little startling in places. And there is lots of really really nice tasty strings. Nicely organic – and that’s a good thing. There is a solid feeling to each track. I highly recommend the use of headphones so you can hear the detail of the arrangements and the excellent use of space in the mix.

Each time I listen to Icarus, I come away with a new favorite song. And I’ve been listening to it a lot the last 24 hours. Sorry, I can’t tell you which track is my favorite. Does that mean I like them all? Okay, I confess, I think the title track is excellent. But then there’s the enigmatic “Are Lights Approaching?” And what about the deceptively simple sounding arrangement of “High Rise Downfall” with that sweet sounding acoustic drum kit right in the middle section? And the vocals on “All We Ever Wanted” and “Out Of Reach?” I could go on…but I won’t.

I guess this is what comes from being a sound designer. Adam Fielding composes music for television, film, and video games. And for a good many years has been involved in creating patches, presets, and sounds for products like Propellerhead Reason and Alchemy. I use some of these patches and presets myself and they are excellent.

Adam has been making and/or producing music on computers since 1995. He even has a Bachelor of Science in Popular Music Production from The University of Huddersfield which, by the way, has a really neat web site.

You may want to check out Adam’s earlier work Distant Activity and Lightfields from 2010, not mention And All Is As It Should Be from 2012. And you may be interested in the band Civil Protection

My compliments to whomever mixed and mastered Icarus. I’d like to know what kind of feathers and wax were used to craft this beautiful work.

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