Early Man

by Steve Roach

supported by
Portis
Portis thumbnail
Portis One of my most-listened to releases from Steve Roach. Not as tribal as you may expect before listening. An expansive and atmospheric thematic journey of one ancient man. Favorite track: late dawn.
patient_ot
patient_ot thumbnail
patient_ot An intense experience and one of the best albums I've heard from Steve. You don't want to miss this one.
Rob Clay
Rob Clay thumbnail
Rob Clay I think this is my favourite Roach album. Tribal ambient with distant pulsing beats/rhythms, but nothing intrusive or distracting about it. The second disk is the better of the two. Favorite track: walking upright.
rbw3
rbw3 thumbnail
Steve Lake
Steve Lake thumbnail
ＦＵ７ＵＲ３５ＫＵＮＫ
ＦＵ７ＵＲ３５ＫＵＮＫ thumbnail
David Prescott
David Prescott thumbnail
Tetrahit
Tetrahit thumbnail
Frank LaRue Owen
Frank LaRue Owen thumbnail
Mark
Mark thumbnail
Discipere
Discipere thumbnail
Quentin Hudspeth
Quentin Hudspeth thumbnail
Cam's Request Line
Cam's Request Line thumbnail
Zachary Koeber
Zachary Koeber thumbnail
Chris Collins
Chris Collins thumbnail
David Knight
David Knight thumbnail
Forrest Houle
Forrest Houle thumbnail
Frederick Key Smith, Ph.D.
Frederick Key Smith, Ph.D. thumbnail
Matt Nida
Matt Nida thumbnail
Duff Egan
Duff Egan thumbnail
rayz
rayz thumbnail
CLAUDIO COMASTRI
CLAUDIO COMASTRI thumbnail
Geoff Stewart
Geoff Stewart thumbnail
Shaine
Shaine thumbnail
Greg Moorcroft
Greg Moorcroft thumbnail
MazurBlade
MazurBlade thumbnail
Harry Dibrell
Harry Dibrell thumbnail
PFrank
PFrank thumbnail
Erik A. Ingmanndsen
Erik A. Ingmanndsen thumbnail
Erik Naprstek
Erik Naprstek thumbnail
Alexander Deliyannis
Alexander Deliyannis thumbnail
dolbydts
dolbydts thumbnail
leighorf
leighorf thumbnail
Bill
Bill thumbnail
koppermann
koppermann thumbnail
verytass
verytass thumbnail
AOE
AOE thumbnail
Cosmicplanes
Cosmicplanes thumbnail
Marcin Kowal
Marcin Kowal thumbnail
dryice
dryice thumbnail
nightowlking
nightowlking thumbnail
Adam Boughey
Adam Boughey thumbnail
Lee G
Lee G thumbnail
swillert
swillert thumbnail
Kenny Wright
Kenny Wright thumbnail
noble awad
noble awad thumbnail
calvin smith
calvin smith thumbnail
Rick
Rick thumbnail
jsWill
jsWill thumbnail
kernel
kernel thumbnail
kevin stephen
kevin stephen thumbnail
Steve Mashburn
Steve Mashburn thumbnail
/

  • Streaming + Download

    Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
    Purchasable with gift card

      $12 USD  or more

     

1.
00:04
2.
11:58
3.
25:28
4.
06:33
5.
11:28
6.
12:33
7.
05:42
8.
00:04
9.
06:33
10.
08:49
11.
09:49
12.
04:58
13.
11:33
14.
10:39
15.
05:38
16.
07:56
17.
04:30

about

In 2001, Steve Roach – the master of space and time altering atmospheric soundworlds – created this spellbinding look into our primordial unconscious memory bank.

The music is best described as primeval innerspace deep ambient. early man dreams in an ancient landscape of bubbling pools and marshlands, verdant arroyos and monolithic rock formations. Cave paintings and primitive [memories come to life in a slow soul-dance of evolutionary magic. The accolades from press and listeners alike tell that early man belongs to Roach’s classic body of work which includes Dreamtime Return, Origins, The Magnificent Void and last year’s quietly successful Midnight Moon.

A day in the life of Early man….

There’s movement up ahead, a lone figure on the edge of the abyss, teetering on the brink of darkness. He is the First Soul, the Lonely Wanderer, the early man, and digital aural guru Roach has provided his evolutionary soundtrack, sounds that upon observation are situated in time like millennia-old fossils waiting for the unearthing. Roach has travelled down these prehistoric roads before, but never like this. This is his archetypal release, a staggering sonic snapshot that time forgot. Originally released as a special limited edition — presented between 2 pieces of slate on manifold Records — early man is now a two-disc mammoth. Disc One is a hour plus journey into quantum pulse and barren tones, as myriad noises chigger about and nestle within the speaker fabric, as scuttling rhythms assume life and eke out footprints in the prehistoric sediment, as immersive electro-tectonic shifts map out the topography newly emerging underfoot. The 71 minute Disc Two morphs the drones into whispering, quiescent, near-subtle beat patterns and random incidences, as Roach’s daunting electronic palette yields a colorful bounty of ancestral dawns, preening skies, vivid earthen architecture. early man is, simply put, a stunner.

"On Disc One, a day in the life of Early man moves through six different zones that conjure up ancient atmospheres of elemental soundworlds. Occasional distant and subdued primordial rhythms call one to the next place of dreaming. The sonic archeology continues with Disk Two moving deeper into the substrata of time and memory. Elements from Disc One are decomposed and reformed along with new material to create a different perspective on another ancient day." - Darren Bergstein / Muze


In Steve’s words: “This soundtrack was created for my most distant ancestor. The image of one lone, wandering early man reoccurred throughout the creation of the music, long before the title. With my years of travelling in the dreamtime sound currents, this chapter of my work took on a unique sound and concept. I clearly wanted to create a sound that felt ancient, and worn smooth by time. I wanted to keep a kind of subdued energy throughout, a sense of movement and discovery but tempered by the elements over the eons. One thing I think is noticeable is the careful attention to high-frequency sounds. So much of today’s information and music calls for our attention with a full bandwidth of information. As I started excavating what would become early man, the idea of removing certain frequencies in order to let the ear hear differently became central to the project. It really took on the feeling of an archeological dig as I sifted through various soundworlds to uncover the core of early man.”

credits

released August 7, 2001

license

all rights reserved

tags

about

Projekt Records image

Projekt Records Portland, Oregon

Projekt is America's premier independent label specializing in passionately intense introspective music across a variety of genres (ambient, ethereal, electronic,darkwave, goth, dreampop & more). Projekt is home to a diverse roster including Steve Roach, Voltaire, Erik Wollo, Black Tape For A Blue Girl, Forrest Fang, Mark Seelig, Lycia and others. ... more

discography

contact / help

Contact Projekt Records

Streaming and
Download help

Shipping and returns

Redeem code

Projekt Records recommends:

If you like Early Man, you may also like:

Bandcamp Daily  your guide to the world of Bandcamp

On Bandcamp Radio

Featuring guests Jamila Woods, Damon Locks, and Kahil El’Zabar of the Ethnic Heritage Ensemble.

 listen now