Rather than simply drawing elements from 20th century synthesizer music, Reinhardt instead recreates it with a sense of modernity and development that is not simply a nostalgic collection of tracks, but a disc that fully reproduces the sound and sensation of the avant garde pieces, soundtracks, and pop songs that classic analog synthesizers ended up pushing their way into.
In a way, this album represents a microcosmic study of synthesizer music from the past 18 or so years, because it features elements from so many genres, but still makes a cohesive set of songs that feels like a fully realized work. Some of the tracks like "Lyre of David" and "Blue Cutaway/Tore Earth Clinker" draw heavily on film scores and soundtracks of the 1970s and '80s. The beatless pieces and thick, dramatic synths call to mind the work of Vangelis (especially Blade Runner), Wendy Carlos Williams, and Carmine Coppola’s Apocalypse Now score. Obviously analog synths, they reproduce the sound of strings and brass as best as the technology could, but never lose that distinct synthetic quality.
Other pieces like "Every Terminal Evening" and "An Upright Fortune" integrate rudimentary drum machines into the mix which are closer to the spheres of synthpop than the other pieces, but still not quite The Human League or Depeche Mode. The former's highly sequenced bass synth and drum pattern feels like an antecedent of some of Throbbing Gristle's poppier material, but rather than the dark and subversive nature of their work, Reinhardt's is lighter and more atmospheric. The latter is more conventional in its rhythms, the deep bassy synths giving an almost danceable vibe.
There are some moments that integrate elements of current electronic music that bears little direct resemblance, but still has some of the same ingrediants. The constant kick drum thump rhythms of "Fast Blot Declining" and the beeps and proto-303 sawtooth synth leads of "Tentshow" have all of the makings of electro-influenced techno music, but instead remains dramatic and atmospheric rather than danceable. Even in "Lord Sleep Monmouth," the slow arpeggiated synths and swirling leads lean towards prog rock, but stays more open and spacious, rather relying on that genre's focus on the overly dense or complex.
The more "out there" tracks such as "Tandem Suns" and "Crept Idea For Mom" are more along the lines of the avant garde electronic music of the 1960s and 70s, the former is slower and propelled by a filtered drum machine and a greater sense of tension than the other more airy works, and is further altered by a noisier, grimier synth line at the end. "Crept Idea For Mom" is more rhythmic and less lush than the others on the album, full of odd sci-fi textures and effects and treatments that make it somewhat more esoteric than the other pieces.
While it bounces from genre to genre, the pieces are all self-contained, but strung together with a sense of atmosphere and mood that is the audio equivalent of a collection of short stories. While each differs and goes in their own direction, the overall feeling is a consistent and captivating work that shows the depth and variety of a now-dated technology that never lost its specific color or tone.
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