With such a diverse and long history of musical collaboration, it's easy to see Forkner's music through his work as sideman, producer, and general hired gun. That's unfortunate since he deserves more scrutiny than tags like "worked with… " or "ex-member of…" elicit. That said, Prism Of Eternal Now does fall comfortably into the spaced-out ambient rock of his previous bands, especially Yume Bitsu and Surface of Eceyon. That doesn't mean he's trying to replicate the success of past projects, only that he has always imbued an individual aesthetic sense into almost everything he records.
Forkner plays all the instruments on this album. Given the capabilities of digital multi-tracking, it is not much of an achievement in itself, but the full arrangements and skillful playing here reveal his talents as a multi-instrumentalist. Tabala and water jug percussion propel "Pulses" and "Mystic Prism." Thick synth lines pin another rhythmic layer into the mix, anchoring the drifting sweeps of voice and computerized sound dust.
Live, Forkner's primary instrument is the guitar, but on the album it's somewhat of a nuisance. It wrecks "For Terry," an otherwise great song, by burying its better qualities in queasy noodling. Ironically, "Guitars" is the most pleasing example of the lot, being based on slow distorted rumbles instead of string bending theatrics.
As intrusive as the guitar playing is, it's a logical addition to the music. That bright, sustained guitar sound was a fixture on prog-rock and early ambient albums, though the effect here is more like Carlos Santana than Robert Fripp. More importantly, Forkner does not divorce modern psych music for its unfashionable roots. The hilarious liner-notes perfectly mimic advertisements for meditation aids and self help books. He clearly identifies himself with that aesthetic, putting himself in the strange position of a sincere ironist. But by embracing the New Age connotations of the music, he can play what he loves without the millstone of embarrassment.
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