Ambient 4: Isolationism is a 1994 studio album of new material by various ambient artists released on the Virgin Records label, part of its Ambient series. The compilation was issued as a double CD, packaged in a slimline case. It was compiled and features liner notes by Kevin Martin. It was the first in the series to be composed entirely of new, exclusive material.

Ambient 4: Isolationism
Studio album by
Various artists
Released1994
GenreDark ambient
LabelVirgin/EMI
Various artists chronology
Music of Changes
(1994)
Ambient 4: Isolationism
(1994)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]

Background

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The term "isolationism", in a musical context, was coined by British musician Kevin Martin and first appeared in print in a September 1993 issue of The Wire magazine.[2] He described it as a form of fractured, subdued music that "pushed away" listeners.[2]

James Plotkin identifies Brian Eno's ambient works as the greatest influence on the isolationist scene, along with American experimental music such as Illusion of Safety.[3]

As Plotkin says,

I really didn't know what was meant by Isolationism [...], because it encompassed this broad spectrum of music that ranged from Ambient to avant garde music to even something more aggressive – like the Japanese Noise scene. [...] Isolationism was a Virgin compilation and it needed a marketing angle. And [compiler] Kevin Martin was definitely responsible for exposing a really large amount of people to music that would otherwise have gone unnoticed, so I guess it's not all bad.[3]

Track listing

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CD 1

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  1. KK Null & Jim Plotkin: "Lost (Held Under)"
  2. Jim O'Rourke: "Flat Without A Back"
  3. Ice: "The Dredger"
  4. Raoul Björkenheim: "Strangers"
  5. Zoviet France: "Daisy Gun"
  6. Labradford: "Air Lubricated Free Axis Trainer"
  7. Techno Animal: "Self Strangulation"
  8. Paul Schütze: "Hallucinations (In Memory Of Reinaldo Arenas)"
  9. Scorn: "Silver Rain Fell (Deep Water Mix)"
  10. Disco Inferno: "Lost In Fog"
  11. Total: "Six"
  12. Nijiumu: "Once Again I Cast Myself Into The Flames Of Atonement"

CD 2

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  1. Aphex Twin: "Aphex Airlines"
  2. AMM: "Vandoevre"
  3. Seefeel: "Lief"
  4. .O.rang: "Little Sister"
  5. E.A.R.: "Hydroponic"
  6. Sufi: "Desert Flower"
  7. David Toop & Max Eastley: "Burial Rites (Phosphorescent Mix)"
  8. Main: "Crater Scar (Adrenochrome)"
  9. Final: "Hide"
  10. Lull: "Thoughts"
  11. Thomas Köner: "Kanon (Part One: Brohuk)"

References

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  1. ^ Bush, John. "Various Artists - Ambient 4: Isolationism". AllMusic. Retrieved 14 December 2019.
  2. ^ a b The Wire 20 (2002). The Wire, 225, 42–51.
  3. ^ a b Plotkin, James (2009). "Invisible Jukebox," interview with Phil Freeman. The Wire, 300, 22–25.