Only a few days ago, we described Dennis Huddleston as the «very model of consistency» for the regularity and consistently high quality of his 36 output. Much the same could be said of Max Corbacho, who’s been crafting ambient-electronic soundscapes since 1998. This second chapter in his projected Nocturnes trilogy certainly lives up to its title, its seventy minutes evocative of the unsettling stillness that sets in during the deepest hours of the night. Working with sequencers, synthesizers, samplers, and looping devices, the Barcelona-based producer spent three years bringing Nocturnes II to completion.

In the opening «Celistia,» one of two epics pushing past the twenty-minute mark, Corbacho couples drifting synthesizer washes with the quiet chirp of crickets to leave no doubt as to the time of day in question. Suggesting winds blowing across open fields, slow-motion whooshes accompany those washes to reinforce the image of a barren landscape, while the soft murmur of other creatures embroiders the crickets’ song with additional layers.

As much as the seven parts constitute an integrated whole, there are noticeable differences between them. «Starlight Grace» replicates the glacial unfurl of «Celistia,» though in this case the focus shifts from terra firma to the heavens, the move intimated by a greater emphasis on radiant textures that sparkle and shimmer in equal measure. «Heart of the Night» by comparison exudes the unsettling quality of a nightmare, if one more subtly disturbing than outright harrowing, while the second long-form soundscape, «Moon Apparition,» caps the release with one final deep space music plunge, even if the crickets’ return suggests the experience is originating from an earthly vantage point.

As he’s done on previous releases, Corbacho demonstrates here an undeniable talent for crafting expansive, luminous soundscapes. His music unfolds with patient deliberation, and the control he exercises in weaving his elements together is never less than impressive. Movements seem to generally slow down during the night hours, a phenomenon effectively conveyed by the recording’s serene, mystery-laden meditations.
June 2018

The strong 20-minute «Celistia» kicking off the 70-minute album already propels the listener into mesmerizing higher spheres along a trail of nocturnal environmental sounds where the veil of night shimmers through beautifully. It’s an ambient expanse full of meditative, powerful, graceful, serene, and luminous splendor evolving slowly but surely before the mind’s eye even when some of the tracks next in line prove much shorter.

As Max wrote in his press notes he treated this recording as a mysterious and serene world that slowly awakens to unfold a previously hidden magic and that’s stirring the subliminal «Heart of the Night» and «Indigo Sphinxes…» most clearly. «Timelapse» picks up the uplift drift again with textures morphing into infinite depths where after the 20-minute «Moon Apparition» brings along an intense immersive closing to this slow breathing ambient space with imminent organic currents.
«Nocturnes II» is a very well accomplished achievement.

Welcome to another journey into the silky darkness of the night with Max Corbacho as he unleashes Nocturnes II for his fans to devour and enjoy. Nocturnes II was released on April 20, 2018 and from the first notes of Celistia which clocks in at a hefty 23:13 the listener knows that this is going to be a special journey that will leave them wishing for more when it finally comes to a close after the last track called Moon Apparition closes out the album. Nocturnes II to me encapsulates the slow breathing and mystical aspects of those darkest hours of the night when all is quiet in the world and the only thing that breaks that silence are the sounds of crickets, birds or animal calls as they wander the landscape when humans have retreated to the warmth of their beds until daylight once again returns the world to them.

With Nocturnes II Max has created a soundscape that is shadow-encased but in a way that is inviting and urges us to step into the shadows ourselves not in a fearful way but in an intimate way by embracing the darkness that surrounds us at night. Max has outdone himself with Nocturnes II and has given us a masterpiece of music and sounds that will be played over and over again in the coming months. The lush quality of this music and the ethereal mindset that it puts the listener into are perfect for creating a relaxing atmosphere that is filled with deep, dark passages that are appropriate for some serious introspection and contemplation. According to the liner notes Max has woven into the fabric of this music crickets and other night sounds that he recorded live for inclusion in this project. Max has used these sounds in a subtle way to accent the music and to help create the deeper reality that one finds when sitting in the night and listening to the natural sounds that are only hints of what lies beyond our vision within the darkness that envelops us at night.

Nocturnes II shows us that Max Corbacho is adept at crafting long ambient pieces that he expertly weaves into a cohesive work that carries the narrative forward from song to song. With variations and nuances Max is always able to move the listener forward deeper into a state of tranquility, deeper into the velvety darkness that is where the music on this album originated from. Max’s instincts in regards to the choice of music and the production and mixing of this album are impeccable. He shows us that he is an artist who knows his abilities and is more than capable of using his talents to craft a wonderful album like Nocturnes II. This album has 7 tracks and runs close to 70 minutes in length which is more than enough time to immerse yourself into the night that Max has presented to you on this album.

If you were thinking about giving Max’s music a try then I would recommend that this album is a good place to start. The recording quality for this project was top notch and was a sonic delight to listen to. Nocturnes II is an enchanting work of art and a captivating narrative filled with shadowy and slow moving images created by Max’s expert usage of sequencing, synthesizers, samplers, looping devices and atmospheres. This album will give you a new appreciation for what these electronic devices can deliver when put into the hands of a skillful artist like Max Corbacho. Do yourself a favor and go get your own copy of this latest release by Max. Highly recommended by Ambient Visions.

Reviewed by Michael Foster for Ambient Visions

Max Corbacho is back again with a beautiful ambient album that express a deep sense of connection and unity.

Try to breath the gentle sounds floating in the air as if your lungs have thousands of little ears. Allow this fresh energy to enter into your body and mind and keep the stream. Soon the music takes you out of your bonderies, in the luminous space, where is no day, nor night, no form, nor colour.Follow the great breath, step into the temple of dissolution and surrender to the Pure Being. BreathStream album invites us to embrace Immanence and Transcendence, the fullness and the void and to discover a deeper reality through a sublime musical experience that will leave you breathless.

I really like the direction Max Corbacho has taken with his most recent releases, The Talisman and now BreathStream. He seems to be delving deeper and deeper into pure floating music – no rhythm or melody at all, just serene calm tones that thoroughly soothe and placate. BreathStream is a particularly focused work on the art of diffuse sound, as contrary as that may seem. Track titles are very appropriate; “Act of Light” has a shimmer and sheen to it; “The Great Breath” seems to echo into infinity. Perhaps the most delicate and subtle of the lot is “No Day nor Night.” The beauty is in the way Corbacho makes something special out of next-to-nothingness. The challenge is for me as a reviewer describing this minimal musical excellence. Suffice to say if you enjoy ambient music as a means of escape or relaxation, look no further than BreathStream.

© 2008 Phil Derby / Electroambient Space

Beatless and rhythmic ambient zones full of shadow and the lush densities of night. Night sounds, night birds, crickets, low sonic breezes – the album opens with a strongly environmental sound. Gradually dense tonal blankets roll in, gurgling effects and low muted impacts, the stillness now stirred up into a slow winding eddy. The serene twilight pools that Corbacho creates here can be silky and smooth, lustrous surfaces reflecting dark tones – but there are obscure depths too, things heaving below in slow, slow swells. The third track ‘The Slow and Wandering Dust’ sees a soft rolling beat gradually creep in – a corporeal rhythm, natural, constant accompanied by waves of heavy saturated tone like the measured breath of deep sleep. Large pots and giant drum thumps provide the basis for another percussive piece on ‘Abandoned Wind’ – slow motion low, lulling, soporific.

This is a rich, liquid smooth world of dark curling colour, oceanic enormity. Tranquil and languid for the most part, yet uneasy shades well up at times, there are desolate spots, lonely and cold, suggestions of ambiguous lifeforms moving somewhere below or off to one side. The organic rhythms lift some tracks into meandering animation, quickening the stillness – but only just.

Purple-black scenery in a crepuscular gloom fills the front cover, the edges of individual rocks and crags picked out with a graphic grey outline creating a weighty solarisation effect. Vague, monochrome geographical imagery creates backdrops for the other panels – a tracklist on the back complete with track times. Inside the two page booklet is an explanation of the project and a verse from Indian poet Sri Aurobindo that was a chance finding during the creation of the music.

Max Corbacho’s Nocturnal Emanations was released in 2003 and appears on the website as the fourth release by this talented ambient composer. This is seventy three minute duration long form work developed through eight distinct tracks. Promotional material describes the album as one of «transparent synthwashes, developing through silent landscapes». The sound zones established are intended to be «almost hostile, sometimes underground, always stony, ancient». The approach taken was one «without any type of synchronism» so that «in this way the layers of synthesizers move freely along the whole piece «rubbing» harmonically some with others. A compelling composition that very effectively leads the emotions and senses in a beguiling night glide over quiet, abandoned terrain.

Nocturnal Emanations is for lovers of sonic scenery, lovers of low light, lovers of ambiguity. This CD will appeal to ambient fans that enjoy an organic sound and powerful atmosphere.