MOD collections on audio CD are considerably more rare. They're wonderful if you want to take, say, your favorite Sidewinder MODs with you on the go, or to capture the pleasantly eclectic variety on The Best of the Amiga Scene CD.
And then there's a totally new sort of fish-The Music Maker, a CD from the fledgeling Laughing Cat Records and New Age artist John McDonough.
Forget everything you're used to in a MOD CD...because The Music Maker isn't. MIDI composed on the Amiga, McDonough has created what seems to be the first Contemporary New Age collection authored on our favorite machine.
For those of you as unfamiliar with the genre as I am, suffice it to say that the music is totally instrumental, heavy on piano/keyboard, and fairly low-key. It won't make you run out and crusade for world peace, mind you, but it also won't give you a pounding headache.
From the first, title track through to the tenth (Wind of the Spirit), McDonough creates a smooth flow of sound that seems to fly by. No song becomes "tiresome", tempting you to hit the fast forward button. Most importantly, it doesn't sound like "fake music."
I'm impressed. The sound quality is superb, the track selection excellent, the overall effect moving without being sappy or overpowering. I hope this is not the last showing we see from McDonough and Laughing Cat.
John Mc Donough
(201) 831-9785
midikat@gti.net