| Profile: Spacecraft | |
| Performing on synthesizers, guitar and voice, Spacecraft creates free-form explorations through the Spacemusic cosmos.
Based in Nashville, Spacecraft consists of Tony Gerber (guitar and synthesizers), John Rose (synths), Diane Timmons (voice and synths) and Giles Reaves (synth). With several albums to their credit and represented on many compilations, Spacecraft is recognized as one of the leading voices in the Spacemusic community. |
| Pursuing the course laid down by the pioneering music of Tangerine Dream, Klaus Schulze and Jean Michel Jarre, Spacecraft is making significant contributions to the Spacemusic genre. Recalling 1970's styles but adding their own contemporary inspiration, Spacecraft offers sounds and forms that "shift and morph through each other, gradually revealing broad chordal structures, gentle pulses, and the interlocking patterns that have long been the hallmark of space music." (BILLBOARD) | |
| Among their many performance credits, Spacecraft played live at the Gathering in Philadelphia on 24 April 1999 and again on 19 May 2001. The later concert saw the release of Spacecraft's album Cybersphere and ultimately the release of Inside The Inside, a concert recording from the Gathering. For reviews and images of Spacecraft at the Gathering in Philadelphia, please access: http://www.thegatherings.org |
 
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Selected Spacecraft CD Reviews:
 | Spacecraft sets the controls for deep space with music recorded live in the Hummel Planetarium in Kentucky. This trio of synthesizers and guitar recalls early - '70s Tangerine Dream, when that group was still using live performances as free-form explorations rather than pre-programmed computations. Befitting the planetarium environment, this is music more of design than melody, and it has a pulse more than a rhythm. From the amorphous textures of 'Explorations In Space' to the tugging sequencer patterns of the title track, sounds and forms shift and morph through each other, gradually revealing broad chordal structures, gentle pulses, and the interlocking patterns that have long been the hallmark of space music. Spacecraft does it better than many contemporary practitioneers, and Tony Gerber's sinuous guitar leads add another dimension to this sound."
--John Diliberto, BILLBOARD |
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"This is space/trance music made like it used to be. No new-agey saccharine tweedleblips or techno rhythm-machine-clatter, just s-l-o-w, dreamy, otherworldly, mountain-of-sound synth stylings with a light sprinkling of vocals, found samples and science-fiction-movie sounds. Low-tech effects like varying tape speeds are used here, as are vintage electronic
instruments like the Minimoog and Memorymoog. An electric sustaining koto (which I can't readily pick out of the mix) completes the sound. It brings to mind Tangerine Dream around their 'Zeit' or 'Phaedra' periods with some parts of it suggesting the earliest experimental electronic music of the 1950s and 60s. This is 63 minutes of excellent music for relaxing, meditating, sleeping or simply enjoying. Cool NASA close-up photo of Saturn on the front cover."
--Paul Goldschmidt, WIND AND WIRE | 
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 | "This is Spacecraft's third release on Lektronic Soundscapes, their first two being Voyager and Hummel. Earthtime Tapestry continues the group's exploration into space and sound as they create highly improvisational music that's constantly evolving and developing through a symbiotic relationship that exists not only between the musicians, but includes the audience as well. The album continues in the melodic vein established in Hummel. Ethereal themes intertwine, creating music that is breathtaking in its beauty and sonic breadth. Internationally-renowned electronic musician Giles Reaves joins the Spacecraft crew in this recording, lending his considerable talents on
synthesizers.
--David Hodgson, PLAYING BY EAR 09.07.99 |
| "This 7th release by Tennessee-based ambient group Spacecraft conjures some wonderfully primitive yet masterful ethereal vibes. Summer Town was recorded live in the early morning hours at the Unityfest 2000 (held in Summertown, Tennessee), where over 150 people practiced their morning yoga and meditation exercises during the recording. With that in mind, this amazing 55-minute, single-track piece sounds sparkling and positively beautiful, joining multi-cultural ethnic tones and drones with gently drifting guitars, flutes, and electronic effects. The haunting live instruments harken back to classic Kraut/space rock like Popol Vuh or Kluster, while the production and electronic soundscapes should prove to be quite pleasing to fans of master soundscapers like Steve Roach or Robert Rich. Summer Town is simply an engrossingly gorgeous work that works well in any setting, from background to deep listening. Take that as a recommendation.
--GODSEND Online 03.12.01 |  |
 | Interviewed on 18 April 1999 by STAR'S END host, Chuck van Zyl, Tony Gerber of Spacecraft spoke of his music, Spacecraft's origins, the live performance environment and the 24 April 1999 performance at The Gatherings in Philadelphia. Listen to the 10 minute interview excerpt by clicking the link below:
Many thanks to Art Cohen, Tony Gerber and NothinBut Net for their key efforts in making this interview available from this website. | |
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