The Equatorial Stars [200g Vinyl]

When Robert Fripp & Brian Eno first collaborated in the 1970s, they had already made art-rock history with King Crimson and Roxy Music, respectively. Nevertheless, they broke further ground by creating some of the earliest examples of ambient music over the course of two classic mid-'70s albums. Some three decades down the line, after the music world had long been irrevocably altered by their inventions, the pair reconvened for THE EQUATORIAL STARS. While the spirit and basic intent is similar to their earlier recordings, we're obviously hearing an older, wiser Fripp and Eno here. Any hint of stridency is gone, as this is the spaciest, most ethereal of the duo's three records. Where Fripp's guitar once buzzed and hummed like it might take off, rocket-like, at any moment, here it glides serenely through the clouds of Eno's feathery, hypnotic electronics. Though occasionally bearing a darker undercurrent than most contemporaneous ambient recordings, EQUATORIAL STARS is as lush and transporting as anything you're likely to hear.