Tag Archives: Just Music

Switched On – Digitonal: The Night Album (Just Music)

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Reviewed by Ben Hogwood

What’s the story?

A great deal of thought has gone into Andrew Dobson‘s return to the long playing format under the Digitonal alias, after an absence of six years. The Night Album, released close to midsummer’s day in the UK, takes the small hours as its inspiration.

Dobson decided this would be his first fully solo album, and in addition – conscious of the lurking presence of AI – decided he would play all the instruments himself. As he said, “The electronics became a provocation for me to respond to and the production process a way of pushing my own limits and shaping something intentional.”

Having moved from London to Suffolk, Dobson experiences a slower pace of life – and reflects that in the album, designed as a nine-part suite journeying through the night time.

What’s the music like?

There has always been a poise to Dobson’s best work, and here it runs right through the music of The Night Album. To that we can add a deeper emotion, for there are some exquisite moments here that reward attentive listening in particular.

The clarinet has always been involved in Digitonal’s best moments and so it proves again here, with the beautifully weighted For The Birds. The riff is a subtly nagging one, mellow and thoughtful, while the cool accompanying keyboard sets just the right, peaceful mood. Similar qualities are at work in The Night Sparrow, though here the textures twinkle in the higher register. Evening Song takes the weight off its feet with a deceptively easy keyboard, mulling over its possibilities, while the closing Moon Sequence is a dappled beauty, resting easily if thoughtfully.

Does it all work?

It does, and works in all areas where noise-free listening can be secured. While very pleasant in the background, foreground listening is the way to go.

Is it recommended?

Yes. Digitonal maintains his high quality musical output but this is a notable step forward, allowing people to find peace in the small hours when they have The Night Album for accompaniment. From experience, it’s just as good in the middle of the day!

For fans of…Bonobo, Quantic, Zero 7, Bibio

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Published post no.3,049 – Friday 16 October 2026

Switched On – Marconi Union: Multiforms: Ambient Transmissions Vol. 3 (Just Music)

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Reviewed by Ben Hogwood

What’s the story?

Marconi Union add another notch to their Multiforms: Ambient Transmissions series with a third volume, accompanied by a full-length A/V visualiser.

It is now 23 years since the Manchester group gave notice of their talents in ambient music with Under Wires and Searchlights. Yet it is 14 years since the second in their Ambient Transmissions series, Weightless – itself a year after Beautifully Falling Apart. In the words of the press release, “There are no standout tracks by design; instead, the album invites full immersion, encouraging the listener to drift through shifting atmospheres, serene soundscapes and quietly evolving emotional states. It is both expansive and intimate, designed for deep listening.”

What’s the music like?

Very easy on the ear. Marconi Union’s music takes its own sweet time to volve, shifting gradually but steadily into live. With warm ambience, Multiform I sets the scene, before Multiform II gets real depth with a sonorous bass note. The progression is smooth, through to Multiform V which provides the sonic equivalent of warm water lapping at the shore of a sandy beach, with nobody in sight. As idyllic as it sounds. The final movement of the suite, Multiform VI, returns to earth with soft piano chords.

The visualiser, which you can watch below, provides the ultimate calming experience.

Does it all work?

Yes, with plenty to spare – and with minimum effort on the part of the listener!

Is it recommended?

It is indeed – Marconi Union devotees will not be hesitating, and neither should the rest of us! Providing the opportunity to pause for thought, Multiform is the ideal comedown from busy times.

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Published post no.2,938 – Sunday 5 July 2026

Switched On – Digitonal: Set The Weather Fair (Just Music)

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reviewed by Ben Hogwood

What’s the story?

For Digitonal’s fourth studio album, Andrew Dobson is joined by producer Dom Graveson for a fusion of analogue and digital setting natural scenes to vivid music. Set The Weather Fair will be a comforting reassurance to those who have already enjoyed Dobson’s first three albums under the Digitonal moniker, but this one offers greater depths of texture and musicianship.

What’s the music like?

Blissful – but also wholly immersive. This is music that paints vivid pictures but in the same breath possesses a great deal of emotion. One of the biggest pluses here is the way Dobson uses his clarinet and cello to colour the textures and to make the melodies more distinctive. He also knows his way around small and expansive structures – the ten-minute Gold Of The Azure is every bit as captivating as The End Is Just The Beginning that follows it.

Those two tracks are notable for their use of the clarinet, which comes to the fore on Gold Of The Azure, and then the cello on The End Is Just The Beginning, which features a slowly tolling piano. The Dance’s Pattern, too, is ideally paced.

On his Bandcamp page Dobson sets out the story behind the album and its sonic images, citing a number of influences in a modest tribute to the music he listens to. The truth of the matter is however that this music, instrumental thought it is in his make-up, is all used to make a wholly original piece of work, a recognisably British affair where both restraint and bold colours are used to great effect.

Does it all work?

Yes. The colours are captivating, the use of beats and beatless music is just right, and the proportions feel right too. Dobson has a winning way with melody, and Graveson’s production nouse is the icing on the cake.

Is it recommended?

It is. Set The Weather Fair can easily be divided into the nine elements that make up the whole, but it is best experienced in a single sitting, a seamless flow of musical ambience that settles the mind and gently moves the soul. It is right up there with Digitonal’s best work.

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