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SYLIVIA HALLETT. White Fog. Emanem 4057.

If I said that Sylvia Hallett's music derived from tape collages, bicycle wheels played with a bow, digital delays and violins as well as voice improvisations, you could be forgiven for thinking, what!?!? I did! This eight track album sees the first six of them gathered under the general heading of Wheelsongs (this is where the bicycle wheel comes in!). To be honest, these pieces are incredibly ambient and create a whole range of moods and colours. The digital delay is used to amazing effect with the bowed wheel and spokes - and believe me, it doesn't sound half as bad as you'd think. A Wheelwright Used To Live Here kicks off the six pieces, a very eerie and ethereal piece that builds up a sense of isolation. Violet is more percussive, and Woman With Dustpan And Brush is different again. Indeed, all the pieces in this composition bear close similarities, but each one is subtley different. Track seven is The Onyx Rook, a violin and voice improvisation. This varies from soothing and spiritual to chaotic. In the quieter and more structured passages, it's truly beautiful, but as with all improvised pieces, there are times when the plot seems to have been lost. Track 8, Snail And Curlew, at just over fifteen minutes, is the jewel of the crown. Obviously it acts as an audio trigger, but the solemn curlew, the odd wash of the waves and the occasional Eno sounding three or four note repetitive pattern makes for an incredibly visual track. It's actually quite staggering how this track evolves from ambient to structured. At just over 64 minutes this is one album that's really challenging and ultimately satisfying. (Dw).

PENGUIN CAFE ORCHESTRA. A Brief History.

There's actually two releases out, this one, and A History, the difference being that A Brief History is a single cd, whereas the History is a four cd set. In other words, this release is a kind of best of from the larger one. The Penguin Cafe Orchestra were a band that, literally, created their own sound, and many of you will have heard their stuff albeit via commercials. The PCO seem to have become the darlings of the advertising world as a lot of their music is used on many adverts past and present. On many of their numbers they display a superb control over repetitive riffs via the likes of mandolins or harmonium, this gradually builds up via all kinds of odd instruments until, invariably, you end up with an incredibly addictive song. As far as I know all their music was instrumental and were perhaps one of the most original and most difficult to categorise bands there has ever been. Tracks like Music For A Found Harmonium, Perpetuum Mobile, Yodel and Organum are typical PCO, there are the odd ones that almost stray into the 'normal'. The whole project is being overseen by Arthur Jeffes, son of the late Simon Jeffes, the genius behind the band. (Dw).

RAPOON. Fallen Gods (Cidar). Staalplaat. STCD094

A double CD from 1994, in which Robin Storey's vision is one where global ambient music is available for all to enjoy. The task is made much harder by the pure nature of the tracks because none fit into the standard radio package. Another plus point is the quality of the slow moving compositions. Sitting back and not paying attention would be considered discourteous to Storey, as the 18 tracks demand your indulgence for a minimum of two and half-hours. That said, the time passes very quickly, especially when listening on serious headphones (a portable appliance would not be considered adequate!). Each track focuses on a different aspect of sound that has a dramatic effect on you mood. There are a number of great moments, Noord from the second side eclipsing most, where the aquatic effects are mesmerising. You have to be in the correct frame of mind to listen to this type of music, but when you are the outcome is sheer aural bliss. (Brooky)

DAVID BOWIE. All Saints. EMI 5 33045 2.

Not just another Bowie compilation I hear you cry? Well, no it isn't, actually. Well, it is in some respects but it's different for two reasons. The first is that it's an instrumental collection, and secondly, there's three tracks that are 'currently unavailable on any other release'. These tracks being the title track, Abulmajid and Crystal Japan. For regular Bowie fans, the aspect of instrumental music's not that new, but for the casual browser, to think of a Bowie instrumental is a bit like thinking of, say, a Dylan one! In actuality, Bowie's instrumentals were (and in many respects still are) at the forefront of ambient meets mood and wrestles with rock. A lot of his more successful ones were written with Eno, many of which are taken from Low and Heroes. There's stuff from Buddha Of Suburbia, Philip Glass's interpretation of Low and even one from his new album, Hours. All in all it's a cracking collection because, like I say, it contains instrumental music, nothing more and nothing less and if you especially enjoy his more reflective pieces, then here's an album's worth, plus those extra three tracks as well. (Dave W).