L.S.G. – Rendezvous In Outer Space

Can't believe missed this first time round, sorely needs a full vinyl release.

Fantastic album. An essential masterpiece in your collection if you're into this kind of stuff. It sounds amazing too, no harshness whatsoever, a feast to my ears. Seems to be the norm with mr. Liebs albums, fantastic sound, just turn it up. Easy 5/5.

I could have sworn I reviewed this one or at least commented (but apparently not), and was going to add something to it, but as long as I'm already here: this was waaay ahead of its time, truly prescient, for nothing quite like it would come out again until Lieb's next release. You assume I jest, but think about it. Not until after that second release did you start hearing these sounds everywhere. If it was mere imitation, why not hear them after the first release? He sensed the future more than he made it. Someone could send you a demo CD of this labeled as being from 2010 and you'd never know. It was a future version of its retro self (or something... retro before retro was a "thing" and all that). Just rich, yet with a "primitive" flavor, and somewhat minimalist at both, however that works.

Anyway, the thing I came here to add to my nonexistent review is that a lot of this album is like Orbital meets Mixmaster Morris, the former on salvia and the latter on meth, mixed by... I dunno, fill that in for yourself I guess.

And that's the story of how I got you to listen to this album.

L.S.G. became Oliver Lieb's main identity once he left behind Spicelab, and it represents his more melodic trance side, and right from "Wrong Time... Wrong Place," he makes his intentions clear: dance, fool! "Lonely Casseopaya" carries a dreaminess in its angelic chords, but "My Time Is Yours" is all about the upbeat thumps. "Sweet Gravity" starts out with some deeper tones, and "The Hidden Sun of Venus" seems as if it's going to stay in its moody ambiance for good, though it's clear that something is waiting to explode in the background, though the explosion is held back until "Everything Is..." "Enter-Paradise" gets twisty, and "Fontana" pushes some distortion to accompany the main tune before "Reprise" ends things on a low throb. Don't miss this rendezvous!

I suppose it is worth mentioning that the "My time is yours" and "Never mind" samples, respectively spoken by James Wheaton and Maggie McOmie, comes from THX 1138 a movie directed by George Lucas, the only good one he has made.

I hope I just missed an existing review, as this album is a true classic. I'm sure there are bigger Lieb fans out there, but I certainly rank pretty high. For me, this may be his most coherent and enduring album.

LSG has been an influence on piles of more famous producers, and yet he has somehow remained underground. I guess his staunch belief in not selling out has maybe kept him out of the spotlight a bit through the years.

This album is a massive journey through space, from the rays of the sun to the dark side of the moon. Lieb crafts the album as an unbroken journey through ambient passages, uptempo floor burners, and really dark moments. It actually challenges the listener at times, but it always guides you back to light.

As far as I know, Lieb not only created incredible stand-alone tracks for his albums, but he also mixed them DJ-style. I even read somewhere that LSG II was mixed in one take?? It's as if creating an album was too easy, and he looked for greater challenges.

Anyway, this album encapsulates everything his LSG project was. Listen to tracks 4-7 and you'll have experienced Lieb at the peak of his powers.

If you like what you hear, check out LSG II and Collected Works. Into Deep and The Black Album are both well worth having, but they're both a bit tangential to me. There's also an "unreleased" LSG album (his last) that Lieb gave away for free using his MySpace page. It, too, has some defining moments of beauty. I hear that it is being remastered for an official release.

For an idea of where trance stood before the great 'progressive' boom took over, look no further than this release. This album may be nine years old (as of this writing) but it still sounds amazingly fresh.

Tracks like 'Lonely Casseopaya', 'Enter - Paradise', 'Can You See The Yellow Turtles', and 'Fontana' fly with the same brilliant, melodic soundscapes Oliver Lieb has been known to utilize throughout many of his productions, none of which fall into tired cliche that would sadly begin to dominate trance in later years.

The more rhythm orientated tracks such as 'My Time Is Yours' and 'Sweet Gravity' are certain to keep dancefloors filled with their infectious hooks.