Not sure who Ott actually is, but this is his first record for 5 years. Short on tracks, but not in length, from Trunch To Stormness sounds immediately similar to another album sitting in my tray right now, The Orb. Therefore I was not surprised to learn that Ott has in fact recorded with the band and is supposedly highly regarded by several of its members.

So now you know what to expect. Lengthy ambient-electronic tunes, stylistically downtempo in mood but diced with some meaty dub rhythms. Rogue Bagel introduces Eastern wood percussion, with flute and sitar sounds to add a further dimension.

My only problem with Skylon is its lack of memorable tunes, the whole album seems to be rhythm based – there are melodic elements overlaying the rhythms, but they seem to just wander along gracefully rather than adding dynamism or authority.

382 Seaside is the only track that breaks from tradition, adding female vocals - but even then, they tend to melt into the production and are incomprehensible from a lyrical perspective. The closing A Shower of Sparks also sparingly uses the feminine voice, this time merely as a lyric-less additional instrument, and it almost reaches moments of euphoria – but still that indefinable something is lacking.

Skylon is a beautifully-produced album from an undoubtedly expert studio engineer. However, as is so often the case, when the technical aspect of the music takes precedence over the song writing, it doesn’t matter how good it sounds aesthetically, if the tunes are not powerful enough to capture the attention it becomes merely pleasant rather than captivating or memorable.

Had Ott got some stronger vocalists on board who could write meaningful, tuneful lyrics Skylon could have been an excellent album – otherwise it’s only redeemable if you’re in the mood for facile yet amiable beat dub background music.