''Autour de la Lune'' is an album by ambient musician

Biosphere The biosphere (from Greek βίος ''bíos'' "life" and σφαῖρα ''sphaira'' "sphere"), also known as the ecosphere (from Greek οἶκος ''oîkos'' "environment" and σφαῖρα), is the worldwide sum of all ecosystems. It can also ...

which was released on 17 May 2004. The album presents a striking difference from others in the Biosphere catalog due to its percussionless, minimalistic soundscapes consisting mostly of white noise and the sounds of the

Mir ''Mir'' (russian: Мир, ; ) was a space station that operated in low Earth orbit from 1986 to 2001, operated by the Soviet Union and later by Russia. ''Mir'' was the first modular space station and was assembled in orbit from 1986 to&n ...

space station, related to

drone music Drone music, drone-based music, or simply drone, is a minimalist genre that emphasizes the use of sustained sounds, notes, or tone clusters – called drones. It is typically characterized by lengthy audio programs with relatively slight harm ...

. It featured cover art by the Norwegian contemporary artis
Tor-Magnus Lundeby

Overview

''Autour de la Lune'' stands as the most minimal and austere Biosphere album to date. The

drone Drone most commonly refers to: * Drone (bee), a male bee, from an unfertilized egg * Unmanned aerial vehicle * Unmanned surface vehicle, watercraft * Unmanned underwater vehicle or underwater drone Drone, drones or The Drones may also refer to: ...

s employed on this album are comparable to Coil's 1998 album ''

Time Machines ''Time Machines'' is a 1998 studio album by English experimental group Coil, originally released under the one-off project alias Time Machines. The album was created under the premise of psychedelic drone pieces named after corresponding halluc ...

'' in their timbre and slow rate of change. The bulk of this work was originally commissioned and broadcast in September 2003 by

Radio France Radio France is the French national public radio broadcaster. Stations Radio France offers seven national networks: * France Inter — Radio France's " generalist" station, featuring entertaining and informative talk mixed with a wide variety o ...

Culture for a musical evocation of

Jules Verne Jules Gabriel Verne (;''Longman Pronunciation Dictionary''. ; 8 February 1828 – 24 March 1905) was a French novelist, poet, and playwright. His collaboration with the publisher Pierre-Jules Hetzel led to the creation of the '' Voyages extra ...

. As a book, ''Autour de la Lune'' (1870, ''

Around the Moon ''Around the Moon'' (french: Autour de la Lune, 1869), also translated as ''Circling the Moon'' and ''All Around the Moon'', is the sequel to Jules Verne's 1865 novel, ''From the Earth to the Moon''. It is a science fiction tale which continues th ...

'') was Jules Verne's sequel to his ''De la Terre à la Lune'' (1865, ''

From the Earth to the Moon ''From the Earth to the Moon: A Direct Route in 97 Hours, 20 Minutes'' (french: De la Terre à la Lune, trajet direct en 97 heures 20 minutes) is an 1865 novel by Jules Verne. It tells the story of the Baltimore Gun Club, a post-American Civil W ...

''). The first one dealt with the Earth part of the story until the ship's launching, from the outside. ''Autour de la Lune'' dealt from the inside of the ship with the launching and the actual space travel to and around the moon.

Track listing

# "Translation" – 21:43 # "Rotation" – 11:08 # "Modifié" – 5:10 # "Vibratoire" – 3:36 # "Déviation" – 10:26 # "Circulaire" – 6:15 # "Disparu" – 2:26 # "Inverse" – 5:32 # "Tombant" – 8:07 The album's titles are French for "Translation", "Rotation", "Modified", "Vibratory", "Deviation", "Circular", "Vanished", "Reverse", "Falling", and evoke the movements of a rocket around the moon and back. Track 3 consists of (among other sounds) a ring modulation of

Sigur Rós Sigur Rós () is an Icelandic post-rock band from Reykjavík, active since 1994. The band comprises singer and guitarist Jón Þór "Jónsi" Birgisson, bassist Georg Hólm, and keyboardist Kjartan Sveinsson. Known for their ethereal sound, fr ...

' " Ný batterí".https://www.discogs.com/release/265956-Biosphere-Autour-De-La-Lune

References

2004 albums Biosphere (musician) albums Music based on works by Jules Verne {{2000s-techno-album-stub