Lucid Dreams 0096
Encyclopedia
‘’’Lucid Dreams 0096’’’ is a 1996 ambient
album, on the em:t label. It is credited to “0096”, but this is merely the sequential catalogue number of the disc, labelled in em:t’s house style – the actual instrumentation on the album was provided by Miasma and Bad Data, two em:t artists.
reading extracts from her book Lucid Dreams: The Paradox of Consciousness During Sleep, as well as some new material. Green describes the phenomenon of lucid dreaming and its many aspects; its relation to waking life and perception, its erotic possibilities, relation to nightmares, and so forth. Interspersed among these are instances of actual dreams, read out by voice artists.
The example dreams included are often from well-known or notable people, including Oliver Fox
, Ernst Mach
and Marie-Jean-Léon, Marquis d'Hervey de Saint Denys
. Both Fox and d’Hervey de Saint Denys were very interested in dreams and dreaming, and both experienced fully lucid dreams.
The instrumentation and vocal effects that create the album’s unique atmosphere were the work of Chris Allen, Will Joss, Tom Smyth and David Thompson, and the album was constructed by recording Green’s narrative and the “case studies” at the Institute for Psychophysical research in Oxford, with the ambient music, noise and soundscapes added later at Square Centre studios in Nottingham. The recordings all took place in 1995.
In common with all other em:t releases, the album’s cover is a library photograph of an animal, courtesy of the Designer’s Republic – in this case, an extreme close-up of the eye of a parrotfish
.
, for instance, are very similar to Green’s methods detailed here.
The style of the album itself – a disjointed lecture, peppered with individual anecdotes and stories performed by voice artists, designed to approximate the feeling of the mind just before sleep – may have been an influence on Chris Morris
, whose own Blue Jam
took a very similar approach one year later. Morris is a fan of the ambient genre, and both Blue Jam and its TV counterpart Jam were filled with music from ambient artists such as Autechre
and Aphex Twin
.
Like most other em:t releases, Lucid Dreams is no longer in print, and copies fetch exaggeratedly high prices on auction sites such as ebay
.
Ambient music
Ambient music is a musical genre that focuses largely on the timbral characteristics of sounds, often organized or performed to evoke an "atmospheric", "visual" or "unobtrusive" quality.- History :...
album, on the em:t label. It is credited to “0096”, but this is merely the sequential catalogue number of the disc, labelled in em:t’s house style – the actual instrumentation on the album was provided by Miasma and Bad Data, two em:t artists.
Origins
Celia Green had already recorded one track for the em:t label – “In the Extreme”, which was featured on 1995’s “2295” compilation. A quote from Green also featured on the CD’s sleevenotes. “In the Extreme” featured Green reading extracts and epithets from her books “The Human Evasion” and “Advice to Clever Children”. Em:t judged the track to have enough merit to commission an entire album featuring Green, with an overarching theme, and thus “Lucid Dreams” was created.Overview
The bulk of the album is taken up by Celia GreenCelia Green
Celia Elizabeth Green is a British writer on philosophical skepticism, twentieth-century thought, and psychology.- Biography :...
reading extracts from her book Lucid Dreams: The Paradox of Consciousness During Sleep, as well as some new material. Green describes the phenomenon of lucid dreaming and its many aspects; its relation to waking life and perception, its erotic possibilities, relation to nightmares, and so forth. Interspersed among these are instances of actual dreams, read out by voice artists.
The example dreams included are often from well-known or notable people, including Oliver Fox
Oliver Fox
Oliver Fox was the pseudonym of Hugh George Callaway , an English short story writer, poet and occultist, chiefly remembered for his Astral Projection: A Record of Research , an account of his lucid dreams and out-of-the-body experiences.-References:...
, Ernst Mach
Ernst Mach
Ernst Mach was an Austrian physicist and philosopher, noted for his contributions to physics such as the Mach number and the study of shock waves...
and Marie-Jean-Léon, Marquis d'Hervey de Saint Denys
Marie-Jean-Léon, Marquis d'Hervey de Saint Denys
Marie-Jean-Léon Lecoq, Baron d'Hervey de Juchereau, Marquis d'Hervey de Saint-Denys , was a French sinologist and man of letters, and one of the earliest oneirologists ....
. Both Fox and d’Hervey de Saint Denys were very interested in dreams and dreaming, and both experienced fully lucid dreams.
The instrumentation and vocal effects that create the album’s unique atmosphere were the work of Chris Allen, Will Joss, Tom Smyth and David Thompson, and the album was constructed by recording Green’s narrative and the “case studies” at the Institute for Psychophysical research in Oxford, with the ambient music, noise and soundscapes added later at Square Centre studios in Nottingham. The recordings all took place in 1995.
In common with all other em:t releases, the album’s cover is a library photograph of an animal, courtesy of the Designer’s Republic – in this case, an extreme close-up of the eye of a parrotfish
Parrotfish
Parrotfishes are a group of fishes that traditionally had been considered a family , but now often are considered a subfamily of the wrasses. They are found in relatively shallow tropical and subtropical oceans throughout the world, but with the largest species richness in the Indo-Pacific...
.
Tracklist
- Lucidity
- Prelucid dreams
- False Awakenings
- Out-of-the-Body Experiences
- Dream Control and Erotic Possibilities
- Achieving Lucidity
- Health Warning
- Nightmares
- Extrasensory Perception
- Implications
Reception
Due to Green’s standing as a psychologist and academic, the album was reviewed in New Scientist, and the New Statesman..Influence
Celia Green’s work was the first to attempt a scientific study of lucid dreaming, and bring it to a wider audience. The album can be seen as a continuation of that work. As a result of Green and McCreery’s original study, lucid dreams have become a legitimate field of research, and the apparent logic governing lucid dreaming has been absorbed into popular culture. The “rules” of lucid dreaming (how one can tell if one is dreaming, what one is able to do in a dream) laid down in movies like InceptionInception
Inception: The Subconscious Jams 1994-1995 is a compilation of unreleased tracks by the band Download.-Track listing:# "Primitive Tekno Jam" – 3:23# "Bee Sting Sickness" – 8:04# "Weed Acid Techno" – 8:19...
, for instance, are very similar to Green’s methods detailed here.
The style of the album itself – a disjointed lecture, peppered with individual anecdotes and stories performed by voice artists, designed to approximate the feeling of the mind just before sleep – may have been an influence on Chris Morris
Chris Morris
Chris Morris may refer to:* Chris Morris , gay rights activist* Chris Morris , American football player for the Detroit Lions...
, whose own Blue Jam
Blue Jam
Blue Jam was an ambient radio comedy programme created and directed by Chris Morris. It aired on BBC Radio 1 in the early hours of the morning from 1997 to 1999....
took a very similar approach one year later. Morris is a fan of the ambient genre, and both Blue Jam and its TV counterpart Jam were filled with music from ambient artists such as Autechre
Autechre
Autechre are an English electronic music duo consisting of Rob Brown and Sean Booth, both natives of Rochdale, Greater Manchester. Formed in 1987, they are one of the most prominent acts signed to Warp Records, a label known for its pioneering electronic music and through which all Autechre albums...
and Aphex Twin
Aphex Twin
Richard David James , best known under the pseudonym Aphex Twin, is an Irish-born electronic musician and composer described as "the most inventive and influential figure in contemporary electronic music"...
.
Like most other em:t releases, Lucid Dreams is no longer in print, and copies fetch exaggeratedly high prices on auction sites such as ebay
EBay
eBay Inc. is an American internet consumer-to-consumer corporation that manages eBay.com, an online auction and shopping website in which people and businesses buy and sell a broad variety of goods and services worldwide...
.