REVIEWS

Recorded at Geoff’s place and ably produced, mixed and mastered by 
Steve “the polymath” Palmer, “Would You Like Some Cake?” comprises 
of four ambient pieces each of which is at least ten minutes duration. 
It’s all played on analogue (and mostly old) synthesizers and given 
extra texture courtesy of Geoff’s “out of the void and through the FX” 
electric guitar. When performed well this kind of music can be blissfully 
enthralling, but get it wrong and it can all sound so clumsy or else 
overwrought. It’s a relief and a blessing, then, that this is neither 
ham-fisted nor too clever by half, and relief turns to delight when you 
realise, oh, about 30 seconds in, that what you have in your aural midst
is a transcendental and accomplished feast of ambient chill out music. 

Opener “A Warm Bath of Electronics” is just that (and not half as 
dangerous as it sounds kids), a veritable cleansing of the senses 
such as you might expect to experience in a psychedelic flotation tank. 
A meditative marvel, at just over 10 minutes this is pitched perfectly 
and reveals a typically tasteful restraint and a respect for the sonic 
hardware at the band’s disposal. “Floating With...” is, loosely speaking, 
a more rhythmic affair which trades a little heavier on the space drips 
and features cavernous yet still understated guitar. The result is 
dreamlike and sublime. The epic centrepiece here is “Owlerie” which 
shapeshifts across a myriad of moods and textures. It’s epic stuff and, 
at 17 minutes it’s the longest cut here. In fact it may just be a little 
too long, but while the template is at risk of becoming a little tested 
at times this is but a minor quibble, and our heroes are able to steer 
the craft in to land without a scratch. So then to the end piece, 
“Hallow E’en” which swoops and howls in suitably eerie fashion, 
demonstrating that The Golden Cake Company can cook up somewhat 
saturnine shade as well as blissful light. Why all that’s missing 
is Sharon Crutcher’s cooing and wailing and I’d be in my monthly 
Book of Shadows seventh heaven.

Reminiscent of Rainbow Dome Music (although obviously without the 
major label production values) and the motorik-free end of the Kosmiche 
experience, here’s proof that all of those nights and days listening 
to the likes of Tangerine Dream, Klaus Schultze and Manuel Gottsching 
whilst sitting in the more zonked out branches of the Planet Gong family 
tree have done these boys no harm at all. In fact it just goes to show 
what we already knew that, musically speaking, there’s no such thing as 
a misspent youth or, for that matter, middle age.

Cake? I don’t mind if I do. 

Ian Fraser