Artist description Consists of one man and some friendly collatorations, and the rest is gear

Music Style . Electronics, heavy effects, live drums, bass, guitars, ethnic percussion, treated samples, ethereal vocals, psychedelic textures: all are mutated and fused with an emotionally-charged cohesion seldom experienced.

Musical Influences to many to mention, brian eno, spectrum, spirtualized, sonic boom, kraftwerk, EAR, underground resistance etc

Artist History It started at birth and has never stopped. The career of PHIL WESTERN has stretched from one end of the electronic spectrum to the other, and includes membership in world-renowned acts DOWNLOAD (Nettwerk), OFF AND GONE (Harthouse/Eye Q's only North American signing), and FLOATPOINT (ESP/Sun). He has also contributed his talents to numerous major label releases, including drums and percussion on the TRANQUILITY BASS album Let The Freak Flag Fly, keyboards on SKINNY PUPPY1s final release Process, and keyboard and drum programming on Voyeurs by TWO. As a member of the SUBCONSCIOUS collective, he played a major role in their superb collaborative albums Paradigm Shift and Plateau.

Group Members phil westerntim hill

Instruments bass, guitar, live drums, synths, samples,

Albums most recent : (download, effector) , (plateau, spacecake), (phil western, the escapist)

Press Reviews Phil Western - The Escapist - MAP204InterferenceFor years Western has been putting out tracks, working as a member of Vancouver's Download (ex-Skinny Puppy), drumming on Tranquility Bass's last album 'Let the Freak Flag Fly,' an album with Dan Handrabur for Germany's Eye-Q label (Off And Gone), and loads of tracks for compilations. Map's 'Welcome to Lotus Land' compilation was the first opportunity to see Western's shining abilities as a solo artist. Now Map has released 'The Escapist' - 14 tracks of beautiful, organic electronics. The churned breakbeats and Eastern-tinged samples and guitar on opening track 'Hampi' are just a hint at the diverse mix of sound on 'The Escapist.' 'Mourning' is a gorgeous techno track filled with lush melodies and tight programming. 'Full Moon' is a chunky polyrhythmic abrasive stomper that builds layer by layer over twelve full minutes. And tracks like 'Last Moments,' and 'Flashback' are beatless textured ambient passages. Only the distorted rhythms of 'No Help' sound vaguely like Western's work with Download. As for the rest? 'The Escapist' is a challenging, often sublime record from one of Canada's newest emerging talents.Aaron MichelsonBest of 1998 - Taxi MagazineA psychedelic mash-up of blistering techno, experimentation and folk-tinged instrumentals from a seminal Vancouver artist. (4.5)Top Ten Recordings of 1998 - Georgia StraightThe only local artist to make my list this year earned his place with an intoxicating solo debut that deftly merges the sometimes-sterile world of synths and programming with live and sampled guitar, bass, violin, and percussion. The result is a combination of floating, textured ambiance and edgy dissonance that somehow hangs together as a whole.John LucasAlternative PressPhil Western: The EscapistThis Canadian producer is all over the musical map on his solo debut album. Western's eclecticism isn't surprising if you know his background, which includes time in Off And Gone, Download, Tranquility Bass and Skinny Puppy. "The Escapist"'s broad canvas encompasses ethno-techno (forgive the term), psychotropic ambient, lush soundtrackisms, Detroitian techno, tweaked house and even gothic psyche-rock. Whatever style Western deploys, the quality remains high and the emotional heft substantial. Some enterprising filmmaker should exploit his talents.Dave SegalXLR8RPhil Western: The EscapistAnother impressive release from Vancouver's bastion of the cutting edge, Map Music. Phil Western has an impressive pedigree, releasing music in the past under the moniker of OFF AND GONE, who had an amazing album called "Everest" out on Harthouse (still one of my favourites of the last few years). This new album is a solo project, with the assistance of a live band on some of the tracks. It is incredibly diverse and shows the all round flexibility of not only Phil Western, but of the possibilities of the modern studio in general. Rather than focussing on one method of production, Western goes for broke and encompasses everything from hard-ish techno, to live psychedelic rock, to downtempo abstraction, deep tech-house grooves and collage. It is a very powerful effect.One of the most important achievements here is that it is an actual ALBUM that listens all the way through. This is consistently one of the problems with current electronic music: it just doesn't reward proper attentive listening; what contemporary music needs is long-players. Of course the DJ cult which has hit the music scene hard diverts people's attention away from the artist-based album format, but will only ever serve as a marketing device, unless DJs themselves become either more responsible or more talented, instead of mere icons of dance culture. Phil Western makes a valuable statement here for the return of artist-based 'real music', in the sense that he is able to transcend genre-fication and simultaenously produce work of impact and meaning. My particular favourites here are the gorgeous guitar-tinged "Pleasures Gained", the squelchy techno groove of "Mourning" and the closing two tracks of psychedelia "Getting Old" and "Stay Clean", both excellent examples of the currently promising electronic-live crossover.An incredibly contemporary record recommended to the astute music lover.Andrew RawnsleyThe Georgia StraightPhil Western: The EscapistThe Escapist is Phil Western's first release under his own name, but most local electronic-music fans have heard the man's work, whether they know his name or not. His skills as a keyboard player and drum programmer have graced everything from Skinny Puppy's final album to Two's Voyeurs, former Judas Priest howler Rob Halford's foray into industrial rock. As a member of Download, Off and Gone, and Floatpoint, Western has helped create sounds that range from rave-friendly techno to unsettlingly dark ambience. It's hardly surprising, then, that The Escapist is so hard to categorize. Heavy dance beats throb next to ethnic percussion, effects-treated guitars vie for your attention alongside purely electronic sounds and samples. Western's annual excursions to such places as Thailand, Malaysia, and India surely informed the pulsating drone of "Hampi" and the gorgeously languid "Pleasures Gained", while the harsh rhythms of "No Help" owe something to Skinny Puppy's gothic-industrial assault. This album may be a sonic collage of Western's disparate influences, but it sounds remarkably cohesive and organic, a drifting slice of seamless psychedelia tailor-made for lethargic, sun-drenched summer afternoons.John LucasCD REVIEWSPhil Western: The EscapistOverall impression: excellent! Phil Western (aka DJ Philth) is probably best known as 1/3 of Download and Plateau, 1/2 of Landhip and Off and Gone, and 1 of Cap'm Stargazer ... but on this disc, he's just Phil Western. Although elements of his other projects can be found here and there, this album is much different. "The Escapist" has a very organic feel, very lush and textured (like all of Map Records wonderful releases), but the use of "real" instruments and the buried vocals (on 3 or 4 songs) adds much to the otherwise predominantly electronic sound. The album is heavy on soulful groove and mesmerizing, hypnotic textures and melodies ... I haven't heard an album like this in years. A very welcome addition to my "IDM" overrun collection. I especially enjoy "Hampi", "Pleasures Gained", "Mourning" (Phil must really like this track because this is this 3rd time he's used it - see also Cap'm Stargazer "Mourning" on the "Welcome to Lotus Land" compilation and "Purple Passion" on Plateau's "Music for Grassbars"), "I No Really" (clever use of surgery conversation samples), "Sun is Round", "Full Moon" (a 12 minute + krautrock-like trance), "Getting Old" and "Stay Clean" ... oh wait, I've just listed most of the tracks as my favorites ... there's a reason for that! "The Escapist" shows just how incredibly talented Phil and friends are. It's only July, and I already know that of the hundreds of cds I'm probably going to buy this year, "The Escapist" is going to make my top 10 of the year list. Be sure to visit the Map Records page to check it out for yourself via real audio of the entire album...Mark WeddleThe Province CD Of The WeekPhil Western: The EscapistWestern's milieu is electronic music - usually dismissed in a breath by some as exactly as cold as the bleak picture on the album cover - but he is a multi-instrumentalist who employs more conventional instruments to add more detail or texture to what is a wide-ranging set of compositions. That's another dimension of "The Escapist" that can't be underestimated. Western has arranged these 14 tracks carefully rather than setting them down by rote - a little example of drum 'n bass here, industrial rock there and ambient interludes elsewhere.Tom HarrisonThe Record 5/98Phil Western: The EscapistWest coast industrial vet (Tranquility Bass, Download, Rob Halford's Two) debuts with a fascinating sonic travelogue. Unlike most discs swamping the ambient/electro racks, this one's got a human face as the sequencing is augmented by violin, guitar, flute and drums. More evidence that MAP is the nation's most promising alt.rhythm imprint.Jeff BatemanelectriqPhil Western: The EscapistI firmly believe that Phil Western has created some of the most interesting music of the decade. As a member of Off and Gone, Download, Plateau, and as Cap'm Stargazer and Philth, he has constantly enthralled electronic music listeners with his techno/ambient rhythms. But now, Phil Western has added another element to the picture.Phil has said in interviews that he turned to electronic music to save money, as it cost very little to put together an electronic music studio, compared to the over-inflated costs of working in a real studio. It appears Phil has more money now, as this album not only contains electronic music, but also very real drums, bass, guitar, violin, flute, ukelele, and vocals.I know I usually pick out some highlights of an album, but with The Escapist, I really can't. This album should not be listened to for individual songs, but as a whole. Genres span from ambient to techno to industrial. If you liked Download's III or platEAU's Music For Grass Bars, or have enjoyed any of Phil's other work, pick this up asap."How can I get this?" you are probably asking. The Escapist is on Map Records, you can order it from them at www.mapmusic.com.by Simon SpeichertChart - July/August 1998Phil Western: The EscapistOver the last half-decade, Vancouver's Phil Western has amassed a healthy back-catalogue of work, most of it in partnership with follow west coast electronic producers like Dan Handrabur and cEvin Key. The Escapist, however, is his full-length debut as a solo artist, and his first work under his given name (earlier singles and compilation tracks appeared under monikers like Cap'm Stargazer and Philth). This lack of anonymity is fitting since this album strikes the listener as an extremely heartfelt work, right from the very first spin. In fact, it's almost personal to a fault; as it careens from techno beats to dark ambience to tripped out live jams to experimental weirdness, it seems as if the thread that connects the whole lot into a truly cohesive whole is visible only to Western. Still, if taken with an open mind and an adventurous nature, The Escapist will not disappoint those who are willing to take the time to absorb it's many and varied layers of sound. Just remember that when it comes to music, "difficult" doesn't always mean "bad".Greg ClowTaxi 5/98Phil Western: The EscapistPhil Western's solo debut defies all preconceived notions and conceptions you may have formed while awaiting the release of this phenomenal CD. This masterpiece is an eclectic array of sonic creations, which brought me to a place that faintly resembled an opium den: psychedelic, ethereal, and celestial all wrapped up into one. It's an escape to say the least.It appears his many trips to Asia have had a strong influence, and Phil has brought forth some amazing music that is placed in a class all on it's own. "Hampi", "Pleasures Gained", "Full Moon" and "Stay Clean" are my chosen destinations, but all tracks make more than an impact. I am curious to know if the message he is relaying is something from far beyond, somewhere beyond a passport stamp.Sit back, close your eyes, and get ready for take off, Phil is piloting you on a journey of magic, mystery and enchantment.Melanie DawnThe ProvincePhil Western: The EscapistThe Escapist is mixing down sounds to take you to the farthest reaches of your own head. Resistance is redundant - go with it. Hear, feel, travel with Van. electroniculturalist Phil Western as your sonic/psychic guide on his MAP Records debut The Escapist. From beat-driven percolations like Hampi to Mourning's elegaic palate, Western's longtime-in-coming solo disc is a mastermix of this prolific musician's influences (Download, Off and Gone, Floatpoint, Tranquility Bass, etc.). It's also a culmination of sorts for MAP Records, bringing all the best elements of the label's high quality releases together in one recording. The Escapist is the best entry point ot MAP's concept, and Western's musical worldview: Varied, fully-realized and fun too! There's no arguing the scope and strength of each cut on Phil's disc are mature in the execution and HOLY SHIT the production is AWESOME. Put this sucker on a a quad system, enhance yourself and LET IT RIP!Stuart DerdeynLast Sigh Magazine For Underground MusicPhil Western: The EscapistPhil Western's iconoclastic sounds in music have once again been unleashed with The Escapist, a self-perpetuating voyage onto dark winding synthways, intermittent jazzy percussion and guitar and beautifully orchestrated harmonics. The changes from track to track are very diverse with Phil's use of voice, keys, guitar and drums which range from organics to synth beats and occultish acid drones. Michael Louw includes moments of flute, ukelele, violin and percussion on various tracks. Dan Handrabur includes even more intricate movements on violin, with Barb Kennedy on vocals, while bassonics and guitar are done by Chris Hill. A couple of the tracks are somewhat reminescent of what I would consider works that Duck would have enjoyed, fast hard-hitting techno-edge electronica as in "No Help", "Maruti", and "Flashback."One of the most interesting tracks on the release is "I No Really" -- laden with vocals of two men, and a woman who are apparently conducting an operation and shock treatments on a woman. From what I can understand, it's brain surgery. As the song progresses, (and it is very progressive and excellent!), the men keep asking this woman in surgery if she's "feeling anything now?, feeling anything now?" to which she says "no, just a little pressure", and among other things, "I...no...really". You hear gurgling sounds and other twisted synths, excellent percussion and a sick sense of guitar in the background, all the while the woman being "treated" is trying to make them understand she (thinks) knows the answers to their simple questioning by stating, "I....no.....really." Great track, but scary if you take the time to actually hear what is going on with the vocals/samples."Sun Is Round" brings out more guitar effects, and percussion that keeps you hanging on for the next change in tempo, and synth timbre. (The lyrics are printed on the liner.) "Kent The Fly" is another excellent piece, percussion, loops of what sounds like bassonics and ends with a techno solo beat, which smooths its way into "Full Moon", a [Eastern type of] culturally swirling instrumental work, quirky, synthy, fast paced and mello, with sweet and temptuous angelic vocals, good dance song, on the techno-tribal edge lasting over twelve minutes.Overall this is an excellent quality CD in both composition, engineering and sound -- one you won't want to miss. The Escapist surpasses a number of releases I have heard in the past year in the same associated veins of sound. Get it soon before is escapes the racks at the cd shop nearest you, or order from your favourite online company.Kim AlexanderDiscorder 7/98Phil Western: The EscapistEscape from what ? If anything Phil aka Philth of Download aka Cap'm Stargazer aka one half of Off and Gone aka something to do with Skinny Puppy has rounded up another reason to keep living in Vancouver: we decieve ourselves into believing this is Lotus Land. Or perhaps the album just decieves for us, the deception being the most on the last track, "stay clean" with its haunting melodies that just wants to make you snuggle with something furry, smoke the funny and die crying. Beautiful soundscapes; etheral beats punctuated by industrial stabs invoking the modernist-aspect of the cover art; obviously music assembled from travelling the world, perhaps a mental voyage, as the inside photos show. Well worth it. 8.5/10TobiasApocalypse MagazinePhil Western: The EscapistThis eclectic, psychedelic groove romp is flat out one of the best records I've heard in a long time. People may know Phil from Download, Off and Gone or Cap'm Stargazer but this should throw him into the spotlight as a solo artist. Muted acidic textures contrast with UR influenced techno to create a stunning hot pot of beautiful music. Awesome artwork too. Buy now or lose out on the opportunity to hear one of the finest musicians around today.Kuma

Location Vancouver, bc - Canada

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