The Fall of Us All–Guitar Player, 7/94

Veering from ambient dream­scapes to violent, post-industrial rave-ups, from spellbinding acoustic fretwork to apocalyptic electric fret burn, Tibbetts' first album in five years is an emotional and sonic tour-de-force. The beautiful / brutal contrasts and open-ended spirit evoke Bill Frisell and David Torn, but every passage is Tibbetts' own--it's hard to imagine a more cliché-­free player. And while Steve's mu­sic is informed by various non­-Western traditions (particularly in its use of microtonal ornamen­tation and Balinese-inspired per­cussion), everything coalesces in­to a unique, fully realized tapestry--no tacky world beat mix-'n' -match here. Brilliant, brilliant, brilliant.

--Joe Gore

CD Review / January 1994

A definitive album of Steve Tibbetts' polymorphing, acid burn guitar layered over Marc Anderson's churning world percussion orchestrations.  Every song is like a roiling journey with enough melody to charge the synapses and enough surprises to keep you forever on edge, whether it be the surprising acoustic guitar turns or the wailing voice of Claudia Schmidt. While many artists look outside themselves to create global connections, Steve Tibbetts creates his from the inside.