Firstly, I want to be clear that what I am doing here is nit-picking. The music and mix are generally excellent, and in fact the mix is among those I most respect in hundreds of hours of listening. This release is mixed in the way I think all surround should be mixed. Very discrete, and very clear.
Is this like Mike Oldfield? Yes. Stylistically there is quite alot which harkens back to Part One of Tubular Bells. There seems to be some question about whether this is somehow bothersome. It is clearly offered as more of a tribute than a plagerism, and since I enjoy early Oldfield I say "why not." He is clearly conscious of the influence: the bottom of the back of the package says "Plus.....Tubular Bells." So if you like early Mike Oldfield, I am guessing this will please you.
One wonders if Oldfield has heard this and how he feels about it?
The one thing that I do not prefer is the way he uses human voices as part of the melodic flow. Whereas Oldfield employs a brief humming section that I think fits well, Reed uses a "wordless choir," providing "Synergy vocals." This manifests as harmonized parts comprised of sung sounds such as "la, lay, lo" and other voicings. This is more akin to a blend I should like to call Tubulaanisqatsi. The use of voices is my least favorite part of the recording - not because I do not like human voice used in this way, but because I do not love the way they are used here.
I am grateful that he did not attempt some variation of the master of ceremonies used in the Oldfield work. I have to wonder if he tried it.
Having said all that, there is enough here that I do really like, and may indeed grow to love, that I will not let it put me off of multiple listens.
So I am going to rate this as an 8, taking points off for the parts of the music I don't prefer and for the package, which as wavelength observes requires the user to slide the disc in and out in a way that could blemish the disc.
