Toby Marks and Andrew Heath: Motion review – captivating journeys in sound

UK-based musicians Toby Marks and Andrew Heath each have a wealth of experience in the often-overcrowded area of ambient and electronic music. Marks is much better known as the recording artist/performer/producer Banco de Gaia, and has enjoyed a celebrated 30-year career as the go-to person if you're looking for a fusion-fix of dub/world/house/prog.

Heath, on the other hand, operates in the more restrained areas of what some people term “lower-case music” that draws inspiration from unassuming piano patterns.

Taking a leaf out of Heath’s gently thumbed user manual, Marks temporarily shelves his global dance proclivities and embarks, in close collaboration with Heath, on extended field recording trips around the UK.

Recording in locations that include slate caves (Wales), stone quarries (Bournemouth), sky (thanks to the Yorkshire Gliding Club), river (Leeds and Liverpool canal) and rail tracks (Bure Valley, Norfolk), the pair process found sounds and then add acutely contemplative mixtures of piano, guitar, and other sundry instruments.

Divided into four points of the compass (west, south, north, east), the immersive music is sometimes familiar, sometimes unexpected, always captivating.