"Firstly, listening to Robert Scott Thompson's music has been a pleasing experience since the first time I heard his music on Hearts of Space. I've come into a bit of a snag when it comes into reviewing Ambient/ Spacemusic, because it seems like the best stuff is beyond words. But my job is to relate the same to the reader, the same enthusiasm that I have for a recording. I'm sure that I do the music no justice, but if I can motivate you enough to buy the recording or at least check it out, by what I've written then I've done my job to the best of my ability. I want to go over Thompson's 1996 release, The Silent Shore, and then 1998's Frontier. Two splendid recordings that easily make Thompson one of the most overlooked composers working in the Ambient genre today. I'll start this with a quote from the liner notes of Thompson's The Silent Shore. “From an aesthetic perspective I have been able to accept every sound as potential musical material. Contexts spring spontaneously, and the materials to fill them abound - even and most profoundly in silence.” I couldn't put it better. His use of organized sound and silence is inspirational. The Silent Shore is a contemplative, dream space masterpiece.

There are quite a few artists that have inspired me to create; Robert Scott Thompson is one such artist. His music transcends time and space, the thing that Spacemusic and some forms of Ambient music are supposed to do. Anyone who reads my reviews will find that I like to use the word contemplative. Any music that is contemplative to me is at the very pinnacle of its art, from the perspective of listening to music. Contemplative music allows you to step into yourself, music that isn't contemplative can be experienced, enjoyed, analyzed, and all of that. But contemplative allows you to step away from yourself, and know the world. I'll talk a little about Frontier now, another record that is absolutely wonderful. This is the first recording of Robert Scott Thompson's that I was exposed to. It was the fall of 1998, and that recording struck me. When the package came from Mirage I was ecstatic to see it mixed in there, having forgot about it for a while. I put this recording in and played it, sitting thoughtfully and listening as if I were spending time listening to an old friend. Frontier takes up where The Silent Shore left off, yet it takes the listener deeper into the realms of thought and imagination. These two records, for me, are wonderful, thoughtful, and provocative pieces of sound-art. I highly recommend getting these classic recordings if you haven't already." - The Organization of Sound

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"The Silent Shore found Robert Scott Thompson firmly entrenched in the minimalist ambient movement of the late '90s. Indeed, it was the first release on Mirage, a subsidiary of Oasis. That subsidiary, founded by Grant MacKay, aka Stephen Bacchus, professed to release "the finest in ambient atmospheres." That statement rings very true here. This album demonstrates, quite clearly, the possibilities and probabilities of atmospheric minimalism. At the time of release, minimalists had caught up with some of Thompson's techniques and ideas. This deep and introspective set was, however, very much ahead of its time. Most minimalists in the late '96 were still very involved with and focused on the darker sides of ambient soundscapes. Thompson has spent some time in that realm himself and goes there again on this album. However, there is an equal amount of effort and energy devoted to some cheerful, almost pastoral, sound worlds. Thompson acknowledges those differences by suggesting two alternate playback sequences — "Opaque," focusing on the darker compositions, and "Translucent," highlighting the brighter side. This is definitely one of Thompson's best CDs. It is very accessible and a landmark in the genre. At that, it is still not his best work." - All Music Guide



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