This year marks the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 mission that put the first men on the moon. Less numerically evocative, it’s also the 36th anniversary of Brian Eno’s seminal 1983 album Apollo: Atmospheres and Soundtracks. More in celebration of the former than the latter, an expanded reissue of Apollo featuring a whole album of new music has been announced.
Due July 19th via UMe, Apollo: Atmospheres & Soundtracks – Extended Edition will include a remaster of the original 12-track effort. The LP, which Eno wrote with his brother Roger and producer Daniel Lanois, remains one of the most enduring ambient records ever, with its songs appearing in numerous films throughout the years (Trainspotting, Drive, and 28 Days Later, to name a few). It was, however, originally created as the score to Al Reinert’s Apollo 11 documentary For All Mankind, a title which will be shared with the reissue’s additional collection of 11 new songs.
(Read: 10 Brian Eno Songs That Made Films Better)
A press release describes For All Mankind as “instrumental compositions that reimagine the soundtrack.” The new music finds the Eno brothers and Lanois collaborating as a trio for the first time since the original recording sessions. While most of the music is Brian Eno’s, Roger and Lanois each contributed three compositions: “Waking Up”, “Under the Moon”, and “Strange Quiet” came from Eno; and “Capsule”, “Last Step from the Surface”, and “Fine-grained” are credited to Lanois.
As a taste of the fresh material, stream the single “Like I Was a Spectator” below.
Apollo: Atmospheres & Soundtracks – Extended Edition Artwork:
Apollo: Atmospheres & Soundtracks – Remastered Tracklist:
01. Under Stars
02. The Secret Place
03. Matta
04. Signals
05. An Ending (Ascent)
06. Under Stars II
07. Drift
08. Silver Morning
09. Deep Blue Day
10. Weightless
11. Always Returning
12. Stars
For All Mankind Tracklist:
01. The End of a Thin Cord
02. Capsule
03. At the Foot of a Ladder
04. Waking Up
05. Clear Desert Night
06. Over the Canaries
07. Last Step from the Surface
08. Fine-grained
09. Under the Moon
10. Strange Quiet
11. Like I Was a Spectator