23am

Background and recording

The composition of 23am began from the Dreamland tour, during which Miles collected audio samples from virtually every city visited. Aside from being based on his experiences of these travels (in the liner notes Miles emphasizes the influence seeing in person so many problems that society has brought onto itself had), Miles has also said that the album reflects the human life cycle from birth to death.

23am also contains four vocal songs, a ratio of vocals to instrumentals that is almost equal to that of Dreamland. They seem to have been less an afterthought for this album, though, and were written in Italian and then translated into English. Two tracks on the album, including its first single "Freedom", feature vocals by disco icon Kathy Sledge of the chart-topping group Sister Sledge.

The structures and instrumental arrangements on 23am are more complex than those on the earlier Dreamland, involving real instruments such as the saxophone and trumpet as an addition to the synthesizers. The music is also much less beat-driven; the main sections of a number of the vocal-based songs are structured like pop songs, while the segueing interludes between songs are generally structureless, with no beats at all. Ultimately it can be said that 23am is more artistic and less dance-oriented than its predecessor, Dreamland. At the same time, however, 23am was less successful than Dreamland.

Track listing

Personnel

• Robert Miles – keyboards, programming, vocals, mixing, production
• Denys Lable – electric guitar
• Michel Gaucher – saxophone
• Eric Giausserand – trumpet
• Barbara Prunas, Kathy Sledge, Nancy Danino – vocals
• Katie Kissoon, Shirley Lewis, Emily Strode – backing vocals
• Robin Hancock, Jaybee Eglantine – engineering

Charts

Weekly charts

References

References

1. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Review:''23 AM - Robert Miles''". [[AllMusic]].
2. (15 November 1997). "Reviews: Albums".
3. Leonard, Michael. "Review:''Robert Miles, 23am''". EMAP Metro Ltd.
4. Flick, Larry. (20 December 1997). "Billboard Magazine: Miles Breaks New Ground With '23AM' Set On Arista". Nielsen Business Media, Inc..
5. Miles, Robert (1997). In ''23am'' [CD liner notes]. Deconstruction Ltd.
6. (2006). "Robert Miles - Biography". S:alt Records.
7. (December 20, 1997). "Miles breaks new ground with '23AM' set on Arista".