It's been a busy two years for Steve Lawson since the release of his last all-solo album, Not Dancing For Chicken at the tail-end of 2002. From touring the nation's concert halls opening for 80s pop-funk legends Level 42, to a sold out tour with American solo bass maestro Michael Manring, things just keep getting busier for the UK's leading solo bassist. Having become the only solo electric bassist ever to play a set at London's Royal Albert Hall, Steve has gone on to receive rave reviews around the world, rapidly increasing amounts of radio airplay, and an ever expanding tour diary taking him to The States, Italy, France and round the UK in 2003/2004. Grace And Gratitude is the culmination of two years of musical journeying - the combined influence of all Steve's collaborators over the last 24 months have taken his solo playing and composing to a new level. From the ambient expanse of his last Pillow Mountain Release with Theo Travis, to the gentle nylon acoustic guitar sound of Steve's touring partner, Muriel Anderson, Steve's musical encounters have broadened his sound, adding new colours to his palette and taking what he called the 'soundtrack to the inside of my head' to new places. From the opening title track, it's clear that this is a very special recording, the theme of which Steve explains on the CD's sleeve notes - " this is the first time i've explored a thematic approach to an album - looking at different aspects of grace, gratitude and respect. respect for one's self, for each other, for creation. the track title 'you can't throw it away (there's no such thing as away)' comes from a talk by dr ulrich loening on ecology and was in reference to our approach to refuse - we're always throwing things away, and he said there is no 'away' - it's all part of our ecosystem. anyway, that along with a some other features of the theme struck a chord with me, so i struck some chords... some of them whilst actively thinking about the title, others just in search of the music." Expanding his technical arsenal whilst sticking to the rule of 'all live, no additional overdubs' has allowed Lawson to move forward whilst still retaining a continuity with his back catalogue. Tracks such as the haunting 'Despite My Worst Intentions' employ gurgling reversed bass samples, and weird filtered delay sounds to create a sonic world for Lawson's probing melodic improvisation to explore. And the two giant soundscapes on the CD, 'The Journey Of A Thousand Miles' and the already-mentioned, 'You Can't Throw It Away' owe as much to Sigur Ros and Mogwai as they do to Steve's more usual ambient reference points such as Fripp and Eno. As Steve himself says, 'I think I had the right idea from the start - live looping and processing does seem to be a format in which I function particularly well, and each subsequent album or change in setup has just allowed me to refine that initial concept to the point where I now feel pretty much in control of the electronics side of things and able to play as close to the sound in my head as I've ever got.' Listening to Grace And Gratitude, it'd be tough to disagree. August sees Steve touring in support of the CD's release, including 7 nights on the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. 'The richness of this music makes for a rewarding listening experience on all levels and I think Steve's approach represents a real step forward for the art of solo bass. Highly Recommended' - Michael Manring