released April 1, 1998

Chet Santia: Bass, Guitar
Jay Swanson: Keyboards, Synth
Paul Williams: Drumming, Synth, Keyboards, Loops
Dave Wexler: Guitar
Darren Gough: Guitar (Spacefolds 3)

All Music by Quarkspace.
Produced by Lance Starbridge.
Cover art by NASA.

Released April 1, 1997 (SF3) April 1, 1998 (SF4)

Spacefolds 3 Reviews

This 28 minute CD features the band's third between-projects cassette release from 1997. With this release, the band evolve their
improv mastery, creating music that possesses less conflict. A decidedly liquid quality is present here, with the keyboards and
guitars undergoing a sonic gene-splice that flourishes with unique and stellar resonance. Peppy keyboards caress the melodies,
while complex guitar riffs sear in the foreground. Sinuous percussives goad this frenzy under control with guiding rhythms. Basslines slither like serpents of funk underfoot. And electronics chitter and smirk everywhere. The four tracks herein represent a wide sonic scope, with "Spring Equinox 97" delivering an epic-heavy space jam of celebratory nature; "Freakin with the Qboyz" delving into funkier territory than Parliament Funkadelic; "Quarkital" exploring techno realms in a fashion emulating Orbital; and "Sly and the Family Stoned" displaying a grooving good time for all. - Matt Howarth, Sonic Curiosity

Both of these CDs were originally released as cassettes, and along with #'s 1 and 2 of the series, have just been released on MP3 discs, each approximately 30 minutes in length. Quarkspace soup is usually comprised of most of the following evenly-mixed ingredients: several soft layers of synth, keyboard/piano, drums/loops, bass and one or more guitars. "Spring Equinox '97" begins Spacefolds 3, which like many quarkjams fades in with all guns firing, including a warped sound effect, before things kick off again into a beautiful jam. The melodically dynamic keyboard runs are like the noodles that float to the top of the broth. Actually, they're kinda like glass noddles, all sparkly and tinkling. The low-key guitars pluck away insistent and mad in a total jam of joy. You can imagine all five of the guys just bouncing smiles off of each other throughout. "Freakin' with the qboyz" is a boppin' funk jam, with jiggy piano-keys, guitars wiggling all over and various percussions thrown in. "Quarkital" is a uniquely Quarkspace stab at drum-'n-bass, with fluid but complex percussive grooves all throughout and long dub-like bass lines--will keep all appendages in motion! "Sly and the Family Stoned" is a standard noodly quarkjam, but with less punch. More like background music for me. - Chuck Rosenberg, Aural Innovations

Spacefolds 3 appeared on cassette on Eternity's Jest in 1997. There are four studio improvisations, nothing over ten minutes. "Spring Equinox 97" is a spirited space jam, gracefully flowing from one section to the next; the absence of loops on this one helps the musicians move more freely. "Freakin With the Qboyz" builds on a jazz-funk piano motif. The best feature on this volume is "Quarkital," a piece using a sample from Orbital. (Orbital-esque, but not an actual Orbital sample - PW) This version is significantly different than the one found on Live Orion. "Sly and the Family Stoned" begins with a sample of Sly Dunbar's guitar and grows into infectious space funk-rock. Spacefolds 3 contains little surprise but makes a solid statement. The dance experiments of Spacefolds 2 were already forgotten and the band's sound was pretty much defined by this point. Spacefolds 3 was reissued on CD-R with new artwork via MP3 dot com in February 2001. - Francois Couture - All Music Guide

Spacefolds 4 Reviews

This 29 minute CD features the band's fourth between-projects cassette release from 1998. This time, the band's guitar density steps back from three to two guitarists (as Gough takes a sabbatical from this release), allowing dual keyboards to generate a trippier flair. The tuneage here is more pastoral, with loops playing a supporting role. The music blends the band's primary jam nature with their growing expertise, resulting in a dose of hot melodies that float with Grateful Dead airs. The festival density of "Fall Approaches" is nicely counterparted by the psychedelic ambience of "Chocolate Space Cookies" and the languid tidal flow of "It Flows to the Ocean...". Meanwhile, "Trinary Space" is a trio improv (sans Santia) that fuses power and calm into an inspiring trance of intricate surprises. - Matt Howarth, Sonic Curiosity

On Spacefolds 4, Quarkspace offers more of both their improv based jams, and their explorations into sound and space. The explorations get better with each subsequent release as the band adds to its storehouse of musical gadgets and toys. "Fall Approaches" and "It Flows To The Ocean" are the jam numbers and shows the piano becoming more of a foreground instrument on their songs. "Chocolate Space Cookies" is the more sound exploratory and avant experimental track, an area that Quarkspace excels at. The highlight number is "Trinary Space 1 & 2". This 15 minute mind expanding blend of Pink Floyd and Tangerine Dream produces an effect that is uniquely Quarkspace. The guitars seem responsible for nearly as many sounds as the keyboards. In parts the sound is both orchestral and industrial, and the music gets dramaticly orchestral at the end. Great stuff. - Jerry Kranitz, Aural Innovations

Spacefolds 4 picks up in the same manner with "Fall Approaches", though with piano playing the lead role. This stuff is okay, but like some of Ozric Tentacles' jams, is more suitable for ambience and mood than strict attention. Though like the Ozrics, the playing is always top-notch, so this will often make 'em enjoyable listening for musicians, progsters and the like. And like the Ozrics, their sound is totally theirs. "Chocolate Space Cookies" is a wobbly beatless 3-minute freakspace excursion. "It Flows to the Ocean" is similar but with a somber lead-guitar lick repeating as the intense synth-breath rises. "Trinary Space, Parts 1 and 2" is a monster epic which begins with a layer of too many synths/space-guitars to count. Soft synth
washes rise out of the morass somewhat, at times taking on the tone of some classic Camel keyboards. Then some melodies appear. Then a strange effect like a chain dragging on the ground (reminiscent of some of the ambient freak-outs on their National Steam album) as the piece pivots into a slow building rhythm which culminates in a pretty flute riff. Part 2 starts in as a whole new track, meanders in space for a while, then flows into a dark symphonic movement before fading out for good. - Chuck Rosenberg, Aural Innovations

Spacefolds 4 appeared on cassette on Eternity's Jest in 1998. It was the last volume of this series to be released this way. Subsequent installments appeared on CD and are at least 50 minutes long. This last EP contains four improvisations by a stripped-down version of the band, guitarist Darren Gough having skipped this session. "Fall Approaches" sounds akin to the "Blackhawk Circle" series found on Spacefolds 1. It is a somewhat lighter piece. "Chocolate Space Cookies" is a short freeform improvisation — think Pink Floyd at its most stoned. The short "It Flows to the Ocean..." features Jay Swanson and Paul Williams on keyboards with Dave Wexler on guitar (Chet Santia was taking a break). The pièce de résistance of this set is the 15-minute "Trinary Space, Parts 1 and 2," a piece moving from one section to the next with fade-outs that would indicate some post-production assembling. It takes a more progressive rock form and ranks above Quarkspace's average. Spacefolds 4 was reissued on CD-R with new artwork via MP3 dot com in February 2001. - Francois Couture, All Music Guide