'Startide' was amongst the very earliest pieces we recorded in this latest incarnation of our trio. steve had just "quit being a drummer forever" and the studio was moved to it's current location in north london, late 1993. the pieces here, though recorded some time apart, were both live-to-2-track, ¼" tape, and the digital editing was in it's infancy...but we persevered. steve's colleagues at the bbc, upon hearing the title piece, remarked that it was "a real toe-tapper", to which steve replied "gentlemen, we have captured the sound of space", meaning the very depths of the whole universe, not an empty cupboard or something.