Ned Lagin - Seastones

In 1975 Lagin released an album of experimental space music entitled Seastones on Round Records; he described the recording as "electronic cybernetic biomusic." He composed this experimental ambient composition over the course of four years. It was recorded in just as many studios, mixed at a fifth, and mastered at a sixth; in 1990, the album was mixed and remastered at additional studios for CD release. Much of the album consists of traditional instruments (bass, guitar, and voice) and a cadre of synthesizers (the E Modular Synthesizer, or E-mu, various ARPs, and the Buchla Modular System or Buchla digital-polyphonic synthesizer) processed through then-cutting-edge computer technology, with software and interfacing by Lagin. Some of the devices employed by Lagin included the Interdata 7/16 computer with a high speed arithmetic logic unit; an Intel 8080 microprocessor system; and the Altair 8800, which had 256 bytes of RAM. The album was one of the first commercially released recordings to feature the use of digital computers.

The album was recorded in stereo quadraphonic sound and featured guest performances by members of the Grateful Dead, including Jerry Garcia playing treated guitar and Phil Lesh playing electronic Alembic bass. Members of Jefferson Airplane and David Crosby also appear on the album.

Seastones was re-released in stereo on CD by Rykodisc in 1991. The CD version includes the original nine-section "Sea Stones" (42:34) from February 1975, and a live, previously unreleased, six-section version (31:05) from December 1975.