Synthetic Block was the performing alias of ambient musician Jonathan Block. Synthetic Block first emerged around 1998, when he contributed tracks to various independent compilations (tributes to King Crimson, Emerson, Lake Palmer, and the Canterbury Scene being among them). He issued a self-titled affair through Mindspore in 1998, following it a year later with The Opposite of Staring Into Space, his proper full-length for Ironing Board Recordings. Sonic Approach appeared from Hypnos/Binary in 2003; it was the fullest realization yet of Synthetic Block's progressive ambient textures, suggesting Tangerine Dream, Robert Wyatt, and ELP. ~ Johnny Loftus, Rovi