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Two years later, Mike's "The Songs of Distant Earth" broke the mould for a musical release - it was the first commercial album to feature computer CD-Rom material on it. The files which can be viewed on a Mac feature a short interactive journey and game to amuse the viewer.

The album was loosely based on the book of the same name by Arthur C. Clarke, the science fiction writer. Arthur was so impressed by Mike's interpretation that he wrote sleeve notes for the CD. The sales of the album were disappointing considering its appeal to a wide audience, which is apparent from the mail we have received about the work.

The video for "Let There Be Light" was most impressive, and can be seen in digital form on the re-released version which was available in 1995. The producers of the video went on to win an award for the ground-breaking technique used to create it.

It was about this time that Mike was honoured by having a minor planet named after him.

1996 saw the release of 'Voyager', a collection of ten instrumental songs with a Celtic feel. This album was a departure from previous Oldfield albums in that of the ten tracks, seven were cover versions based on Scottish, Irish and Spanish folk songs reworked into Oldfield's unmistakable style. The album is very reflective, calming and mellow, and whilst not crtically acclaimed, contains some fine pieces.

During this time Mike had also moved to Ibiza and was designing and directing the building of a new home on a plateau carved from a cliff face.


This period was to have a marked influence on Mike both emotionally and musically. Naturally the island's culture and music provided the strongest influence to Mike's next project Tubular Bells |||.

Inspired by a tape of dance music given to him by a friend, the album showcases a wealth of Oldfield talent, and styles, and only features 2 tracks that can really be classed as "club music". The album was premiered with a live performance at Horse Guards Parade in London, and later available as Video and DVD. An unused track from these sessions, Tubular
X was included on the soundtrack to The X-Files movie.

Instead of taking time out to consider his next project, Mike launched straight into his next project, motivated by his primary instrument the guitar. Hinted at during an interview with Dark Star in the Summer of 1998, Guitars took Mike back to his roots. All the instruments including the drums and percussion were played through various guitars.

It was in the final stages of putting together the album that Mike embarked on planning the Then and Now tour of Europe during the summer of 1999, and working on his project for the end of the second Millennium. Continuing this high level of activity throughout 1999, The Millennium Bell featured 11 musical pieces inspired by various historical events such as the birth of Christ, the dawn of the technological age and the discovery of America.

A concert to showcase the album was organised by Art in Heaven and took place in Berlin on December 31st 1999, based around a spectacular lightshow. A 13 minute piece of music, Art in Heaven was performed at the end of the concert.

After such a busy 4 years, Mike spent some time resting in the early part of 2000 before restarting work on the virtual reality project which had originally started in 1995. Music VR is a virtual reality experience based around a world that Mike and his team have designed and created. Through gameplay one will be able to experience images and music which are determined by the choices made in navigating through the world. This should be available in the early part of 2002 from www.musicvr.com

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