psychedelic / electronic / ambient

Dreaming Awakening Part Two is a compilation album released by Greek label Cosmicleaf Records, on the 1st of September. Like the first volume, this album holds strong the fierce objective and the traditional goal of compiling and releasing in one piece the best psychedelic chillout tracks ever produced worldwide. Exactly as it was expected, the record presents us some of the best tracks on the genre. In Dreaming Awakening Part Two, you will find: Myriads Of Pathways, by AstroPilot, Free Falling (Freedom Mix), by Chronos, Underwater Chess, by Oxya, Yage (Himmelkompass Remix), by Entheogenic, Labyrinths Of Consciousness, by Abiogenesis, No Ordinary Tranceport, by Unusual Cosmic Process and The Valley of Ancient Children, by Atati. And the journey only gets better, and easier, and softer, and wonderful, and personal, as the album progresses.

Already in the first track – Myriads of Pathways, by AstroPilot – you can feel and sense the perfection of the soft, colorful, balanced and surreal atmosphere that disseminates the beauty and the energy of the genre throughout the entire album. This track in particular, living by the general force of its title, not only translates itself perfectly in the magnificent transient hemisphere of its monochromatic gray scale melodies, that builds and shapes walls of cosmic unbound sonorous recognition vividly, but captures the vigorous essence of the genre per se, while reinserting its meaning in the whole album, as the sound continually evolves to a path of existential resurgence and graphic expansion. 

With a very straightforward devotion that reinvents the perceptions of the genre into a whole new ground that creates a different category of thought while also receiving its sonorous proposal from within, psychedelic chillout, with all of its nuances, constructions, delimitations, scales and rhythms, reinserts a new level of sonorous contingency into its nucleus, as an anthology like this one also reworks the basic principles upon which the music claims itself to be. Nevertheless, despite all the excellent technical devices that converged altogether to compose all these great tracks, this is a perfect anthology for several reasons other than that. Probably, the strongest one is the basic artistic principle that reunited seven marvelous chillout ambient tracks, and inserted them perfectly in one great record, truly representative of the genre.

This is a record perfect for listening with your eyes closed, eager to compel you to undergo an incredible sonorous journey of sound, sensibility and serenity, with all the creativity set to fully charge your perceptions. With everything to please the most avid enthusiasts of the genre, this is a record that has it all: sound, energy, synergy, sensibility, devotion, greatness, fervor, passion and musicality. Personally, I liked Dreaming Awakening Part Two way more than Part One, although Part One is also a finely masterful record. So, if you are a fan, a supporter or an avid enthusiast of chillout, this is the right album for you. One of the best compilations ever made, you should listen to it, immediately. 


​Wagner

electronic / ambient

Released recently by Ovnimoon Records, Body Play, by Noiland, is an electronic ambient music album that shapes the excellence of quietness, and the possibilities of sound, beyond the ordinary means, although in very discreet and subject nuances. With eight tracks, being them
Inner Void, Le' Chaim, The Spider, Skin, These Structure, Biting, Hollow Bone and Beautiful Lines, perhaps one of the reasons that makes this album such a monumental art album is the fact that these tracks were primarily written for a dance show called Body Play, hence the album title.

Exploring the more graphic, slow and surreal consequences of sound, you can feel a lot of elements in these tracks, building, structuring and exposing almost everything that comes as an impressionistic part of life, from surreal urban cosmogonies, to delicate and pure hemispheric lines of soul paths. With a very slow, calm and transcendental atmosphere, Body Play creates the monumental over the senile, sees meaning and art in the insignificant, and corrodes old perceptions to create new ones. A more surreal, horizontal and speculative work of art, Body Play certainly plays with the senses of the listener, promoting a travel and a lucid questioning through the meaning and the depth of perceptions, inserting into another perspective everything that we think we knew about our senses before. Especially if you listen to this album with your eyes closed. 

Of course, you may think sometimes the album is boring, and maybe loses its ground base for being too subjective; nonetheless, these qualities seems to be its main propositions, where all those apparently incoherent devices seemingly aligns the insinuations of sound to different perceptions. While it is impossible to categorize the album in some moments, for its apparent random nature, its experimental audacity is certainly an artistic victory, that relies on the fundamental principles of its own fugacity, temper and unbroken sonorous considerations.

Body Play, unlike many other albums, is an album that you must feel. Playing with your senses, you don’t have to forget that, primarily, this was written as the score of an experimental art show, that functions very well at its own right, although you have to be reminded of its significance and intentions, and listen to it in the proper mood. While this album certainly will not change your life, you can certainly enjoy and appreciate its unforgiving and unrestrained flexible values, and sometimes minimalist devices, that create a new form of sonorous consideration, in the onset of an intelligent and vigorously unique experimental artifice.                 


Wagner

death metal

We kick off this edition of Brieviews with two brutal old school death metal songs, courtesy of Icelandic horde Narthraal. This digital single is the forerunner for the upcoming full-length, which is scheduled to be released somewhere in 2017. An important aspect of their sound, is the use of the Boss HM-2 pedal which creates a filthy, raunchy sound. Furthermore, the main influences for this act are the old school bands we all love so much, including Grave, Dismember, Unleashed and Carcass. I don't think you need any more convincing. Go ahead, download the album, and prepare to fiercely bang your head. You know you want to...

death metal / metalcore

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Somewhere between the realms of death metal and metalcore roams the Belgian quintet Dead End Path. They handed out this three-track ep at the latest edition of Rocktoberfest, where the played an all-consuming set in front of a handful of people. Well, my friends, you can see this little review as a nudge to get your attention on these guys because they're damn good. Melodic yet brutal death metal which quite often reminds me of something between At The Gates, All Shall Perish and Unearth. In three tracks, these guys show a tremendous technical ability, along with the skills to write and perform decent songs, all of course as brutal and crushing as it can get. Harsh stuff!!!

noise rock / hardcore

Something a little different, but in no way less in-your-face, is this ep from Spanish noisemakers Balcanes. What starts out with an impending piece of drone and noise, quickly turns into a hardcore punk infused frenzy in 'Combustible'. 'Masada' drags the ep deeper down into the world of sludge, driving on inelaborate but damn infectious riffs and monotonous drumming. That being said, no, there is not a lot of variation to be found but Balcanes definitely makes up for that by creating an intense wall-of-sound and beating you into a pulp with it. If you're a fan of sludgy noise rock, like Melvins or Harvey Milk, you should check out this little gem. Oh, and Balcanes need to tour Europe, like now!

alternative rock / hard rock / grunge

Back in Belgium, a country that still teems with people who hold rock music close to their heart. That certainly counts for hard rocking squad Daddy Was Wrong. In five songs, and about fourteen minutes, they showcase some of the first songs they have written together. Although they have a firm hard rock sound, I do sense some influences from grunge and alternative rock, but of course, they mainly add to the level of variation. My favorite track is the groovy 'Immortal', probably the most headbanging-worthy track on this ep. Anyway, if you're ready for a decent portion of good old fashioned hard rock, you should give these guys a shot. Rock on!!!!

heavy metal

Once upon a time, this Canadian act start out as a Venom cover band. Yet, gradually they grew into what they are today, a headstrong heavy metal act with lyrical inspiration from Tolkien and musical inspiration by bands like Venom, Amebix, Manowar and several others. What you can expect on this album is pure, uncut heavy metal in the veins of their predecessors but with a raunchy, somewhat experimental edge. To me, is sounds like some of the very old school black metal albums, when the genre hadn't discovered blast beats and corpse paint yet. For you, this might be a good way to start checking out today's heavy metal scene. There is some great stuff to be found, including this one.

industrial / dark psy

When band photos show the man behind this projects with respectively a KMFDM  and a Godflesh t-shirt, you know you might be in for something interesting. That certainly is the case with this ep. Dwelling in the realms of industrial metal and dark dubstep, these four songs pretty much sound like modern day electronic remixes of songs by Fear Factor or Ministry, created by Infected Mushroom in a darkstep mood. For an electronic album, it's damn heavy, coming close to the stuff Amduscia, Xotox, Ambassador21 or Noisuf-X have been blasting out over the years. My favorite track here is 'Dragged By The Shadows' which or more suited for headbanging than dancing. Check it out, this is pretty awesome

drone / ambient / post-rock

The album from Argentinian band Bhutan was submitted by a fan. According to his email, Bhutan was the support act for Nadja in Argentina and are considered a household name in the drone-scene of their country. Well, dear fan and band members,  as far as I'm concerned, this trio should find an international record deal and a world tour to show of their beautiful blend of drone, ambient and post-rock. I mean, when an album reminds me of acts like Klaus Schulze, Pink Floyd, Aidan Baker ànd Godspeed, You Black Emperor, something fascinating is going on. This is a damn varied piece of sonic art, one that will undoubtedly be a stunning experience live.

drone / doom / psychedelic

What does a psychedelic doom act with an ever-changing line-up of no less than fourteen musicians sound like? Well, apparently like a jamsession between Master Musicians Of Bukkake, Earth and Jimi Hendrix.  The word "jamsession" is important here because that's pretty much how this whole album feels. There is a number of drones and soundscapes, some strange vocals, minimal drums and a load of psychedelic guitar solos to be found on this album, all seemingly improvised on the spot. The result is an set of immersive vintage seventies psychedelics, which are at best when played at a loud volume.

trip-hop

Now this is something nice. Luxembourg resident trip-hop act Monophona come up with a little pleaser to soften the wait between their brilliant 'Back To Black' album and the new one. On this 7", the band covers respectively Johnny Cash and Morrissey, both in Monophona's beautiful blend of gentle electronics and Claudine's fragile vocals. My favorite here is 'Folsom Prison Blues', which is an excellent cover version, bringing the song into this era. 'Every Day Is Like Sunday' takes on a different approach, a heavier, one showing some dark drum & bass electronics and a funky breakbeat rhythm. But, you know, like I said, this is a pleaser, and I'm here waiting for the next full-length.

dark metal / death metal

Back to the heavier side of the musical spectrum, this time with Swiss combo Xaon and their debut ep 'Face Of Balaam'. At first glimpse, it might be easy to place these guys into the melodic death metal scene of the nineties, reminding of bands like Soilwork, In Flames to Children Of Bodom. However, listen deeper  and you'll find some more influences. From Type O Negative to My Dying Bride. Deeper still, and there is a flash of metalcore hidden beneath the violent, crushing guitars, which drags the entire melodic death metal scene into the current era. It certainly is a varied piece of work, this ep, and it shows a band that can easily pull through to the top of today's extreme scene.

hard rock / alternative

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Greek rockers Fliptop Box are masters in balancing on the edge between rock and metal. In that aspect, they remind me a lot of bands like The Foo Fighters. Their heavy rock is influenced by acts like Therapy?, Danzig, Volbeat and Alice In Chains and that's exactly where you could place this album. With awesome songs like 'Blast', 'Class Of Underdogs' and the highly immersive and quite Deftones-inspired 'Desert', these people are paving their way to today's alternative rock scene. As a rock fan, I think you should definitely check this one out, and as a metal fan I suggest you do the same. This thing rocks and, from the sound of it, it pretty much guarantees a party when played live. 

black metal

And we're back into the realm of all consuming darkness and dark misery. The album by Danish horde Gespenst is a tensive, harsh and fiercely immersive piece of work. It draws elements from black metal, funeral doom and dark ambient and blends them together into a massive whirlpool of sonic violence. The four lengthy tracks will undoubtely maintain their grasp on fans of today's post-black metal scene. In other words, this album is an epic piece of atmospheric extremes, one that you should definitely own if you like to be hypnotized by eerie guitars and haunting screams. I hope these guys come over to Belgium soon because I definitely want to see this live.

stoner / doom

Hailing from Jaén, Spain, this trio comes with an excellent blend of stoner rock and doom, a delightful must-have for the fuzz-freaks out there. Firm drums accompany vintage stoner doom riffs, while here and there an immersive post-rock passage appears. That's all good and fine and nice and stuff but what I really like on this album are the vocals. They remind me a lot more of acts like Jesus and the Mary Chain or Slowdive. You know, the shoegaze way. Sometimes, there are some Conan or Yob chants, which also fit quite well. The combination of those epic riffs and these distant vocals make this ep a stand-out for me. I hope these dudes will tour Europe soon. Recommended? Definitely!

crust / hardcore / black metal

Why the hell is this band named 'Rest'? I can easily imagine people seeing this in the window of a record store and buying it because they expect something calm and relaxing. Then they come home and play the record, only to be completely wrecked by the intense blend of black metal, crust and hardcore. 'Rest', as if they want to say, "you can, you need and you will have some rest after this spiked steamroller grinds your eardrums and leaves you behind traumatized".  Italians have a weird sense of humor I guess. Now, I have to say that this is one fierce motherfucker with four brutal tracks and one epic piece of music, the closing track 'V'. If you like crust, hardcore and black metal to be relentless, intense and harsh, you need this.

dark ambient

Welcome to the Organ House. You may enter after you have become silent. Feel free to have a look in each room, but try not to make any noise. You don't want to interrupt what you're about to witness. Oh, and beware of the god... 
Kammarheit and Cities Last Broadcast's Pär Boström joined forces with his sister Åsa, not only to create Hypnagoga Press (their publishing house and record label) but also to share Orgelhuset with the world. This is a dark ambient album of extreme quality, like we're used to from Pär (read). The right soundtrack to your inner travels. 
One can hear the cathedral of aerophones, the organ, blow in every room of Orgelhuset. In some rooms there are people hypnotically chanting, in other places the flute or the piano is present - never obtrusive but always in harmony with the rest of the sounds. Wherever you go, there's subtle sound effects intertwined with the drones, creating ever varying soundscapes. For fans of Raison d'Être, Subheim, In Slaughter Natives.

synthpop / electronic

Wow, synth pop on Merchants Of Air? That's something you don't see every day. But yes, we have opened the dark dancefloor and we're ready to get all melancholic and groovy. So get your black clothes, your nail polish and lace up your boots. You know why we're here. We came to dance, probably with tears in our eyes but that's ok. It's perfectly fine to move around on one tile and be all nostalgic for the glory years of this genre.

Perpacity is a duo comprised of Ian Harling and Martin Nyrup, who reside in Bristol (UK) and Copenhagen (Denmark) respectively.  Together, they deliver pretty much a tribute to synth pop, reminiscent of acts like Depeche Mode, Erasure, De/Vision and Wolfsheim. The majority of this album could easily have been made in the eighties and filled dancefloors everywhere. Yet, here and there a modern electronic sound comes shining through.

The album opens with an intro, named 'In The Beginning' and right after that, we're in synthpop heavy, nothing more, nothing less. Songs like '9725', 'Arise' and 'Sundown', as most others bathe in these vintage soundscapes and minimal but effective beats. The only exception is 'Eternal ft Nordik Fire' which is based on folk and issues violin and guitar solos, resembling the works of Mike Oldfield.

The overall atmosphere is bittersweet and melancholic. You can either dance or just dream away with these blissful melodies and often easy to sing along vocal lines. Although, I wouldn't be surprised if halfway through 'Distant Shore' you start singing "Cry-y-y-y-ing, over you". Somehow, this song sounds like an electronic adaptation of Roy Orbison's classic. Nonetheless, synthpop lovers, you need this record. It'll be a welcome addition to your collection, I promise.


Serge

electronic / ambient / downtempo

Well well, here is something that will have a certain influence on my own upcoming album. This is something that is right up to my alley. Dark ambient, enhanced with downtempo electronic percussion and eerie soundscapes, for me, it rarely gets better than this. And there's even more goodness to be discovered. I'll try to guide you through, but rest assured that this review will end in an absolute recommendation.

But what would you expect from a man like Ricardo Remédio. He's the mind behind atmospheric doom outfit Löbo and the electronic alter-ego RA, so he knows a thing or two about creating atmospheric soundscapes and deep, narrative music. And that is exactly what you get on this album. In fact, it opens with a Tangerine Dream meets Calva Y Nada meets JK Flesh kind of track, which even has a dash of post-rock in it. 

"Wow", you might think, "that's varied" and you would be absolutely right. There is plenty of variation to be found on this album, but it all revolves around an industrial inspired approach to dark ambient and downtempo electronics. 'Ossos' for example is a perfect early morning dark dancefloor anthem, driving on a sluggish beat and minimal synths. I'd say it's one of my favorites but that would make the other track less interesting and they definitely are not.

I mean, the short ambient track 'Garça' is pure bliss, worthy of mentioning the name Eno. Love it. 'Caça' is a gloomy and mysterious anthem, showcasing the immersive atmosphere of post-rock and suddenly changing into another dark dance track. The album continues pretty much in that fashion, track after track and they're all equally immersive and pleasurable. So yeah, I'm not going to pick a favorite here.

If you're into the music of acts like Mmoths, Bonobo, Balam Acab, Oneirogen, Terminal Sound System and so on, you should definitely add this gem to your collection. This comes from someone who knows perfectly how to create a dark, immersive sound and keep it interesting for the entire duration. So yeah, as I mentioned in the opening paragraph, this thing comes highly recommended...


​Serge 

ambient / electronic

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Elements is an album by Spanish electronic music artist Ajnia, released recently, on September 17. With only five tracks, named after – and effectively having an atmosphere based on – the elements, as the album title suggests, being them Earth, Fire, Air, Water and Ether, in this exact order, this album is a very ingenious mixture of ambient, psyambient and psychill. With calm melodies, almost blurred and unbound by the linear opalescence of a visible horizon, the constant rhythm of these tracks flows and vibrates directly into your ears, with such a formidable layer of serenity accompanying the natural cadence of the music, that it is almost possible to feel the sound passing by the physical barriers of time itself, flowing through you, and carrying on your body throughout a gentle journey of ethereal light, that rejuvenates almost all the atoms and molecules that drives the energy of existence.

With a solid confluence of subtle rhythms that positively renovates an unusual set of characteristics that potentiate a new pattern of motivations within the music, Elements conspires to do the unthinkable, while reinstating a lucid reinterpretation of sonorous contingencies that does, in fact, a vigorous rereading of slowness in music. By capturing the essence of an atmosphere, transliterating its sensations into a figurative sonorous diagram, the fundamental structure sculpting the music is the truth behind the sensibility of its nature, stronger enough to conflagrate the wisdom by which the light beyond the fluidity of the rhythm manages to become the driving force, by overflowing the principles that dictates the rules within the harmony. 

Although the album it is far from being perfect, being a little inclined to monotony  sometimes, the record does manage to set other standards to ambient music, seemingly more alive, colorful, transient and sensitive on the verge of its notes. Reaching a dimension where a grounded pattern of soft sensibility allows the music to provoke the roots of its own reason, a sincere touch of happiness, solitude and reflection inspires the retractions of melodies on its own precious delimitations, expressing a profound and restless exhilaration of thought that the music itself is able to inspire.

While the record does retain its qualities, a remarkable set of nuances, and a very sagacious spirit, with a genuine convergence of coherent melodies formulating the balance of a cohesive elemental soundscape, these usual layer of consistencies also stresses some weaknesses as well, like an excessively dispersive vagueness – while it is completely comprehensible, since it is a component of the music – that can be tiresome to the listener. Nevertheless, this does not disqualify the music, neither imposes a depreciative classification for the album. Good enough to be considered a minor work of art, Elements, by Ajnia is an album that definitely lives by the highness of its merits, although acquiring the patience to subscribe to them sometimes can be quite an ordeal.   


Wagner                        
 

electronic / ambient / downtempo

Shamanic Experience is an album by Chillout, Downtempo and Trance artist Jedidiah, released by Ovnimoon Records. With interesting, incredibly free, melodic and easy listening smoothing beats, the record has eight tracks – being them Ally, Beautiful Essence, Ancient Chill, Beyond of the Vision, Existence Being, Inner Light, Toad Prophet and Mighty Mind – that conclusively inserts in the right places the correct capacities of the most imponderable and elusive subgenres of electronic music.  

With very subtle distinctions, and a slow, calm atmosphere that functions within the rhythms that dictates the unforgiving easiness that triggers the melodies around skies of exceedingly efficient sonorous flows, Shamanic Experience is an album that captivates the listener by reenergizing the most traditional elements of Trance music. Although very standardized by a colorful, but at the same time vaguely opaque nuance of a massive equilibrium between Chillout and Downtempo elements, the Trance mostly predominates, with a very intriguing layer of superior originality, never sounding boring, repetitive, tedious, limited, or resentful of imitations, although it does retain several aspects of the genre that could be regarded as pervasive and fastidious at times. Nevertheless, while managing to be faithful to the most pervasive elements of the genre, the record itself aggregates subtly a useful pattern of progressive beats and creatively settled orders.

Undoubtedly very interesting for Trance fans, the album do provide a cool vibration and a fascinating ambient experience, that traditional Trance isn’t able to fully achieve, for relying primarily on a wider circle of confident and usual sonorous uniformity, that sounds always the same. Shamanic Experience, on the other hand, explores a very winding field of constrained melodies, that manages to rearrange a sincere and expansive confluence of restful beats in the lines of its own sonorous frontiers, realigning the apparent limitations of the genre in something categorically distinct. 

A very decent work, with a very satisfying result, especially in such a difficult and narrow genre, Shamanic Experience does live by the force of its title: it is – if you are a person bound for meditation – a shamanic experience, by sound, sensation and harmony, floating throughout the boundaries of an unknown universe, by the wingspan of its own escalating transcendental melodies. Certainly providing a firm, decent, cool-minded and transient recollection of monumental sounds in a vast sphere of delusional transparency, Shamanic Experience, by Jedidiah is an exceedingly good exemplar on the Trance subgenre of electronica, so good that it is capable of attracting even the ones who are not particularly interested in this style of music.           
 
​Wagner

ambient / downtempo / electronic

Kahvi Collective

Laments of a Chess Automaton is an album by John Novak, released by Finnish Netlabel Kahvi Collective. With ten tracks, being them Brightly Lit Shores, Ganymedean Factory Visit, Laments of a Chess Automaton, Sixty Dragons, At the Top of the World, The Way of the Emerald Gaze, Cryostasis, Discharged Proton Injector, Ghost Orbit and The Empire Never Ended, Laments of a Chess Automaton is an intriguing work, with a pronounced introspective identity. Although it seems at first a conventional electronic album, it does employ an allegorical array of progressive elements, that proves to be its strongest point. Despite being seventy nine minutes long, it does have interesting and fascinating qualities, although you can’t avoid being bored, more or less, when you’re halfway through the album.

With a mostly ambient and chillout onset, Laments of a Chess Automaton is a very uniform work, where elemental melodic nuances contrast with more discreet rhythms, almost energized below the surface of delicate silent harmonies, a lot of them with charming and refined appeal. Some intertwined and very useful minimalist traits also speckle within the uttermost fallen layers of the rhythms, discreetly expanding an ever increasing set of lucid, but almost silent atmospheres into the tracks.       

Nevertheless, the greatest qualities of the album also manages to be its biggest contingencies: while the tracks, being long, aloud a very experimental expansion of the atmospheric melodic devices that allows the harmonies to grow within the space of its own characteristic sonorous ambitions, resulting in some very fine melodies in the process, the album does fall into – and inevitably can’t avoid – a very tedious feeling, that will eventually present itself as a boring sound to the listener.   

Although it is a very good electronic album, unfortunately, the record does resent itself from an evident and conformed tone of monotony, and being a little too long, it has the potential to exasperate the least patient listener of any kind. In a situation like this one, you have to pay more attention to the qualities of the album than its flaws. Laments of a Chess Automaton, particularly, does have very intriguing and smooth soft harmonies, peculiar in the way they minimally touch the spherical notes of the sonorous interface of its own rhythms, while freezing layers of delicate contrasts seems to evolve from the horizon of its own nucleus. So many discreet, but powerful elements, inevitably allows the sensibility of great musical moments, that really does have its rewards. So, although Laments of a Chess Automaton is not exactly a masterpiece, it is a very good work. Competent on technical devices, well done, beautifully executed, it does deserve a personal evaluation on the behalf of the enthusiasts of the genre. But do not expect too much of it. It is that kind of album that you have to listen almost without any expectation.      


​Wagner

alternative rock / grunge / nu-metal

post rock

Is the post rock genre already old enough to have an old-school scene? If so, French quartet Tölva could soon become a force to be reckoned with. Inspired by the greats, you know, Godspeed, You Russian, This Will Destroy the Explosions in Mogwai, that kind of stuff, Törva delivered a very strong debut ep with all the necessary elements to make it a strong competitor. The opener 'Poveglia' remains my favorite and I really enjoy the calm breather 'Puzzle' as well. The other two track? Well, they're equally loaded with beautiful soundscapes, a blissful atmosphere and all the emotions only decent post rock can deliver. This is a great, and highly recommended, debut.

alternative rock / grunge

See? I told you we were facing a nineties revival. It's hit France now too, and it hit it good. Leaving Passenger is an alternative rock band from Paris who are about to debut with this magnificent ep. Influenced by the likes of Hoobastank, Incubus, Linkin Park and Nickelback, these guys come up with some  strong and highly convincing songs., strangely enough reminding me of Tool and Deftones. 'Lies On The Floor' is a world class song, and definitely not the only one on this ep. I love the riffs, who show some stoner rock influences as well. But the coolest thing about this is the use of electronics to give the whole thing an extra touch, something glitchy often. This is a brilliant ep.

electronic / techno

Anomia

I had no idea what to expect from this 12" but the opening track 'Divulge' certainly got my attention. Glitchy ambient and otherworldly soundscapes filled the room, much to my delight. On 'Patterned' the techno beats arrive and I thought, "well, why not" and started shaking my ass a little. The music reminds me a bit of acts like Riou or Unit Moebius, two acts I quite like fro their experimental approach to electronic dance music. In that aspect, the title track might be my favorite but I like this whole ep, even the somewhat nineties inspired '500 Words'. So yeah, perhaps it's a good idea to check this out and do a little dance. It's a nice change from the stuff we usually listen to...

dark ambient

When French artist and writer Nihil asked Swedish one-man martial ambient act In Slaughter Natives to compose the soundtrack for his book, something very interesting happened. I don't know which is the darkest element of this experience: the music, the artwork or the short stories. Main theme is the search for identity of the main character, a man who accidentally awakes from the artificial lethargy everyone has been submerged into for ages. The amazingly detailed artwork mostly displays one desperate human being, face or eyes covered. The soundtrack only emphasizes the lonely and frightening atmosphere of the whole. In Slaughter Natives again delivers top-shelf dark ambient and martial industrial soundscapes. For fans of Puissance, Triarii, Raison d'Être but also recommended to anyone who's fed up with the muzak which comes gushing out of your radio...

electronic / dark ambient / industrial / noise

We're not done with crawling through utter darkness yet. In fact, we're going deeper down into a world where sounds are no longer natural, no longer bearable for the ordinary person. Fans of electronic drones, dark ambient and dark industrial noise on the other hand will have a blast with this album from French one-man project Sona Nyl. This album constantly balances on the edge between musicality and noise and quite often blatantly crossing over. The result is a captivating album, loaded with unidentified noises, creeping, crawling and repetitive enough to grind you into a deep and gloomy state of trance. This is something for fans of everything between ​Aghiatrias, Atrium Carceri and Atrax Morgue 

dark ambient / neo classical

Russian dark ambient and neoclassical project Astarium has been around for quite some time now, always delivering some strong and mysterious music. On this cooperation with Portuguese act Antiquus Scriptum that is no different. The eight tracks delivered by Astarium are once again representations of mystical worlds and times with beautiful arrangements and a eerie atmosphere. Antiquus Scriptum adds another set of strange songs, perhaps a bit more experimental and bizarre but nonetheless very interesting. There is something pagan, something medieval to this music and clearly something I can appreciate. This is an excellent split which you should check out if you're into ancient folk and gloomy musical bliss.

folk 

Aah, the beauty of being an introvert. It's so nice to dwell in someone's mind by exploring their music and that certainly is the case on this album by Canadian singer songwriter Clara Engel. Here and there aided by people like Aidan Baker, Armen Ra, Thor Harris and Siavash Amini, this woman delivers intimate but soulful folk songs with guitar, vocals and soundscapes or drones. The result is a pleasure to listen to, often even evoking a teardrop. For me, it's hard to compare this to other artists, because it's a realm I don't often visit. But that doesn't matter, all you need to know about this album is the captivating and immersive nature and the simply beautiful songs, loaded with emotions. Definitely recommended stuff.

classical

Dominique Charpentier is a multi-instrumentalist from France. He chose the piano for his first full-length album, his instrument of predilection. and you can immediately hear that this is one very talented fellow. He has also made soundtracks for films and video games in his home studio, and you can hear impressive orchestral compositions on his soundcloud page. The piano songs on Passages are breathtaking gems that remind of the works of Yann Tiersen and Ludovico Einaudi, two other self-made musicians and Carpentier's main influences. I'd say: go check this album out now!

doom

Once starting out as a blackened doom metal band, Swedish act Nangilima gradually evolved into the symphonic doom death combo they are today. Their new single, 'Shards Of Loss' contains two tracks which should every fan of Saturnus, Novembers Doom, My Dying Bride and Swallow the Sun tremble with excitement. Deep guttural growls and thick riffs are being accompagnied with piano and orchestral arrangements to create vast sonic journeys. Both songs are varied enough to remain interesting and lingering enough to maintain that always awesome doom metal bliss. See, this is why I love this genre so much. It comes from deep within and speaks directly to the darkest of souls.

black metal

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When an album title translates as "I hate life", you know you can expect something depressive and harsh. And yes, that's exactly what this Italian one-man act delivers. After an intro, hell breaks loose with harsh, minimal, mainly slow, gritty and primitive black metal, somehow reminding me of some of those ancient pioneers in the scene. Yet, the mid-tempo approach of songs like 'Primavera Depressa' has something post-punkish as well. 'Ricaduta' is probably my favorite track on this album, one that shows decent musical skills and a flair for a bleak atmosphere. I recommend this album to all fans of Nyktalgia, Nortt and Xasthur, or anyone who thinks life is something to be suffered, not enjoyed...

experimental / noise / improv

Cylinder Recordings

What happens when an experienced double bassist and a seasoned electronic experimentalist climb on stage together? Well, apparently you get something highly impressive that defies all categorization, like this twenty minutes lasting orgy of drones, soundscapes noises and hints of jazz. This release was recorded during a gig the two artists did in Rotterdam and damn it, it makes me regret not being there. In its digital form it's already impressive but my guess is that the concert itself has been intensely captivating and hypnotizing. Then again, that's something we're already used to with Machinefabriek, but still, this surely is something you need if you're into experimental ingenuity...

alternative rock / electronic / indie

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Hailing from France, Tomy Lobo doesn't seem to be interesting in doing this normally. The indie rock this act delivers, drives on modern electronic sounds but also seems to showcase a tremendous flair for the bombast of alternative rock. The result is a combination of everything you can hear on a decent alternative music radio station. You can dance to it, you can kneel-down and cry your eyes out to it or you can just shake your head in absolute approval. Personally, I prefer the latter but wouldn't mind dancing to gems like 'Night Prism' or the gloomy dubstep track 'Erase It All'. It's a bit like Oscar and the Wolf, but better. Way better. Check it out, you just might have found something new to expand your collection.

crust / screamo / post-hardcore / noise rock

Hailing from the beautiful country of Spain, but a bit more on the noisy spectrum of the musical industry, comes this raunchy and loud trio, Drei Affen and their untitled blast of sheer aggression. With a blend of screamo, noise rock and post-hardcore, this trio is out for nothing less than utter destruction and as far as I'm concerned, it works pretty well. I mean, listening to this ep already caused me to throw a hot cup of coffee at a mosquito and punish a pillow for its uncomfortable position. This music is intense, that's for damn sure, and I think it's not suitable for everyone. Yet, for fans of ruthless violence, this definitely comes highly recommend. I'm sure live shows by this trio will cause a lot of bruises and broken noses...

gothic metal / death metal / doom

We end this edition of Brieviews with two harsh doom songs with a gloomy, gothic atmosphere. German band Valborg has been compared to bands like Type O Negative, Celtic Frost and Triptykon and who am I to contradict that. Fans of these bands will certainly appreciate these massively immersive pieces of death doom but I still feel that Valborg has its own sound, somewhat industrial, somewhat dirty and vampiric. I'm sure Bela Lugosi would have loved the brilliant title track if he were still alive. Oh well, go ahead, check this out and join me in hoping that Valborg will come up with a stunning full-length and tour in the near future.

writers: Serge & Eline

electronic / downtempo / progressive

Vagabond is an album by Nick Brennan “Tripswitch”, an electronic music artist and producer from the UK, that works mainly in the downtempo and progressive subgenres of electronic music. With nine tracks, being them This Way Home, Divine Falsehood, Vagaries, Glass Heart, Big Time Line, Zoetrope, Payola, The Left Bank and Hulahoop, what we have here is a decent album, certainly capable of pleasing the most inveterate enthusiasts of the genre, although in very, very specific places and environments.

With vociferating and rising upbeats, that circle the uplifting sonorous gears of its own paradoxical harmonies, and a contrived rhythmical constraint that solidly harmonizes sometimes nervous, but enduring cycles of marvelous continual patterns, Vagabond is generally a good album, although it does resent itself to be a little monotonous sometimes, with little to no variations. While it does provide, in one hand, decent tunes for the club scene, the tedious repetitions that goes over and over again, although it is for sure an aspect of the genre, makes listening to an album seventy seven minutes long an exceedingly boring task. If you start listening to this album in a very exciting mood, be sure after a few tracks you will be excessively drained, and not pleased at all.  

While the album does have its qualities, and a landmark of the instantaneous frame of possibilities rearranged within the layers of its composite nuances, Vagabond really had the potential to be a more exciting album. Nevertheless, it can be deemed a decent, creative and definitive reference to the genre, highlighting the elements for which the genre is known. But be sure that, even if you’re an authentic enthusiast of the genre, you hardly will be far too enthusiastic about it. 

In resume, this is an album set for specific audiences, and very specific places, during very specific times. Some of these tracks surely will be great to listen in the right place, especially if you’re the nocturnal and outgoing type of person, that is always out there, in the club scene and in the dance floor. Listening to this album by yourself, on the other hand, in your house, all alone, will get you totally bored. This album is specifically tied to an audience, and to the right location, and doesn’t work outside of it. It belongs exclusively to the club scene, and to the agitation of the nocturnal life. In any other circumstances, it will be an instant displacement. It is totally comprehensible this dynamic, though, since downtempo is a subgenre of electronica aiming to be repetitive. And being Nick Brennan a constant presence in the UK regional scene, it is quite obvious that he will be making albums filled with music that works in his natural environment: a dance club at midnight, with lights sparkling everywhere inside the pub, and people – mostly young – dancing all night long. This is Tripswitch: exciting in the right place, and totally boring at home!          


​Wagner

ambient / downtempo

Released recently, on September 1, by Greek label Cosmicleaf records, the album Dreaming Awakening, Part One, is a compilation album that presents the audience some of the best chillout artists we have in the world today. With nine tracks, being them  Native, by The Amygdala, Good Times, by Magobee, Voice of Spring, by Kuba, Nostalgic Euphoria, by Side Liner, Above the Roofs, by Zero Cult, Deep Space Travel, by Easily Embarrassed, Orbs, by Kadasarva, A Whole New World (The First Sunset), by Innerself, and Skyer, by Lauge, this work will really satisfy an audience eager for a decent and true to the roots chillout compilation, that reunites in one work the most amazing tracks ever created on the genre.   

With an obviously passionate thrill that harmonically fitted in one album so many different artists, the uniformity that we have here, although being very heterogeneous, is really impressive. With a solid statement that reinvigorates the genre, in the basis of its wide scope, and it’s flexible and more ethereal sonorous layout, the record in one way stands for what chillout really is, and what truly means in the contemporaneous worldwide music scene, while at the same time is seemingly anxious to align, explore, analyze and discover the most prominent and energizing possibilities the genre could ever have, in the minds of its listeners, and as a meaningful and expressive form of sonorous artistry for the musicians working and unraveling on this kind of music. Starting its creative existence in the minds of the artists that works within the genre, exploring its boundaries, frontiers, tunes and harmonies, delineating in the process a remarkable achievement, exceedingly worthy for the progress of the tangent musicality found in the genre, Dreaming Awakening, Part One, does more than just simply collecting a few tunes here and there of chillout music: it digresses and accompanies the history and the evolution of the genre, presenting to its audience a dream that recreates chapters of a marvelous sonorous existence.    

Of course, having just nine tracks, you can’t expect too much of a history; nonetheless, what we have here is certainly worthwhile checking it: nine formidable and excruciatingly divine tracks, that traduces perfectly the basic principles of the genre. All of them beautiful, there is not a single one of them that could possibly be double checked, or that shouldn’t deserve to be included in the compilation. And besides that, they all complement one another very well, having been coherently chosen, and presented in an exceedingly impeccable order. 

A great gift for all chillout fans out there, Dreaming Awakening Part One is simply a great, excellent chillout compilation, and presents us with above the top tracks produced by the very best artists of the genre, in worldwide scale. So, if you are a chillout fan, like me, here’s a compilation that you certainly don’t want to miss. You will enjoy every second of it!       


​Wagner

electronic / downtempo / psychedelic

Hinkstep is an electronic ambient musical project from Gothenburg, Sweden. A Generation Lost in Space is the project’s fifth and most recent album to date, having being released in June 28. With eight tracks, being them Like A Mirror, Within Your Echoes, A Little Tree, Blend In With The Crowd, A Generation, Lost I Ft. Saimiri, N Space and Easily Distracted, a little more than one hour long, what we have here certainly is a fantastic and superbly well produced masterpiece. Eager to be considered one of the great representatives of the genre, certainly it is one of the more exciting and thoroughly groundbreaking albums the genre has ever produced in this century. 

With a central poignant device perfectly aligned in the sphere of circular rhythms rearranged in homogeneous cyclic patterns, overdeveloped under mesmerizingly cadenced gears of protuberating calmness, the music streams a beat of rising tones, under a dissident flow of sonorous dissonance, relying in the confluence of harmonies – masterminded by a vigorous sense of completeness – to assure the central axis of its rhythms to navigate under a precise sense of cohesion. With a calm and detailed resonance that converges to a path of exhilarating harmonies, that can stay on the verge of rapture while being overtly serene at the same time, A Generation Lost in Space manages excitingly to arrange the traditional old school elements of the genre, while at the same time aggregates new ones, with a soft sense of deliberate originality, that composes altogether an over the top masterpiece, absolute in its own peculiar sphere of devotional artistry.

Even the more calm tracks are filled with an elemental purpose of harmonic sensibility, delineating a sense of poetic dissolution that works within the music, ostensibly sculpting a colony of rhythms not just beautiful, but exceedingly lucid and pure, as vivid as a colorful rainbow in the eyes of a supernova. Listening to this album can really be a different experience, as you can travel a journey one hour long throughout the whole universe, reimagining your soul through solar landscapes, in a vast configuration of conspicuous nothingness, immerging your heart in an everlasting sense of wonderful sensibility and visible introspection.

With its more progressive layout, and a multidimensional shape of marvelous sonorous digression, A Generation Lost in Space is a majestic album, able to fill all the gaps usually left aside by the more ordinary works done in the genre. With electronica elements that persists, and also build slowly a curiously sentimental taste of consistency within the harmonies, this album is way above the usual ground normally found in this kind of music. With several different elements that dilute and create contrasting nuances to an already monumental style, Hinkstep has a progressive and experimental approach that sets his work aside, in a whole new, different level, with a very unique categorization. So, if you like creative ambient music, with chillout harmonies and experimental elements added to it, you have to listen to this amazing work. You will be astounded, that is for sure!               


Wagner

ambient / electronic / downtempo

With increasingly great, but exponentially soft harmonies that elevate the listener into the most reenergizing sphere of sonorous omnipotence, Meridian is a very uplifting album, that lives by the core of its harmony. Profoundly resting on the definitive majesty of its calmness, the marvelous melodies that divides the circumspection of the music maintains itself on the solidity of constantly evolving harmonies, that prompts a unique cohesion regarding the proper ascension of the music’s rhythm. With a slow dive, but a strong sense of unity, Meridian is a ten tracks album, that evolves from an ambiguous point of sensitive unbound intuition, never relying too much on a common basis, but always shifting the ethereal precision of its infinitely pronounced descriptive tonalities.

A great ambient album that always maintains the disruptive force of its incisive melodies, Meridian from the beginning exhibits a formal trait willing to revolve towards more ambitious goals, that projects organic musical hyperboles into a focus of consistent rhythms rearranged in interesting discursive patterns, somehow dispersing a new flow of creative influx. With a more circular sound, that projects its beginning in a path ostracized by a very familiar ending, Meridian goes way beyond the common boundaries usually seen in the genre, pushing to more figuratively soul frames unbroken harmonies that never seeks for an end, but always seems to start at the breaking point of a perceptive antagonism.

With an interesting pace and exceedingly vivid melodies, that balances in the wonderful rainbows of expressive eyes, the sound that we enjoy on this album is almost as detailed as it seems spontaneous. With an overview of sounds that seems infinite, an everlasting creative fortune appears to vividly describe dreams, in a very lucid interlude of pleasant configurations, almost unbearable to the ingenious heart. Nevertheless, with a sound that could describe the whole universe, Meridian is a very palpable album with an intangible voice, that seeks throughout the indefinite journey of thoughts the sensible stream of a monumental somnolence that dissipates the beautiful serenity of profound melodic purposes, always willing to renew the kindness of all hearts.

As the starting point of a glorious and uneventful journey, on which never lacks any happiness, Meridian, by Ascendant – a magnificent ambient music duo from California – has all the basis to be a divine gear of sonorous omnipotence, excellence, beauty and dynamism, with a powerful vigor that exposes a new and superbly original cadence into the music, being as unusual as discreet, sounding a lot more colorful, vivid and consistent than most acts in the genre. With a futuristic concept, a rearranging pattern of cadenced sensibility and a voracious method to stand on the point of a causal reinstatement of a marvelous transient universe, Meridian is an unbound vehement work of art that aggregates an innovative wave of devotional sincerity to a traditional prism of exceptionally cohesive sonorous layers, going far beyond the places the genre expected them to be!              


​Wagner

alternative rock / post-punk

A little bit of Ramones, some Sonic Youth, a flash of Teenage Jesus And The Jerks and a touch of Slowdive, that might get you an idea of what Turkish garage rock act Reptilians From Andromeda have released upon the world. The ep opens with some rough, mid-tempo tracks but suddenly dives into noise-rock insanity with the eerie 'We Are Who We Are', which sounds like Hole on some weird drug. Right after, they pour a synth-poppy shoegaze thing in our ears. Weird, very weird, but damn immersive and definitely ready to make their entree into the world of noise-rock and garage rock, and entree through the grand gate if you ask me. Interesting stuff...

noise rock / experimental / post punk

Epileptic Media

An experimental rock act that reminds me of bands like Cabaret Voltaire and Crash Course In Science, that is odd. I think the last one that managed to do that, was Black Dice. Anyway, Postman seems to draw influences from everything between Ween, Joy Division, Sonic Youth and the aforementioned bands to come up with some surprising songs. The set-up seems to be minimal, synth, drums, guitars but what they do with those instruments, is far from limited and often results in decent gloomy pop songs. 'Escape Velocity' is one of my favorite tracks but I strongly suggest to check out the album if you're a fan of strange, out-of-the-box releases. Hell, there's even a hint of dub and reggae here, or even Iggy Pop, or post-rock... Great stuff!

electronic / electro-rock

Somewhere in California, this duo is barking out a strange blend of glitchy electronics and rock music which kinda reminds of something between Lydia Lunch, Archive and Autechre. The songs on this ep are quite danceable pieces of music, but come with a gloomy new wave atmosphere. Their main influences seem to be Glitch Mob, Sleigh Bells and Purity Ring but, to be quite honest, I like this little ep a lot more than those acts, especially the somewhat industrial 'Edge Of Infinity'. There is a certain gritty feeling about this one, an impending atmosphere. It reminds me a bit of some Tricky songs but, again, way better. 'Parish' is a brilliant piece of joyful glitch electronics, something you definitely should check out...

metal / metalcore

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French extremists Aanod move somewhere between metalcore and the melodic death metal of the Götheborg scene. Yet, somehow they combine it with a modern sound, plenty of variation, electronics and epic ambient textures. The result is a massive and pounding ep, loaded with energy and sheer violence. The music feels suited for the tiniest of venues and the biggest of metal festivals alike, which isn't easy to accomplish I think. For the record, metalcore isn't really my thing, but I can surely respect the level of songwriting and the technical skills of these guys. So, all you metalcore kids, check this one out, it might as well become one of your favorite bands.

post metal / doom

Hailing from Poland, Moanaa have released a debut in 2014, now followed by a blast. With elements from post-rock, doom, sludge metal and psychedelic rock, they create a highly immersive sonic adventure. In some strange way, these songs remind me of a heavy and more intense version of some Cure songs, played by a mishmash of bands, including A Place To Bury Strangers and Cult Of Luna. The overall atmosphere is intense, dark and downright crushing at times. The vocals usually are clean, except from a few growling outbursts, something I can truly appreciate. In all 'Passage' is a tremendous album, perfectly suited for any post-metal fan out there. Check it out, you need this.

shoegaze / alternative 

Alternative rock and post-punk, interlaced with joyous dreampop, that's what you get on this ep by Finnish quartet Mumrunner. The four tracks on this album remind me a lot of acts like Cocteau Twins, Slowdive and even The Cure. 'Shawshank' is my favorite song on this ep, an uptempo earworm that gets stuck in your head, an ability most of the songs actually have, even the punky shoegazer 'Cascais'.  This truly is stuff for the dark and murky dance floors all over the world, which obviously comes highly recommended. I hope I get the chance to see this quartet soon. I'm sure they will guarantee an immersive live performance, causing entire venues to dance the night away...

psychedelic / blues / folk

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Oh man, I absolutely love this newfound interest in seventies music. Take this French trio Dätcha Mandala and their latest ep for example, a brilliant piece of psychedelic blues rock which could have come directly from the studios where people like Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix and the Beatles recorded their stuff. 'Misery' is a gloomy blues ballad (with a beautiful guitar solo) while 'Mojoy' is a pretty heavy rocker, somehow reminding me of Black Crowes. Both songs are excellent examples of how this newfound interest should sound: vintage, convincing and perfectly executed. I hope this single will be followed by a full-length and a tour soon. 

death metal

Portuguese horde Colosso have released a behemoth, a pungent blend of death metal and industrial, loaded with soundscapes and sheer ferocity. The result might indeed be one of the most impressive death metal albums in 2016. Somehow it reminds me of a mix between Carcass and Limbonic Art, crushing the boundaries of one genre and smashing right into another one. This album is a ranging assault of blast beats, haunting screams and vicious, often droning riffs and pure noise created with the sole intention of demolishing anything in its path. I admit, you have to be used to some level of crushing death metal before you can handle this, but once inside, the beast never lets go.

electronic / techno

Dance music right after death metal, because why the fork not? Besides, this isn't ordinary, stale and unimagined techno. In fact, there's only one true techno tune on this ep (and its remix), 'Obsession'. True, it's not my favorite but it might get some people dancing. Opener 'Vanished Breath' is more like an eerie ambient tune while a great track 'The Ritual' is a breakbeat inspired vintage electro act. Speaking of vintage electro, 'M.U.M.' seems to come directly from the seventies when people like Klaus Schulze and Kraftwerk were pioneering in experimenting with electronic music. So yeah, this fits perfectly on this edition of brieviews. 

electronic / ambient / experimental

Speaking of acts like Kraftwerk, Schulze and Tangerine Dream, here are two pieces of circular synth and tape-loop music, courtesy of Italian artist Marta De Pascalis. Both are long tracks, seemingly based around a central theme but constantly moving and changing. Title track 'Anzar' really takes me back to those early electronics pioneers, often coming up with some folkish melodies along with the cold synth sequences. 'Emerso' sounds a bit darker, somewhat nudging towards the ambient scene. In all, I like this one a tad better than the opener, probably because of its lingering soundscapes. In all, this certainly is an interesting release, which comes highly recommended to anyone who loves those old, almost psychedelic electronics. But be quick, there are only 100 copies of this tape...

experimental / ambient / noise

Silken Tofu

Another strange two-track album comes from Belgian label Silken Tofu, who released this one-session recording of Jonas Van den Bossche & Benne Dousselaere. These two tracks are elaborate audio-adventures with drones,  noise, soundscapes, synths, guitar and minimal percussion. On hand hand, the music reminds me of acts like De Fabriek, Machinefabriek; Maurizio Bianchi and Tim Hecker, while there's also a hint toward ancient electronics and gloomy eighties electro. It constantly changes, mostly driving on one or a few drones. In fact, the only thing that remains a constant on this album, is the quality. This thing definitely comes highly recommended.

black metal

From "meh", over "hm, interesting" to "fuck yeah" in mere thirty seconds, that's not an easy task to accomplish but this German trio somehow managed to do exactly that. I wasn't fond if the opening of this ep, but gradually it grew on me and halfway through 'Eyes of the Scythe Wielder', I was heabanging along with their chaotic and primitive approach to black metal. Nothing fancy, no over produced feel good shit, just sheer violence and intense blasphemy. This ep sounds like it comes directly from an underground bunker in the early nineties when the blackened scene was just beginning to make headlines everywhere. If you like your black metal true, bleak and vulgar, this is your album of the week.

electronic

Obsolete Woodland is a twenty two tracks album released in May 2 by English electronic pioneer Rob Adams, best known by his artistic nom de plume Crest Of The Syndicate. An amazingly talented and prolific musician, Crest Of The Syndicate’s music is characterized by an amplitude of sounds that diversifies the interior beauty of the songs by internalizing the boundaries of rhythms, constraining multiple layers of harmonies in constant nuances that never downplays the apparent calmness that usually revolves around the vicinity of the core of his music. 

With a very mature and pulsating style difficult to categorize, the creativity in Crest Of The Syndicate’s case is the headstone of all ambivalences: surpassing boundaries, delineating new styles of unusual framework and always capturing a new layout of highly amplified sonorous cosmogonies, the overachieving stature of Rob Adams’ music takes part in the objective nature of an unbound line of work, which would be classified as a never ending class into experimental lessons and daring boldness into musical creation. 

With some avant-garde elements that makes Crest Of The Syndicate’s music quite unique, the audience for such a narrowly fundamental style of music is undoubtedly very clear for the artist, being unfortunately restrict, which makes Rob Adams’ music an exclusive underground act, that paradoxically has at the forefront of his musical components severally unrestrained elements. With this in mind, it is possible to delineate in the atmosphere of his creative habits an almost exclusive horizon of possibilities, that plays alongside his oceanic devices of effervescent harmonies a reluctantly renovating landscape, that never excludes the protuberant ideas that generates thunderstorms in the eventful evening of the eternity that seeks abundant streams of ideas in the deranged space of opportunities that do exist, in the vast, contiguous and sonorous universe of never ending musical possibilities.   

All in all, Obsolete Woodland is a very interesting album. Exceedingly diversified, with songs that resemble video game soundtracks, colorful fragments of inexistent sorrows, and empirical sardonic roads to nowhere, what we have here is an intriguing work of art meticulously detailed in the impersonating tone of its merits, while at the same time exceedingly lucid in his almost mathematical experimental elements, that never ceases for too long his overachieving questions of sensibility, humanity and feeling, throughout this mesmerizing sonorous journey of densely fractal beauty of implausible demise. 

Nevertheless, despite being a very good album, with a highly impressive production quality, Crest Of The Syndicate overtly inflamed, experimental and minimalist nature means that a work of this category is aimed at a very specific audience, otherwise it would be exceedingly misunderstood. Regardless of these considerations, Obsolete Woodland is a terrific album, that has everything to please and satisfy its audience, in the best way possible. Rob Adams is a highly intelligent, inventive and original musician, with a great deal of talent that will allow him to continue on his way to explore beautiful sonorous compositions, to keep pleasing and surprising us all, as long as he makes music.                 

        
​Wagner

psychedelic rock / electronic / krautrock

Time to start writing a few reviews again after taking several days off. And why not start with the most difficult one, an amalgamation of musical styles and influences. I mean, usually things are quite easy to describe but when the first three minutes of an album already remind me of The Beatles, Ween, Radiohead, Pink Floyd and Massive Attack and the second song throws in some funk and soul, you know you're in for an adventure.

The Good Library formed back in 1996 in Vienna, Austria. since then, they have been paving their own path in the world of psychedelic rock and krautrock. Their songs evolve from elaborate jam sessions, and you can clearly hear that. From opener 'Ice Throat' to the hypnotic closer 'Tantum', this album feels like a massive journey on many different levels. I'll try to guide you through with a song-by-song description.

The album opens with 'Ice Throat', which seems to combine post-rock with either The Beatles or The Jesus And Mary Chain. There's also something trip-hoppy in here, caused by the electronics and the soundscapes. In all, it's a perfect opening track. 'Goldfish' opens with electronic beats, a bit similar to the stuff Tricky does. Yet, shortly after, a funky bassline kicks in and we're shaking our asses off. My mind just made up the term "doom disco". Don't ask me why...

'The Floating Afterwards' is a classic krautrock tune that not only brings acts like Can or  Grobschnitt to mind but also Ween. 'Mutant' is one of my favorites here, a mid-tempo but highly danceable blend of soundscapes and Herbaliser drums, including a psychedelic guitar solo. 'Flight 19' is another favorite, slow, gloomy, alienating and hypnotic as hell. That being said, there is something ritual, something shamanic about the vocals on this one.

'Beekeeper' takes us back to that psychedelic Beatles sound and seems to borrow a few guitar licks from the country scene while 'Man On Fire' delves deep into the world of new wave and, again, krautrock. Closer 'Tantrum' finishes the whole thing in style, perhaps a bit more electronic and danceable sounding than the other tracks. But rest assured, dear reader, you can dance and groove on this whole album and I suggest you start doing in right now...


​Serge

electronic / ambient / downtempo

Blu Eon is an album released by ambient sound artist Echo Delta via Lithuanian underground record label Cold Tear Records. With nine tracks that usually follow the normal pattern of electronic ambient music, very long tracks exceeds all the ordinary lines, visuals and matters for this album, really capturing and captivating instantly from the core of its demanding proposal exceedingly reliable, philosophic and very consistent tones. Seemingly inserted in a universe inspired to fulfill imaginary waves of sound, wonderfully shaping and reemerging in all contexts of a sincere art of the soul all perfunctory dreams of a resonating dreamlike nature that easily perpetuates on the onset of an indefinite journey all the marvelous glory of a sound eager to diversify, define and clarify existence as a whole, Blu Eon is an album that perfectly fits spaces between galaxies, deemed to watch collisions among spheres of sound, as the mastermind of an eye that never overlooks the possibilities towards the infinity. 

With a very credible and underlying patience that seeks to diversify all the main goals of a sonority hardly shaken by the ghosts of an unbearable utterance, Blu Eon is a calm, yet thrilling and majestic album, full of honorary greatness, despite what appears to be a transcendental rhythm of delightful regularity, with a profound and acquiescent sense of serenity, that never gives an ultimatum to its own meritorious simplistic benevolence. With an upward motion that chronologically harmonizes its own intrinsic nuances towards the values that always return to the barycenter of the force that generates the rhythm of the music, Blu Eon is a non-static dissonant ambient assertive upheaval, centered on a melodic axis of a slow metamorphosis dramatic intuition, grounded in a very precise indefinite disposition, that mathematically challenges the balances and the harmony between all the layers that fit together to compose the sound. 

Unbearable at the top of the lights created by its own vigorous audacity, although at the other hand exceedingly conformed to the normality of the standards usually bound to the genre, Blu Eon is an album that can be labeled as equal as it is, as well as different as it could be, as cleverly sets a very unusual pattern of standards on which the music rely on. With the remarkable ability to give different shapes of sound to a musical configuration that normally doesn’t have such diversified nuances, nor varied levels of harmonization, Echo Delta as an artist manages to establish and create its own style of musicality in the process, without losing a positive identification within the genre. 

With an exceedingly great and virtuous elemental nature of flexible sonorous beauty, Blu Eon, by Echo Delta is an amazingly pure, gracefully solid and gratuitously serene ambient music album, that rebuilds, expands and redefines every single element that composes the fundamental milestones of the genre, without infamously decharacterizing or unsetting its principles, but fiercely preserving the dynamics upon which the sound is recognizable and easily assimilated. Being a work of art made with heart and soul, Blu Eon, by Echo Delta is a bright luminous mesmerizing piece, with a serenity driven sincerity, that delays and outshines the limits of its own lucidity, while at the same time seeking to overshadow the reminiscent melodies of the sleepiness of the dawn of its own dark days of miserable uneasiness. With rising undertones of striking soft dimensional grounds of invisible relaxing soundscapes, Blu Eon is an astoundingly complete album, that revolves primarily on the underlying peaceful motives of an apprehensive beauty that runs between boundaries, never to set back on the definition of rhythms that compels the soul agitation to look permanently in the interior of a sonorous continual reverberation. An album made to produce crystallizing echoes throughout the universe, Blu Eon, by Echo Delta is certainly a monumental work of art, set to redefine and resize the ambient genre as a whole.  

Wagner Hertzog                                   

electronic / ambient / downtempo

Lightworker’s Delight is the second and most recent album by School Of Crystal Healing, an electronic ambient project by Swedish musician Olof Ejstes, released on June 18, by Troll N' Roll Records.

With eight tracks, being them Influx, Boutique Sternway, Parallax Oasis, Seven Stages of Empathy, Lavender, Cherry Blossom, Lonely Planet and Fruity Loom, each song has seven to nine minutes in general. With very consistent and exceedingly poignant harmonies, remarkably solid and not so overtly ecstatic, School of Crystal Healing, on this album, really expands and surpasses in interesting, but very subtle expressive devices, the boundaries of the genre, consolidating a sonorous element of virtuous audacity, that breaks the uncompromising opacity that engulfs the more hidden layouts of the genre. 

With an embracing sound that inhabits the globe of an atmosphere that creates within its own sensibility the calm beauty of infinite spaces, the invisible forces that searches for unusual sound distinctions on the verge of its own gregarious intuitions seems to reveal that School of Crystal Healing’s objectives are all but simple, eager to segregate, active and disseminate several colors of protuberating, yet hidden, senses of completeness. Summarizing the circles on which the music – and the music alone – contemplates the vastness of its own intrinsic harmonies, sleeping in the soul of a consciousness that never fails inside the universe that grows in the shoulders of an underlying greatness of symbols, all the melodies flourishes near the boundaries of rhythms never felt before in the core of ethereal senses, permanently hiding its infatuated brilliance in the nothingness perpetuated by a dormant sense of introspection. Nevertheless, as calm as it is, Lightworker’s Delight will heal and wake up your senses, activating them to a configuration ready to fit in a dimension where everything delusional seems empty, and yet, it conforms existence to a reality on which time is never stranded within a space bound for human thoughts.

So, if you’re looking for something highly unusual, and as infinite as the outer space, this work will exhale vast principles of unlimited possibilities through your imagination, creating an appealing framework of undeniable romanticism and peace, that will instantly undermine in the distinctive paths of your mental lucidity a whole new set of rainbows that will easily reinstate a groundbreaking thrill of majestic desires within your soul. Perfectly matching tranquil, peaceful and serene moments of overtly absolute quietness, building them near the internal algorithms of the psychosocial environment inherent to your life, Lightworker’s Delight, by School Of Crystal Healing, easily combines the exact elements for an interior discovery within yourself, that escalates to a time travel throughout the cosmos, brilliantly consolidating a sonorous journey of overachieving miracles, that doesn’t end when the album finishes. Although wisely disguised as an ordinary album, seemingly similar to others of the genre, Lightworker’s Delight is an impressive masterpiece, that suits perfectly all ambient music lovers out there, highlighting a very intelligent and sensitive pathway to a vigorous form of sonorous enlightenment, managing to open up in a simple manner very complex forms of graceful healings, that personal ethereal satisfaction is brought to light with a compelling cohesion, hardly believing what music can accomplish, when grounded in a soul system of relief. 

But this is only a little, from a handful of reasons and perceptions why you should listen to this amazing album. Fiercely grounded upon a remarkable sincerity that makes every atom and molecule of your body to transcend all the boundaries of the universe altogether, Lightworker’s Delight is a state of the art album, made by one of the best artists of the category. Bound to be a colossal force within several genres, like Ambient, New Age, World Music and Easy Listening, amongst others, this work is a fundamental milestone for meditational and transcendental music alike. And I would not be surprised at all if, in the years to come, this work turns out to be a main reference within all those genres. 

Wagner Hertzog                               

electronic / downtempo

Entheogenic is an electronic avant-garde experimental musical project, consisting of musicians Piers Oak-Rhind and Helmut Glavar, highly grounded in unusual and often progressive musical experimentation, making somewhat their work very difficult to classify. Being active since 1999, the duo has released nine albums to date, and the most recent, 2015 A Singularity Encoded, like their previous efforts, is grounded in highly eclectic musical elements, transposing lines and boundaries between genres and styles, exhibiting a musical craft, genius and creativity uncommon in many spheres of the musical world today . 

Although the background of the music is mostly electronic, they incorporate elements from oriental/ Indian chants, new wave sounds, new age meditation-like stillness, and futuristic rhythms, as well as genres more commonly associated to electronic music, as psytrance, ambient and downtempo, creating an unusual mixture that became their own signature sound, which makes their work difficult to categorize, but very easy to recognize.  

Despite the innovations, the musical boldness, their out-of-the-ordinary approach to composition, and their astounding creativity, A Singularity Encoded, after the first few tracks, unfortunately becomes annoying, closed in its own premise, monotonous, dull and empty in its own sphere of boring sound sequences, and, disappointingly, the first track reveals itself to be the only real surprise in the album, after all. In the end, A Singularity Encoded is no more than a great expectation, which turns to be a disappointment, although the competence of the musicians involved remains out of the question. Who knows? Maybe they got lost somewhere along the way, in the middle of the excesses of their seemingly exaggerated eagerness for musical experimentation.  But they may impress us all, in the future. Their non-commercial standards, and great love for music has to be recognized after all, and their creativity, when aligns itself altogether with something really daring and absorbing, can certainly evolve into a great album.

In the end, after hearing this album several times, it disappointingly reveals itself more as a promise to be, than a promise fulfilled. Taking into consideration what appears to be their main motive, the final result, the sound, the songs and the level of musical experimentation, way more than my personal taste, for the sake of a decent and fair evaluation, I unfortunately can hardly give to this album two stars, out of five, at best. A Singularity Encoded is too random and boring, to receive more than this.            


​Wagner

Intro: Not long ago, we published a massive amount of brieviews without giving a damn about genre restrictions. As you may already know, everything is welcome on Merchants Of Air and we do our very best to recommend some awesome stuff. That set of brieviews gained us a lot of positive reactions, more than enough to continue that tradition. So today I'd like to present another heap of brieview, ranging from all kinds of metal to classical music but also some dance floor fillers and straight in-your-face rock 'n roll. Enjoy...

rock / hard rock

Named after a street gang in the movie 'The Warriors (1979)', Spanish four-piece Lizzies come up with some good old fashioned rock 'n roll. These women have borrowed to in-your-face attitude of acts like The Ramones and combine it with vintage hard rock and heavy metal. The result is a heavy rocking album with strong songs, at times reminding me of early Iron Maiden or Judas Priest. The whole thing seems to go back to the early eighties, when metal was still in its childhood. My favorite track is the fierce 'Speed On The Road' but pretty much every song on this debut can easily get a party started. I hope we'll be hearing a lot from these ladies in the near future.

atmospheric black metal

Well, the album cover and the title pretty much say all you need to know about this two-track ep by German act Skognatt. This is a cold and harsh but highly atmospheric piece of depressive black metal, loaded with keyboard arrangements and folk elements. Both songs are slow and come with a decent amount of variation. Here and there I'm reminded of acts like Dimmu Borgir, Vinterriket, Summoning and Nortt, and even Samael comes to mind once in awhile. The lack of blast beats doesn't make these tracks any less intense. On the contrary, this is utter despair, bleakness and suicidal depression at its best. I know, that doesn't sound very positive, but then again, a black metal album is never supposed to sound positive.

hard rock / southern rock / stoner rock / grunge

Hailing from the deepest ranches of southern Finland, the rockers of Rattleplague come up with a pretty nasty ep. They blend southern rock with grunge and heavy party rock 'n roll, resulting in a drunken orgy of riffs, drums and harsh, mean vocals. The songs remind me of something between Alice In Chains, Motorhead and White Zombie, which obviously means "party time". Besides, for some reason I think Slayer has been on of Rattleplagues influences, but I could be wrong about that. Anyway, 'Drain' is a brilliant song,  'Parasite Brothel' drags Kuyss into the world of metal and 'Hollywood Diabolical' is what happens when Max Cavalera would join Motley Crue. You WILL party!!!

death metal

Whoever claims that Canadians are too nice, should listen to this murderous gem by technical specialists The Apex. With brutal yet technical death metal, incorporating elements from mathcore, this three track is a massive assault on your mental health. Bits of Meshuggah, flashes of Dillinger Escape Plan and hints of Fear Factory drag you down into a dark hole where they beat you senseless with unexpected hooks, skullgrinding riffs and whatnot. According to the biography, the vocalist suffers from a form of Neurogenic Stammering, which effects his speech so he's unable to carry on a normal conversation, but he can growl and scream like the best metal vocalist out there.

black metal

From one of the most dissonant and eerie quarters of the black metal scene, comes the new ep by Polish avant-garde act Misanthropic Rage. One massive, seventeen minutes lasting epos and two deranged and brutal piece of extreme metal, that's what you get on this little gem. The immense title track is a stunning and highly varied piece of music, one you easily lose yourself in if you're into the weird extremes. The other two aren't any less impressive by the way, and -obviously- they are excellent headbanging material. I hope this ep will be followed by a full-length and a tour in the near future because this act definitely is something today's black metal scene needs.

sludge / doom 

According to the Guinness Book of World Records, the heaviest thing to ever be weighed as of 2015 was the Revolving Service Structure of launch pad 39B at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Well, it's 2016 now and New Haven, CT residents Sea Of Bones are up for the challenge to create something heavier. Their contribution to this split is intensely dark, atmospheric, monolithic, fuzz-out and pitch black. Their colleagues from Ramlord smash another piece of thick sonic filth in our faces, which is equally impressive. Both tracks last about ten minutes, plenty of time to roll over their listener with a repetitive steamroller. If you like heavy, you must pre-order this split now!

sludge / doom / black metal

UK residents Kalloused call their music "noise-metal" and quite frankly, I think that's right on the spot. The stuff on this ep somewhat sounds like the metal version of harsh, repetitive noise, driving on a torpid tempo and thick, skull bashing riffs. Above all of that, the vocalist screams his lungs out in perfect blackened noise tradition. There are hints of hardcore but the majority of this album is intense, heavy and immersive sludge doom which is perfectly capable of driving a select audience into a pitch black state of trance. Perhaps one day I can be one of those audience members, but for now, I'll just use this ep as the ultimate soundtrack for all my aggressive activities...

black metal

Altere Records

The more things change, the more they stay the same. That certainly counts for this haunting compilation from Belgian blackened horde Ordo Omegae Absolutae. Although quite varied and including some dark ambient elements, the music on this album is fierce and often depressive old school black metal, driven by the collected negativity of the band members. The overall atmosphere is darker than you can possibly imagine. At times the somewhat musical black metal is overruled by uncontrollable noise. On other occasions, folky passages have been interlaced with the sheer brutality of the rest of the music. This is impressive stuff which every black metal fan needs to check out.

death metal / grindcore

Greek duo Hostage Of Fate doesn't seem to care about genres. In fact, their main influences are the extreme bands from the eighties and nineties, regardless whether they're death metal, thrash metal, speed metal or hardcore. All they want to do, is make aggressive and pissed-off music and in that they certainly succeeded. This album is loaded with metallic chaos, brutal vocals, spine shattering blast beats and brainfucking riffs. Yet, the whole thing feels extremely experimental, which is quite impressive if you think about how minimalistic the music really is. It's definitely something different, different from pretty much every death metal album I've heard...

electronic / industrial

Speaking about different albums, this ep certainly is something else. No guitars, just synths, drum machines and at times the guiding voice of Sasha Andrès (from the band Heliogabale). However, that does not mean that this is a soft piece of music, on the contrary. The songs on this album come very close to eighties electronic new wave acts like Suicide, The Klinik, Neon Judgement, Scorn.... Yet, it also has a very modern edge. 'Monster5', for example, is a brilliant approach to dubstep, brilliant enough to not be actual dubstep. There's also a bit of trip-hop, some ambient and some otherworldly melodies with church organs. What else could you need? This is an awesome ep.

ambient / classical

Sometimes we all need a little break, and I have the perfect ep for that. Tambour is Simon P. Castonguay, a pianist and composer from Montreal. On this ep, he treats us to some gentle tunes of sweet and brisk modern classical music. Aided by a string quartet, his piano melodies sound melancholic yet playful, like a safe haven in a violent world. If you are into the music of people like Olafur Arnalds, Sebastian Plano or Bersarin Quartett, you should definitely check out this little gem. The somewhat jazzy 'Sleepers' is my favorite track on this ep, probably because of the beautiful sound of the clarinet. 'Valse N.1' also brings a nostalgic smile to my face. Beautiful stuff...

electro / industrial

Time to get your dancing shoes and join me on the dark dance floor where French act Haxis invites us to shake our butts to his highly enjoyable fusion of synthpop and industrial. The songs on this ep drive on solid beats, electronic soundscapes and grinding distorted guitars. At times the whole thing sounds like Pet Shop Boys meets Die Krupps meets Daft Punk meets VNV Nation meets Project Pitchfork. The amount of energy coming off tracks like 'City Lights' ,'Glide' or 'Just Mad' is astounding and it's almost impossible to sit still on this stuff. I think I'm going to keep an eye on this act because I feel like this unique blend has a lot of potential to grow into something massive...

techno

Techno isn't something we usually write about on Merchants Of Air, but this ep is a smasher. Ok, I admit, I was already interested when I read that it will be released on Speedy J's label, someone who's musical evolution saved the face of dance music for me. But I must say, opening track 'Reign Of Terror' is a brilliant blend of atmospheric techno , psytrance and eerie acid while other tracks remind me of acts like Self-transforming Machine Elves, Xingu Hill and Unit Moebius. Yeah, I might not know that much about techno, but I do know what I like and this, this I do like, even though things can get a bit too repetitive for me at times. The ep closes with the great break-beat track 'Breaking Visions', my favorite I think

post rock / ambient

This American one-man act has a name that describes the songs on this album quite well. Mostly driving on programmed, electronic drums, these cinematic (mostly) instrumental songs gently fill the room. I can hear influences from ambient, from post-rock and from classical music. If you use your imagination, you can indeed see the programmed angels dancing in slow motion while you're drifting through the clouds on a warm night. I know, that  might sound a bit too poetic but this simply is a beautiful album, blending Boards Of Canada with Explosions In The Sky and Plaid with Godspeed You Black Emperor. As often, I'd like to see this live one day, but for now, I'll just enjoy these delightful tunes a few times more...

electronic / alternative dance

Of course this is Belgian, the land of Vive La Fête, Nid & Sancy, Praga Khan, Lords Of Acid, Front 242...Rumours are a band from Ghent, armed with a bunch of electronics and a massive knowledge about electronic dance music. The majority of this album is dance floor filling techno with a gritty, raunchy edge, perfectly suited for fans of The Knife or Liars. However, this acts throws in some cinematic elements as well as some blasts of chaotic industrial. You know, Atari Teenage Riot meets Björk or Zola Jesus meets Ambassador21, something like that. Oh well, just close your eyes and let the beats pummel you into a coma. I know I will...