The Last Flight of The Hope Dempsey album – by the duo of Brendan McCusker and Andy Samford – calling themselves “The Rendlesham Forest Incident”, is a suitably hard rock chugger modeled after the primordial space rock band, Hawkwind. In fact, with the first track, Time Between Times; some might say it’s modeled a little TOO closely on Hawkwind. That is, the track lifts much from their classic Master of the Universe. That said, despite the ’70’s era spacerock references one often hears in the album; after a complete listen, the guys can be forgiven, because they transcend all that with their obvious enthusiasm for the genre AND good, tight musicianship. And after all, isn’t all genre music a retelling of the same original innovation over and over? This is especially true of spacerock; we fans eat that shit up – the phasing, the warbling tone generators, and guitar freakouts, etc. etc. So if, as I say, it’s done as enthusiastically – as it is with this – and with talent to burn, all is forgiven! Fans familiar with Samford and McCusker will recognize them from their previous bands, Telestrion, and Pickman’s Model, respectively.

It starts with the demented “emergency broadcast” announcement that all listeners should “turn up the volume on their receivers ‘as loud as it can go’ “; and blasts off with the aforementioned opener. It’s a tale by an unknown entity detailing his activities through time “monitoring the human race”. One gets the feeling they’ve done their homework, as the actual Rendlesham Forest incident is a famous UFO case. The next track, The Bell is a sort of interlude with a sinewy middle eastern flavor and wordless mantras;
which takes us into Solar Barge (the same tune, really). This track is my personal fave, as it weaves a hypnotic spell, alluding to dead Pharaohs and their journey to the other side in the afterlife. Then it’s on to ‘side two’ – possibly with intent to have this on vinyl at some point – and this starts with the ominous paranoia of Space Jester. Here, electronics burble up with the repeating guitar signature, taking us on a relentless ride, along with the crew of a seemingly doomed ship in unknown difficulty.
Last Flight is another segue with electronics and flight control announcements. It moves on into The Traveller,
with vocal by Samford (actually McCusker does vocal work on all except this track). Its Iommi-like rhythm guitar crunch, and tasty lead work are both by Samford. The last track, Opiumholen der Mars (opium dens of Mars), is the psychedelic slide out, a cosmic chill out of sorts after all the ‘Sturm und Drang’ of earlier.

The drumming by McCusker is excellent throughout, and all the electronics are tastefully held in check so as to serve the old school rock sound. All in all, a worthy addition to the genre. For a “limited time” downloads on bandcamp.com (only source of the recording at this writing) includes several bonus tracks, a couple of edits and two instrumentals. Those most likely will be held off any vinyl release, but I’m hoping they keep download track #6 “Krautrock experiment” as a CD album ending track, as it has a guitar improv by Samford that one can tell came from a deep honest inside, which one rarely hears in today’s world of ‘perfect takes’. It then ends with a wild synth sqwonk, an excellent brain frying outro to the whole – if they so decide to keep it. Three thumbs up – if you’re a mutoid – and two way up for the rest of us!

For more information you can visit The Rendlesham Forest Incident web site at: http://trfi.bandcamp.com

Reviewed by Marc Paskvan

GR is French guitarist (and multi-instrumentalist) Greg Raimo, who I first became of aware of through his guitar/bass/drums trio Gunslingers. Imagine a marriage of power-psych-punk-metal trio and Acid Mothers Temple at their most crazed and you might get something like Gunslingers. Raimo’s guitar is a blistering assault on the senses, and backed by a relentlessly pummeling bass/drums rhythm section he rips and shreds, laying waste to the sonic landscape. And his vocals are as punishing as his guitar, sounding like a cross between Johnny Rotten and Damo Suzuki. Gunslingers released two albums, the No More Invention debut in 2008 and Manifest Zero in 2010, and I even got to see them perform live when they toured the U.S. Greg then ventured out on his own, releasing the GR and Full Blown Expansion LP in 2010, on which he plays all the instruments, and now A Reverse Age, credited simply to “GR”, released last year. (The promo sheet mentions a collaborative EP with Michael Yonkers that I’ve not heard.)

GR isn’t all that terribly far from Gunslingers, the main difference being that Raimo plays all the instruments. The LP opens with the steady rocking Low-Born, surrounded by an atmospheric drone feel. Some of the bass riffs on Vapours Invisible remind me of Pink Floyd’s One Of These Days, but the guitar is manically acid-damaged, and the rhythmic pulse weirdly off-kilter, making for a cool and twisted combination. The title track features nearly 9 minutes of jamming acid-drenched psychedelic punk. Hymn Of Pan is a bit different, being an acoustic song that’s like a combination of traditional Celtic and Wyrd-Folk, though with Raimo’s unique vocals throwing the odd curveball.

The promo sheet references The Magic Band and while the music overall isn’t like them I’d say the guitar on the all too brief Spectre Of The Brocken definitely has an artfully twisted Beefheartian spirit to it, though more psychedelic than Blues based. The guitar is more distinctly Bluesy Beefheart sounding on The Primitive Hoodoo, though it’s far more hyper-kinetic and has a chunky intense rockin’ groove too. Bradtenehend has a pounding bass riff that brings to mind Hawkwind’s Brainstorm and includes one of the most searing acid-fucked guitar freakouts of the set. And Action Vision is like a psychedelic version of MX-80 Sound’s brand of prog-punk.

In summary, this is a powerhouse set that will make you break a sweat. Raimo is a good drummer too, seriously amping up the energy level. Another difference from Gunslingers is that while on those albums I question whether Raimo’s vocals included any real lyrics (and who cares, I like his style), I could actually make out words at times on this album. Note that the LP comes in a numbered edition of 750 and includes a download code.

For more information you can visit the Mexican Summer label web site at: http://www.mexicansummer.com

Reviewed by Jerry Kranitz

Red Planet Orchestra is the UK based duo of Vincent Rees and Peter Smith, who were the same musicians who created the T30 Control albums Blade Of The Sun (2003) and Hollow Earth (2006). In my review of Blade Of The Sun I summarized it as appealing to fans of early 70’s German electronica, ambient/soundscape music, and all things SPACE.

Red Planet Orchestra are much more subdued than T30 Control, and the Aurora Symphony title of their first album describes precisely what it is… a symphony in space. An ambient wave of shimmering electronic string section make up the First Movement. This is characterized by a single theme that changes very little, though I sat as quietly and blissfully enraptured as if I were experiencing it in a concert hall (which is exactly how this music made me feel). The theme continues with the Second Movement, though the pace picks up ever so slightly. The ambient string section becomes a wee bit fuller and is joined by whispery electronic wind instruments, a heavenly choral feel, and a detectable melody begins to gradually evolve. The short Third Movement introduces more distinct voices, and the music takes on an avant-garde hue with the interesting way in which these voices are placed within the symphony. Requiem For Aurora transitions to a darker and more intense mood for the finale.

In summary, this is a beautiful album and Red Planet Orchestra have demonstrated how much can be communicated with so little. The music evolves gradually and subtly while packing an emotional punch throughout. Headphones and undivided attention essential.

For more information visit the Red Planet Orchestra web site at: http://redplanetorchestra.bandcamp.com

Reviewed by Jerry Kranitz

Oceanfire is the solo project of UK multi-instrumentalist Keith Hill. Hill is notably in the bands Signified and Civilian Zen, and has worked with not only various Hawkwind alumni in the past, but has also done work with spacerocker Vert:x. The music of Oceanfire is much closer in style to the electronic rock of his Civilian Zen project than it is to the alt-metal crunch of Signified, but he does inject a little heaviness into things as well. Exit-Rejuvenation is Hill’s follow up to a pair of EP’s, A Set of Songs Parts 1 & 2 that he released in late 2012/early 2013.

On Exit-Rejuvenation, spacerock collides head on with upbeat, experimental/electronic music, for a distinctive and electrifying sound. The trip gets underway with a short, deep space ambient intro amusingly titled Exit (although likely a reference to the title of the album itself). After that, Oceanfire launches into Tribes, an exercise in heavy progressive psytrance. Synth whooshes whirl and swoop through pounding beats and pulsing rhythms as weird effects layer upon weird effects and vague melodies snake their way through the maelstrom, then gradually fade as the piece draws to its more minimalist close. Hill shies away from the more ‘new agey’ aspects often heard in the psytrance genre though, giving it a harder, weirder edge. The next track, Elevation, takes that same basic electronic template but morphs it into a heavy slice of spacerock, framed by something that sounds like Pink Floyd’s Welcome to the Machine elevator, complete with riffing guitars and vocals (although the vocals are fairly minimal, and fairly deep in the mix). Dystopia is next, an ambient journey that sounds like the soundtrack to one of those walkthrough displays you see in your local science center, accentuated by the authoritative voices speaking of technology that echo through it. The rest of the album pretty much takes the listener on a cosmic journey through spacerock realms, while still utilizing that electronica twist that gives Oceanfire its unique sound. We glide through Metaverses, with heavy guitars pounding along to a propulsive 2/2 drum beat as hazy, alien symphonies slip and slide across the rhythmic expanse. We race down the descending electric guitar chording, stunned as it crashes into great howls of space/time in Rejuvenations. 44khz (v.1) lightens things up a bit, being a kind of jauntier take on what Hill did in Metaverses, and then we return for the finale, Reversed Reality, which kind of breaks the mould, ripping out of the electrosphere into deep, spacerock territory, replete with scorching guitar work from Hill. A brief coda ends things off in the form of Land, as astronaut Chris Ferguson brings us in for a smooth landing amidst bleeping electronic effects and space shuttle noises.

When Jerry reviewed the original two Oceanfire EP’s earlier this year, he wrote that he’d like to see Keith do a full-length album that focused more on the spacerock aspects of his sound. It sounds as if Mr. Hill took heed. Exit-Rejuvention is one of the most exhilarating spacerock albums to come out so far in 2013.

Keith Hill has made both this album and his previous EP’s available as free downloads on his Bandcamp page: http://oceanfire.bandcamp.com. What more can you ask for? Awesome spacerock for free!

Reviewed by Jeff Fitzgerald

Hot on the heels of reissuing Journey To The Centre Of The Eye, Cleopatra Records’ Purple Pyramid subdivision has released a 2-CD reissue of Remember the Future, perhaps Nektar’s most popular album. Released in 1973 (’74 in the US), Remember the Future was Nektar’s third album and the first for which they toured the US. No strangers to concepts, Remember the Future was their most sprawling yet, consisting of Parts 1 & 2 of the title track across both sides of the LP. Mind expansion and new awareness were the ultimate themes of Journey To The Centre Of The Eye, and these concepts are more fully formed on Remember the Future. The album tells the story of Bluebird, a visitor to what we presume is Earth, who is shunned by the natives because of his appearance. No surprises there. Bluebird eventually encounters a blind boy and tells his story by way of visions he places in the boy’s mind. Bluebird then gifts the boy with new eyes and wisdom. Pretty trippy, huh? 1973 indeed. I didn’t discover the album until later in the decade but this was precisely the kind of stuff I was ripe for.

What I always loved about Nektar in the 1970s was their ability to take hard rock into the progressive rock realm without the bombast. When they take off into instrumental passages on Remember the Future, there are multiple thematic twists and turns, but the band rock hard too, and while it’s not as overtly space rocking as Journey To The Centre Of The Eye, there are moments when Roye Albrighton’s guitar rips ferociously with an acidic bite that’s like the jaws of a T-Rex. Roye is like a cross between Jimi Hendrix and Dave Gilmour, but wholly and uniquely himself. He’s a hell of a soulful singer too, and still is today as I learned when the band toured the US in late 2011. Some of the best instrumental passages on Remember the Future are when Roye’s guitar and Allan “Taff” Freeman’s organ are front and center together. These were NOT meandering freeform jams. These guys were more than capable musicians and a tightly wound ensemble who could communicate a freeform, otherworldly feel within a carefully structured context. I think all their albums from the 70s hold up today better than many of their contemporaries, and are among the albums from the era I revisit most.

The Purple Pyramid reissue comes in a quadruple fold-out box with liner notes by journalist Dave Thompson. The bonus CD includes three “radio edits” from the album, which are ok extras. But the real bonus is the 8 song “1970 Boston Tapes”, which represent the earliest Nektar recordings. For some reason that I can’t fathom there is no explanation about these recordings in the CD notes. I first encountered the songs on the 2011 It’s About Music label reissue of A Tab In The Ocean. The same songs were the bonus CD on that reissue, and the CD notes included an explanation by Roye, describing how American producer Charlie Dreyer saw the band in Hamburg, Germany and brought them to his studio in Boston to record. Early versions of New Day Dawning, Do You Believe In Magic and Good Day are here, all of which would later end up on the 1973 2-LP mega-hard rocking Sounds Like This set. Candlelight is a song that would have been very much at home on Sounds Like This, with its blazing guitar and organ. Among the other songs that never made it on a Nektar studio album are the hard rocking The Life I’ve Been Leading, the peaceful loves songs Where Did You Go and Our Love Will Last Forever, and a cover of the 60s pop song Sealed With A Kiss. Clearly this pre-record deal Nektar was making the most of the recording opportunity to cover as much musical territory as possible. It’s fascinating to hear these songs recorded in 1970 and then imagine the debut Journey To The Centre Of The Eye that came out the following year.

For more information visit the Purple Pyramid web site at: http://cleorecs.com
Visit the Nektar web site at: http://nektarsmusic.com

Reviewed by Jerry Kranitz

The latest from Mooch is a 3 track digital download EP that includes Mooch founder and mainstay Steve Palmer on synths, bass and bouzouki, Bridget Wishart on vocals, EWI and saxophone, Andrew Redhead on Korg Monotron, and the ever reliable Erich Z. Schlagzeug on drums & percussion.

The first track is the 10+ minute Beltane (Greenwood Mix), a remix of the track first heard on the 2010 Mooch album, The Pagan Year. It opens with a dreamy, melodic, mildly droning ambience, and Bridget’s whispery lulling vocals. After a few minutes, spacey sax and a variety of effects kick in, soon followed by a slow, steady drum beat and a simple but catchy melody. Really beautiful spacey-ambient-jazz, and it just occurred to me that this review is being posted just days before we’re in May (Beltane!). The 8 minute Outside Inside is next, with its trippy tribal dance grooves, wailing Prog Rocky synth lines and strumming bouzouki, plus Bridget’s spoken word… “When I go outside, I take me, with me. When I’m inside, it’s me, that wants to get out.” Very mesmerizing in a head-bobbin’ kind of way. Finally, we have the 10 minute Samhain, which features Mooch newcomer Andrew Redhead on Korg Monotron. This is a real mood shift from Outside Inside, being a bit on the eerie side. I love the dark ambience, cool freaky electronics, and Bridget’s witchy vocals, which are a blend of spoken word and singing. This is all about mood and atmosphere, like roaming through a haunted house in the cosmos. My favorite track of the three. I’d say Steve did a good job of offering a lot of variety in under 30 minutes.

The Beltane To Samhain EP is distributed through http://www.musiczeit.com. CLICK HERE to go directly to the Beltane To Samhain page.
Steve started a Mooch blog which you can visit at: http://moochmusic.wordpress.com

Reviewed by Jerry Kranitz

With two full-length albums and an EP released in 2012, you’d think this Boston duo would be ready for a break. But hot on the heels of the Trapped in the Past EP comes their latest full length album, Man in the Shadow.

Abrams and Belcastro kick things off with Blue Haze, one of the best songs they’ve done so far. It’s the tale of a stoner from the future (perhaps our own time), who is transported back in time to the 1970’s. And for a time, it does transport you back to this bygone era, with its groovy riffing and catchy, blissed out chorus, until about the three and a half minute mark, where it takes a left turn into cosmic realms for a dynamic jam that goes on for another 7-minutes, taking the listener beyond the 1970’s into pure spacerock nirvana. It’s followed by the darker urban psychedelia of Through the Sonic Haze. The riffs and drumming are very creative, and they’re layered with a fluttering effect that adds a kind of eerie trippiness to the song. Sacrifice captures a more stripped down, stonerish vibe with its bassy chords, rumbling undertones and downbeat chorus. Cold Hands surprises, being something of bluesy ballad, punctuated throughout with Abrams’ acid-fried guitar fills. Blue Days is a deep and mysterious instrumental, with Clay Neely of Black Pyramid (who played on the Trapped in the Past EP) guesting, laying down some tribalesque drumming as Abrams explores strange melodies on what sounds like both electric and acoustic guitars. A Real Wild Child draws things to a close, another great head nodding tune, built on a killer riff that falls somewhere between 60’s garage rock and proto-punk (with a little 13th Floor Elevators thrown in there for a bit too).

The ‘Blues’ score big this time out, with both Blue Haze and the instrumental Blue Days being the standout tracks on Man in the Shadow. But the other songs hold their own too, especially the raw and energetic A Real Wild Child. The overall sound this time out veers away from the Hawkwind influenced sonics of the first two albums as Abrams and Belcastro explore a bit more naked and gritty sound, working it into their own unique Space Mushroom Fuzz blend. Excellent stuff! It will be interesting to hear where they take us next.

For more info, visit: http://spacemushroomfuzz.bandcamp.com

Reviewed by Jeff Fitzgerald

On their first album, a self-titled 2010 release, San Francisco’s Reptiel pulled together a sound that was part indie rock with a deep infusion of garage psychedelia, part rhythmic Krautrock exploration, and a dash of progressive rock thrown in for good measure. On 2013’s Violent Sagas of the Ancients, the band practically inverts their sound, letting their Prog Flag fly proudly, without totally forgetting their psych and Kraut roots.

Formed from the ashes of the bands The Cubby Creatures (who I reviewed way back in AI #32), Thee Druggles, and Thee More Shallows, the four member group set out to create something they called ‘Yacht Psych’. I’m not entirely sure what that means, but what we have here in Violent Sagas of the Ancients is the kind of album that will take you right back to 1971, to a time when prog was being born in a haze of psychedelic smoke and anything seemed musically possible. Intricate and dynamic tunes played on vintage sounding instruments? Check. A sweeping and trippy mythological concept to the lyrics? Check. Arpeggiating keyboards and wild synth solos? Check. Complex vocal arrangements and virtuoso playing? Check. It’s all here!

Well, all here except for the side-long epics. Reptiel rein in the length of their songs to fewer than 6 minutes each. But then again, since the whole thing kind of forms one big epic, complete with Prelude and Postlude and a Fanfare in the middle, melodically linking it all together, it could almost be said to be one 30-minute long piece. That being said, Violent Sagas of the Ancients is definitely more than the sum of its parts. The songs themselves stand-alone quite well, each on their own. From the stomping theatricality of Byzantine Standard to the pure classic progressive rock with folk influenced melodies of Servants in the Place of Truth to the acidic weirdness and sweet harmonies of On and On, there is some amazing song-crafting here, with wild dynamics and melodic hooks to spare.

In short, if you want to journey back to the early 70’s, but hear something fresh and exciting and new at the same time, definitely check out this album. Highly recommended!

For more info, visit: http://www.cubby.net/ccr/reptiel.html and http://reptiel.bandcamp.com

Reviewed by Jeff Fitzgerald

This 2 disc release is Dan Pound’s third re-master project from older material. Dan describes his music as ambient electronic, tribal-ethnic, new age, shamanic space music and I can’t disagree with that!! Disc One: SPIRIT CALLER: Sounds like the title, Native American peyote circle music but also very controlled and precise, with nice production. The music sounds perfect along with the thunderstorm that is rolling thru my neighborhood at the moment! OTHER WORLDS: Some uptempo drum machine oddness on this one. Conjurs Herbie Hancock electronic weirdness. Some nice didgeridoo, yes, very nice!! My wife Sharon (vocalist in Book of Shadows) said so just as I was writing this!! These tracks could go on another 15 minutes without being boring! SORCERER’S CHAMBER: More ambience, like a sorcerer would prefer? Some nice (female?) vocals. Tasty synth drones… gets livelier as it goes on. Weird sparse percussion. Sounds a bit dated but that’s probably because it’s from 2004-2006. NIGHT WHISPERS: More creepy space coolness with (male?) chant vocals. For some reasons this reminds me of the Fellini movie Satyricon! Meditative magical space music. What more could one ask for?! Sharon gives this CD two thumbs up! LAST GENERATION/DREAM CIRCLE: More lovliness, onward thru the fog… the title Dream Circle is intriguing… droney driving space weirdness with percussion. The perfect CD to bust out for yer next peyote ritual!! ELEMENTAL TRACES: More “modern” uptempo with casio sounding drum machine along with some tasty guitar. For me this track is more New Agey and therefore a bit less interesting than the other tracks but still nice. Some jazzy piano doodle. COLLIDING MEMORIES: Back to the eternal drone and then the percussion. The thunderstorm has blown thru and the dogs are asleep, the music has done it’s job! Nice track, similar to previous music but also quite different… a bit of mid 70’s Tangerine Dream to it. THUNDER VOICES: Sharon gives it 5 out of 5 stars… more of the same, truly starts to take you to another world… becomes one long piece of music. I’m grateful it’s not marred by sung lyrics. BENEATH THIS WORLD: Quiet stillness, very Tibetan, very atmospheric, mood setting… strange cool chants… “we could plan a murder or start a religion”, as JDM said… Yes! More, More, More. RETURN: Definitely music that would be conducive to magical rituals. This one conjurs movie soundtrackness. It would be interesting to hear the drums mixed down on some of these tracks; the drums that sound obviously drum machiney. LAST WAVE (THE): More drone and percussion atmospherics. An appropriate closer. The longest track on disc one. I’d be interested to know what Dan’s spiritual beliefs are because he definitely has some… like going thru a long tunnel to the center of the earth.

DISC 2: PURE FLOW/SHAMAN’S PATH: Piano and other world loveliness with chanty vocals and percussive rhythm; ethereal and primal at the same time! Pretty cool. Dan Pound seems to be a very sincere artist who is exploring unknown realms of philosophy and sound. FINDING MY WAY: Out there pure space joy (Dan Pound vocals?). HORIZON’S EDGE/DOOR BEYOND TIME: More drone rhythm and and percussion. Has the Native American vibe. You have to slow yourself down to absorb this music… yes, return to other worlds. One thing I’ve noticed about this music is that it makes much more sense late at night on a drive thru the country. WAY TO ECSTASY: Whoa, it’s funky, like Low Rider or something but quickly becomes New Age tribal, an odd mixture! Kinda like a boogie down with crystals!! But in a good way!! Goes like this straight thru, like a loop! A loud cicada through a part of it… and then quieter and quieter. HEART INTO SOUL: Percussive snappiness with a layer of Dan Poundness on top… gets a little samey but a good samey!! Nice vocals, guitar and flute?!! ALWAYS THE LIGHT: A droner, this one! Ah, you can do so much with a drone. Yes, it’s quite lovely!! My wife Sharon says it’s “Very pretty”!! WARMTH INSIDE: Another meditative piece, then some loud piano. Very sound tracky but not sound tacky!!! RISING HEAT: Back to the Tangerine Dream riffage with tinkling new agey piano. Intense and mellow at the same time. NEAR THE END: Starts very quiet and into military drummage with spacey overtones! Yes, very nice! Short and sweet. LAST WALTZ: Spacey lazy and yes, waltzy. All of Dan’s music is very well recorded and conducive to multiple listens; about the highest compliment I give!! ARRIVAL: The last track of this double disc release and it’s a slow spacey one. So far… ambient floating lovliness… Sharon says “Dan Pound!!! Very impressive”.

For more information visit the Dan Pound web site at: http://www.danpound.com

Reviewed by Carlton Crutcher

Ernesto Diaz-Infante is a California based experimental/avant/free-improv guitarist who has released many solo and collaborative albums over the years. (Though noted as a guitarist he also released an album of solo piano pieces some years ago.). Look him up in the Aural Innovations alpha index and you’ll find lots of reviews. Though her name is new to me, Swedish-born guitarist/cellist Helena Espvall has played with numerous artists that many readers will be familiar with, including Espers, Vashti Bunyan, Damon and Naomi, Ghost and Marissa Nadler. She also performed at the 2006 Terrastock festival.

Ernesto and Helena’s first collaboration is titled A Hollowed Shell of Ash and Rust. In an email exchange Ernesto shared that the first feedback he received for the album described it as hauntingly beautiful, and I’d say that about nails it. There are 11 tracks on the album, three being 15 minute extended works and the rest in the 2-5 minute range.

The three lengthier tracks are representative of the album as a whole. On Breathing Structures, guitar and cello combine to create a gradually developing ambient/soundscape/drone excursion. A major plus for me is that the instruments aren’t treated beyond recognition. You know these are string instruments, allowing for full appreciation of the sounds as I traveled down the wandering yet linear path they are leading us down. I’m a morning person and the first hours after I awake are when I’m at my most alert, yet also most relaxed. Looking at the clock it is 3:30am and the music has me in a meditative state, conjuring up images of an auditory canvas that guitar and cello are painting on as they glide slowly yet assuredly through space. Hollow Earth Theory is more on the experimental side, but still highly atmospheric. The music is simultaneously meditative and intense, creating an edgy, conflicting array of emotions. At times I imagined a lysergic string duo chamber music performance with a variety of trippy psychedelic effects. Ernesto and Helena playfully and creatively manipulate their instruments, but there’s also plenty of spacey, exploratory elements as well. Against a Realization in Weathered Iron is one of the more purely ambient pieces of the set, being complete, lulling serenity. I felt like I was in a cradle being gently rocked as I floated through a deliciously landscaped dream world. Among the highlights of the shorter tracks is the mesmerizing, avant-Indian infused psychedelia of With Space in the Spirit, with its shimmering and melodic cello, sitar-like drones and melodies, and percussive taps. Interiority is a dark and doomy yet serene chamber ensemble in space piece that I enjoyed. Bridges and Nothing features more sitar-like drones plus avant-garde soundscapes and effects. And Ringing Out Tomorrows consists of hypnotic drones, cosmic orchestral fervor, a strange melodic sense, and a variety of manipulations and percussive effects.

In summary, Ernesto and Helena have created nearly 80 full minutes of beautiful string produced ambient/soundscape pieces. But this is far off the usual ambient/soundscape path. Though deep in space, the musicians haven’t suppressed their experimental interests, and I’d add for the benefit of those who typically steer away from avant-garde music that those elements serve to make A Hallowed Shell of Ash and Rust a far more interesting listen than the usual far too worn out path followed by the majority of ambient/soundscape works. Hauntingly beautiful indeed.

For more information visit the Erototox Decodings web site at: http://erototoxdecodings.com

Reviewed by Jerry Kranitz