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  2. For me any info is valuable. How many pressed, where etc. Poly lined inner sleeves, gatefold and on and on those who are interested will read, those who aren't won't Wish you best of luck with the release. So fun to see more Psy vinyls!
  3. Today
  4. Hey you vinyl freaks the last conversation / questioning round was truly helpful, so I thought you could maybe help weed out doubt / questions on the LPX Cat.# print .. We charge €60 and the profit is minimal. It's 180grams, what else should be informed on the page for the buyers to know? https://kaliearth.bandcamp.com/album/7-states-of-madness-e-p Btw. Colour on the pics are more pale than in reality. And the Jacket is glossy ...
  5. Two track-by-track reviews of Netherverse have been posted now, would love to see yours too. I'm surprised you didn't enjoy this EP, in my mind the quality is equal to the album.
  6. Another solid MS compilation 👌🏻
  7. A long-awaited album by the master of dark goa & psychedelic trance! We got a taster of some of these tracks in Xenomorph's ZNA Gathering 2019 set (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NN3N1BEkHB8) and finally five years later the new album is released. However, not all the tracks from that performance, such as the amazing Atrocity Archive, were released on either the recent EP nor this album - hopefully another release is upcoming. Further, a few of the tracks are mixes of existing released tracks with very minor changes. Why do I love Xenomorph's music? 1) A huge part of why I like psychedelic music overall is its ability to create powerful atmospheres. Xenomorph is almost unmatched at that. His tracks tell stories ranging the whole spectrum of darkness from apocalyptic hopelessness to unhinged lunacy to stony-faced esoterica. 2) Xenomorph's melodies are very strong. Classic tracks like Abominations are surprisingly melodic. The combination of dark storytelling talent with melodic payoffs does much more for me than most later darkpsy. 3) Lastly, Xenomorph kept forging a unique path, each album is novel and just so different to what anyone else was doing at the time. It's no surprise that he's gained many fans with this uncompromisingly creative approach. 01 Sinister Contours This track's name describes it perfectly. The first half feels like an intro to the moment when the sinister contours really kick in at around 5:00 with tense eastern melodies, croaking acid, and spooky samples. The main lead is brought back in and the tension just ratchets up and up with so many intertwining ominous layers. A build up which we might anticipate leading to a break down actually leads to the addition of an off-beat clap along with an echoing foreboding sound at 6:55. A driving new melody starts emerging and and at 7:45 most layers drop away leaving this new theme. The pressure release ultimately happens at 8:00 when a cheeky goa melody drops! At this point I have a huge grin on my face. Despite how much I love this track, some aspects seem a little overprocessed for my taste, such as the main lead when it first comes in. The break at 6:50, which was previously understated in the ZNA Gathering clip with just the clap added, now also brings in another layer which makes that section a little crowded - maybe my headphones need upgrading. 02 Dying Sun (Sol Aeternus Mix) A fantastic song already released on the Gamma Draconis compilation. I didn't do a detailed comparison but it sounds like the bassline has been thickened and some minor tweaks have been made (the original track did have poor mastering for some reason), otherwise everything is the same. The storytelling of the sense of melancholia about the dying sun is beautifully expressed. 03 War In Heaven This one is a cool change of mood and pace, and recalls industrial/EBM artists like Velvet Acid Christ and Hocico when they have dabbled in trance. Less of the high-tech psy leads or Xenomorph's signature menacing atmosphere. The focus is more on danceable high energy with a gothic touch that can actually end up sounding euphoric. The interlacing arpeggiated melodies at 4:00 are absolutely gorgeous!! 04 Negative Time (-L Di-Dt Mix) Again, it says this is a mix but the version sounds pretty much identical to what was released in the Negative Time EP. The track takes off like a rocket with a bouncy bassline, and at 0:55 comes a massive and absolutely delicious lead. Then a slower response section with more metallic sounds, which finally runs out of energy at 2:40. Suddenly to be replaced by another massive resonant lead, mirrored by a shimmering second melody, I could listen to this section all day as the modulations sound so nice. A series of acid melodies slowly build up the energy back to a metallic section, it's clear we're heading for something big. At 6:40 there's a spine-tingling breakdown leading to a very old-school goa climax! 05 No Beginning No End Not such a fan of this track personally, feels like it's perched between the styles of the last two tracks. Lots of interesting ideas but not structured with the urgency of previous tracks nor with any real stand out sections. The only dud on the album. 06 Nebula Of Souls Yet another change of style, this track is more of a slow-burner compared to the others and evokes the mood of hopelessness and weirdness most similar to the Qlippoth album. Intriguing start feels like being in a space station drifting through freezing space. Again the title is fitting. At 3:00 a crunchy growling lead starts to takes the fore. The track builds up in intensity until at 5:45 a sad stringed instrument melody comes in. I can see why for some fans this would be the top pick of the album, it's easily the darkest track here. 07 Subdimensional Anomaly Time for another more trancey track, but with a pensive mood. Big sweeping pads and a lot of more subtle layers over the top take us all the way to 3:00 where we get a radiant psy lead along with a big snappy snare. The track doesn't evolve in any major way from here but doesn't need to. It's absolutely beautiful. 08 Abode Of The Damned This one heavily reminds me of Cassandra's Nightmare, still my most loved Xenomorph album. The first half has the twisted horror style with a playful array of spooky squelchy sounds. The second half breaks out into powerful melodies that just get better and better on top of a pumping bassline. The melodies aren't particularly memorable however unlike the previous track. 09 Netherverse Wow a rare psybient track from Xenomorph, this one also wouldn't have felt out of place as the last track on many oldschool albums. The first half is deeply atmospheric and intriguing, similar to Koxbox's Searching For Psychoactive Herbs. Unfortunately the change of direction that feels like it's coming at some point never does arrive, besides a small modulation near the end. Still an enjoyable track but could have been more. Overall, there's a large variety of styles here, and at first I think this makes the album as a whole difficult to comprehend. It's harder to fully appreciate tracks 7 and 8 after you've just listened to the nightmare tour de force of Nebula of Souls. After repeated listens I really appreciate the quality of each track and there's only one that I feel is weak. Perhaps the biggest surprise is how euphoric a few of the tracks are, especially Negative Time, one of the least dark songs Xenomorph has produced. But still has that signature intensity and urgency and I love it. I'm a sucker for the big psychedelic leads used and production level is high as you'd expect. I expect the range of styles is due to the long time period this album took to put together, and my only disappointment is we didn't see more new tracks instead of a few minor mixes of existing songs.
  8. Yesterday
  9. Not a review but more of a first impression comment; I was listening to it for free a few days ago on 1 jbl flip 5 bt speaker while making food (not tripping, not smoking, mind you) .. And after my very good impression of his EP a few days before that... I felt bored and unimpressed by it, underwhelmed as I had too high hopes coming into it.. and concluded at it's end that I only felt the album from that little melody (..) and especially from track 6, Nebula of Souls and onwards .. At the last track, is where I turned it off half-ways to sit down and eat. I bet it's much better than my first impression.
  10. Ephedra is one of the best neo goa artists. Nova fractal, filteria and e-mantra keeps him company. This sounds really good musicwise but I'm not too keen on the mastering, it's a bit too mid/mid-high focused, making it a tad sharp and "telephone" like. Also perhaps the music is a bit generic now? it kinda reminds me alot of cosmic dimension.. I want to like it more than I do but it's still pretty damn good, hopefully the end product will sound even better.
  11. Xenomorph Netherverse 2024 Suntrip Records 1 Sinister Contours 9:17 2 Dying Sun (Sol Aeternus Mix) 8:03 3 War In Heaven 8:35 4 Negative Time (-L Di/-Dt Mix) 8:20 5 No Beginning No End 8:39 6 Nebula Of Souls 7:47 7 Subdimensional Anomaly 8:38 8 Abode Of The Damned 8:46 9 Netherverse 8:38 So Mark Petrick comes in 2024 with Netherverse, his fourth album and the one to accompany 2023's superb ep "Negative Time". Is it any cop? "Sinister Contours" telegraphs Petrick's self-evident intention: he is for sure following the left hand path. This means a heavily arpeggiated track with a threatening minor melody. There'll be no easy upliftment on this album; and no cheese! But isn't the whole gothic darkness thing quite cheesy? Well yeah, if we are talking Twilight movies with aristocratic pretty boy vampires who bling in the sunlight, or perhaps campy Tim Burton style goth-lite. But we are not talking that here. No easy joy, no happy endings, on this sinister path, but plenty of eerie and other disquieting feelings. A "Dying Sun (Sol Aeternus Mix)" is probably my favourite track on the album. Here we are on a space ship and we dive deep into a black hole, indicated by the "our sun is dying... we are dust" sample and another spaceship sample (Petrick is a master of the appropriate sample - he really tells stories with his samples, which are carefully chosen). We sense here how cosmic Xenomorph's vision for this album is. The production quality on this track has to be heard on a good hifi to fully appreciate it - mindblowing. EPIC! A+++ "War In Heaven" starts off with a simple four-note melody that summons up fairy tale horror, but at the half way mark the track shifts up a gear and achieves take off with sawing synths. The "war in heaven" sample states succintly Petrick's apparent philosophy that the tension between good and evil is the propulsive force that drives the universe. A dance floor monster! A+ "Negative Time" is from the accompanying ep of that name. Plenty of pretty tinkles and juddering synth melodies here make for a track that is almost progressive trance - a more mellow track than the ones that preceded it, quite blissed out and dreamy. A "No Beginning No End" is an ourobouros in both concept and in big swirling melodies. These melodies do seem like spiralling nebulae. At 3.15 it turns darker with some delightfully chewy bass 303 and then the spiralling begins again, growing out of the darkness. Another epic trancer with massive melodies. Petrick has worked hard on making these melodies as echoing and big in scale as possible. A "Nebula Of Souls" - I love this slightly more minimal track. It features mysterious vaporous synths at the start, which are utterly beautiful and uplifting in a creepy way. There's a whap-whap sound that continues throughout, giving propulsion; it builds to a grinding climax and then ends on moody cello - simply stunning. A+ "Subdimensional Anomaly" starts with twinkling synths (lots of those sounds on this album) and then builds towards twisting leads against a stumping beat. There's a lovely sense of calm and observation behind this track. A "Abode Of The Damned" is as dark as its title, beginning with a sample about a graveyard and its ghosts. There's a great climbing bass arpeggio that kicks things off and then we have minor key choirs so beloved of dungeon synth and black metal and used quite regularly on Cassandra's Nightmare. This track could easily have been from that first album. At the four minute mark the bass goes into double time and here comes the growly acid that slowly morphs into long pads. Yo party people, are you ready to chew your tongue off and lose your shit? I'd love to see what this track would do to a dancefloor. A+ "Netherverse" - the come down track. Vaporous spacey synth, twangy echoes, a slow beat, eventually builds to the expected long and melancholic pads. I'm a huge fan of sloa Goa, but this is not an especially outstanding example and is the least good track on the album for me. B So is it any cop? You betcha it is. What I particularly liked about this album is that Xenomorph has not stood still, unsurprisingly perhaps as so many years have passed. This is a unique lighter and more cosmic album in his discography. Terrifying, eerie, haunting, sinister, at moments, but also full of cosmic beauty, Xenomorph's vision achieves maturity here. It seems that his albums are all quite different, despite there being strong similarities (not least the superb production and sound quality of all of them). I characterise them like this: Cassandra's Nightmare 1998: cinematic horror trance Qlippoth 2003: spirit possession Demagoguery of the Obscurants 2007: the conspiracy album Netherverse 2024: cosmological darkness and light In this fourth album, it seems to me that Petrick reaches for the stars, seeing the dialectic between light and darkness, matter and space, energy and antimatter, creation and destruction, as the cosmic turbine that powers all. His vision has become epic and fully realised by this point it seems to me in that it appreciates all, including the disgusting and repressed, and values all equally. A divinely balanced cosmic vision. Does such a vision appeal to you? It is a bit early in the year, but I have no doubt that this is already one of my records of the year. Actually, my only strong criticism of this album and the ep is the cover art - weak in both cases. Finally, I am inspired to look back over his oeuvre as the body of work that triggered an entire (sub-)genre: darkpsy. You could argue against this notion, pointing out the other great dark Goa albums that helped ignite darker psychedelic trance: Sandman's Witchcraft, Orichalcum and the Deviant Orichalcum and the Deviant, Cydonia Fear of a Red Planet, UX Ultimate Experience, and so on. This would be correct: all played their part. Nevertheless, nothing was nearly as dark and scary as Cassandra's Nightmare and it remains the keystone album. So Xenomorph's latest album deserves to be seen in this wider context as part of the genre that his first album kickstarted. Amazing what can come out of watching a few horror movies and being open-minded enough to meld trance with industrial and metal. ~*~
  12. Last week
  13. Wow John, your most thought provoking review ( if you can call it that) so far, reading this gives me great pleSure and reassurance the road to the 5th, still rocky, with a wobbly wheel, but lucky I got a spare! I never appreciated xenomorph fully until after this, however invokes something different every time, you summed it up with free will, kind of wish more would understand this concept, in Hollywood we had movies like devils advocate,for the youngins labyrinth, that introduced me to this, then of course Clive Barker and Lovecraft who define the true dark arts, amazing how concepts like satanism have been inverted and embraced in Hollywood, yes people if you watch netflix and all that stuff, you are a Satanist, be careful who you pray to, technology god pretty powerful as is the money and sex god, however xenomorph is his own egregor I shall pray to till the end of time, as above so below... Hell yeah! And man the new album is killah, just hope can get Cassandra on cd some day to complete the collection, play them all at same time!!gonna be something there John I know it, kind of like the puzzle box! And gonna read that book you mentioned, Nice to see you still kickin bro, miss your reviews, see you in the 5th
  14. I found this EP a bit monotonous and lackluster, though I like how the songs begin. That good news: The fourth Xenomorph album Netherworld (2024) is MUCH better! The edgier it gets, the catchier it gets. I love the sound/melody work in Dying Sun (Sol Aeternus Mix), the higher energy in War In Heaven and Negative Time, the gritty synths in Nebula of Souls, and numerous other songs. The album's NOT what I'd describe as PURE EVIL/DARK (or as potently dark as his earlier albums) and that's fine with me because that other stuff was extremely dark. This artist loses himself in the visions and has no filter which I find pretty amazing, and it's cool to see the him evolving! On Netherworld, the artist incorporates more duality via light/dark rather than the EVIL/DARK approach associated with his earlier albums. Dying Sun (Mix) us an example of that and wow.. super sound/melody work!!!! There's still plenty of dark elements, wicked synths, cool intros, voice samples, atmosphere, and more. I feel like it could have gotten a little more powerful / raw / intense at times, but I'm biased to his third album. Implementing more color or light (hope) in the darkness was somehow achieved while never being cheesy or soft. Rather Mark Petrick kept Netherworld creative, visionary, cool, fluid, and varied throughout! It's great to see this talented artist back with a new album after 17 years! I don't want to distract from this thread talking about Netherworld (deserves a review thread) so I'll stop here. Hoping someone gets inspired to open a review thread on Netherworld now that it's released, at least on Suntrip's Youtube page.
  15. There was an album in the works? Holy hell, would've loved for that to happen!
  16. Not a bad compilation at all. Might not be the best it but certainly has it's moments... The best being that Sungirl vs. Iron Madness track, damn! 😎
  17. Qlippoth is one of the strongest dark Psy/Goa albums of all time. On a side note, one day our experience will be more heavenly, and I look forward to that in ways that are positive. Freewill allows us (as souls having so-called human experiences, really in consciousness) to explore expressions a la projections via manifestations of duality, lower dimensions (inspiring Qlippoth for instance) in which there are four according to Buddhism. Love is Oneness. Separation comes from fear > trauma via cause and effect. There are paradigms of consciousness significantly darker than ours (that inspire darkness on our surface As Above, So Below -- and So Below, As Above via hermetics and the occult) that I have remote viewed and at one point turned back as it was painful and could have led to fragmentation (starting with becoming paralyzed with fear/trauma before empowering my consciousness with affirmative words that resonates higher vibration, thus turning fear into empowerment). This experience inspired me to read about soul fragmentation and negative polarization (reason for the Greys among other lower vibrational races such as the deros, etc.) which happened to many souls in the lower realms. These lower vibrational / frequency spaces in consciousness have the potential to negatively polarize one, if one chooses to stay and identify in such spaces for too long [when remote viewing]. The more aware dark ones sense / feel ones presence as ones vibration drops. Numerous people in another instance have gotten trapped playing the Elevator Game, or various other practices associated with the [dark] occult via secret knowledge. So be MINDFUL. I can say with certainty that these spaces exist relative to the projected dualistic manifestations (lower worlds). In the Great Below (there are literal lower vibrational spaces within our Earth along with higher vibrational ones perplexing physicists) seem to last forever, but nothing lasts forever via separation, fear. It is a soul's choice to explore higher/lower realms. Untangle from the illusion through infinite patience, love, acceptance, forgiveness, faith (over fear) regardless if one is spiritual, religious, or neither IMO. That said, because some of our minds collectively find this fascinating, these places I've remote viewed inspired Silent Hill (though SH was inspired by Hellraiser and Jacob's Ladder, the town of Centrailia close to where I grew up in Pennsylvania, USA, etc.). These inspirational expressions of manifestation including Xenomorph are authentically inspired and in that sense, connected to the lower worlds energetically, that stem from original cause, separation from Oneness, Wholeness, Love/Light. The root of separation / freewill allows for many creative expressions of expanded (and less expansive) consciousness in what appears to be a seemingly infinite amount of dimensions (realities via space in consciousness) existing in their respective paradigms (vibrational ranges) simultaneously. There exists agape (Unconditional Love/Light), and there exist separation from Unconditional Love/Light via lower dimensional paradigms, frequency ranges associated with dualistic consciousness. These spaces (many people call places) inspire us here and now, as our experiences here and now (generally) inspires our lower versions to overcome the perception of eternal suffering, to forgive, accept our wrongdoings that produce fear and guilt so that we can transcend old ways and behaviors through authentically awakening (expanding/raising our consciousness in ways that are positive and whole). Get off the karmic wheel and into the ascensional spiritual. There is truth to this relative to higher consciousness IMHO, higher truth (or we wouldn't be inspired to talk and write about it in this dimension, we know things go deeper). As with Clive Barker, Stephen King, and many other creative legends of dark content with substance and richness/texture, Mark Petrick (a legend in the world of dark psy/goa and beyond) tapped into something very dark, deep, and awe inspiring. He is a conduit, a channel, more than an artist-- a visionary, creator, probably a pretty cool soul with occult knowledge and awareness (duh!) who sees things more multi-dimensionally than we realized. He nailed the vision of the Elites (dark ones) with his third album, Demagoguery Of The Obscurants (2007). Mark Petrick tunes in, probably with crystals that magnify consciousness. He's aware. He knows. He produces super dark visionary songs and albums with a deeper purpose and meaning. You could argue that Qlippoth is satanic and I'd say, Ya think? We listen to and/or watch dark stuff all the time (inspired by darker spaces that inspire us here) that entertains, inspires, and feeds our minds, bodies, energetic vibration, etc. That doesn't mean someone is inherently or chooses to be evil. I anchor with the music to manifest my expansive/higher version here and now, but this isn't about me, but the WE. We over me because We are We, one love, one light. We vibe with darkness (in part) because associations trigger deeper (unconscious) associations that we remember as we increase in consciousness and untangle/transcend the lower worlds. Everything is connected. The book, The Disappearance of the Universe by Gary Regard puts this (and so much more) in perspective for those who are spiritually open and stick till the end. Your mind will be blown and you will begin to feel the emergence of your deeper awareness (higher self) coming to the surface over time. But I digress. Just hearing Qlippoth again after so many years inspired this comment. The artist's forth album in 17 years (!!!), Netherworld (2024) just hit Suntrip Records. Riding this spiritual wave we're on and wishing you all the best!
  18. Artist: Hexaliohm Title: Magic Trick Format: Digital Release Release: 2024.03.22 Catalog: CAT992651 Tracklist 1 - Hexaliohm - Magic Trick Writer: Hexaliohm Producer: Hexaliohm Mastering: Hexaliohm Artwork: Hexaliohm Listen and download https://fanlink.tv/magic-trick Follow us https://bit.ly/HexaliOHM https://soundcloud.com/hexaliohm https://instagram.com/hexaliohm https://facebook.com/hexaliohm https://hexaliohm.bandcamp.com https://vk.com/hexaliohm
  19. COMING SOON Dive into the cosmic realms with Ephedra's latest album, "Resilient Horizon." Embark on an journey through spacey melodies, pulsating goatrance rhythms and hypnotic acid sounds. This album is a testament to Ephedra's two decades of musical exploration and evolution. Prepare to elevate your senses and lose yourself in the ethereal soundscape of Ephedra's universe... TRACKLIST: 1: Drifting Humanity 2: Resilient Horizon 3: Exploring The Roots 4: Neon Hued Daze 5: Puissance 8000 6: A New Source 7: Where Realities Briefly Contrive 8: Fallout 9: Symphony of Emotions PREVIEW: Mastering by: Cassio Centurion Est Release: April 2024
  20. Well, maybe not that much new (or used) vinyl. Here's everything somehow related I could find right now. I've managed to score some nice finds from other genres recently, though. Tor.Ma in Dub – Terra Deep Fried Dub & Italiks – Crown Palefield Mountain – On My Way Syb Unity Nettwerk – Life Support System (Mindscape Mix) / Sun Invaders (Full Moon Mix) Astral Projection – Let There Be Light Meanwhile, one counter suggested that this would be the 9000th reply in this topic. (And now the forum found my lost draft, which I had already re-typed yesterday...)
  21. A motherfucking awesome album! Just the way I like my full-on 😎
  22. I rather liked this album...
  23. It has been a while again. There's quite an incoming pile here, old and new stuff. Time to update various listings. I'll start from CDs... Set:01 Kumharas Benza – Benza Society of Inner Light The Irresistible Force – Kira Kira (the 2017 disc, along the 2023 reissue/remaster release) Dub Trees – Nature Never Did Betray the Heart that Loved Her (2024 reissue/remaster) Pitch Black – Electronomicon (2CD version) Pitch Black - Invisible Circuits Acidum Influxum Veasna – Providence Vaporized – Human Odyssey Distant System – Distant System Tor.Ma in Dub – Life in Dub That should cover most of it. There's also some dark ambient from Cryo Chamber and some other things with no relation to this forum. I'll check and list vinyls in another post. It was already painful enough to lose half of this list once when I tried to click the tab but hit "close tab" instead. The forum had helpfully auto-saved exactly the first four words of it. Alright, time to rip a few discs with no digital versions and then stash this pile.
  24. Hi all, I've got a new little Goa mix to share. Pretty stoked about this one, I think I pulled off a pretty interesting flow and overall structure. Enjoy, and as always feedback is very welcome! Tracklist: Veasna - Lost In Space Mindsphere - Painful Stories Triquetra - Psychic Dissonance Hypnoxock - Mental Ascension New Born - A Sleeper's Guide Proxeeus - The Mad Poet of Sana's Filteria - Sky Input Mindsphere - All Alone Veasna - Lost In Space (Reprise)
  25. If the previous track was a bit of a disaster, this one is a huge step up on pretty much all levels. Finished about 2 weeks after the previous track, this is definitely the breaking point in the evolution of my tracks. Still very much influenced by Transwave's album Helium, but at the same time throwing lots of my own ideas into the mix. Also, at 150 BPM, this is the fastest track in the collection.
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