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Melancholyman

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    Carbon Based Lifeforms - Interloper

    in 2010

    Posted

    Posted Image


    Carbon Based Lifeforms - Interloper

    Label: Ultimae Records, Ultimae Records
    Catalog#: inre 041, inre041
    Format: CD,Album, Partially Mixed
    Country: France
    Released: 03 May 2010
    Genre: Electronic
    Style: Acid, Downtempo, Ambient

    1.Interloper
    2.Right where it ends
    3.Central plain
    4.Supersede
    5.Init
    6.Euphotic
    7.Frog
    8.M
    9.20 minutes
    10.Polyrytmi





    The long awaited third studio album, from duo Daniel Segerstad & Johannes Hedberg aka Carbon Based Lifeforms is finally here. After having released a couple of mediocre tracks on various compilations and a modestly interesting EP, has it been worth the wait? The question to that answer has to be answered in a positive way, or rather in jubilation.


    Slow throbbing basslines, layers of ethereal sonic tapestries accompanied by soft extended female voices creates a very peculiar and original take on the to this date known CBL formula, and genre as a whole for that matter, the production oozes freshness and innovation. The key here is not complexity nor is it intricate layers of sound, but intelligent composition pushing the right buttons at the right time. Genius and simplicity go very often hand in hand. I would like to divide the album into two halfs, the precursive and the elevating part. Let's talk a little about the precursive part. Here the bass is very prominent, there is a lot of nice happy melodies, the overall feel is groovy and energetic, it gives a sense of a dancing universe, or dancing Gaia. This part is preparatory in the sense that it shakes you up, making you receptive and prepared for the transition in to the elevating part. The transition is initialized by 'Init'(T5), where the overall tempo is slowing down, gone are the throbbing basslines and happy melodies, the music heads towards a profoundly more contemplative but yet so much more magnificent and beautiful approach, with elongated ethereal tones and panoramic soundscapes. A very welcome addition are the not so often reoccurring but touching acoustic elements, these bring about a more mature and sophisticated touch. This transition from precursive towards elevating is perfectly executed, there is no risk of the listener being pushed into something new, you are gently swept into this part. It's quite contradictory to call this part elevating since the listener is actually drawn into the internal world, but all of us who are acquainted with psychedelic experiences know that to “go up”, you must first “go down”. So the elevating aspect of the album comes only indirectly.


    What the album manages to achieve is putting a receptive listener into a highly psychedelic state of mind. All of you who are acquainted with psychedelic substances know which state of mind I am talking about, and you also know how hard it is to enter this state without the help from a various array of different substances. How the album manages in doing this is because of two main aspects, (i) the music is of course highly psychedelic, but also (ii) the structure of the album as a whole is constructed in a way allowing for this. Most downtempo albums fail in making this cohesive journey, because of the eagerness from the artist to infuse variety in an album by throwing in some devastating element in the middle or towards the end, CBL passes this test flawlessly. It's not that other albums can't accomplish the deed of being extremely psychedelic in their sound, but they often figure you already in a particular state of mind, or rather that the listener will sort of magically enter one. The only album I can think of trying the same goal is Solar Fields - Leaving Home, but that albums is flawed at critical points missing that consistent whole. To conclude what is really unique about this album then, is the feat of making a pristine journey from start to end, taking the listener deeper and deeper into a psychedelic state of mind.


    I have always been wondering if music might have some greater or more significant meaning than just self fulfilling pleasure for the listener. This meaning has finally become clear with the release of Interloper. We are climbing a ladder, a ladder towards higher states of consciousness. Daniel and Johannes has given us a great many steps towards that always abditive goal.

    This review was originally written for and published at Chillbase.org Head over to read more reviews, download free releases and more!

    What music are you listening to right now?

    in General Psytrance

    Posted

    I am trippin for the first time in over one and a half year (sry for being off topic but this is a big event for me). I hope the night will bring some nice insights to me, and I will try to be as open minded as possible, it's really hard. I can feel the anticipation of something, which is not good. There should be no anticipation. I wish you all a great evening, may the truth be with you. ! PLUR! lol

    Hybrid Leisureland - Scroll Side

    in 2010

    Posted

    Posted Image

    Hybrid Leisurland – Scroll Side

    Label : Ultimae
    Catalog : inre 039
    Format : Cd, Album
    Country : France
    Released : 23 Feb 2010
    Genre: Electronic
    Style : Ambient

    1. Division And Composition 5:08
    2. Traditional Drugs 6:48
    3. Gentleness Color 6:41
    4. Imagination Of Imagination 5:54
    5. Breeze Is Nice 6:55
    6. Exist Unreality 7:28
    7. Breathing Smoke 5:25
    8. Threshold 8:50
    9a. Balance 6:19
    9b. Puppeteer 6:35


    Did you ever wonder how it would feel, being microscopic, a slowly moving particle, or even in a contradictory way, to exist without bulk? Well, if you did but never had the opportunity to experience it, you might want to pick up Scroll Side, from music producer Hidetoshi Koizumi aka Hybrid Leisureland. This album is a deep dive, into the micro cosmos of reality. Micro cosmos is a tranquil place, here things happen slow, things are what they are and even though it might seem as the micro cosmos is a rather insignificant place to many, it's here the very foundation of reality is created. Hidetoshi takes you into that place, a place where things are so tiny and minute, so the happenings occurring there seems to have no purpose or value. But this is just prima facie, as you travel along the soundscapes, beings are introduced, and even if you are never told what the function of these beings are, there is a strong emphasis on the feeling that it's of great significance After a while, the canvas Hidetoshi is trying to paint becomes more and more clear. From the micro cosmos you started in, great worlds starts to develop, icy caves, and lush organic spaces full of life. If plants could tell you how they feel, this would surely fit better than most descriptions available. After a long and contemplative journey, the ending track puts you in a for long sought mood of balance, where things converge into a perfect harmony. Wowi!

    That was the more poetic description of the album. How about putting it in words so that someone reading this might have a hint of what it is. Don't expect any bass, long build ups with massive peaks, or any other kind of more minimal or downtempo sound. This release is pure ambient, and it's a very modest type of it. A type of ambient often pushing you to a surface from beneath, but never letting you reach it. The album throughout has a very hypnotic base, there is always some loop of sound building the basis, or setting the pace if you will. High pitch sounds and crisp production, gives a very acidic, organic and sometimes crystallized feeling. This release is rather monotonous but that is also they way it has to be, otherwise the things conveyed by it wouldn't be possible.

    This is an album full of expectations, hopes and desires, those feelings that you can endorse yourself with before going to sleep as you are watching the stars, on a clear night sky. It says in the release info of this album, that the themes are the contradiction between human existence and interpersonal communication. What I get from this, is the peculiar notion, of how on the one hand people can seem to communicate between one another, and we seem to often perfectly understand each other, but on the other hand, we can never have any knowledge about other peoples introspective experience. But on Scroll Side, in the end there is no contradiction, music in it's essence is experience, and there is no contradiction in perceiving experience. Perhaps music is the means for us to really tell one another about ones own introspective experience, in a way far more complex than any linguistic language can ever be able to. And from what I understand from Hidetoshi Koizumi he must have a very wonderful conception of the world, and it's yours to share with this album.

    As always from Ultimae this is top quality stuff. I can see no sign of this feature dwindling, on the contrary, the releases during the past few years has only increased in class. A great album, end of discussion..


    This review was originally written for and published at Chillbase.org Head over to read more reviews, download free releases and more!

    Chillbasics Vol.1 - Carving Mirages

    in Artist News and Labels announcements

    Posted

    Posted Image


    Evanescent illusions, a vanishing point on the horizon. Illusive artisans forging the intangible against the edge of consciousness.
    Carving Mirages is the first installment of the new Chillbasics compilation series. An invitation for you to enter the dream and
    experience the oasis with some of the best new artists in the world of Psychill today. Enjoy!

    Various - Chillbasics Vol. 1 Carving Mirages
    Label: Chillbasement
    Catalog#: CBASE003
    Format: 14 x File, Compilation, FLAC/MP3 VBR/Ogg Vorbis
    Country: Croatia
    Released: 20 Mar 2010
    Genre: Electronic
    Style: Leftfield, Breaks, Glitch, IDM, Ambient, Downtempo, Modern Classical, Experimental


    TRACKLIST:
    01. Mythematica - Nam Bandara
    02. Field Rotation - Zeitreise
    03. Ambientium - The Balance
    04. Reii - Bleep
    05. Note - Everyday Basis
    06. Fat Cat - AliensPlay
    07. Atombased - Perplexed
    08. AstroPilot - Tree Of The Perception
    09. Alkor - One Day Above the Clouds
    10. ZKA4T - History For Sale
    11. bOb tracKer - UIS 555
    12. Oddi - Rebirth
    13. Xerxes - One-Oh-Three (Timeless Edit)
    14. Hybrid Leisureland - Space Light

    Available in MP3 and FLAC format HERE

    Head over to Chillbase to find other free releases and lots of other goodies!

    OH MY GAAAAAWWWWD!

    in General Psytrance

    Posted

    Come on, they just released an album! They don't want to bankrupt their fans by releasing everything at the same time.

    Staggering the releases is better for my wallet :lol:

     

    As I've always said "an optimist buys an Ultimae CD for his last penny" :o

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