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Artist: Akshan Title: World of Duality Label: Altar Records Date: March, 2018 1. Welcome As You Are 2. La Conscience De L'espace 3. World of Trouble 4. Time For Change 5. The Other Side 6. Underworld 7. Rebirth 8. Time Is Unity Akshan is a French artist inspired by the likes of Vangelis and Jean Michel Jarre and it shows in his compositions. His first two albums The Tree of Life and The Rise of Atlantis were exercises in vast, cinematic soundscapes. One might say a virtual reality that enveloped the listener. While the first two tracks are slightly minimal sounding lacking that soundtrack experience the third track World of Trouble gets him back to his sweet spot. The melodies and effects he uses are highly emotional akin to the type you would find on a Hollywood blockbuster. The intro to Time For Change is simply marvelous and the track continues the slow burn of somewhat tribal mysticism. True, some of the tracks perhaps ramble for a little too long, but he shows skill and attention to detail with numerous layers to keep the ear involved. His breaks are very powerful and serve as a strong bridge between parts of the tracks. While not as "epic" as his previous work, I enjoyed the album and think any progressive trance listener would also. Altar Bandcamp Psyshop

Artist: Koan Title: Leap of Faith Label: Blue Tunes Recordings Date: March, 2018 1. My Personal Dark Knight 2. Reflection 3. Margin Call 4. Manifesto 5. Mayda 6. Gabriel's Trump Card 7. Jinn's Keeper 8. The Die is Cast 9. Vendetta 10. Entangled Threads (Roeth and Grey Version) 11. Syndicate (Roeth and Grey Version) 12. Esbat (Witch Arrow Mix) 13. At the Sunset of Red Moon (Witch Arrow Mix) 14. Mayferien Nights (New Orlean Mix) 15. Abendreiterin "There's no use praying my friend. Even your God knows better than to come here." This Russian duo is nothing if not prolific. Like the vast majority of their output this is a digital release sounding like a solid piece of progressive trance firmly entrenched in the Blue Tunes vein. Dreamy, uplifting, and bouncy trance that more than flirts with a techno vibe. It's a pretty varied cross section of the progressive genre, sometimes sounding cold and clinical. On the other hand it can also be warm and precise with tracks like the Witch and Arrow mix of Esbat and the New Orlean mix of Mayferien Nights bringing a smile to my face the whole way through. Far from perfect it is still quite enjoyable and shows that this duo isn't afraid to move in different directions. Psyshop Download

Artist: Solar Fields Title: Ourdom Label: Sidereal Records Date: March, 2018 1. Burning View 2. Shifting Nature 3. Into The Sun 4. Forgiveness 5. Mountain King 6. Wave Cascade 7. Moving Lines 8. A Long Tailed Bird Whispered 9. Joshua's Shop 10. A Green Walk 11. Parallel Universe 12. The Daylight Carrier 13. Siren Song of Glass Some artists are so deeply connected with a genre that they essential become the face (sound?) of that genre. There are many artist who make downtempo music, but say the name Solar Fields and you understand what you're going to get. Magnus Birgersson from Sweden has been doing this for quite some time and his albums are markers in the chronological history of downtempo music. Any artist would be happy with a genre defining album to their credit yet each new offering from Magnus seems to be that way. His latest however doesn't leave me with the same awe that his previous albums had. That said, I find myself being carried away with his descriptive soundpicture layered with many details ranging from the gentle flutter of electronics to the powerful and majestic. The listing says there are 13 tracks, but I only hear one, deeply immersed in a flowing menagerie that consciously moves from uplifting to a introspective mindstate. Into the Sun is a distinctly positive and hopeful march into the many wonders this world possesses as Forgiveness almost impossibly slowly illustrates the freeing power of letting go. As the tracks seamlessly meld into each other Mountain King is a lengthy almost 15 minute wonder that doesn't establish its identity until well past the 5 minute mark. A progressive rambler that takes flight gently and creates a floating atmosphere bookended by a delicate ambient intro and outro. Due to the length of it Wave Cascade feels like and ambient interlude before another more aggressive and less appealing Moving Lines kicks in. Joshua's Shop gets back to the positivity of previous tracks, while Parallel Universe could be the darkest track on the album. The Daylight Carrier is more aligned with the early tracks of the album and he closes with the beatless ambient of Siren Song. Mastered by Robert Elster the music sounds fantastic further adding to the experience. As I've mentioned with previous Solar Fields albums I feel his strength is the downtempo arena and less when he employs the progressive stomping. His music just seems to breathe and stretch more with a slower bpm. This album could've easily been a disjointed collection of tracks in the hands of a less skilled electronic musician, but he manages to keep things connected by building bridges between tracks instead of walls. So I would say it's a great journey with a few minor flaws. Solar Fields Bandcamp Sidereal (digipak)