Tsotsi Posted February 2, 2020 Share Posted February 2, 2020 Artist: Merr0w Title: Odysseus Label: Global Sect Release: December 12, 2019 Tracklist: 1 - Lost in the Triangle 2 - Lunar Tides 3 - Odysseus 4 - Trippy Jellyfish 5 - Their Own Light 6 - Sea Wolf Howling 7 - Fractal Octopus 8 - Last Breath On Seashore ~ Under the sea, under the Sea, Darling it's better, down where it's wetter Global Sect entered the scene committed to providing rare and focused styles of the Goa trance genre. For most of their existence so far this has been cosmic themed Goa that takes you as far into the depths of space as you can go. I even began to think that this theme would be carried through for eternity. With the release of Merr0w's newest album we see that it is not the theme that matters but that there is a theme. And what better artist to show us this than the guy who really does seem to love all the magic of the deep water myths and kingdoms. Brice Fruyt is all about the sea. Don't believe me? Merrow comes from Gaelic that stands for a Mermaid or a Chimera, so like a water chimera, so like a Taor. Just look at that cover art, that's some straight up cool work, and the merch available along side this release is outstanding too. Life under the water is fantastical, but it's also slow, you can tell from listening to these tracks that a lot of time and attention has been given to them. You can't just whip up a 17 minute track like Trippy Jellyfish, that comes from somewhere special, somewhere deep inside, more mysterious than the unknown depths. Well Lost In The Triangle sure does kick it off nicely. A fine tuned super duper producer type track. Bubbles and mysterious storms of electro goodness rush around you while the maelstrom spins you down into the depths. The melody shoots at you like the stream from a TFL-B54270-Aluminum-Alloy-Water-Jet-Thruster-Pump. Merr0w knows we need a little chill time before we deal with the next onslaught from the depths. You have exactly 3 minutes until the bulging Lunar Tide comes to clear away the wreckage from the first track. At full moon we never stood a chance, the final act of Lunar Tides is like a opening a giant clam to find:- Or This Life under the sea can be lonely, you might take either. Odysseus, King of the island of Ithica, battler of mystical beasts and subject of the gods Wrath, this guy really pissed Poseidon off. Merr0w creates an epic tale that slaps harder than a giant squids tentacular club. Fast and loud, the melody and background noises develop and morph, shift, ebb & flow. A groover that comes at you harder than Charybdis from that damn Vortex. Like the 8 long years spent with Calypso the nymph (The nymphs from the myths not the internet) on the island of Ogygia Triple Jellyfish is here for a long time. Wait. You're telling me Odysseus spent 10 years trying to get home but for 8 of those he was gettin' some on a Mediterranean island? Sounds better than going home to mumma and pappa if you ask me. If those 8 years were anything as good as the 17 minutes and 12 seconds of pure inspiration coming from Triple Jellyfish then I can't blame the guy. Like streams of power coming from the Neptune's magical trident this track blasts you into another dimension. Only ever letting up to shock you with another tsunami of energy Trippy Jellyfish is one heck of a journey that makes hits you by surprise every time you think things might be calming down. A song sung by The Sirens themselves, a lure of symphonies that traps you in a scaly grasp. The sound of Triton's Conch Shell Trumpet begins tooting overhead and now we are in the thick, there is no way to go but right through Their Own Light. A treasure greater than anything found at the depths of the Bermuda, just listen to that damned production quality. Melodies that morph faster than the Agulhas current are just the cherry on top but by no means the whole meal. The howls of a wolf through the trees are horrifying enough, but one from this guy:- No thanks. Good thing nothing but good luck is meant to come from the sighting of this thing. And after the first howls in Sea Wolf Howling that good luck brings itself to you in the form of one of the best Merr0w compositions you have heard. The Akkorokamui shoot their tentacles of raw rusted synths and melody through the darkness and wrap them around your body. This is one monster you don't want to fight but give yourself in to. Maybe the terrifying bastard is benevolent. Urchins, Lobsters, Poseidon and Odysseus all come together for one glorious moment of fractalised unity. Like a storm crafted by Aeolus Fractal Octopus is wild, fast, loud and exciting. it's been 10 long years but the journey has come to an end with one last piece to guide us home, and one Last Breath on Seashore. Merr0w get's to really bring the ocean into this track with enigmatic atmospheres you really do start to feel like you are in a lost world. A beautiful way to finish this adventure of deep sea myths and monsters. ~ I think everyone here will agree that this has got to be Merr0w's best work to date. The theme is carried along completely from start to finish, the melodies are great, the atmospheres are bubbly and deep, the production and composition of sounds dance around one another like sinking treasures. It's Merr0w but unlike you have heard him, perhaps unlike we will hear him again. Well done to Global Sect and Merr0w for this fantastic release, special shout out to Andrei Verner who has nailed the artwork. https://globalsect.bandcamp.com/album/merrow-odysseus 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GhostOnAcid Posted February 9, 2020 Share Posted February 9, 2020 On 2/2/2020 at 7:31 PM, Tsotsi said: I think everyone here will agree that this has got to be Merr0w's best work to date. I like the first album more. :-) I prelisten to Odysseus alot. But it dont catch me. For me it lacks in melodicial work. Again a firing of typical melodies and sounds in goatrance in too deliberate aggressive way the whole album. In the end its a solid album, but not more for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BASS-O-MATIC Posted February 18, 2020 Share Posted February 18, 2020 This "Underwater" theme of Merrow: Complete nonsense Cover Art: Simply terrible The Music: Holy Shit,what a fantastic ride.This is Goa Trance how I like it.Stormy,melodic and well produced.One of the best releases in the last years. Hey you Suntrip guys,you missed a modern classic... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Penzoline Posted February 18, 2020 Share Posted February 18, 2020 Hmm - while great tracks most of them, I miss the definition of the first album here. Born Underwater was far more story-telling and coherent. On the flipside Lunar Tides is a fantastic continuation of the first albums sound and Odysseus and Fractal Octopus are both great mwnn style early 2000 tracks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fungi Posted March 9, 2020 Share Posted March 9, 2020 Receveid my copie ! Top artwork and top French Goa vibes inside !!! Well done Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DoktorG Posted July 17, 2020 Share Posted July 17, 2020 I must put a special shout out for the track "Their Own Light", which has an innovative kick drum sound and beat. What a storming track! Overall a good neo-Goa album, though at times it feels a bit manic for its own good and can sound a touch formulaic. Occasionally I find the leads a bit plasticky/strident sounding, though the production as a whole is good. MerrOw's characteristic theme is quite original, however, as most Goa has been more about the beach and bamboo forest and stars above than it was in the Indian ocean. I guess the artist is an Aquaman, Mera, Nemo and Fathom fan, as well as a surfer or swimmer? It is quite impressive that he does get a kind of "wet" and immersive sound. This raises the question of whether Goa is landscape (or waterscape, or spacescape) music? I think the polyrhythms and storytelling aspect are like flying through a landscape. "Travelling without moving" as Astral Projection had it. Pretty cool to be swimming for a change. ~*~ PS - Trainspotter alert: the beginning of "Fractal Octopus" sounds a lot like the intro to Astral Projection's "Kabalah". Is it supposed to be a cover, or a homage to this famous opening track of Trust in Trance? PPS - I'm split about the cover art. The colors are appealing, but it is toony. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BASS-O-MATIC Posted July 22, 2020 Share Posted July 22, 2020 On 7/17/2020 at 2:46 PM, DoktorG said: PS - Trainspotter alert: the beginning of "Fractal Octopus" sounds a lot like the intro to Astral Projection's "Kabalah". Is it supposed to be a cover, or a homage to this famous opening track of Trust in Trance? For me is the track,all in all,the best Astral Projection song of the last 20 years. On 7/17/2020 at 2:46 PM, DoktorG said: I must put a special shout out for the track "Their Own Light", which has an innovative kick drum sound and beat. What a storming track! +1,love this track! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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