Temps Perdu? - Athanor FLAC download

Put out on the DISCORDIA label, this is an intriguing blend of the ambient, the electronic & various elements of World Music. "Scalaphony" builds a tension scene on string chords, deep organ sounds & chimes, sounding a lot like a soundtrack to some chiller. "Missing Link" combines strange samples, low didgeridoo-like drones with atmospheric Ethnic-like drumming in an atmosphere akin to SPK's "Zamia Lehmanni" but lighter, more an ambient trance piece full of sounds to keep the mind interested. It builds to shining crescendos while voices whisper & speak over the top. "Cum Infamia" follows in a similar vein, nodding more towards MUSLIMGAUZE with a harder edge to the percussive sound. Over this is layered haunting flute, harmonic voice and clattering metal fragments. "Ayers" chugs along a similar path, with atmosphere orf ritual in a mystical East of the imagination. Distinctive & tuneful, with motifs which, yes, are similar to those used my MUSLIMGAUZE. "Abraxas" tends more towards a hybrid of Western electronic bass drum & Eastern haunting atmosphere with whispered French words, gong-like punctuation, shifting sitar-like sounds & strings, all combining into another soundtrack-like piece. "Stratophony" builds on a tense electric bass sequence, entwining it with strange, chilling wraiths of sound in a non-percussive atmospheric piece - a piece of EBM without the beat, a cold scene from a dark film. Taking this feeling into even darker areas, "Into The Wave" combines shifting keyboard sounds with sudden thumps of percussion & flat, clanking piano to create a non-beat piece of disquieting sound. "Aku Aku" is one of the most distinctive tracks on the album, combining bouncing boom bass with constant Ethnic rhythm, they lace shifting streamers of keyboards, haunting voices & a variety of other sounds into the trance dance beat. "Cristal" has a more electronic, sequential rhythm through which various Ethnic elements appear. It reminds me a lot of TANGERINE DREAM circa "White Eagle" with elements of, say, HUMAN LEAGUE's early works, NITZER EBB, and even DEPECHE MODE's more experimental sound. "Magisch" is another distinctive piece built on an ambient ground. A fast electronic drum pattern acts as their framework for a floating flute motif with keyboards and samples all arranged into a haunting little piece of dance music which might even qualify as mild Techno at a push. "Degree Absolute" builds up through strange sample configurations and loops, becoming a slow, haunting trance dance piece with brash punctuated motif - both mild & demanding - a sort of cross between JOHN CARPENTER & mild, slow EBM. "Gorgoneion" is another moody atmospheric piece, a drifting track which swirls around a deep bass drum double beat, and through which voices, like lost souls, combine with tinkling synth. "Fishing Circles" is again a sort of film theme with degrees of CARPENTER to it - it's main motif is a sort of Oriental temple bell sequence through which a dramatic tension, a hint at the vacuum of space, inserts itself while voices whisper in French. "Last" appropriately closes the album, again an atmospheric piece whose structure is built on a clicking drum pattern which builds up into a far more complex piece, around which rise & fall a variety of sounds - keyboard sweeps & atmospheric samples, all combining into a smooth trance feel. In ways this reminds me a lot of NEW ORDER's "In A Lonely Place" with deep sonorous bass & a haunting ambience. Originally reviewed for Soft Watch.