Monday 20 July 2015

Queen Elephantine - Omen (CD Review)

 01.Omen
02.The Sea Goat
03.Gamma
04.Morning Three
05.Search For The Deathless State
06.Horseman
07.1000 Years
08.Shamanic Procession




Musicians:
Indrayudh Shome
Brett Zweiman
Matt Becker
Ian Sims
Derek Fukumori
Srinivas Reddy
Nate Totushek
Samer Ghadry
Daniel Quinn
Michael Isley
J. Alexander Buck
Rajkishen Narayanan
Chris Dialogue
Andrew Jude Riotto
Danny Murphy
Kabir Hingorani
Robin D. Hood
Arthur Uriquola





This is the new collection of old artifacts from the masters of dark psychedelia.
The retrospective 70-minute “EP” is a haze-filled collage, a faded time-caravan travelling through the collective’s 2007 roots in Hong Kong to more recent American
pieces. Remastered by Mell Dettmer (Sunn 0))) & Boris), Omen weaves a vein through
the dynamic body’s numerous players and instruments, through the dirtiest sludge
and cleanest drone meditation alike, illuminating the living, unifying force at the core
of Queen Elephantine.


A very difficult album to review let alone listen to, take 'Omen' for example it manages to be drone and electronic but throws in dark vocal chorus and weird sounds.

The next one 'The Sea Goat' has a grungey guitar sound, moves towards proto doom and psychedelia and then towards the end just becomes a muddled up noise.


As for the ten minute 'Gamma' i was expecting all the above plus extras, instead you get 10 minutes of near silence that i think is just a sitar (or electronic equlivilent) and a low buzz drone, later a little bit of drum and guitar, and thats it!

'Morning Three' is very Indian influenced with tabla being the main focus, this leads us into 17 minutes of 'Search For The Deathless State' which i can only describe as a masterclass in anti music, electronic noise, simply brilliant in its construction and highly un-nerving in delivery.

'Horsemen' comes across as a minimalist soundtrack for an underground horror movie, this theme continues with the next song seemingly created with electronic and ethnic instruments, then finally another very quite, minimalist ambient soundcape into some sort of nightmare world.

Rating 9/10
For fans of: Merzbow, Mono, Ulver, Exorium/Occupier, Mekigah

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