Artimey Artemiev Five Mystery Tales of Asia

If you like dark ambient music (not of the dance variety) then this CD is for you. In ‘Hong Kong’ a sound curtain conjures up images of a steamy hillside and this provides the backdrop, low in the mix, for flutes and a restrained rhythm, full of Eastern promise. Much of this CD in fact, hardly surprisingly given its subject matter, sounds rather Oriental. The music is superbly descriptive and you can almost feel the heat shimmering from the speakers - very atmospheric stuff. ‘Flying Eagle’ again makes use of subtle rhythm with only the loosest of structures. About a quarter of the way through the track we get native chants which add to the feeling of complete relaxation and calm. ‘Journey Under the Great China Wall’ starts to the tones of very quiet gongs then a sort of metallic wind effect adds to the ominous feeling. Flutes are used which initially sound like exotic birds before taking on very Eastern phrasings. Things become tense after the half way mark as more and more atmospherics are introduced giving a feeling of unease - all is not well. ‘Mysteries of the Ming Dynasties’ is also a rather dark brooding track with some alien sounding animal noises in the background, sort of half way between a big cat and an ape but rather muffled. The impression the track gave me was one of being hunted. ‘One Night on the Khangay Mountain’ I thought sounded rather Aboriginal. I could just imagine being in the outback round a camp fire, with the noises from the local tribe drifting up to me from the valley. This CD is very relaxing though a bit eerie in places - should be great to listen to in the dark. Steve Roach fans should try it out. (DL)

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