Coma Virus Hidden

Coma Virus is actually one Paul Haslinger but this album does not resemble his two previous solo outings in any way. What we have here reminds me of "good old" ambient music - you know, before the dance scene adopted the title for some of their slower stuff. I mean the sort of ambient music made famous by Brian Eno. People who liked some of Lightwave's weirder moments should like this. This is in fact another one of those albums that would have been very at home on the fathom label. The first track gets under way with a spooky drone which is soon joined by some muffled rumbles and then deep crashes which echo and rumble getting louder and louder before subsiding again and being replaced with a sound reminiscent of walking through a curtain of (very bassey) bamboo chimes. More noises and sounds can be heard that must surely come from some forge in the depths of a cave. Things become quiet again. We then get one of the deepest rumbles I have every heard which almost sounds like breathing. More strange animal type noises (of the loathsome beast variety, not a waggy golden retriever!) take the track to its close. The second track again starts off very calmly but before long we are introduced to what sounds like street noises, but heard from way under ground as if we are in a cave well below road level - very weird muffled stuff. These noises die away to be replaced by a drones and effects. The street noises can be heard again from time to time but they now seem slightly altered. The third track 'Casualty' for the most part consists of held down chords and drones but in the middle of it there appears to be the sound of a half heard battle, this is probably where the title comes from. We really get more of the same on the last track 'The Thirty Seals' except that this time I am initially reminded of a weird jungle at night but before the five minute mark we seem to have climbed above the tree line as we enter a more spacious environment. Just before the half way mark it sounds as though we are being followed . Near the nine minute mark it sounds to me as if we are passing lakes of bubbling mud, but it could just as well have been a sample of Paul's stomach with indigestion! We enter the ten minute mark and things become calmer again (must have taken a couple of settlers). The drones then come back and take us to the close. There are no tunes or structure of any kind. The album just consists of sound pictures and ambience. It is not the sort of album that is easy to concentrate on and I had to keep playing it in order to do this review. But in the true spirit of ambient music, is it really supposed to be listened to anyway or should it just be used as a back-drop to whatever you are doing? (DL)

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