Nemesis
Live Archive

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(Excerpt from track(s) 'Nautilus')

CDR / 7 Tracks / 69.06 mins

So this is a live album - but you wouldn't now it. I would easily have believed that these were all magnificent studio creations. A chugging rhythm really gets the feet moving. A swirling sequence weaves around it and I'm already in Heaven! 'Nautilus' provides a stonking start. There is so much energy, excitement but also intelligent use of subtle melody here. In the fourth minute things wind down a little but the sequence and rhythm never completely disappear. Little melodic note stabs provide added interest. There was enough going on in this wonderful swirling maelstrom to leave me in an ecstatic daze.

We blend into 'Greenland'. Little note droplets and lovely pads weave round a solid rhythmic backing. A couple of minutes later the rhythm becomes quite forceful and a hundred mile an hour high register sequence and sawing lead join it. This is yet another winner, so full of energy and the feel good factor. 'Vertical Horizon' initially changes the mood completely as we are now deep out in some malevolent area of the cosmos. Deep drones mix with spooky effects and very faint sampled speech. A loping rhythm gives structure around which rapid percussion bounces like hale smashing down on a tiled roof! What a groove! Ideal for manic air drumming! We transcend to 'Xcelsis' and 'Mindsweeper' on a sea of white noise. Angelic choral pads mix with NASA type radio communication. Then we get some Morse code bleeping. But the sounds used for the bleeps are so sharp and staccato, as well as intense that they are like sparks arcing from one surface to another. A rhythm falls into formation. There is a little bit of sonic colouring but for the most part this is wall-to-wall syncopation. Things calm down in the second minute when a single rhythm and melodic loop take over. From these the rest of the track starts to rebuild. Little melodic flourishes mix with the beats. It has to be said that it is all rather intense and in your face. Much more contemporary sounding than Berlin School.

It's back to dark weirdness for 'Messier 104'. Out of this materialises a splashing rhythm. More rhythms come to join it but they are then drowned out by growling atmospherics leading to peaceful drift. This beatless void is soon filled however as more delicate percussion starts to grow and develop in both complexity and volume. It's all rather organic sounding like a shoot appearing from the ground and rapidly developing leaves. 'Inprokrator' at almost half an hour long takes up a large portion of the album. All is rather desolate, like being in the wilderness late at night. Windy effects mix with metallic drones then the sound of water lapping against boats in a harbour. It is incredibly vivid picture music. We then get some narration describing a rocket launch. Things start to become quite manic with massed twitterings and what sounds like clanging chains. A deep throb comes into being and this soon develops into a low bass sequence full of oomph. Another sequence joins it. It is as if we are in that rocket that has blasted off and are now careering into space. A ground shaking throbbing beat joins in. The warp engines have been engaged maybe. Little lead flourishes speed past like asteroids hurtling by our craft's windows. The intensity of it all is gradually, but with real purpose, increased building an incredible amount of tension. An electric guitar (either virtual or real I'm not sure) adds to the excitement. With a couple of minutes to go all calms down again and we return to atmospherics to finish. (DL)

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