Various Artists
Weightless Effortless
Strange whispers open Kevin Keller's dark 'Anicca,' a sure sign that we are on an excursion of the dark ambient kind. Actually, much of this ambient compilation is a blend of both darkness and light, of hidden terrors and delicate beauty. 'Anicca' does have some darkness around the edges, but with a soft ethereal centre. The disc is perfectly titled, as all the tracks do seem to float quite effortlessly. Most of the artists on the disc should be at least somewhat familiar to fans of this particular genre. James Johnson is his usual relaxed, airy self on 'Closure', a light, feathery piece. A bit harsher is 'The Mocking of Consequence' by Dean DeBenedictis, the man behind Surface 10. Very audible clicking static, like a bad vinyl record, is mixed with sombre ambience, water, and drones. It is eerily beautiful.

Though the entire album is devoid of any true melody, Ma Ja Le's 'Images Remain' manages to create a certain accessibility in its pretty blend of light and dark washes of sound. But things definitely get spookier again as Rod Modell's 'Ipperwash Twilight' appears. This intentionally tuneless mishmash of atmospheres and field recordings has many things happening at once, yet they congeal into a single gelatinous layer of darkness. Challenging but very good. Next up is Dave Fulton, from Dweller at the Threshold. 'Floating in Two Thirds' shows that this prog rock and Berlin school influenced artist can really mellow out when he wants to. This piece probably has the most musical structure of any on the disc. A light, lilting keyboard filters through the electronics, lending a slight classical feel. It is a delicious sound, sort of a hybrid between a synthesizer and a harpsichord. As track titles go, Loren Nerell's 'Liquid Metal Stasis' is my favourite, and it adequately describes the character of his music.

Loren is known for liking Indonesian music, and there are hints of that here, but like the rest it is a largely ambient work. The one artist I didn't readily know on this disc is Scott Fraser. 'Straight Lines' is wonderfully deceptive, with notes that seem to hang forever, yet the music is constantly shifting over its course. A fitting close is Steve Roach's 'Bottomless,' which truly plumbs the echoing depths, though it would be equally suitable for your next outer space journey.

'Weightless Effortless' is sure to please fans of minimal dark ambience. (PD)

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