Open System – Sanyasin
Open System Sanyasin 2011
2. Pantheon 3. Amber 4. Caduceus 5. Pariah |
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Beautiful, shimmering, cinematic soundscapes – lovingly crafted and ideal for late night horizontal headphone listening.
Virtual World Records is a label primarily focused on ambient productions. It is not surprising that the album of Open System – SANYASIN also fits right in with its canons. It is not surprising especially because behind the project Open System hides Matt Hillier himself (better known as Ishq, Ishvara, Colourform, Crystal Moon, Elemental Journey, or Elve) – an artist who is so talented and versatile that probably everyone must have heard about him. This time, in a collaboration with Michael Martin in a completely new format. The previously mentioned two people have decided to join their forces already in the year 2003, when some works have begun which were concerning the album revolving around the species, such as: ambient, idm, ethno, which was intended to reflect their shared fascination and love for the same types of music. In the same year Jake Stephenson also joined them, but his untimely death two years later stopped the work on the album, and consequently led to the suspension of the project.
The album SANYASIN is therefore a culmination of long years of work, in which are contained some fragments of ambient jam session, recorded in Jake’s studio, as well as many samples and inspirations of Michael from his trip to India in 2007. The very title of the album is taken from the Sanskrit language and in general application it means the stage of human life, which so called 'nonattachment’ is being developed that is the state of determination and constancy in the pursuit of liberation from the illusion of materialistic life. Those who renounce the common thoughts and desires, spend the rest of their life on spiritual meditation and contemplation.
In the album we will find only five tracks, but as it usually is in the case of ambient discs, each of them needs a lot of time to spin, so their average length is about 13 minutes (does it make any sense to make the samples of ambient tracks that last 45 seconds? I highly doubt it.). The duo of Matt and Michael has prepared the perfectly composed, supremely arranged album. Of course, the primary composite is ambient, constantly roaming background, which intertwines with a masterful precision, with some vocals, and some spatial and absorbing sounds, creating a very reflective and authentic content. With the astonishing precision the artists throw the different musical accents here, which are then skillfully combined in a very illustrative whole. As usual, Matt does not disappoint us.
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8 / 10
Marion