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The North Sea & Rameses III, "Night of the Ankou"
Despite the reference in the title to the collector of souls, this collaboration between ambient trio Rameses III and Brad Rose of Digitalis, a.k.a. The North Sea, eschews the obvious direction of doom and menace. Instead, they journey into frequently blissful territory, with an emphasis on emotional textures that invite introspection and rejuvenation.
The album consists of two 18-minute tracks supplemented by a remix from Xela. Quiet drones and subtle strings with occasional plucked notes form the main compositional elements of “Death of the Ankou.” While a mournful strain runs through it on occasion, the track doesn’t come across as sad or depressing so much as accepting of things as they are. The effect is surprisingly soothing, if not comforting. Delicate chimes and a distant reed instrument provide the wistful ending, like the last gasp of stars fading in the sunrise. “Night Blossoms Written in Sanskrit” begins with a deeper drone, while higher pitches fly overhead. A strummed guitar surfaces momentarily before it’s absorbed back into nothingness. Some reverberating strums pop up again as the ending escalates toward a sunnier ending. Although the first one isn’t a downer by any means, this track builds from that one into something that’s more joyful and optimistic.
Xela’s remix, “Return of the Ankou,” combines elements of the two main tracks into one which becomes more active and less subtle. The strums are more in the forefront here, as are rattles, chimes, and slight doses of feedback. It’s a nice contrast to the two that precede it, yet linked enough thematically that it returns the album to the beginning in a cycle of death and rebirth.
The experience is both peaceful and invigorating, inviting frequent returns.
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