Ambiguous - Stone Cross

There are a lot of people in the world that experienced some kind of a mystery in their lives. Usually they keep those memories for themselves and carry them for years and years. Few mysteries can be really deadly if kept without expression having distractive influence one?s inner world. Nevertheless, the best practice advised by psychologists is to spill the nightmare out through any kind of an art; and today I have in my hands the album of Ambiguous called 'Stone Cross' which can be a reflection of inner nightmare.

The first official record of Slovakian dark ambient formation Ambiguous arrives from the local label Aliens Productions which is already known for a few solid releases in this genre. But unlike other members of this team, Ambiguous doesn't add too much delight to the strong portfolio of Aliens label.

'Stone Cross' invites listener for the journey through the deep caves and dark dungeons. Despite the inspiring concept, the dish that came out of this Slovakian kitchen is relatively flavorless and bleak. The tracks in their majority have a complex structure, but this fact doesn't contribute much to the whole picture. The feeling of deja vu, kind of "I've heard this before", is so strong that it raises my memories which are twenty years old, good memories of Endvra or Archon Satani or Protagonist albums from early 90ies.

Dark ambient melodies flow out of my speakers; they are strongly supported by different special effects, piano passages sections are dominating the whole image from time to time, drum beats add some rhythm here and there. Gloomy atmosphere is guided by synthesized orchestrations which inject a little bit more width into the layers of different instruments. With the ninth track "The Hopeless Life" I become one hundred percent convinced that I am back to the long gone 90ies, somewhere around early Mortiis, while the melody transforms to be totally synthesized, guided by the same electronic beat. Extended orchestrations strike back in "Frail"; and this time I fail to stop yawning and literally fall asleep. The last effort to wake up my imagination is taken by the last track "Autumn Dreams" that hits me hard with all the 15 minutes of its run time. Do I listen to the first albums of Desiderii Marginis or Sephiroth - Oh now, it is still Ambiguous somewhere around continuing to experiment with its cinematic journey. Guys, please, forgive me, but this becomes dead boring after 5 minutes of playing this composition. Inaudible hum that had to describe some kind of desolation, reminds more of a big firefly buzzing inside my brain. Splashes of melody are sudden and without any specific tempo and structure, bound into the constant loop until the very end.

In general this record tries to combine the best experiences in dark ambient scene to reveal a long cold trip, but it loses its positions somewhere in the beginning and all the efforts to gain them back, bringing diversity or complexity, just fall apart hitting the wall of ordinary plagiarism. I can give an advice to this artist to start the search for his own face, because I was not impressed at all with what I heard in 'Stone Cross'. I prefer to hit nostalgia with the pioneers of dark ambient music, but 25 years later I expect a little bit more imagination and independence. The mystery of Ambiguous is dull for my taste. I can give a strong five for the investment and musical complexity - they hold out hope for the future of this project. Sep 06 2012