Aphelion - Transmissions

While Aphelion's last album was a bit of a faster pace, transmissions decides to go for a more slower walk in the park rather than a job that will get you sweating. Aiming to create a more spacious sound and deliver satisfying ambient kicks with melancholic and harmonious sound, the dutch producer manages to do so quite well on this November 2013 release.

Starting off with Asgard, which in Norse mythology is home to Valhalla and home to Odin, is anything but resembling a sort of viking culture based purely around warfare. We're given some very low electronics that aim to please and soothe the ear; while the music does do its job well enough, I think it sounds nothing short of elevator music.

Thankfully, Cephei does away with the common misconception, and brings forth an ambient song that does, as the album has been described, convey spacious sounds. Not far off from being described as noise one would hear quite possibly in the middle of space, the slight effects that encompass the song just raise the bar even higher and creates a magical tone.

And while the first two tracks catered to the ambient audience, Nebula maintains well within the realm of drone sounds. However, the one underlying synth is also accompanied by some static like noises, an acoustic guitar that gives it a sort of creepy feel, and another line later down in the song. The acoustic does get louder as the song progresses, but, just as soon as it builds, it slowly fades to nothing.

Calling in the powers of others outside the immediate family, Slow Dancing Society combines with the sounds of the musician to create Endless. Differences occurred here and there; there was a bit more of a rhythm in comparison to the three other tracks so far presented, and was more electronic effects scattered in the song. It didn't create by far my favorite track on the album, but certainly served its purpose well.

23-32, with the sort of wave effect going on the synth, spoke to me as if it belonged in a sort of futuristic metropolis. While it began off slow, it picked up just a tad toward the middle, adding in some more effects and working nicely around my ears. I felt that the nothingness presented as the final twenty seconds of the song was pretty stupid, as the next song could have just been played, and I sat on my ass waiting for some sort of noise to pop through, but it didn't. I'm hear for music, not for silence.

And, before the one and only remix on the album, I was presented with The Silent Orchestra. And this was a pretty silent orchestra, not aiming to take it loud or be the center of attention. Another rhythm was presented within the song, and it didn't take precedence over everything else, but it still managed to nab my attention. I certainly enjoyed the second half of the song more so than the first, where I was pleased to find a little drum work that really worked well.

As the final song on the album before I waved a heartfelt goodbye, I was brought to a remix of Esq by another ambient producer who goes by the name of S1gns of L1fe. And I honestly enjoyed this one quite more than anything else on the album. The water effects being covered over by a flute like sound, acoustic guitar, and just everything else was quite beautiful. I also appreciated the vocals on the song along with a bit of a louder sound.

And that does it for the whole album. I was able to sit down, relax, and listen to this album through and through. However, it was not able to completely submit me into a trance like I've found myself do so with other albums; it was hard to actually get pulled into the album at points just due to the quiet nature of it all. The remix on the album made me sort of fall into such a blissful state, but most of the songs weren't able to. This album has its moments here and there able to make me think about life, but another half of the time, I was waiting for something new to happen. I don't want to bestow such congratulatory notes on this album, but I will say that I was able to enjoy myself, but not to the fullest extent.

Editors note: Since the release of this album, the artist has changed name to Echo Grid. If you want to find more information about the project, visit https://www.facebook.com/echogrid May 03 2014