Sempervirens - Mainland Rain

Perhaps the youngest star on Benekkea's Netlabel roster is Estonian act Sempervirens. Those of you who don't delve into the records head first may find it difficult to name more than a handful of other Estonian projects. That's ok. This is about to change.

Sermpervirens is the brain child of a hazy drug induced cultural whirr that becomes more and more out of control every release. This is ok though, as the smooth mescaline undertones of the music help to drift the listener to places so few people can only ever hope to reach.

"Somnambulance" is the opener here, quietly recorded into the mix ; as all dark ambient music should be, this is a soothing terrestrial voyage, with many nods and similarites to Peter Andersson's "Raison D'etre". Music that sounds like it was recorded live, in a churchyard, with the bell swinging of it's own accord somewhere in the distance. The eerie hint of someone being out there is so tangible you can almost taste it.

"Rekindling the Stars" is a very ambitious piece. Perhaps they have faded to Grey over time, perhaps there is a lot of shit out there, but titles and efforts like this can only remind us of greater things beyond us. A timeless reminder of our own mortality, but also echoes of the afterlife. A hazy, delicate layered number. This requires full volume and then some, but all good ambient should be played loudly anyway. Meditative.

The trend of ridiculously great song titles continues with " A Cerulean Moonblaze". Slightly more animate and ever so slightly louder than it's predecessors. A song for looking into a Scrying Glass to. You will either love or hate this album. For me , the gentle carved melodies know very few equals. It's like brushing your fingers across the finest stained glass windows. Sempervirens never takes us anywhere unexpected or attacks us with sudden tone or tempo alterations, but it really doesn't need to. This is meditative cultural ambience.

Nothing overly new is offered to us in "Crossing the Navel", but the subtle alterations are always there, encased in the crystal melodies buried between the layers of sound. The utmost aim here is surely to send you into a trance, and it works on so many levels. Riding the Lightning on a Chariot of Psilocybe.

Other highlights include "On Cosmic Shores". This is much darker than the rest of the album, and really gives me the creeps. It's like the bad acid trip of the album. Imagine landing on a distant planet, galaxies away, and finding yourself the only inhabitant. Imagine walking across one of the blue-sanded beaches, in the darkness, and hearing a fierce wind like no wind has ever sounded before, and suddenly realising you may not be alone.

"Libertia" is the closing track, and it's by far the fierceist and loudest number. A fitting end to a wonderful trip. Sempervirens; then. Hazy, ritual, and bliss Ambience. Carried by some of the most beautiful song titles, and ambitions that are so unfortunately neglected in the scence these days, this can only be experienced to be understood.

Estonia, We salute you! The album is of course available for free download on the Label website, but Sempervirens actually has two other full lengths. I suggest you contact it's creator for details on these. Ambience like this doesn't come around too often. Sep 07 2006