Accomplished multimedia artist Mark Snyder's latest effort 'Messy' proves to be a beautifully ethereal and thought provoking experience. To properly experience the album, one must find their way to Mark's website where there are videos accompanying each of the songs (and more, I might add). These videos (from live multimedia performances, upon which the respective songs are based) provide a complete aural experience for the listener/viewer. While the music, which is based around just three main instruments: the clarinet, the accordian and the tuba; is very droning, spacious and airy, it tends to be minimal, yet VERY effective. As each song begins with its respective instrument, they then build with synths, electronics, sparse field recordings, etc. While most of the songs follow the same basic formula or 'structure' it takes nothing away from the experience as the ever evovling kaleidoscope of imagery ranges from dark, grainy and slowly evolving to bright, colorful and rapidly strobing. While a majority of the pieces herein are arranged for clarinet (and what use he makes of it!), I found myself compelled by the tuba pieces (Malmo and Copenhagen), wherein he transforms the instrument into a haunting, howling, even chanting creature while folding in just a bit of hope beneath rich, dissonant tones with (I'll dare to say it) Bach-like qualities; and a growling beast bathed in whispers and noise which build to an atmosphere of near madness; respectively. I definitely recommend the cd, but even moreso, I recommend viewing the accompanying videos as you listen.

Ambient feedback flowing elegantly through the air, spiced with fluttering digital runs dance with each other, building slowly to climax and eventual descension. This is
how 'Science Can't Explain It' opens with 'Ragabhara.' This evolves into 'Fermet's Last Theorem' which is comprised of field recordings nestled perfectly beneath ominous textures and seemingly (yet perfectly) random piano lines. The eeriness works its way into paranoia, just in time for 'Mathematics of Truth' to bring with it the first signs of true 'percussion.' This blend of new, live and remixed recordings takes quite the journey across varying sonic landscapes, from more gentle and beautiful dissonance to more harsh, and even sound effect-like pieces. The entire record is grounded in the use of the Kaossilator and while it's more apparent in some pieces than others, it couldn't have been more masterfully employed than here on 'Science...'

'Le Gueuele De Guerre' is Deuterror's third release and the very first available on cd. On this disc Nicolas Crombez, Deuterror's sole member, stays true to form to his previous offerings; mixing dark, ambient imagery with more beautiful, contrasting moments. 'Le Gueuele De Guerre' however, is most certainly the darkest, most epic and high quality release to date. It contains nine tracks, each untitled and the disc itself is enhanced with a very classy flash player from which you can choose to view all of the images contained within the physical digipack and its booklet, as well as several others, all with HD resolution versions available on the disc. Also available on the player is an info page and a short computer animated movie of a medieval hillside which expels a massive ball of fire into the heavens, an image which hints to the music therein.

The album is an incredible marriage of darkness with a hint of light, of madness with just a breath of sanity. It starts off with the buzzing of flies, over the sounds of nature just before the harsh drone of distorted synth overtakes all. It is a mass of ambience and dark, hopeless noise throughout the track, until just as the last few seconds drain from the counter, a hint of melody is introduced before it vanishes into thin air. Probably about the first half of the disc follows a very similar basic structure of ambience and sparse synths followed by the bulk of the song (usually harsh noise or synth with moments of serenity interspersed), ending with the introduction of melody just at the very ends of the songs. The latter half tends to break free of this and become a bit more experimental and unpredictable and amazing. The blend of ambience and soundscapes with distortion and synths, desperate percussion, samples and moments of baroque, neo-classical resolve work just perfectly together. Throughout the cd Nicolas finds ways to meld harsh walls of noise with pseudo-musical ideas to create something very unique and terrifying which builds up against the ambience and actual musical pieces contained in a majority of the tracks in a way that defies description. This is one you should certainly give a try, in the dark, late at night, when you're all alone, waiting for the end of the world.

Westwind's 7th effort, the double disc set of 'Ravage' released earlier this year on Steelwork Maschine, is a monumentally epic narrative of the apocalypse that will leave you wanting more of its devastation when it's over. At which point you may want to look into its limited edition companion EP entitled 'Eliminate! Exterminate! Eradicate!' (and this reviewer plans on doing exactly that).

'Ravage' is immersed in meanings much too deep to justly delve into here; but as the title of disc 1 suggests, 'Doomsday Songs' provides the soundtrack for a not only decaying, but dying earth. Evolving from sinister, pulsating synth drones layered in samples to viral carnivallian dirges to pseudo-theremin laden marches to droning feedback and noise to almost channeling 'Fragile' era NIN laced with Nusrat Fateh Ali Kahn, this disc doesn't flow perfectly smooth, but then again, when Yawm Al-Qiyamah comes, I doubt that it will come smoothly, or with such a great soundtrack.

Disc 2, 'Requiems for Collapsing Cities' is rich with funeral marches, dirges and the aforementioned requiems. Pounding, martial law inspired percussion, drones and the ever throbbing basslines lay the groundwork for scattered guitars, synths, religious sampling and a variety of ethnic instrumentation which come together to pay homage to the remains of a once thriving earth. The overall tone of this disc is much more dark, brooding and hopeless than the first, and comes together with a bit more of a seamless flow. The tension gradually and continuously builds throughout the disc, making the listener almost feel the impending doom slowly overcome.

'Ravage' seems to very loosely follow a storyline, but more so pulls together many obscure references to apocalypse from a plethora of different religions and viewpoints as inspiration for this epic. These two discs, the first being a bit more experimental, the second being a bit more structured and dark, combine so many bits and pieces of different genres and styles that it nearly defies categorization, but I think it a safe bet to say that all of its elements congregate under the umbrella of martial industrial, with its tales of death, destruction, plague, etc and the musical groundwork to make you feel that the end of days may truly be upon us.

Saito Koji's 6th release is presented here, entitled 'Prayer.' It is one 23 minute piece of ethereal, ambience. It continues the entire 23 minute span almost completely unchanged. Only very subtle tones and textures are introduced and faded away into thin air throughout the piece. It is very light and angellic in nature and could very easily be a backdrop for prayer, meditation or Raiki. Let this one envelope and flow over and around you as you breathe deep and exhale slowly.