“It's not with Bedtime Stories that Alba Ecstasy stumbles. Even with his massive musical productions, he is still good and enthralling while exploring other sources of beats and ambiences”
1 Tension 10:43 2 Emperor's Decadance 6:14 3 Fluid Air 12:29 4 Ammonium 8:19 5 Traum Gate 7:29 6 Dream Incubation 6:40 Alba Ecstasy Music
(DDL 51:07) (V.F.) (Roumanian School)
Seriously! BEDTIMES STORIES? Certainly that the introduction of Tension can help to fall asleep. The orchestral layers float like elements waltzing in the oblivion. Soft, but hum…!Tension wakes up with an ambient but noisy rhythm. Vibratory pulsations of bass sequences give good knocks which stimulate a hive of sequences. A little bit shy at the beginning, the sound bees attack more and more the pulsatory rhythm which on the other hand deploys an attractive armada of percussive effects. One doesn't know any more where to give of the ear so much there are elements which are also effective in a pair of earphones as outdoors out of our loudspeakers. The effects of rattling percussions abound in a vertical structure of rhythm which seems to be the skeletal structure here and which is of use as assizes to the vibrational rhythms from this last opus from Alba Ecstasy. A very strong title which flirts a little with good contemporary Klaus Schulze and which is already in my iPod. As well as on the playlist of my Cambridge CXN! And we don't find either this sleep with the even more fed and noisy rhythm of Emperor's Decadance which goes in a spirit of Techno for Zombies marinated in THC. The flow of the pulsations is more thriving with sequences which swirl such as sparklings of firebrand, which seem alive to us, and in the shadow of good synth solos. BEDTIMES STORIES is the first album of the very prolific Romanian musician in 2018. And this year, I am going to try to review all of them. Him who produced 17 in 2017. A challenge which looks pleasant with this album which is very far from being a musical bedside book to accompany us towards the arms of Morpheus. Quite the opposite! We have to think of the title as in the vastness of its antithesis. The pulsatory vibrations are also very popular here. And they feed the calm rhythm of Fluid Air which takes advantage of this rhythmic bed to dilute its other sequences, its effects and its chords in a clashing but not too chaotic mosaic. The background painting ends by draw in the reserves of Tension to offer a second part a little bit coherent and more attractive for the sense of hearing. Ammonium is the 1st rest area, the 2nd being Dream Incubation, of BEDTIMES STORIES. The music derives quietly in the borders of cosmos, like a ghost crew in a ghost shuttle. The vibratory approach is always appropriate with these hummings of the shuttle's reactors and thus almost puts to sleep this very nice orchestral drift. A good moment of serenity which goes up right to the door of Traum Gate, an energetic track of which the fat and juicy sequences of its opening are dancing like fireflies in a night agitated of its shooting stars. The rhythm wins in intensity, reaching its pulsatory movements which anchor the rhythms of this album, while keeping this melodic space to make us hear here an Elvish voice which competes quite well with the numerous solos and laments of the synth. The imprint of Indra is strongly present on this evolving title where it's quite possible to fall asleep so much the feminine voice is restful and pleasant to hear. Dream Incubation drinks moreover of this serenity to offer a music very near the depths of Pink Floyd's Wish You Were Here. Even the sound effects are told in another dialogue while the synth is cooing with a tone which blows perfumes of David Wright and Vangelis. Divided well between its elements of rhythms, slightly too similar on the other hand, and nice phases of ambiences, which too aren't revolutionize the genre but which are always pleasant to listen to, BEDTIMES STORIES isn't yet this album where Alba Ecstasy will stumble because of his so huge artistic fertility. Each track here abounds of good moments and none of them are too long to reach a saturation point while the listening. I won't say that it's brilliant but it's rather good. And it's always available on download on Alba Ecstasy's Bandcamp page. Thus, no inner notes and no artworks either! Sylvain Lupari (February 16th, 2018) ***¾**
Available on Alba Ecstasy' Bandcamp
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