Description
- The Door [0:36]
- The mirror of shades [10:28]
- A mineral light in the subterranean sky [5:49]
- In the labyrinth [1:05]
- Such a delicate music in the woods [2:43]
- Down down down [4:27]
- To the deep! [8:43]
- Waterfalls [1:42]
- The deep music of a rolling world [3:49]
- Drops and life [1:21]
- Silent souls [3:35]
- Geological memories [2:15]
- Farewell to darkness [3:10]
A Musical Map of the Underworld (Live)
- Part one: Erebus [8:09]
- Part two: Elysian fields [10:09]
Ambient soundscapes mingle with voice samples and sound effects
Phil Derby –
Lightwave has become known for deep, cavernous ambience, and they are really taking that literally with their latest musical endeavor. As the liner notes describe, it was composed for a massive sound installation in some French caverns in 1997. The result is trademark Lightwave, lots of experimentation with music as texture, filled with echoes, crunching noises, water sounds, serene ambient music, and French narration. The blending of abstract noise with music reminds me of Biosphere‘s Substrata CD, although the end result is quite different. As with prior Lightwave releases, there is very little melody, and the intent was not to create something particularly accessible.
It is more like an artistic impression, an abstract painting using sound as colors. The music conveys the depth of the caverns effectively.
Most of the fifteen tracks are quite short, but the first full track, The Mirror of Shades