One is defintely reminded here of some of the improvised jams that the band 'Man' or 'Porcupine Tree' used to do with lots of guitars, except OSP are much more psychedelic and out there, which they certainly are on these two lengthy excursions , which also feature lots of swirling synths. Track 1 is the most psychedeic rock driven and powerfull piece, whereas track 2 is much more spaced out with lots of effects and a few vocal treatments.
If your a fan of space rock, say amon duul 11 , Grobbschnitt etc and the aforementioned band then i guess , l ike me, you will love this. Excellent stuff indeed.
Entheogenic, like all musicians who start a genre, hit a stage in their career when they had to reassess their own work to date. As a genre, psybient has moved ahead since the time Shpongle and Entheogenic created it half a decade ago. New age producers like Bluetech and Phutureprimitive are creating more compact tracks, moving to a midtempo sound that is crisper, funkier, or more flamboyant. Their first two albums, Entheogenic and Spontaneous Illumination, were critically well received. Their last album, Golden Cap, was heavily criticized, and there was widespread agreement that Entheogenic had lost their touch. Flight of the Urubus silences all criticism that Entheogenic have fallen from the top of the genre. The duo forges a new musical relationship that resulted from world traveling prior to recording this album. This is a highly polished downtempo psychedelic offering, and the amount of time and care spent on the album shows brilliantly. "Trara" is an album highlight here, with the duo proclaiming its mastery over the more upbeat end of the downtempo genre, lacing powerful melodies with a "phat" sound over an interesting midtempo bassline. Entheogenic have showcased all elements from their years of being in the trade, and have asserted their preeminent position in the psybient genre. ~ Bhasker Gupta Review fron rdio.com
On this (hopely till know) not too much anticipated 2012 release of one of the most original and progressive bands of progressive rock history we get to hear a different side of Christian Vander's composition skills. In stead of creating a dark operatic en technical album, Magma returns with an angelic celebration of life. For some this might sound risky, but we've also seen Magma showing it's feel-good adventerious moods on K.A. and it worked out fine. The 'Felicite Thosz' suite should be regarded as being a single 28 minute lasting composition, but is devided in small pieces on the cd. With a total of 32 minutes of running time this 'album' could almost be regarded as being an EP, but whilst listening to the album it really impresses as a full-grown album. 'Les hommes sont venu' is an extra four minute minimalistic piece with an emphasis on female vocals choir arrangements with a very mystical atmosphere.
The instrumentation on 'Felicite Thosz' reminds me a bit of the Wurdah Itah period; with piano, vocals and drums beging the main instruments. Of course the bass guitar also plays a significant role and some electric guitar lines were well integrated into the compositions. At first spin I'm delighted when it comes to the production, it has more depth and sounds less dense then E-R' and K.A. The vocals sound more authentic and therefor are a great contribution to the liveliness of the record. The drums of Vander, whom I think of as my favorite drummer (next to Jaki Leibezeit), impresses with subtle new findings and great accents during up-tempo parts. His way of writing compostions from a base of very effective and complicated rhythms is also effective in this relatively optimistic album. The strong forwarded pulses and swing (though not recognisable as such) really get's the whole thing running like a well oiled machine. And yes, every Magma fan knows that Magma is gerantied to give away some moments of maximum intesive playing and grotesque larger- then-life sounding musical landscapes.
Conclusion. Yet another must-have Magma release for fans an perhaps the easiest entry into the band's discography to this date. The production is great, the compostion briljant and the album has a really postive, mysterious & adventerious mood that really cheers me up. Perhaps fans of the dark type Zeuhl will be a bit dissapointed, but they should try this album anyway. I'm giving four stars right now, but perhaps the album will grow on me some more.
* Edited. This is a masterpiece and therefore fully deserves the five star rating in my opinion. Review from progarchives.com
Songs / Tracks Listing
1. Félicité Thösz (28:06)
Ëkmah - 2:39
Ëlss - 1:11
Dzoï - 2:27
Nüms - 1:51
Tëha - 5:15
Waahrz - 4:03
Dühl - 1:19
Tsaï ! - 3:41
Öhst - 4:53
Zahrr - 0:49
2. Les hommes sont venus (4:18)
Total Time: 32:24
Line-up / Musicians
- Stella VANDER / vocals, tambourine
- Isabelle FEUILLEBOIS / vocals, bells
- Hervé AKNIN / vocals
- Benoît ALZIARY / vibraphone
- James MAC GAW / guitar
- Bruno RUDER / piano
- Philippe BUSSONNET / bass
- Christian VANDER / drums, vocals, piano, keyboard
