Isabliss

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Customer reviews

review by: Morpheusmusic.co.uk date: 2008-11-28 rating:
Amethystium - Isabliss
STYLE br /Dreamy fairy tale soundscapes delivered with lush melodic electronica and ethereal female vocals. Amethystium has deepened and developed his sound with this latest offering - the arrangements are confident and sweeping, the instrumental work lucid and bright, the vision clearer than ever. Now the vocals are mostly specially recorded performances from such singers as Lee Nisbet, Stine Mari Langstrand and Irina Mikhailova. The gorgeous downtempo beats are still multifaceted and evolving - those low key muted interlude grooves punctuating the shadows. The synth work is multi-layered; repeating phrases and arpeggios rolling over expansive pads and strings, chimes and little metalic notes twinkling in the background - warm melodies and strong themes demanding the attention, then dropping away into gentleness and quiet corners. On Isabliss the synthetics are accompanied by some deftly interwoven electric guitars and keening violins. br / br /ARTWORK br /This is a fantastic piece of packaging, capturing excellently what Amethystium is all about. A three-panel digipack almost monochrome, full of delightful imagery courtesy of Grey Decay and Brian Son. The front cover features a striking twisted tree with dense clouds for foliage, wheeling birds circling the branches. On the reverse is a close-up of the gnarled trunk, track titles alongside. Within two stark black birds adorn a knotted bough that has a bright lantern hanging at its tip. Another panel opens out to reveal the second half of the rear cover tree trunk - here too are credits and some thanks. A final turn of the page reveals the rest of the inner picture - a flying bird trails dark leaves apparently fluttering out from a shuttered window. There is a delightful air of mystery and appealing shade about the whole package - very tasteful and stirring to the imagination - you'll want to hold it as you listen. br / br /OVERALL br /This is the fourth album in the unfolding Amethystium story - the fifth if you count the compilation Emblem. Once more Neurodisc are the chosen label for the Norwegian bedroom artist turned producer, composer, multi-instrumentalist. If you have heard Øystein Ramfjord's previous albums you'll know what to expect - although the dragonfly trilogy, as it came to be known, was concluded with Evermind, the trademark sound is still all here, just better. I think this is a stronger collection that Evermind, more purposeful and more clearly standing on the shoulders of earlier material. There are some beautiful moments - I didn't think Øystein could manage to become any more blissful and dreamy than the Aphelion CD, but the track Frosty Morning Bliss manages it. Lilting piano phrases and Stine Mari Langstand's heavenly vocalisations work with some lovely understated electronics to create one of the most chilled-out pieces of musical mystique I've come across. br / br /

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review by: comedycraig date: 2008-07-09 rating:
Mesmerising
So after four breathtaking albums Øystein Ramfjord's work must surely fall victim to the law of diminishing returns at least a little, right? Wrong. Isabliss is a warm, rich and satisfying consolidation of the man's previous work mixed with the experimentation that was evident in Evermind. Yet unlike Evermind, the album manages to be a more consistent, coherent work. This is a man aware of formula yet never formulaic; a man comfortable with the sound that has come to define him yet never afraid to add new and exciting elements to that definition. br / br /Strangely it also feels like possibly his catchiest album to date. It has hooks that will get right under your skin and remain there. br / br /It is also an album entirely bereft of weak moments. Every song is a sumptuously-layered, lovingly-crafted work of beauty. br / br /La Pluie and Treasure are the obvious stand-out tracks. These are songs more than deserving of being classed alongside the likes of Autumn Interlude. Ethereal, uplifting female vocals combined with a driving beat, lush synths and other features that evoke the same kind of wonderment you'd get gazing at the Northern Lights in Øystein's native Norway. The man's Scandinavian homeland is evoked elsewhere, with the sound of snow being compacted underfoot on Frosty Morning Bliss; a twinkling gem of a tune which builds into a magnificent crescendo. And of course ever-present is that feeling of melancholic beauty so much a hallmark of old Norse fairy tales and this man's work. br / br /In short, fans of Amethystium need not worry. This album is Øystein Ramfjord at his very best. Better than Evermind, better than Aphelion, perhaps even better than Odonata. It is simply sublime. br /


review by: date: 2008-06-29 rating:
Excellent
This album brings no surprises, just more of the same good quality ambient melodies and female vocals. Although stylistically a bit different, it's well in line with the first three albums (Odonata, Aphelion and Evermind) and, if you like those, you won't be disappointed with this one. br /

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