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Fresh ACID Incoming!!

It did it again, this un-believable. This track has made me lose myself so many times and continues to do so. Whenever I take a good listen, not as some background music, it manages to complete stop my brain functions to the point that I am completely inside and outside of the music. The wonderful alien time and space. Aural insanity. Maia has got the be the absolute pinnacle of truly spiritual Goa-trance. Period.

Maia is a truly a wonderful track. It starts out with such simplicity, moves to very dynamic alien soundscapes, yet ends in complete madness of beautiful psychedelia. Everytime I hear the part at 9 minutes I get lost in it, it's the best climax ever. I cannot even imagine what people back then thought about this track as they had never heard of something like it. Rest of the tracks also are truly magnificent. It feels at times that this wasn't made by humans, it's so alien throughout. When will we get another revolutionary album like this? It's been 11 years and still no sign of such. I mean there's been fantastic one's, sure, but nothing really comes all that close to this. The only exception, for me, would be Filteria's stuff, but they still can't trump this one. This album is a timeless classic.

PLEIADIANS - I.F.O. (Identified Flying Object) DRAGONFLY RECORDS 1997 Track list: 01. 11'18" Maia - A 02. 08'42" Taygeta - A- 03. 09'20" Merope - A- 04. 08'26" Alcyone - A 05. 09'14" Electra - A 06. 11'39" Asterope - A 07. 11'46" Celaeno - A- I.F.O. is labyrinthine. No Limits. Anything is possible. Everything is possible. The album communicates this in the form of sound. And it does so in an extremely provocative, classy, and intelligent way. This is arguably the most praised album in Goa Trance along with Hallucinogen's Twisted and Astral Projections TNT. I clearly find this more intelligent and classy. I.F.O. is dynamic, imaginative, psychedelic, sophisticated, emotive, fast paced, thrilling, and epic. The journey is gorgeous, insightful, tasty, deep, and potentially mind expanding. It's an album I can't seem to get enough of, though I listen to it maybe once or twice a year at most. One of the things I enjoy most with this album is the exploration element. Listen to I.F.O. and walk away, only to hear it weeks, months, or even years down the road. Over time the tracks and your overall perspective will likely change. Your favorite songs today may be different tomorrow or likely another day in the future. For better or worse, you may currently believe you're certain which tracks you prefer, though I.F.O. has proven me wrong numerous times. I think the reason is because each song has so much going on at once. Focusing on one of several melody leads with complimenting sounds can produce an entirely different mood and state as opposed to focusing on other "songs" or melody/sound combinations within the same song, so to speak. Ironically, these artists have correlated each identifiable wave of combinations in a way that, when opening the mind (not thinking, focusing on any specific sound) has the potential to create a perceptually transcending experience. I.F.O. can be perceived as a journey through the cosmos and beyond. It can be extremely visual I find, and it's often interesting to compare and contrast different view points because it's such an intriging piece of work. It's very intellectual and stimulating and one of the only album's I really wouldn't mind discussing for hours. Why? Even with a certain number of layers, the artist's clearly have appeared to, without saying to us directly, taken music intricacy, mixing to an unprecedented level. I initially found Maia great but not excellent because it was slower than the following five songs. I was impatient and therefore I compartmentalized Maia as "less than" do to its slower speed. When in actuality Maia is a superb song; one of the best songs I've ever heard in my life! Furthermore, I really did not like the final Goa, Downtempo-esque number Celaeno. I found it boring and disappinting each and every time I heard this album for eight years. Until the date of this review. Poor Celaeno. Virtually everyone seems to have put this one down over the years. I initially wished Pleiadians had ended the album with another super song. However that isn't the case for me anymore. While nothing superb in my opinion, I find Celaeno rich, absorbing, and effective; it compliments the album and closes it nicely. Turn it up, put on good headphones, and try not to focus on any specific sound or melody; you may become aware of what I mean. Same goes for the rest of the album. Just let the music do what it was created to do. This is a journey album after all. Let the music take you wherever it wants to. The crisp braiding waves of melodies not only appear to come by the half-a dozen to the dozen(s) at times. Many layers are so subtle, for support you can barely hear them in relation to the plethora of arresting, leading melodies that stand out as bright as the stars they, the Pleiadians represent. The general track here has so much going on in it, it's curious how many hundreds of hours it took the these four artists to complete certain songs. An observation is that if you keep your focus on the main melodies, you'll often miss a whole other dimension to the song. The tracks flow extremely well. They're heavily melodic, layered, deep, groovy, driving, and dynamic. The fast paced melodies are often elegant and sexy; they often harmonize with each other like water in a stream. Also, the various sounds and melodies selected are so wide in range; they're occasionally matched together to create some of the most infectious, psychedelic sounds, rhythms, and mixing I've ever heard in my life. Where as most albums seem not to uncover so much upon return trips, I.F.O. is one of those special albums. This release is so involved and packed with sounds that it's damn near possible to forget exactly how certain tracks sounded if you walk away for too long. You'll remember bits and pieces, sure (the main melody in Aserope is unforgettable to me), but so many details will escape your senses. Naturally if you hear anything every day, week, or month you may get tired of it or feel that it's lost its magic. The same can be said for anything if overdone. When I was a kid I used to get off the bus and run into the house every day after middle school just to watch Terminator 2. Eventually after the 30th time or so I hit an exhaustion peek and never wanted to see my favorite film (at the time) again. My little, stupid story that no one gives a shit about aside, this maximal style won't appeal to everyone, obviously, not even everyone into Goa-Trance. Regardless, I think this is a very special album for very special times. Each time I return to this album it sounds as wonderful as the day I first put it to my ears. This album is magical to me, even the tracks I generally favor less than others. It's a rare album in a rare genre. My mind was arrested throughout the first time I listened to this album, eyes shut, relaxed, with head phones and in a dark room. I felt like something shifted inside me both during the album and when it ended. I feel like in a sense I became more open-minded. This album has helped me motivate myself in numerous ways too. I used to listen to this while miraculously drawing the most detailed and elaborate works of graphic design I never knew I had inside my mind to create. Over time I seemed to become more conscious of the state I'd go into while listening to this album. The result was a more clear and concise [aware] state relative to how I view myself, those around me, and the world we live in. In conclusion, I.F.O. is a super detailed, evolutionary and intangible form, artistically showcasing an elaborate perception of the formless realm. It is filled with passion and spirit. I love the creativity in this album and find it a technical accomplishment, a centerpiece in Goa-Trance, and a classic. It's hard to imagine all of the energy put into this album not having an affect on the body, mind, and the consciousness in some way. Step outside of the ego and arguing opinions (me too earlier on in the thread) and be present with I.F.O. To me, this is in the top 1% pinnacle of Goa-Trance. I LOVE (no, not literally.. I find fascinating, intriguing, and infectious) the style and find the sound work audibly delicious. I think it's impressive how much of an impact these seven tracks have had on so many people throughout the world for over ten years. The amount of technical complexity, depth of sounds, melody/sound leads(!) and melody/sound work in general, directions, mixing, and flow is virtually unprecedented at times. After ten years, I.F.O. is my most favorite album in Goa/Psy Trance. Favorite Tracks: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6.7. MAIA, ALCYONE, ELEKTRA, and ASTEROPE are some of the most wonderful and arresting songs I have ever heard in my life. A