DeathPosture Posted June 1, 2006 Share Posted June 1, 2006 V/A – A Magical Journey 2 Hi-res cover: front + back Artist: Various Title: A Magical Journey 2 Format: CD (jewel case) Label: Ajana Records (Germany) Cat. #: AJACD005 Distribution: Arabesque Date: 1 May 2006 Track listing: 01. 09’11” Electrypnose vs. Ecalypt - Nabuconodosor 02. 07’02” Olien - Ozeanic 03. 11’23” Chronos – Sky Path 04. 07’13” Unstable Elements – Technical Illusions 05. 08’18” Atriohm – Beyond Rituals 06. 06’57” Capsula – Dice Man 07. 06’49” Procs – Fascinating Superhero 08. 13’05” Psyfactor – Galileo Space Mission 09. 06’51” Zoe Wheelingz – Shadow Is Back .m3u-playlist: http://tinyurl.com/nhxxe (all tracks!) Review: Around the world in two daze… (sic intended!) Ajana Records is the chilled sub-label of Germany’s Trishula Records – and things have been moving fast for this rising label. The first release A Magical Journey was released less than a year ago in the summer of 2005. After three artist albums, most notably the wonderful Capsula album Synthesis Of Reality, it’s time for the follow-up. Perhaps the name A Magical Journey 2 isn’t very original, but at least that indicates that this will be a continuous series – and that’s a good thing, coz the first one sure had its moments… The track list of this, the second one, looks promising too – so let’s venture out on another journey… =D Let me take you thru the tracks… #01: Electrypnose vs. Ecalypt – Nabuconodosor The journey starts with a lenghty exposition of epic proportions. Conjured by the Swiss sound magician Electrypnose (Vince Le Barde) who recently graced us with his second album, the magically diverse Le Tireur De Ficelles (Peak Records 2006). On this track Vince is in cahoots with his countryman Ecalypt – a project I have zero info on... Anyway, this track is a slow-burning, subtle piece of ethno-dub seasoned with simple, uplifting melodies and hypnotizing didgeridoos... Very soothing and relaxing music... Lovely! #02: Olien – Ozeanic Olien is Olivier Bach from Germany, and with this track he takes the journey to a more upbeat place. The organic, watery intro is cool and it soon transforms into a more percussion-ridden piece of groovy downbeat... The tribal/organic combo is pretty neat, though not overly innovative… It reminds me of Aluna… Nice for sure! #03: Chronos – Sky Path Russian producer Nikita Klimenko also produces music under his Shankar alias, but is perhaps better know as one half of the Secret Trick duo which as a couple of tracks released on different compilations. This is the first downbeat stuff I hear from his hand though… What we get here, is pure melodic, floating downbeat… Ambient at first, but soon some fluffy melodies and subtle beats are thrown into the mix…It’s all nice and smooth, but sadly it’s also pretty boring and predictable… #04: Unstable Elements – Technical Illusions This duo consists of Kornev Maxim & Epifanov Andrew from Russia… They released their debut album Technical Illusions on Kagdila Records but I’m afraid it passed under my radar unnoticed… I have to check that out though, as this is an interesting track… Highly digitized, electro-ridden, dubby and mysterious downbeat… Like Bluetech on coke or Psyfactor on downers… Very interesting! #05: Atriohm – Beyond Rituals Everything I’ve heard from Macedonian producers Leonid Golcev & Aleksandar Golcev have been high quality – and so is this! This is deluxe chill-out – totally ripe and totally lush! It’s a big mishmash of ethno-tribal world beats and snazzy, wiggle-your-toe friendly compositions – all tied up in an almost Shponglesque or Entheogenic-like manner… Evidently those familiar links are also what prevents me from grading this higher than ‘good’… But hey, it *is* good! #06: Capsula – Dice Man Yosef Shamay impressed me immensely with his stunning debut album Synthesis Of Reality released on Ajana Records in late 2005 – and it was about time we heard more from this talented Israelite… Unfortunately this track isn’t as good as I’d hoped for… Sure, it’s nice and chilled and dubby and floating… But that’s it – it’s nice, but not up to par with previous Capsula stuff… #07: Procs – Fascinating Superhero Swedish producer Mikael Stegman has always been somewhat of a favourite of mine – despite his somewhat introvert debut album Stuck In The Oven With Me released by Ajana Record’s sister label Trishula Records in 2005 + his mildly disappointing track off the Sanatonic Audio compilation released by Sanaton Audio earlier in 2006… I still haven’t given up on Procs and I’m hoping he’s got a couple more aces up his sleeve… And I’m happy to say, that this track is the best I’ve heard from Procs in a while… This is hugely atmospheric, esoteric, mature and experimental downbeat – rich in contrasts and it’s easily the most psychedelic tune here… Simple, yet complex. Chilled, yet hectic. Naïve, yet beautiful. Simply brilliant! Welcome back Procs! #08: Psyfactor – Galileo Space Mission I’ve got somewhat mixed feelings about the output of Russian producer Dimitri Korablin… Let’s just say that basically I like most of his older stuff, but his latest album on Ajana Records, the chilled Endless Universe, was a complete and utter miss for me… It was way too boring and I didn’t like it! This track however is easily better than any track from the aforementioned album… This is more versatile and has better progression – and the output is interesting for a change! Nice one! We’re still not re-inventing the wheel here, but it’s interesting enough to retain my attention. Welcome back Psyfactor! #09: Zoe Wheelingz – Shadow Is Back AFAIK this is the debut release by French producer Virginie Scheerens – and what a debut! This is highly experimental, oddball electro-clash… Upbeat dubby rhythms + irregular beats which are much more IDM than downbeat… This is a pretty crazy tune and definitely very different from everything else on this compilation. Different – yes! Interesting – somewhat! Good – not really! Maybe it’s just me who doesn’t fully understand this kind of music, but I don’t really understand its relevance here… Ah well… Onwards and upwards! Before you ask – yes, this is slightly better than the first A Magical Journey. This one wins by a nose hair! The flow is better than on the first one, and the good/less good track ratio is still high enough to validate a purchase… Sure there are some misses here and in that regard, this is not an essential buy… Also the cover art isn’t exactly excelling in its beauty! But all in all, this is a pretty nice compilation with a couple of really excellent tracks – and even more good tracks… And after the disappointing Psyfactor album, this is indeed a step in the right direction for Ajana Records. Ajana fans will dig it for sure, as chill-fanatics in general will most likely find something to their liking here too… Perhaps it’s not the amazing magical journey that it set out to be, but it sure has its moments… Enjoy! Favourites: 1, 2, 4(!), 5, 7(!!), 8 DeathPosture External links: Ajana Records: http://www.ajana-records.com Discogs: http://www.discogs.com/release/676229 Saiko Sounds: http://tinyurl.com/lf2a6 Psyshop: http://tinyurl.com/ora9g Cisco: http://tinyurl.com/sy2nw Juno: http://tinyurl.com/mgnoy Chaos: http://tinyurl.com/r4trv Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Procs Posted June 1, 2006 Share Posted June 1, 2006 Thanks for the review. A really nice compilation. thanks alot to Mouka also. I can promise you more aces up my sleeve.. just holding on to some stuff to unleash it upon you in a not to far away future. If you can´t wait try to catch my live some day! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
travbrad1001 Posted June 4, 2006 Share Posted June 4, 2006 This is a really nice release. Just when i was thinking there'd be no good releases this year, we get hit with a storm of them All of these tracks are at least good, with a few very lovely tracks indeed! My favs are tracks 1, 4!, 5, 7!, and 9! Just on a side note: Track #4 by Unstable Elements has a melody (starts at 2:10) that is remarkably similar to "Tommy Is Dead" by Nystagmus. Maybe it's just me though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RAH Posted June 11, 2006 Share Posted June 11, 2006 Compilation: Magical Journey 2 Label: Ajana Records Web: www.ajana-records.com CAT: AJACD005 SE.net: http://www.sonic-energy.net/core/content/view/250/2/ 01. Electrypnose vs Ecalypt - Nabuconodosor 02. Olien - Ozeanic 03. Chronos - Sky Path 04. Unstable Elements - Technical Illusions 05. Atriohm - Beyond Rituals 06. Capsula - Dice Man 07. Procs - Fascinating Superhero 08. Psyfactor - Galileo Space Mission 09. Zoe Wheelingz - Shadow Is Back The second installment of A Magical Journey is eclecticism in a mini-skirt, from the Ajana family a sub from Trishula. I didn’t have the pleasure of vegetating to the first installment, but good things were said… bad things were also uttered, but if anything, it seemed like something different from the usual down-beat sphere. ( 1 ) Electrypnose breaks the ice with Ecalypt in a symbiosis of styles and mystery, clouded with piano lines, electro-dub pace changes and didgeridoos tussling in a successful ‘fusion reaction’ as Le Barde might put it. Was it not for the quality of the artists, it would have sunk in delusions of grandeur tying all those themes together. Fortunately, Nabuconodosor sails through the turmoil the right direction. * ( 2 ) Oliver Bach, better known as Olien (possibly a long lost relative of the infamous composer), Debuts his softer alter-ego. A lot of delayed chants and good atmospherics progressing somewhere in this Ozeanic sea of calmed turmoil, without forgetting the theme of ‘magical journey’ for a second. Besides being well honed, the beat might sound like night time material with reduced speeds. ( 3 ) Chronos is yet another new dig from the Ajana/Trishula radar and apparently a full length album of chilled out goodness is on its way. For the teaser, Sky Path ascends calmly to an eventual climax of sentient synths from the emotional era, that should bother me with its unabashed attempt at poignant, cheerful trance… but it doesn’t. Yeah, it might be a bit on the cheesy side, swiveling to a near cliché for some purists, but the delivery is well orchestrated and I don’t find myself bothered by it. * ( 4 ) Unstable Elements bring us back to base line with a noticeable shift in mood, descending to aphotic sides of down tempo. The arpeggio coming in by the end, sheds a little light to this dusk-time effort. From the milieu of effects certain redeeming elements – and not necessarily unstable- break forth as Technical Illusions. ( 5 ) The Atriohm brothers from Macedonia seemed to be stirring a ruckus lately with chill proposals and upbeat material. Their offering here takes prides on being downbeat, with an extra doze of balls and obscurity for hardened chai lounges. There is Hindi/far eastern thing going on with synthetic leads & tribal breaks. I don’t know if it’s Beyond Rituals, but it certainly feels like one. Take it as a compliment. * ( 6 ) Capsula, delights with his most enjoyable piece yet for my taste. This is the progression I had been expecting since his debut last year. Maturity, lounge vibes and ear candy all throughout, marking the Dice Man as you’re classier than average track. It’s soaked with that assertiveness of urban existentialism, and not necessarily the over aching psychedelic dub slap we might have grown accustomed to, while retaining his roots. * ( 7 ) Procs surprises in Fascinating Superhero with his first down-tempo attempt to my knowledge, looking not to stray too far from his playful, melodic knack. Think of it as a really long break inside in of his typical tracks, interesting deviation. * ( 8 ) Galileo Space Mission sounds like bonus track from Psyfactor’s chill repertoire that for x or y reason did not fit in the CD, so they threw in here. Fast beats, assertive synth sound action in its own simple demeanor. Nothing ground breaking once again, lots of emotional content and not much else. ( 9 ) Zoe Wheelings closes the journey with a beak beat slice of retro-sketched beats in the experimental side of things. The Shadow is back remains mildly interesting and nearly lounge-esque by the end with phasing lines, but the beginning of the shindig nearly kills my interest. The merit is simply the kind of music is trying to convey which I don’t you but I don’t hear too often. Magical Journey is a Byzantine ride through nine rabbit holes interconnected loosely by what ifs and their own personal spice of down-tempo. An achievement in itself if only for the ideas presented herein. Some will draw attention more easily than others in their own paroxysmal micro-verse of cozy vibes, while others might need to travel bit further before we can declare them anything else than over intuitive. A few tracks are simply slowed down versions of what is normal night-time music, while some have dared to go beyond. You could do worse than hear some of these, coming to grips with the fact some people chill out differently than others. Where to Get Saiko Sounds > http://www.saikosounds.com/english/display...ase.asp?id=5643 Psysounds > http://www.psysounds.com/searchh.php?searc...l%20journey%202 Psyshop > http://www.psyshop.com/shop/CDs/aja/aja1cd005.html Juno > http://www.juno.co.uk/products/216749-01.h...gical%20journey Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
d_vision Posted June 17, 2006 Share Posted June 17, 2006 Very good ambient chill comp for sure!some beautiful tracks in... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ormion Posted September 3, 2006 Share Posted September 3, 2006 For one more time I like the track that most ppl don't. I'm talking about Psyfactor-Galileo Space Mission which is easily not just the best track here but one of the best of 2006! (for me the best so far). Emotions instead of ''sophisticated'' ambient. The second best track is the Unstable Elements. Awesome melodies here with an old school touch (actually this is more old school than anything). The final melody is awesome. The rest of the tracks are all great, too. A must buy for all the Psyfactor ambient lovers for track no.8. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drosophila Posted June 16, 2007 Share Posted June 16, 2007 A great release by Ajana (again), took my a long while to get to buy this (I have no idea why ) but I am very happy now I have! A very good journey and a perfect start with Electrynose Vs Ecalypt (though it pretty much sounds like all Electrypnose's other downbeat tracks ) it a really really nice track! A general theme here is depth (at least thats how I see it).... All the tracks has (at least to some degree) a deep foundation, that when played loud get the whole room to shiver (in a nice way)... which also makes this CD a very good dj-tool, with a lot of "bass" to play with And as Ormion said, that Psyfactor track is simply amazing... what a journey! And packed into one single track, a real Galileo space mission! Fav tracks: 1,4,5,7,8!,9 and I wish Procs would make some downbeat tracks.... just has such a nice weird forest vibe to it, me really likes! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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