abasio Posted August 4, 2009 Share Posted August 4, 2009 Artist: Yagya Title: Rigning Label: Sending Orbs Released: 21 Jan 2009 Style: Ambient Techno / IDM Tracklist 1 Rigning Einn (6:03) 2 Rigning Tvö (6:39) 3 Rigning þrjú (7:02) 4 Rigning Fjórir (3:12) 5 Rigning Fimm (6:40) 6 Rigning Sex (6:52) 7 Rigning Sjö (6:39) 8 Rigning Átta (5:30) 9 Rigning Níu (6:29) 10 Rigning Tíu (7:43) Yagya is out with another album on one of my favourite labels at the moment, Sending Orbs. Now Yagya's first album on Sending Orbs (2nd overall following Rhythm Of Snow on Force Inc. Music Works), Will I Dream During The Process, left me kind of cold. I could hear the quality in the music, recognized that it was well made and well conceptualized but I could never get into it. After 10 or so attempts I left on my CD shelf for a while, tried it again with similar dissatisfaction. I was then going to give this album a miss but after hearing so much praise for it and seeing the beautiful rainy cover I decided to buy this and hear for myself. I am so glad that I did as I connected with this one straight away and after heavy rotation in my CD player and ipod I am still very much in love with this album. It is similar in feel to Will I Dream During The Process? but it has that missing something that I just couldn't put my finger on with that one. Each track is very similar to the others, each one is long and monotonous going more for creating an atmosphere than for catchy hooks or samples. The atmosphere created in the tracks is like that of a grey autumnal afternoon, it's not quite cold yet summer has definitely fled to another part of the world. Looking up at the sky, the prospect of rain looms over the landscape. The album feels to me like a full day in this environment, a day full of showers, hope of clearing up and then more showers. Some tracks are very wet with the sound of rain prevalent, water for me is one of the most relaxing sounds so any music with sounds of the ocean, rivers or in this case rain has in instant advantage. In other tracks you cannot hear the rain but you can still feel it hanging over everything like a bank of dark grey clouds that look ready to burst. Like with most ambient albums this is heavy on the atmosphere, the rain is not the only element at play here. Rigning Fjórir for instance has a lot of urban sounds. There are cars tooting their horns and general hustle and bustle in the background and even the rain sounds like it is falling on the metal tops of cars. There are some nice melodies on offer also feeling wistful, melancholic and reflective. These melodies are always simple and repetitive and can become very hypnotic drawing the listener in to the wet soundscaped world of Yagya. It is difficult to pigeon hole this album, I called it ambient for it has ambient soundscapes and atmosphere and you could easily fall asleep to it. It has beats though and at times I find myself wondering if it would be danceable chillout. The beats and the bass melodies have me nodding along and tapping my foot. I suppose IDM will be the tag as it's from Sending Orbs but I feel more like it is ambient techno. This is a totally unqualified judgment though but that was the first to come to mind and it has refused to budge since. I wont go through the tracks individually because this is definitely a concept album that needs to be heard as a whole and I think I would end up repeating myself a lot, mellow, wet, nice melodies, funky bass, soft beats, rainfall and melancholic atmosphere would all be words I'd want to put in every description. That is not to say thought that all the tracks sound the same. Each one is quite different from the other, like Asian women they look very different but when you come to describe them you'd find yourself using the same adjectives over and over again. In such a great album it's hard to find a standout but I think that Rigning Sex is absolutely amazing. It is the personification (although not a person) of the whole album. It is chocked full of melancholic atmosphere, the bass moves along so nicely and the melodic drones are almost enough to make you weep. The beats sneak in like they have always been there and you have just noticed them and it's heavy on the rain, as all the music leaves we are left just with the sound of rain falling down on our little world. It's the sort of track that begs to be repeated because although repetitive it is just not long enough at 7 minutes, 14 or 20 is a good time. Overall this album is as close to essential as you are going to get in the chillout genre this year (I so hope I am wrong though). It is atmospheric, cool, funky, deep, melancholic and so very good. For me it is the best album of the year so far and it just doesn't seem to get old. I have waited a long time to write this review as I have burned myself before by writing a rave review and then getting bored quickly of it. This though has lasted me months and so many listens already. Only the years will tell if it's a proper classic or not but I think this has a great chance. This album makes me feel glad that I bought the Will I Dream During The Process? despite not liking it one as I am happy I could give double the support for this one and maybe one day that one will hit too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sawfly Posted August 4, 2009 Share Posted August 4, 2009 Wonderful as expected from Yagya. Equally good with Will I Dream During the Process? but a little different. 5/5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trolsk Posted August 4, 2009 Share Posted August 4, 2009 This year's best album, so far. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amphiton Posted August 4, 2009 Share Posted August 4, 2009 This year's best album, so far.Yep. Waiting for grey autumn rainy days to give it a few more spins Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
longloststar Posted August 4, 2009 Share Posted August 4, 2009 My favorite of the year so far, as well. Any day is a rainy day, with Rigning running. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
exotic Posted August 6, 2009 Share Posted August 6, 2009 Well said longloststar. love it love it love it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
murphythecat Posted August 10, 2009 Share Posted August 10, 2009 best of dowtempo this year Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drosophila Posted August 11, 2009 Share Posted August 11, 2009 Beautiful music! Definitely one om favorite releases of 09, perfect blend of dub techno and ambient! A lot more accessible than Will I Dream Through The Process which I have had a difficult time grasping, but eventually found the time and place for. This album is an essential for anybody just a little bit into Sending Orbs' releases and into "dubby" chill music!imho Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frix Posted August 17, 2009 Share Posted August 17, 2009 Love it. May become a classic in my collection Drosophila do you have some more recommendations for "dubby" chill music? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gnome Posted August 20, 2009 Share Posted August 20, 2009 Look for Gas' Nah Und Fern if you want something similar,less "dubby" though. Still,filled with downtempo atmospheric beats.Not as good,that has to be said,Yagya is of rare quality. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amphiton Posted August 20, 2009 Share Posted August 20, 2009 Evan Marc and Steve Hillage - Dreamtime Submersible I've listened to Yagya in pair with this - works well and the quality is perhaps even higher Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
p(sy)ayam Posted August 20, 2009 Share Posted August 20, 2009 Evan Marc and Steve Hillage - Dreamtime Submersible I've listened to Yagya in pair with this - works well and the quality is perhaps even higher + P. Laoss - Landscapes & Machines regarding Rigning, what else can be said? it's definitely one of the main contenders of best album of the year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
firebreath Posted August 20, 2009 Share Posted August 20, 2009 Love it. May become a classic in my collection <img src="http://www.psynews.org/forums/public/style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/smile.gif" style="vertical-align:middle" emoid="" border="0" alt="smile.gif" /> Drosophila do you have some more recommendations for "dubby" chill music? Marko Fürstenberg... check some of his netlabel releases: - Gesamtlaufzeit http://www.thinner.cc/pages/releases/releases_detail.php?id=thn047 - Classics http://www.thinner.cc/pages/releases/releases_detail.php?id=thn078 - Inaxa Stream http://www.archive.org/details/ratc002 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Redington Posted September 9, 2009 Share Posted September 9, 2009 I would have to say I enjoyed this album very much. Very soothing, which is what I need right now and what I will probably need as the semester progresses. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alphaCentauri Posted September 11, 2009 Share Posted September 11, 2009 Interesting! I need to find it and listen to it! The thing that grabbed my attention the name of the album and the tracks is Icelandic, and im Icelandic myself =) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sneila Posted September 11, 2009 Share Posted September 11, 2009 It's OK, but you can't really listen to it unless in a perfectly still environment, it's extremely mellow music. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spirit Complex Posted September 14, 2009 Share Posted September 14, 2009 I was disappointed by this album that everyone rated 5/5 on discogs. All the tracks sound the same and only one or two have enough going on to hold my attention. Maybe this is because I've listened to too much psytrance. I like the general mood it tried to set, but there wasn't enough detail in it. I'd probably rate it 3/5. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sawfly Posted September 14, 2009 Share Posted September 14, 2009 I was disappointed by this album that everyone rated 5/5 on discogs. All the tracks sound the same and only one or two have enough going on to hold my attention. Maybe this is because I've listened to too much psytrance. I like the general mood it tried to set, but there wasn't enough detail in it. I'd probably rate it 3/5. I don't think the tracks sound all the same, maybe you just pay more attention Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melancholyman Posted September 14, 2009 Share Posted September 14, 2009 Great album. I had trouble getting into Will I Dream During the Process aswell. This album is much better. Contender for 2009? Can't say, first listen only now but it's very promising. It's an instant buy at least. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Redington Posted September 16, 2009 Share Posted September 16, 2009 I was disappointed by this album that everyone rated 5/5 on discogs. All the tracks sound the same and only one or two have enough going on to hold my attention. Maybe this is because I've listened to too much psytrance. I like the general mood it tried to set, but there wasn't enough detail in it. I'd probably rate it 3/5. That would probably do it. Also, you may need to brush up on your observant skills. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melancholyman Posted September 17, 2009 Share Posted September 17, 2009 That would probably do it. Also, you may need to brush up on your observant skills. Indeed, for ambient/downtempo/techno-dub an attentive listener is required. Not in the sense that you are actively listening, the key is to let go, then you can actually hear "everything". This is a feat that is quite hard to accomplish, and it's very different from listening to psytrance in a sense. Therefore I believe, that many has a hard time appreciating this typical type of music. Is there any difference between two factory manufactured Ipods? To the naked eye, no. But magnifiy this and you will find endless differences. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Uth Posted September 30, 2009 Share Posted September 30, 2009 That would probably do it. Also, you may need to brush up on your observant skills. It's interesting why people think this album is so awesome. I actually found this quite boring to listen to. Very soothing, flowing and spacey structure and sound definitely puts you in a mellow mood although there isn't really much else going for it. It sounds good and comes together good overall but I wouldn't prefer this over some other artist like Aes dana or Asura as they definetly put more variety into their music.... however, I won't comment on Aes Dana latest release "Leylines" as it was a big disappointment for me. For now, great chill to relax to on Fridays afternoon. 4/5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
psybuyer Posted December 12, 2009 Share Posted December 12, 2009 OK I can say this is a great album after many listens, but must be played in a calm mood and quiet environment. I love the darkness of this music, it's very sad and at times disgusting. Great hypnotic rhythm with little details. All the tracks flow together nicely. I won't say it's the best release ever because technically it's not that great, but I love it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mindphilux Posted December 14, 2009 Share Posted December 14, 2009 disgusting....? pretty much the exact opposite word that could be used to label this music i guess you gotta really be into dub techno to get this kind of music. if you dig the genre, you would realize how great this album is Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Cocco Posted December 15, 2009 Share Posted December 15, 2009 Where are you all listening to this album? I went to saikosounds and psyshop, but the only thing I found on either site was this group's previous album on saikosounds (which sounds really nice btw). Can someone please post sample links so people interested know where to sample and/or order the album after reading the review? Update: I found it at discogs but over-priced. Shouldn't saikosounds sell this? Where else is it available? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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