01. Lost Eden [5:53] 02. From The Abyss [4:17] 03. Raindust [4:26] 04. Land & Freedom [5:16] 05. Fahrenheit [3:56] 06. Requiem From Nowhere [9:53] 07. Incoming [3:38] 08. The Battle Of Devas [10:13] 09. Le Vol D'icare [10:16]
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Asura
is an accomplished worldbeat trance trio whose French origins would
explain the general but pervasive debt to electronic music pioneer Jean
Michel Jarre displayed throughout this CD. Synthesized keyboards and
sequencers, presumably provided by group leader and producer Charles
Farewell, capture Jarre's signature combination of ambient bliss and
infectious groove. A noticeable Klaus Schulze influence emerges as well
on the brooding, melancholy "Requiem From Nowhere" and "Le Vol
d'Icare," which feature minor keys and a cavernous sampled choir. Group
member Curtis Maze supplies ethereal flute; his presence on the opening
of "Land and Freedom" may briefly evoke one of Kitaro's mellow
soundscapes, but Asura's music is generally too groove-oriented to fall
into the new age category. Bassist/guitarist Alexandra Ackerman deepens
the groove, which is also strengthened by electronic percussion of a
type and quality that was generally not available for earlier
electronic music artists such as Jarre and Schulze. And since Asura's
intent is by no means self-consciously retro, they're not shy about the
use of contemporary vocal sampling. The presence of Turkish chanting on
the title piece and "The Battle of Devas" perhaps comes a little too
close to territory already staked out by Banco de Gaia on recordings
such as Last Train to Lhasa (to the untutored Western ear, samples of
Turkish and Tibetan chanting don't really distinguish themselves from
one another when they're integrated into similar ambient techno
settings). However, "The Battle of Devas," in particular, represents a
nice synthesis of Jarre, Schulze, Tangerine Dream and Banco de Gaia,
and when all is said and done, it compares favorably with any of its
various influences. The eclectic nature of Asura's presentation is
further reinforced by the use of a thudding hip-hop beat and sampled
female house vocals on "Raindust." It's the only such gesture on the
CD, and boundaries are stretched even further when the sampled house
diva begins to trade stanzas with the sampled Turkish vocalist.
Elsewhere, African vocal samples are used on several tracks, as well as
the previously mentioned sampled classical choir. This wide-open,
indiscriminate appropriation of cultures and ethnic influences could
(and has been) criticized as superficial, but since Asura doesn't seem
to have any agenda beyond creating elegant, sophisticated ambient
trance music with a world music flavor, they should be judged only on
the quality of their execution. And if that's the criteria, this
recording serves them well. by Bill Tilland