ASZENSION

Aszension turned out to be a great album that doesn't quite seem eclectic, but is still totally weird in that it has a great way of putting together otherwise normal music in interesting ways. There's a lot of really cool clean guitar work, and ethnic influences abound. There's a ton of flamenco breathing through this record and quite a bit of atmospheric new age like elements, all presented in pleasing fashion. Actually, it surprised me that beneath all of the great melodic composition this is actually a rock guitar album that makes you forget that it's a guitar album. All around there are beautiful textures and catchy beats that make this all instrumental offering a pleasure to listen to. There's even a times where it sounds like video game soundtracks a la Uematsu, which is perhaps why I dig this album so much. From the large atmospheric swells to the chunky guitar riffs, Aszension definitely didn't have in mind to sound like something particular, yet there's a cohesive feel to the whole thing. Some great tracks to listen to are "Time Dilation" with its fantastic blend of soundtrack with harsh and dissonant atmospheric keyboards kicking it off, as well as Crystal Caves, which somehow recalled the great minimalist electronic composers and mixed it with modern elements of film, new age, games, and Asian influences. Quite the enjoyable album all around.