INTO THE LABYRINTH

One of the most intriguing albums I have recently delved into, 'Into the Labyrinth', catches the listener by surprise. A mixture of dark ethnic/indie and atmospheric medieval music enters the room and distorts your silence... Beautiful melodies give their place to ethereal vocals and eastern traditional folk music passages.

Psalms and dark keyboards open the way to this album, followed by a captivating eastern beat... Truly a 'Spirit Dance'. Perry's dark vocals are introduced in 'Ubiquitous Mr. Lovegrove' where modern indie rhythms keep up this 'ancient Babylon' feeling. The voice of Lisa Gerrard then changes completely the feeling with 'The Wind that Shakes the Barley', which sounds like a traditional Irish folk story; a track that consists only of a beautiful female voice without the need of a musical background.

Inspiring keyboard melodies flow throughout 'The Carnival is Over' and Perry once again dresses the track with melancholic, bluesy vocals. This track shows the diversity in the album, which perfectly combines folk and indie rhythms with more modern sounds. 'Ariadne' and 'Saldek' are small intervals with brilliant female vocals, the first being melodic and the second more traditional with chord instruments at the background. Indian drumbeats and folklore psalms compose 'Towards the Within' where influences from Mediterranean, Middle East and Africa mix with obscure keyboards.

Electronic sounds and medieval keyboards are introduced in 'Tell me about the Forest' and 'The Spider's Stratagem' where Perry's strong gothic tone in the first alters with Gerrard's ethereal melodies in the second. Vocal forces combine in beautiful 'Emmeleia', an interval that sounds like a melancholic prayer. Perry reminds as 'How Fortunate the Man With None', a perfect ending for this album with a charming melody, leaving the listener skeptic with its strong lyrics.

Stories about true love and death, nature, pride and greediness lay on a musical background of (deep breath.) ambient, electronica, folk and Celtic sounds, indie, medieval, pop, ethnic, blues. This is not progressive rock but has all the elements that would intrigue a progressive music fan.

Ultimate standouts: The Wind that Shakes the Barley, How Fortunate the Man With None. 1 star for each of these attributes: melody, atmosphere, diversity, innovation, magic.

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