PROBUZHDAYA SLUCHAYNOST

This time Senmuth is back to Egypt, taking inspiration from the character of Hatshepsut, the high priestess who became, it seems, the only pharaoh woman in the whole Egyptian history.

The introduction "Inside" is a usual Senmuth track with the usual distorted voice and techno sounds. It's followed by one of the best tracks I've heard from this artist. "Heaven and Heart" has a strong melody of a kind that reminds me to some RPI bands of the early 70s. The singer is some "Eresh" and doesn't use the distortion kit.

Estella is another guest singer with an impressive voice, capable of high and low pitches. She sings on "Priestess". Another track above the Senmuth's average. It appears clear that the song was written for Senmuth's voice and in a second time he decided to have it sung by somebody else.

On track 4 we have an old friend: the punk lady Annie Red Hat. "ParaBrahma" his a techno track on which Annie makes vocalisms. Average.

Skandy21 is well-known to who follows Senmuth. On "Sight" she sings a duet with Senmuth. Another highlight of this album. Not bad also the other track sung by Annie Red Hat: "Dark Goddess".

"Nothing is Realm" is opened by J.Kay. This time we have a real growler. Somebody able to growl without any kit. The track is a mixture of industrial and ethnic as in the best Senmuth while the growl gives it a death metal appeal.

"There, Where's an Eternal Dream" is another song on which Senmuth has put some extra effort. There's more attention to the melodic line than as usual.

"Awakening" is a techno track. Not my favourite. The instrumental parts are good enough, but it lacks the melodic structure of the previous track.

"Dark Goddess V.2" is even better than V.1. Annie Red Hat is a great singer. Her voice can be compared to the newage artist Lucia Hwong.

Estella speaks on "Hatshepsuth". This is the name of the only legendary woman who became pharaon in the ancient Egypt. A slow keyboard-based and ambient track. Very unusual in Senmuth's productions, quite close to the early Vangelis.

Muza is a soprano (likely). An excellent voice on a track from the ethnic side of Senmuth. "Hathor" has something of symphonic that's enhanced by the vocals.

Also the closure is performed by Muza. This time it's a typical techno-metal song in the arrangement but the vocals are excellent and let the melody emerge clearly. With just a bit less of the usual noise to make it more accessible this could have been a hit.

I've been undecided about how to rate this album. It's probably the most consistent between those I've listened to. Also, with the time I'm getting more used to Senmuth's music and last but not least, another reviewer has already rated it 4 stars and I don't want to be influenced by things external to the album. I give it 4 stars (4- really) to distinguish it from the previous ones and mainly because some tracks are really great. The fact that his music is better when he has guests is likely depending on my personal appreciation of the vocal distortion kit that he uses on his voice. A good album for a newbie to start with Senmuth.