THE COZMIC KEY

A very nice (solo) album by Ozrics- guitarist Ed Wynne. Nodens Ictus used to be a sideproject featuring Ed Wynne, Joie Hinton and Merv Pepler. But neither Joie and Merv are playing on this album. So Nodens Ictus is now Ed Wynne and Silas Wynne (Silas Neptune).

The music of Nodens Ictus sounds like Ozric Tentacles but is more trance/ambient-based than the Ozrics, wich is more rock/fusion based. There is a lot of emphasis on synths, sequencers and programmed drums but there is some live drums/percussion by Paul Hankin (Ozrics), Neil Longhurst and Natan Mantis. Here Nodens Ictus sound a bit like Enthegeonic and a calmer version of Sphongle.

Chickens in the Mist is a song that already appeared on Pongmaster's Ball and isn't very different. Swoop Bong is 15 minutes of outstanding psyspacerocktronica but the main treat is the 25 minute-long tourdeforce Fractal Sunset wich is the reason I love the genre of psychedelic electronic music. It has some Tangerine Dream influences but is mostly Ozric/Nodens at its best.

It has been ages since an official studio-album has been made by Nodens Ictus and it's a welcome addition to the huge Ozric-discography.This album is a nice contiunation of Technicians of the Sacred but is more ambient/psybient-based, wich is a good thing, because Ed is more in his element playing this kind of space-music than jamming out, like in the 90's.

At the same time this album came out, Silas released a solo-album with help of all the (current) Ozrics, wich is more in the style of Ozric Tentacles.This Nodens Ictus album is highly recommended to anyone who like the trippier (psychedelic) side of electronic music (Entheogenic, Shpongle etc.)