THE DEATH AND RESURRECTION OF KRAUTROCK: AUM

The band has reformed again with new personnel around Niko's powerful guitar and psychedelic vision for this latest record of Seven That Spells. The A(lb)um is composed within a satanic circle, this sinful sphere being present both in sonic architecture of the release and on the record cover's symbolism.

In the start of this sphere dwells an anticipating rhythm, wall of noise and demonic chanting, which leads the music to euphoric ride to cosmic rock patterns and repetitive ascending guitar themes. There are very pleasant hypnotic qualities in the rhythm, and later the logics in the song are torn down, wiped to random events of powerful chaos. The title tune "Aum" rises from the debris, containing some menacing rhythmic patterns reminding Rush in its opening, soon giving room to screaming guitar wails screamed upon a powerful bass riff. The instruments conjure forth very atavistic and formless musical moments; Solemn ritualistic passage appears, containing sacred primitive chaos present in the early shamanistic krautrock records. I liked this longer adventure quite much, as it contained both long hypnotic elements, and also really great chaos guitar solo. The minimal passages where math and soothing space rock sounds united, created fine kicks and powerful cosmic visions. The levels escalate with logical steps as the trio's musical layers get more aggressively entwined, drilling to the deeper cores of Aum's vigorous vortex.

In the middle of the record resides a real null chamber, "Zero", a gigantic shapeless ambient form without any detectable features. There is a feeling of distance to this sonic source, and it is much more beautiful than some of the earkilling tracks from earlier records. Large musical mass waves beautifully like a cosmic horizon, giving delicate associations Pat Metheny's "Zero Tolerance for Silence". This void, an eye of a storm on the album, ends to stagnant long note, followed by "Rock Ist Krieg", a more aggressive rhythm killer. Groovy themes color this bass dominant tune, which reminds slightly the sounds of John Paul Jones' first DGM solo album. After few minutes changes take turn and the characteristic chaos gear is switched in, aimed for cruising to the ethereal tunnelvision of nocturnal highways, eventually leading to rhythmless noise-electronics of a dying car radio. Fine tides are rolling in the dynamics of this song, containing much happenings and interactive dialogue between players, and these vivid details contrasted with determined minimal motives make this quite interesting assault for my ears. Finally, similarly both positive and mystic theme leads to the exit of this album. Chanting increases the mythic and more sinister potential of the coda, and the meeting of the song's stagnant musical elements create fine hypnosis as finale.

On this record there are in my opinion more musical elements than on the earlier record of this year, and they are studied without haste, and also with more focused sense of style present. The structure of the album is fine, as the first six-minute track warms up quite pleasantly for the upcoming epics. These giants also differ from each other pleasantly, and the two shorter 8-9 minutes flashbacks following them create quite logical aural trip. So, the elements from earlier Seven That Spells recordings continue merging and evolving on the unholy altar of this fine psyched-out band, and I would certainly recommend this album for fans of aggressive psychedelic music.