A few weeks ago, it appeared that Eibon Records had entered a slump, reduced to collaborative projects such as A Crown of Light and Neronoia that held promise but failed to deliver. However, new releases by post-rockers Vanessa van Basten and now this, an excursion into the darkest recesses of ambient music, prove otherwise.The bucolic images on the digipak imply a folksy orientation to their take on dark ambient, and whilst a few moments do possess a folk-orientated feel, the overwhelming atmosphere veers strongly towards the melancholic. But despite being a rather sombre offering, it does display a sense of humour, in labelling one of their songs "A Sadness Free Song", even though there is not a single note present on the entire album that would not induce a bout of wrist-slicing and pill popping amongst those so inclined. The songs are quite varied, each clearly different from the rest, yet never losing that omnipresent gloom.
A beautiful if depressive sojourn, recommended for those open-minded to appreciate this.