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The Art of Navigating by the Stars is the sixth studio album by the German progressive metal band Sieges Even. It is the first album to feature the vocalist Arno Menses.
Reception
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Sea of Tranquility |   [1] |
The album was described by Sea of Tranquility webzine as being "one of the most anticipated comeback albums of the year" and stylistically compared to Fates Warning's A Pleasant Shade of Gray in that "it is a long-form composition divided into eight movements, plus a short intro track. These movements, or sequences as they are named in the booklet, are all parts of a huge 63-minute song, linked through various key themes and motifs."[1]
Sieges Even broke up after Uneven but returned in 2005 with The Art of Navigating by the Stars, their most sophisticated and progressive album to date, and with a new singer in Arno Menses, the best they’ve had. The music is less busy than before, with only a few vestiges of their metal past remaining. It adds some Yes influence and places a lot of emphasis on melody and vocals, both lead and harmony. Sieges Even doesn’t have a keyboardist, but the band gets a very full, rich sound from varying guitar tones. These long tracks are actually movements of one 64-minute composition.
Track listing
- "Navigating by the Stars" − 0:29
- "The Weight" − 10:14
- "The Lonely Views of Condors" − 6:14
- "Unbreakable" − 9:00
- "Stigmata" − 8:22
- "Blue Wide Open" − 5:13
- "To the Ones Who Have Failed" − 7:26
- "Lighthouse" − 7:42
- "Styx" − 8:55
Among various instruments, Capricorni Pneumatici used sheets of metal, hammers, PVC pipes, air compressors, corrugated tubes, etc. The recordings were made with a Teac hi-fi tape deck and two Akai microphones suspended at different heights inside the tanks, directly connected to the tape deck. All recordings were made directly on the two-track recorder during the performance, without any digital or analogue intervention, and no overdubbing after recording.
The first seven tracks included in this reissue are the originals from the Al-Azif tape published in 1987, while the last four are part of the same recording session in June 1986, but were not included in the C45 for various reasons, mainly space constraints.
The Al-Azif tape had significant circulation (by the standards of the underground at that time), especially among enthusiasts of esotericism. Up to Ix Tab the tapes, in addition to being sold by the ADN label in Marco Veronesi's famous watchmaker's backroom, were also sold by an esoteric bookstore in Milan, circulating several hundred copies—an uncommon occurrence for such self-productions.
After the reissue of "Nibbas" (Eighth Tower Records, 2022), Al-Azif brings to light another jewel in the discography of Capricorni Pneumatici, one of the flagship projects of Italian industrial/esoteric underground in the 80s, alongside Ain Soph, Sigillum S, Rosemary’s Baby, LAShTAL, Thee Three Rings, and other representatives of this realm of sonic occultism.
Raffaele Pezzella
credits
REVIEWS
Avant Music News
avantmusicnews.com/2024/04/10/amn-reviews-capricorni-pneumatici-al-azif-1987-2024-eighth-tower-records
Ver Sacrum
www.versacrum.com/vs/2024/04/capricorni-pneumatici-al-azif.html
This Is Darkness
Al-Azif is the second album from Capricorni Pneumatici. Originally released on tape in 1987, this has now been released on the Eighth Tower Records label to make it available to a wider audience. This is an album of deep, dark industrial ambient with an incredibly unique sound resulting from the fact that the album was recorded underground in location containing a number of large cement tanks. Fans of industrial / post-industrial ambient should definitely check out this classic album now that it has been re-issued. Wonderful stuff!
Luminous Dash
luminousdash.be/reviews/capricorni-pneumatici-al-azif-eight-tower/
Dedicated to Abdul Alhazred, the mad poet, and his book Al-Azif.
Recorded at The Cave, June 15-16, 1986
Original tape release by 666 Production, ssk02, 1987 CP
Tracks 8-11 previously unreleased.
Cover Design by CP
Published by Eighth Tower Records in collaboration with Luce Sia
ambient dark ambient drone ambient electronic music industrial noise ambient Italy
credits
REVIEWS
Avant Music News
avantmusicnews.com/2024/03/30/amn-reviews-vyormouth-between-planes-2024-zerok/#comment-47702
This Is Darkness
Zero K continues to release dark ambient / experimental albums of the highest quality, and Between Planes by Vyormouth is no different – providing an “auditory journey through the liminal spaces of both the physical and psychic realms”. With 3 tracks, each an hour in length, this album is perfect for losing yourself in as the slow pulsing drones, and monotonous and desolate frequencies take us far away from our surroundings and ourselves. Absolutely remarkable!
Ver Sacrum
www.versacrum.com/vs/2024/03/vyormouth-between-planes.html
Music by Vyormouth
Mastering by Raffaele Pezzella a.k.a. Sonologyst
Design by RhaD
Cat. Num. ZK09
© 2024. All Rights Reserved
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