Through the Collective Pain [3:37] The Humanity Underneath [7:25] Skin Strip [8:46] Duality of Passion [5:38] Beyond the Shaman [5:57] The Nihilist [7:48] Creep - Isolation Trip [11:12] Spore [5:35] Resonant Gore [17:38]

product info

Vidna Obmana - Atmospheres, rhythms, various Fujara's, overtone flutes and percussion, dreampipe, recycling & abstract mutations, voices, electric guitar and E Bow harmonics Marc Verhaeghen - Trumpet Spore is the apotheosis of his fascination for Dante's Inferno poem while the reference to his industrial music past will be brought up to a new level. Rhythmic, dense, eerie and pulsating, it will continue where Tremor left off… Another 74-minute trip which features the fantastic guestappearances by Joris De Backer on double bass and strings and Marc Verhaeghen of The Klinik on trumpet. 2002. Press information

review

The second chapter in renowned ethno-ambient / electronic artist VidnaObmana's Dante trilogy, and follow-up to his critically acclaimed Tremor release, Spore is the apotheosis of vidna's fascination for Dante's Inferno poem. Whereas Tremor was a 'musical trip downwards', Spore is the actual under worldly dwelling place. References to Vidna's 'industrial' past of the early 80's remain strongly present, while the fusion of his ambient soundscapes with bolder and less spatial combinations of harmonics, dynamics and experimentation is even more accentuated. Rhythmic, dense, eerie and pulsating, Spore continues where Tremor left off... VidnaObmana again utilizing his vast collection of instruments (like the Slovakian Fujara and the electric guitar) along with more industrial-like elements to score this much anticipated second chapter. 2003. Press Information

review

The second in Vidna Obmana’s trilogy inspired by Dante’s Inferno, one of the long term projects he is creating. The cover warns that all extreme high and low frequencies, feedback and dissonant harmonies are intentional ­ and extremes there are many. This is a darker and more disturbing section of the trilogy than the first CD ­ Tremor. The sounds are put together in a way that is more uncomfortable to listen to, beautiful notes laboring to be heard under rhythms that sound like you've slashed your speaker cones with a razor blade. Then comes a wash of distorted sound over what appears to be unsullied bass tones ­ though this is hard to tell in the overall distortion. Some of the ‘notes’ used in the rhythms sound like high pitched feedback being played through a very cheap amplifier at top volume and coming out of nothing but a tweeter. The CD takes the rhythms, dissonance and washes of sound from Tremor and pushes them further into the story of a journey through hell. Track titles such as ‘Skin Strip’, ‘Through The Collective Pain’ and ‘Resonant Gore’ give an indication of the terrain being explored. As with Tremor the music is not mechanical enough to seem ‘industrial’ or mechanical in nature, perhaps more a nightmarish vision of a cross between organic and electronic environments. Vidna Obmana has worked hard to develop the sound territory in this second CD and I look forward to the third installment. 2004. Andy / Wales

review

Fans of dark, somber, ambient EM will not be disappointed by VidnaObmana's release, Spore. Filled with VidnaObmana's trademark "cavernous" sound, the nine tracks on this CD are eerie, tense, droning, and ethereal. The album begins with the track titled, "Through the Collective Pain", which slowly fades into consciousness, reverberating and thrumming its way into the forefront. "The Humanity Underneath" begins with a subdued screeching, building in intensity, weaving an agonizing path through the consciousness, then diminishing to its climax, with a relief felt much like that at the conclusion of an amusement park thrill ride. "Skin Strip" is a pulsing, eerie blend of throbbing beats, murmured voices, dark electronics, and hypnotic trance effects. Other cuts, with titles such as "The Nihilist", "Creep-Isolation Trip", and "Resonant Gore" provide not-so-subtle clues as to the nature of the music on this CD. "Abrasive" is the word used by VidnaObmana to describe the feel of his electronic music, and it is a word that fits. With over 35 CD's to his credit, VidnaObmana (the name means 'optical illusion') has carved out a name for himself in the world of dark ambient EM. He has collaborated with other notable names in the field, such as Steve Roach, Robert Rich, Alio Die, Brannan Lane, and is thus a "heavyweight" in this field. This is not music for everyone, or for anytime. It can confound, confuse, irritate and frustrate. It can set one's nerves on edge, yet it can also be eerily soothing at the same time. It can take one into mental neighborhoods where traveling alone would be ill-advised. Spore is a CD that should have a warning label affixed to it. But if you're a VidnaObmana fan, you already knew that. 2004. Fred Puhan / Ambient Visions

review

Spore follows on from Tremor as the second part in vidnaObmans's trilogy inspired by Dante's Inferno. An eerie, dark ambient album with mutated ethnic elements and echoes from an industrial heritage. The nine tracks are largely rhythmic, often with strong techno-ritualist programmed beats. VidnaObmana is credited with the following sound sources: Atmospheres, rhythms, various Fujara's, overtone flutes and percussion, dream pipe, recycling & abstract mutations, voices, electric guitar and E Bow harmonics. We also have guest appearances by Marc Verhaeghen on trumpet and Joris De Backer with double bass and strings. Without becoming melodramatic, Spore explores uncomfortable sonic territories and imagery with paradoxically the most unearthly section being the sonorous, muttering human voices on Skin Strip. Discomforting, nightmarish atmospheres thrumming with a strange beauty. Trance inducing repetition and tense electronic mutation gives way to brief moments of calm and grace before the creeping rhythms start up again. A sequence of gothic bass guitar notes like the tolling of a dull rusted bell leads some tracks onward. Some of the sounds are uncomfortable to hear - but the sleeve notes tells us: "All extreme high and low frequencies, feedback and dissonant harmonies are intentional and part of the composition. Please handle the playback of this CD with care". The graphic approach is at unity with that of Tremor - Martin Verhoeven's large, textural, grainy photographic abstractions contrasted with razor sharp panels, text and graphics. The quote from Inferno chosen for this album is "Hope nevermore to look upon the heavens; I come to lead you to the other shore, To the eternal shades in heat and frost". Whereas the descent of Tremor was black and white, Spore is sepia toned with highlights of red text - it seems that at the lowest point there is color....this reminds us that Spore is a musical exploration of a place - a place that means different things to different individuals - hence the hues and tones, although undeniably dark, are no more frightening than you choose. VidnaObmana is often called an 'ethno-ambient/dark ambient/electronic artist' and I guess they're possible labels (if somewhat simplistic); this CD is certainly dark and electronic, it has some ethnic instrumentation and the structure could be seen as ambient since melodies are not prominent. Truly though - vidnaObmana is a trailblazer, Spore sounds very different from most other music, experimental although not hard to listen to (nevertheless, in places, challenging or even attacking the nerves and senses). As with Tremor, the production is immaculate, each twisted layer and texture having its own frequency space to turn in. If you enjoyed Tremor, Spore is a gratifying development of the same theme. vidnaObmana music at it's most powerful, pioneering and well presented. But beware, you don't have here an album of easy melodies, comfortable beats or drifting ambient bliss - this CD is a dense, gritty post-industrial bouquet of dead roses, alluring and elegant but bleak, rich in symbolism and conscious of its own mortality. If you want to depart the beaten track and visit sound worlds that provoke rather than sooth, that probe new terrains rather than play safe - try Spore. Morpheus