“Indra visits all genres of EM vibes in a very harmonious CD loaded of solid rhythms”
1 Atlas on Stage 5:20
2 Saltimbanc 5:06
3 Ariel 6:26
4 The Bride is Happy 4:12
5 Sheikh's Dream 5:03
6 Quick Movement 8:08
7 To Jenna 4:34
8 The Monk 5:40
9 Next Future 5:56
10 Telos 4:21
(CD/DDL 54:50) (V.F.)
(Berlin School EDM)
One of Indra's strengths is his diversity. The Romanian synthesist is not afraid to evolve in his musical universe, which ranges from meditative ambient music to minimalist Berlin School rhythms with a tonality that blends analog with the more modern New Berlin School. His CDs can be as surprising as confusing at first listen. There is always that little something that charms and makes you listen again. SIGNS is full of this with its multiplicity of genres that our ears discover.
All in echo, Atlas on Stage hypnotizes us with its fine sequenced line and its beat on the analog scents of the percussions. The synth keys tangle in an echo and begin a hypnotic march against an orchestral backdrop. As string section movements twist languidly, the track hugs a line that spins and swirls as it folds in on itself. An amazing track that instantly catches our attention. The stage is set for SIGNS. An album with various visions which offers light and melodious tracks which oscillates between a light techno, a timid new age and some good sequenced Berlin School lines. Indra is master of his kingdom and exploits the keys and pulsations in spiral, giving an incredible depth to his compositions and especially his rhythms. If Saltimbanc is at the limits of New Age with its piano-like synth play and its light rhythm, Ariel is a deeper track. A soft synth blows on a hesitant sequencer, forming an echoing background. The rhythm is slow and sways over shuffling drumming and tabla percussions. With The Bride is Happy it's time to tap your foot. The approach is quite techno with its curt beat and its heavy chords a bit like Depeche Mode.
Sheik's Dream is another find! On a hesitant sequencer line modulated by a sensual bass, the synth escapes and let drop a line with an accordion sound having Asian perfumes. Hooked by solid percussions, the synth throws superb solos which spread in echo. A good track that evolves on a great passage where percussions and synthesizer provoke a stir that intensifies the rhythm. This is one of the very good tracks in Indra catalog. A Quick Movement offers a sequenced line that swirls in a Berlin School approach. Without being hypnotic, the beat spins around galloping percussions and messy chords that adopt melodious movements. To Jenna has a soft techno beat a la Jean-Michel Jarre and swirls around a melodious synth and analog flavored sound effects that marked the early albums of the French synthesist. A good track as melodious as catchy. More thoughtful, The Monk emerges from the raucous atmospheric noises and embraces a fine line of a hypnotic sequencer in Berlin School mode. The cadence charms and surprises with tribal flavored lines. Next Future stuns with its heavy percussions. The rhythm is static and swings on a continuous sequencer line. The synth is fabulously disordered with a vision inspired by Klaus Schulze. Midway through the track, the rhythm breaks and gets livelier with some great synth solos and more frenzied percussions. Another great track on this SIGNS! Telos closes this CD on a more ambient note. The synth is crying, but is it crying or blowing? It doesn't matter. It's melancholic and has a sweetness that is matched only by its beauty.
SIGNS is one of the good CDs in 2005. Indra embraces all genres with as much ease as he masters his sequencers and synths. It's a very harmonious CD that can be listened from the beginning to the end without seeming too long. Not a key, not a second of wasted nor any filler or artistic hollow. A 55 minutes well placed that is well worth the expense!
Sylvain Lupari (July 31st, 2006) ***½**
Available at Indra Bandcamp