The Hidden Moon

the hidden moon

Editorial Reviews
Aural Innovations
Eternity's Jest Records' motto is a dedication to freaky sounds and The Hidden Moon is packed full of all things freaky, dreamily flowing, and even fun.

Product Description
quarkspace - "The Hidden Moon" (Eternity's Jest Records 1999, CD)

In my goal to discover new and interesting sounds for lovers of progressive rock, I present you the last album -a double CD - of this wonderful band from Columbus, Ohio, Quarkspace. The line-up is Chet Santia (bass, acoustic guitar, voices), Jay Swanson (synthesisers), Dave Wexler (guitar), Paul Williams (synthesisers, drums, loops, voices), and Darren Gough (guitar).

Their music core is cosmic space rock, to which brushstrokes of krautrock, progressive, techno and blues are added. This is their fourth official CD, in a discography that includes an impressive first CD Quarkspace, a second live album Live at Orion that shows their improvisation capabilities, and a third minor album of improvisations Spacefolds 5. In the past, the group also published a series of four cassettes of improvisations. Dave and Paul have also released an album as National Steam in 1998, more spacey and less complex.

After this brief introduction to Quarkspace, let us now analyse their last CD, The hidden moon. it has a really beautiful cover, with pictures from the artist David Gulotta, on a very similar style to that of Dal, which already provides us an indication of the musical path these gentlemen walk by. As I have already mentioned, it is a double CD, with more than 145 minutes of music. Obviously, it is difficult to maintain a constant clarity and quality of ideas for this long time, and this is in my opinion the only global defect of this album. Nevertheless, it is very easy to condense in one hour a selection of the best moments, which would really deserve 5 stars.

In my opinion, it is worthwhile to highlight the easiness with which these four musicians move around different styles, being driven by music, without any hurry, improvising, and always maintaining interesting and complex structures. Their music presents clear influences, but they are perfectly integrated to create their own sound and advance a step forward.

We can distinguish four different styles in the 15 tracks of this CD, always with the departure point being an omnipresent space, cosmic sound:

1) In my opinion, the less attractive songs are those that include a more techno-electronic influence (as The Orb, Orbital, or Ozric Tentacles). The space-sound base is fabulous, with a spectacular work of the different musicians, but my brain is not able to mix the sound of the samples and loops with that of the remaining instruments. Nevertheless, I believe that we can expect from them that in the next CD this amalgam of sounds will be more precise. The best examples in this album are "Starbridge Freaks" and "Park rangers".

2) A second group of songs adds to the stew influences from krautrock, as that of the best Can or Amon Duul. In this album, the best example is "Krautball's demise", a fabulous song with heart-breaking guitars, keyboards that invite you to get up and dance and jump and fly, and a happy bouncing bass/drums sound.

3) Many tracks take us on a trip into the interstellar space flirting with psychedelia and blues, with well used influences from Hawkwind, the first Tangerine Dream, Soft Machine or even the Meddle - Atom Heart Mother period of Pink Floyd. Worth highlighting are "Nebula", and the monstrous and long (19 minutes) "Where Galaxies collide", a marvellous sample of head music. Listen to this in darkness and silence, and fly away.

4) Finally, in each album of the group, some delicate and brilliant progressive melodic jewels are included: those songs in which Chet Santia sings. A sensual and ethereal voice, similar to that of sweetest Peter Gabriel (sometimes I could believe Peter is in my room) or Nick Drake, in wonderful mid-tempo songs -please enjoy the 13 minutes of "Somebody else's dream" and "The Circle". In these pieces guitars move smoothly with slide guitar riffs and passages on the style of Camel or King Crimson, keyboards drift and create a pleasant ambient base, while the rhythm section plays in our ears. These songs, that at first, surprise us for being far from the habitual style in the group, are jewels.

The Hidden Moon,Quarkspace,The Orchard,Pop,Rock,Rock/Pop,Space Rock

The Hidden Moon

Average customer rating:

Not for the average listener
A thoroughly enjoyable trip through Central Asia and a few other places.
Silk Road Journey
A Detailed Review From A Non-expert Music Lover
Silk Road student

Silk Road Journeys: When Strangers Meet
Yo-Yo Ma , and Silk Road Ensemble
Manufacturer: Sony
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Silk Road Journeys: Beyond the Horizon
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Soul of the Tango: The Music of Astor Piazzolla
Yo-Yo Ma Plays Ennio Morricone

ASIN: B0000641CG
Release Date: 2002-04-16

Tracks:

Mongolian Traditional longsong
Legend of Herlen (Byambasuren Sharav)
"Blue Little Flower" (Chinese Traditional)
"Mido Mountain" (Chinese Traditional)
Moon over Guan Mountain (Zhao Jiping)
"Miero vuotti uutta kuuta" from Five Finnish Folk Songs (Michio Mamiya)
"Joiku" from Five Finnish Folk Songs (Michio Mamiya)
Avaz-e Dashti (Persian Traditional)
Habil-Sayagy (In Habil's Style) for cello and prepared piano (Franghiz Ali-Zadeh)
Blue as the Turquoise Night of Neyshabur (Kayhan Kalhor)
Chi passa per'sta strada (Filippo Azzaiolo)
Desert Capriccio (Music from the film Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon/Tan Dun) (Bonus Track)

Amazon.com

This disc introduces Yo-Yo Ma's latest and most ambitious adventure, the Silk Road Project. It explores the cultures that flourished along the Silk Road, the ancient trade route that for centuries connected Europe and the East. Founded by Ma in 1998, the project aims to create connections, mutual trust, and cultural interchange between people from different parts of the world through their only shared language: music.

This recording includes music from Mongolia, China, Persia, Japan, Iran, Azerbaijan, and an improvisation on an Italian Renaissance street song, performed by musicians from all those countries, as well as America, on both Eastern and Western instruments. Ma, who participates in every piece either as soloist or part of the ensemble, plays cello and a Mongolian "horse-head fiddle." There is also a Mongolian soprano, who sings a traditional song native to her region. For the uninitiated Western listener, the music requires some getting used to. Much of it is based on rhythmic ostinatos. The melodies use Oriental scales; the intonation is untempered; the music seems all color, texture, and atmosphere, without what might be called themes; and repetition takes the place of development. Contrast is achieved through sudden change, buildup by adding instruments. However, the music is often beautiful, delicate, dreamy, or peaceful; every listener will find his or her own favorite pieces. The playing is splendid, with much inventive improvisation. Inevitably, Ma's tone and personality stand out, but he never dominates in fact or spirit. The booklet offers essays by Ma and the project's musicologist, Theodore Levin, photographs of the players, and drawings of the Eastern instruments. --Edith Eisler

Customer Reviews:

Not for the average listener.......2007-03-20

I was going to give it 2 stars, but then again i only listened to it once.
I was looking forward to this, but the music is plodding in many parts,
like a dreary symphony. There are fine moments, but I was looking for something a bit more accesible, rhymic, and lyrical. This is a mixed bag that seems to miss more often than hit.

A thoroughly enjoyable trip through Central Asia and a few other places........2007-03-15

I have just added this to my musical library and am enjoying it. From the first beat of the first note of Khongozurl's long song you are transported to central Asia - the land of horses and gers. Of all the pieces I was most interested in listening to the second piece - Legend of Herlen. This to me, was the real silk road. The morin khuur has a very rich and unusual tone that made we want to listen to the it over and over again. Each piece is different and reminds one of the many parts that make up the whole of central asia's culture be it music or diesel trucks competing for road space with camels. The music captures the variety that makes up the region. The Finnish Folksong tracks are a nice touch. I have a friend who was at a trade conference and met a man from Mongolia. Neither could talk to one another until they discovered a common language - Finnish! My friend's family is Finnish and his new Mongolian friend had lived for several years in Finland where he learned enough of the language to communicate. Listening to the Finnish Folksongs reminds me of the Finnish-Mongolian connection that my friend had described. It is a nice touch and complements the other pieces very well. Please don't neglect to read the information insert as this gives a wealth of information on the music and it's origins as well as some of the difficulties experienced by western players playing traditional middle Asian musical instruments. Ma's difficulties with his instrument are particularly interesing to read. The concludig track - Desert Capriccio is a very nice ending to a very rich musical experince. The music from Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is the perfect ending to this trip through central Asia. I highly recommend this CD to everyone.

Silk Road Journey.......2007-02-19

I saw a performance of the Silk Road Ensemble and was absolutely enthralled. So I bought the CD. But it was a big disappointment. It's not the type of music you can comfortably listen to in your living room - I'm sure it would be much more enjoyable in a concert hall. There was far too much that just sounded like "screeching" to me. However, some of the pieces that were much like what we heard at the performance were beautiful. So - a mixed review, but I disliked more than I liked.

A Detailed Review From A Non-expert Music Lover.......2007-01-12

In this review I will give my opinion on each of the 12 selections in this CD, and will also talk about some general themes related to the title "The Silk Road Project".

To anyone who has heard of the Silk Road in Ancient China, the title of this CD immediately brings up images of exotic peoples and their cultures in your mind. I think Yo-Yo Ma's efforts in creating such a culturally diversified recording are definitely welcomed in this era of globalization.

But after listening through this CD I felt that something was missing from the selections. One of the most important areas on the Silk Road is the Uyghur region in northwestern China. Their music is quite unique. Inclusion of their music in this CD would be really interesting. Also in this CD not all of the selections are chosen from those regions directly related to the Silk Road. So I guess the title is just a metaphor of "when strangers meet", but is not directly about the cultures along the Silk Road.

Now I will review each of the selections.

1. Mongolian Traditional Long Song

I am somewhat familiar with their culture and land. So to me this song is very beautiful and enchanting. One of the most important factors in conducting any cross-cultural communications is context! You really cannot take it out of context. The Mongolian Long Song might sound monotonous and drawling to a person who is more used to the Western tradition of chant, choral, or opera music. Yet if you know the traditional nomadic lifestyle of the Mongolian people on the vast rolling greens of the Mongolian grassland embellished with winding creeks and rivers, you would probably hear such long-singing voices reverberating between the green of the grass and the blue of the sky. The Mongolian people have some of the most beautiful songs that I know of.

2. Legend of Herlen

There are probably two broad categories of non-western ethnic musics. One is the authentic folksong tradition of the people, the other is westernized works composed by westernized local musicians. I guess Legend of Herlen might fall into the second category. It has some interesting tunes in it. But the overall listening experience is too dramatic. I guess the dynamics used in this piece might even go beyond the ppp and fff. In the Mongolian traditional music, dynamics are sometimes used quite dramatically, with sharp difference between two adjacent notes or phrases. So this piece here is probably not very surprising. Nonetheless I find it a little too dramatic, sometimes even disturbing. Again I am not familiar with the background of this piece, so that might explain the unusual drama.

3. Blue Little Flower

I am not sure what fusion should really sound like. But in this piece it does seem to me that a lot of musical traditions are intertwined in it: western music, Chinese folksong from Shaanxi, and probably Iranian or Indian drums. Somehow the only part of this song that I liked is the beginning line. It's very beautiful and delicate, reminding me of the theme music from the Couching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. But it is westernized, not authentic Chinese folksong. If this is still not a problem, then the drum used in this piece does cause a lot of funny effects. The drum sounds so distinctive and it represents some of the central or western Asia cultures. The images such drum beats conjure up are very incompatible with this northwestern Chinese folksong. So in this piece there are at least three threads: western, Chinese, and Iranian/Indian (I am not sure which one). But they do not converge. There is also the funny part of the singing included in this piece. It is out of place and unnecessary. The singing itself is just too frivolous to me.

4. Mido Mountain

I like this piece, especially the part played by the Sheng. Again there are some elements that sound a little bit too foreign to me, especially the percussion part. They use the same percussion/drum in this piece as in the previous one. But the overall effect of the arrangement does sound authentic and pleasant to me.

5. Moon Over Guan Mountains

If you know that Zhao Jiping is famous for his scores for films, you will probably understand this piece better. But of course understanding does not mean you will like it. This piece falls into the second category that I described above. For a lot of non-Western countries, the influence of western music is definitely immense. Many local composers are trained in both the western tradition and the local tradition. But there is probably a general feeling among composers in these countries that western music is richer in theory and methods. Many of these composers will use themes from folk songs to compose westernized music. I will give this piece a B+. It does include some themes from northwestern China, which sound really unique. As I said in this CD there is no selection from the Uyghur region in China, this piece might make up for that, since some of the themes seem to me to be from that region. But this piece is still too dramatic too, like a film score.

6. Five Finnish Folksongs No. 3

I love this one! The theme melody is so beautiful, and maybe a little bit nostalgic, and maybe a little bit romantic also? But this piece is straightly western music. There is nothing ethnic about it.

7. Five Finnish Folksongs No.5

This one is ok, but not very impressive. The overall structure of this piece sounds like very loose. There is not memorable melody either. But it does not have the maddening drama like in the two pieces I have just talked about. This is good.

8. Avaz-e Dashti
I am not familiar with Persian music. But there are indeed some very Persian melodies in this piece. The instruments used in this piece are all traditional Persian instruments. Maybe this is why it sounds so authentic to me. I like the haunting, floating tunes in this piece. They sound very ethereal to me.

9. Habil-Sayagy

Again this piece falls into the second category like the Legend of Herlen and Moon Over Guan Mountains. Such music is probably interesting to the performers, since they can let loose their inner floodgate of emotions and resort to pure artistic connections. But the problem for such music is that they are just too dramatic, and it's really hard to understand them without fairly good knowledge of the context and their unique cultural backgrounds. I am sure all these three pieces might sound profound, meaningful, and artistic once we know the cultural backgrounds better. But for the general listener, they are too abstract and too emotionally charged. Another problem for such western-traditional combination pure art form of music is that tradition might be distorted and represented in the wrong way.

10. Blue as the Turquoise Night of Neyshabur

I like this one better that the previous one, especially the middle part beginning at around 5 min 30 sec into the music. The melody is quite unique, and memorable. The bassline is very interesting too. It conjures up the image of merchants traveling on camel back through the desert. The pulse of the bass sounds like the steps of camels walking. One the instruments used, I am not sure which one, santur or kemancheh, is quite successful in bringing out the authenticity of the music style.

11. Chi passa per'sta strada

This one has the same problem as the Blue Little Flower: it does not sound like anything! It is not Italian, nor is it Iranian, nor Chinese, nor anything else. What is it? Who knows. The ethnicity of world music is tied to their unique musical instruments closely. I remember there was one year the Chinese traditional orchestra had a New Year's Concert at Vienna, and when they played the Radetzky March at the end of the concert, I was quite unimpressed.

12. Desert Capriccio

Tan Dun is similar to the composers I mentioned above like Zhao Jiping. Tan's music is unique and interesting to both western and Chinese audience, because of the same thing: they are both unfamiliar with Tan's music. To the Chinese audience, his music sounds western, but to the Western audience, his music sounds exotic. Nonetheless I still like some of this music, like the Couching Tiger and Hidden Dragon. Some of the melodies are really great. Again this piece makes up for the lack of Uyghur music in this album, since the "desert" in this piece is in the Uyghur region. But the music is not Uyghur at all.

There you have it. That's all for my detailed review of this CD. I would give it a B+ for its efforts and some of the really good tunes. As I am not an expert, I might be wrong in many of the points that I make in this review. So feel free to comment on my review.

Silk Road student.......2007-01-05

Each story is complete within itself and offers insight into the life and hard times. I found the stories very believeable.

Average customer rating:

An Adventure in Music
CD is not compatible with my player

Silk Road Journeys: When Strangers Meet

Manufacturer: Sony
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Dark Side of the Moon 30th Anniversary Edition

ASIN: B00005USF3
Release Date: 2002-04-30

Tracks:

Mongolian Traditional Long Song
Legend of Herlen
Blue Little Flower
Mido Mountain
Moon Over Guan Mountains
Five Finnish Folksong: No. 3 Miero Vuotti Uutta Kuuta
Five Finnish Folksong: No. 5 Joiku
Avaz-E Dashti
Habil-Sayagy (In Habil's Style)
Blue as the Turquoise Night of Neyshabur
Chi Passa Per'sta Strada
Desert Capriccio [From Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon][*]

Customer Reviews:

An Adventure in Music.......2002-10-31

Yo-Yo Ma's Silk Road Project is a noble and ambitious attempt to bring together "traditional" musicians of Asia with Western musicians. For the most part, they play new music that combines Western instruments with instruments (and tonalities) of China, India, Azerbaijan, Mongolia, and other countries along the Silk Road.

Normally, I avoid new music, because much of it is self-indulgent stuff. But the Silk Road Ensemble and its music are quite the opposite: lively, fascinating, musical in the best sense of the word.

My wife and I have had the privilege of seeing the Silk Road Ensemble perform twice, in March and October of 2002, and they are fabulous. But if you cannot make the concert, this disk is the next best thing. Highly recommended!

CD is not compatible with my player.......2002-06-18

In the excitement of finding this CD, I did not notice that it requires a special player. Upon receiving it and unpacking it I saw the "super audio player only" sticker, and thought that my player would be sofisticated enough to be able to handle it. But, NO. I have spoken with friends and professionals and everyone was surprised to hear of my predicament. I would very much like to return this CD for the same title that will play on my player. Since I could not find a customer service site to air my disappointment, I chose this.

Average customer rating:

Great music, sweet vocals, very comforting.
A calming, spiritual wonder

Hidden Waters/Sacred Ground
Sophia
Manufacturer: Ivory Moon Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | New Age | Styles | Music

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ASIN: B000005RCG
Release Date: 1995-07-07

Tracks:

Sweet Surrender
Charana Kamara Bundu Hari Dai
Earth Is Our Mother
Sacred Ground Round
Hidden Waters

Customer Reviews:

Great music, sweet vocals, very comforting........1999-03-19

We have used the cut, Sweet Surrender, in classes designed to facilitate life change. When played with a light-sound device, the effect can be cosmic. For women suffering from depression, this one song is worth the price of the cd.

A calming, spiritual wonder.......1999-02-25

The best new age music there is

Average customer rating:

Not Bola's Best
Immaculent
a unique CD

Shambahala Moon
Bola Sete
Manufacturer: Samba Moon
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Ocean Memories

ASIN: B0000641AR
Release Date: 2002-04-02

Tracks:

The Sun Pours Through the Darkness Gently, Gently
Moonbeams, Moonlight, Midnight Magic
Morning Rises Through the Mist
Night Shadows
Sorcerers, Spirits, Devas, and Delights
Shambhala Moon
Many Shades of Green
Devas' Lament

Customer Reviews:

Not Bola's Best.......2005-05-29

i bought this CD based on the other reviews on Amazon & was very disappointed when i finally got it... i own 4 other Bola Sete CDs & this is easily my least favorite & will soon be for sale... i LOVE Bolas' music & guitar playing [see some of my other reviews] BUT this CD is not that music... much more "new age" sounding & dissonant than his other recordings... unless you're a collector of all of Bolas' recordings- i'd spend my money on his other recordings like "Ocean Memories" or "Tour de Force".

Immaculent.......2004-05-15

I have never heard anything like it. It puts feelings into music unlike anything else I have ever heard. Bola is one of my favorite musicians and this might be the best album he ever recorded. The sound is lush, full and very spiritual. I recommend this to every one with ears

a unique CD.......2002-06-02

This CD contains some remarkable guitar playing. Where Bola Sete's "Ocean Memories" contains openly dramatic music, this CD is quiet, personal, and very deep. It isn't really jazz, or Brazilian style, or any specific style, but just the composer's own music. It's like being inside his head. The playing is immaculate and the guitar (a steel string acoustic) very well recorded. Best listened to in quiet surroundings, this is one CD that will last for a lifetime of listening. Attractive artwork, including a good photo of the composer, full detailed notes. Very strongly recommended.

Average customer rating:

excellent
Finalist - Grimmest Album of The Year

The Smell of Blood But Victory
Moon Lay Hidden
Manufacturer: Arthur's Round Table
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

Experimental Music | Miscellaneous | Styles | Music

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ASIN: B0000080N5
Release Date: 1995-01-01

Customer Reviews:

excellent.......2006-10-08

THE SELFDENYING AND AUTODESTRUCTIVE BRAINWASH IS SPREADING ALL OVER EUROPE - IN THE END 'MULTI-CULTURALISM' ONLY FUNCTIONS ON SOULLESS, UNCRITICAL AND MATERIALIZED CONSUMERS.

This found it's way into my collection through the same source as a number of other unusual but interesting titles of european descent. TSOBBV is anything but the happy, bubbly audio fluff that rides the American airwaves with a giggle and a cowboy hat. In fact this music is an indication that there actually are people capable of escaping the mass media's all encompassing vortex of sanitized gibberish. This is not the feel good album (CD) of any year and listening to it is unlikely to conjure visions of scantily clad blonde airheads grinding their booty.

Overall this is a dark and somewhat disturbing glimpse of a growing class of people who consider themselves and their cultural heritage the target of continuing systematic oppression. Much of this CD is both depressing and disturbing partly because it is an audio image of an unjust past ensuring a future without hope and partially because the inevitable social expression of seething hidden rage will not be pretty.

History is more accurately told by a people's music than it is history books or the media. It is really unfortunate that any person, group or movement should be so subjugated that they can't say (lyrically or otherwise) what's on their mind. Any repressive society is one ruled by cowards!

Finalist - Grimmest Album of The Year.......2002-02-09

...This album moves from medieval "pop" to twisted martial rants to slow, bone-chilling dread. Many songs combine traditional instruments and dialogue loops. Mercifully, Alzbeth performs them in English. Much of the content is shaped by Alzbeth's obsession with the dark, bloody side of European history. Albin Julius (now Der Blutharsch) backs the stories with music that alternates between lively, scary and Hitchcock-ambient.

Highlights:
Track 2 - a slow march with a hundred clanking swords: "Survive in brutality / If you dare it you will fly over casualty"
Track 4 - an upbeat folk tune, and a call to battle.
Track 5 - some old recording of guys singing oom-pah with an accordian. The guys sound good, though.
Track 6 - a grand, neo-martial lament: "Our land / Our land is falling"
Track 8 - one of the scariest, saddest songs ever in any genre of music. Based on English serial killers Fred and Rosemary West: "Strangled in the parlor / Reena... / Tortured in the hall / Reena..."
Track 10 - starts with the scream of Bloody Mary, then you hear the axe fall. Sounds like the end of the world; I guess it WAS for her.
Track 12 - a self-duet; Alzbeth was actually a good singer when she eased up on the horror.
Track 14 - ambient with a chorus of wolves. Very dark, as siren songs go.

(Yeah, I'm noticing the numerical pattern here too...)

Track 16 - sounds like an off-key Viking opera.
Track 17 - the Hitchcock piece: slow, ambient dread. "And, so on and so on and...and, then in the end, he sent the money. Ha haaa!" (I think this one may touch on the kidnapping of the Lindbergh baby. I dunno.)

This may help convey the vibe: If you've ever been alone in a room with a dead person, and that person turned to look at you and whispered the truth...there you go. Happy listening, y'all!

A New Soldier Follows the Path of a New King
Average customer rating:

For Moon Lay Hidden, a pretty upbeat & catchy album

A New Soldier Follows the Path of a New King
The Moon Lay Hidden Beneath a Cloud
Manufacturer: Arthur's Round Table
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Experimental Music | Miscellaneous | Styles | Music
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ASIN: B00004SAJV
Release Date: 1995-01-01

Customer Reviews:

For Moon Lay Hidden, a pretty upbeat & catchy album.......2002-03-19

The album's cover says it all: two skulls surrounded by a bunch of other bones. The new soldier and the new king are no different, here at the end.

Overall, these songs are more melodic and lively than on most of their releases. Lots of renaissance ("renaissance" or "Renaissance"?) instruments, layered harmonies and military snare. Alzbeth and Albin let you get comfortable during the first half of the CD, then jerk you awake with track 12. A woman calls out defiantly to her captor. She comes to realize that the castle is empty - she is trapped alone in the cell.

Several of the songs are the neo-martial equivalent of "War! War! Good God, y'all! What is it good for? Absolutely nothin'! Say it again!" If you like dark ambient, this album has a few tracks in that style. Lyrically, there's a lot of grim humor reminiscent of fairy tales before they were sanitized. The last two songs are beautiful - a brief, soothing ambient piece followed by a seductive ballad ("Come here, little soldier, come here and take your armor off...for me...").

"A New Soldier Follows The Path of a New King" is one of Moon Lay Hidden's most melodic albums, with lots of singalong material as you sit around the fire, watching the witch burn.

A Night in Fear
Average customer rating:

Only for diehard Moon Lay Hidden fans (all 12 of us)

A Night in Fear
Moon Lay Hidden Beneath a Cloud , and Deutsch Nepal
Manufacturer: World
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music
ASIN: B000007YCP
Release Date: 1996-10-18

Customer Reviews:

Only for diehard Moon Lay Hidden fans (all 12 of us).......2001-04-11

If Swans made music in medieval Europe, you'd have The Moon Lay Hidden Beneath a Cloud. Scary anthems of madness among royalty, disease and war among the peasants. Many of these songs are rooted in historical fact, which makes them all the more disutrbing.

This 3-track cd is sort of an indulgence for TMLHBAC (I'll get carpal tunnel syndrome if I type their name out every stinkin' time). Albin Julius (now Der Blutharsch) and singer Alzbeth were impressed with Deutsch Nepal's twisted ambient stuff, so they collaborated.

Tracks:

Prince(7.06)
Starbridge Freaks(9.44)
Bones Blues for Planet X(10.10)
Somebody Elses Dream(13.39)
Krautballs Demise(17.38)
Astral Grinder(7.23)
Outerspace Highway(7.09)

Tracks:

I Bet Hes Looking for the Spaceman(12.48)
The Circle(7.05)
Nebula(7.00)
In the Shadows(6.47)
Where Galaxies Collide(18.43)
Park Rangers(8.38)
No.5(3.19)
Teather(7.36)

Album Description

quarkspace - "The Hidden Moon" (Eternity's Jest Records 1999, CD)

We can distinguish four different styles in the 15 tracks of this CD, always with the departure point being an omnipresent space, cosmic sound:

In conclusion, Quarkspace has shown again their capacity to advance musically, with a very interesting album that although ends up being too long (almost two and a half hours of music), will transport you to the space and the stars. An advice, go to their web, listen to the sound samples, and buy their albums (firstly the first and the last one). You will not be defrauded.

Amara Tanta Tyri
Average customer rating:

Sooo, tooonight I'm gonna party like it's 1329...

Amara Tanta Tyri
Moon Lay Hidden Beneath a Cloud
Manufacturer: World
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music
ASIN: B00000JZOR
Release Date: 1993-06-27

Customer Reviews:

Sooo, tooonight I'm gonna party like it's 1329..........2002-03-19

Go, Amazon, go!

This is the second Moon Lay Hidden album, and it picks up right where their debut left off. The songs are sort of medieval, neo-martial trance. The anger and brutal honesty regarding Europe's history is still taking shape, but the instrumentation is awesome.

As always, the tracks are untitled. The songs have a cinematic feel, like a soundtrack for the Black Plague. Tolling bells, monastic choirs, film dialogue, and Alzbeth taking all the romance and whimsy out of the Dark Ages. The livelier tracks would fit right into Monty Python's "The Holy Grail."

Sometimes the lyrics are hard to make out. I recommend snagging a copy of "Alzbeth: The Book of Lyrics." It gives the translations where needed, and provides ALL the background on why The Moon Lay Hidden Beneath a Cloud has such a chilling style...many of their songs are little history lessons. Track 20 is a glorious war anthem, a strong climax for the album.

If you're a fan of Der Blutharsch, you'll wonder why his work in Moon Lay Hidden is better than his solo work that followed. As far as I know, Alzbeth hasn't released diddly-squat since TMLHBAC - guess she chose to get out at the top of her game. "Amara Tanta Tyri" is a good introduction to their legacy. Where Swans had that Bodies-in-the-Bayou style, Moon Lay Hidden reached into the past and unearthed just as many.

Rest on Your Arms Reversed
Average customer rating:
Rest on Your Arms Reversed

Manufacturer: World Serpent
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD
ASIN: B000FH64LC

Product Description

Compilation album from The Moon Lay Hidden Beneath a Cloud

Rock Music:

Rock Music

rock music