Nebula - The Path Of White Clouds (Stella Maris, 2003)

1 The Quest 4:00
2 Ascension 10:36
3 Devotion 13:25
4 The Living Mandala 9:15
5 Enlightenment 16:20
6 The Path Of White Clouds 11:16

Nebula's first album, Genesis was one of my favorite releases of 2002--an extremely evocative musical travelogue through the creation of the universe from a spiritual perspective. Now, Nebula return with The Path of White Clouds and a larger line-up that reads like a European Ambient Super-group: featuring Oöphoi, Klaus Wiese, Tau Ceti (whose recent collaboration with Oöphoi, Subterrania, is well worth hunting down), Mathias Grassow, Mauro Malgrande, Lorenzo Pierobon, and others. The sound is exactly what one might expect from these artists, though this release abandons the deep space textures and tones in favor of spaces located within the psyche.

The Path of White Clouds begins with "The Quest" which sounds very similar to the material found on Genesis--deep, resonant drones which have the feeling of ascending higher and higher as one listens (rather like some of Michael Stearns work on the Serge synth). This is the briefest track on the CD (at four minutes), and it's clear we are coming from the depth of the nascent universe to a more personal, inner universe. The Buddhist ritual has begun, perhaps, and the higher pitched sounds of singing bowls are ushering us into a quiet trance. The quest is fulfilled quite quickly, indeed, because "Ascension" is achieved almost immediately. Fans of Oöphoi's The Spirals of Time will find much familiar here as lulling synth drones are accompanied by strange whispering winds and ghostly ambiences. Subtle harmonic chant (easily mistaken for synth) is then layered atop the breathy winds, and an extremely evocative trip is begun. The chanting is excellent, progressive and yet still extremely ambient--it's a fine compliment to Oöphoi's psychedelic tonal wash, which sounds like a dramatically dark David Parsons. Next is "Devotion" which opens with sustained gonging (that reaches infinity, it seems). This lunarscape is populated with more ghostly vocals, male and female, giving this a strangely cosmic flavor. One might just as easily be drifting over the quietly trilling moon, as on the Sargasso Sea, mesmerized by sirens. This is a willfully ethereal track, and a highlight. "The Living Mandala" (the title of which sounds like a strange B horror movie) travels to more synthetic territory, with gliding synths and processed shakuhachi that sounds similar to the vocalization on "Ascension." Tracks like this populate the best of Oöphoi and Grassow releases, and this sounds like a perfect combination of the best of both oeuvres. Tinkling bells add to the ambience, making a textbook example of the strengths and simplicities of these artists' works.

The epic "Enlightenment" is next, and, at over sixteen minutes, represents the centerpiece of The Path of White Clouds. Continuing the ghostly atmospheres of earlier tracks, the muted sounds of the shakuhachi, as well as some similar sounding synths, meld with airy sounds and unrecognizable noises. This is a quiet, meditative track comprised of what seems to be a rarified air. It's also a perfect track to sleep to, as the sounds never leave the periphery of consciousness--it's like listening to a quiet dream. Eventually, synths rise louder, but they are of an appropriately stratospheric quality as enlightenment sneaks up on us unexpectedly. Finally, "The Path of White Clouds" acts as a capstone to the album, with Klaus Wiese's zither (much like his work on El-Hadra) combined with Pierobon's harmonic vocals. Yet more ghostly ambience, and we reach the end of a singularly mysterious, airy, and intriguing album.

Unlike the first Nebula album, The Path of White Clouds seems more a cobbling of previously recorded elements than a true collaboration between the artists. As with the previously reviewed Expanding Horizon, this seems an album built up from existing past work. There is much on The Path of White Clouds that is very familiar (even expected) from Oöphoi and his cohorts. Nonetheless, this is strong material, even if not nearly as memorable as Genesis. Fans of the artists involved will not want to miss this one, though casual ambienteers might find other works by those involved more worthy of attention. The Path of White Clouds will not disappoint drone junkies, like myself. However, its limited status of 300 copies is justified, making it a treasure for those who worship the drone, and few others.
The Ambient Review

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Nebula - Genesis (Stella Maris, 2002)

1 OM Creation: Breaking The Cosmic Egg 3:12
2 Let There Be Light 6:48
3 Floating Galaxies 14:45
4 Time Vessel At The Gates Of Forever 14:45
5 Pulves Et Umbra (Dust And Shadows) 9:14
6 The Sacred Pool Of Tepeu And Gucumatz 18:30
7 The Dawn Of Man 9:38


GENESIS, by Nebula, deals with the theme of creation and ultimately emergence of human consciousness. It begins with an exhalation, which the listener imagines as a moment of birth. Since the title of the album is GENESIS, our imaginations are led on a musical course with seven directional markers. Because it is a work of art, not a didactic treatise, the listener may interpret these points in any way they wish. Obvious references to Biblical, Buddhist, Hindu, perhaps even ancient Greek myths leaves us free to focus on one, all or even none of these traditions. This is a mixture of electronic and acoustic sounds, a blend of carefully wrought electronic scapes interacting with reverberations of Tibetan singing bowls and floating primeval sheets of flute, that can be experienced either as questions that the listener feels compelled to reflect upon, or else as answers that require deep listening in order to make interpretative patterns on our minds.

The first four movements invite us to step through visible and audible aspects of life, submerging in a space permeated with thoughts melting into music. This type of primitive thought seems simple on the surface, yet highly complex to our 21st century minds full of thousands of years of intellectual theories which create an illusion that we are strangers in the world.

The fifth movement introduces a tender composition, beautiful in its execution. This piece in particular is reminiscent of some meditation albums of the 80's, but soon gives way to an extended electronic whirling in the sacred pool of Tepeu and Gucumatz. It is this invitation to a long, extended journey beyond the wondrous scapes of #5 that make this album particularly interesting.

Many ambient CD's would be happy to end on a serene track like "Pulves et Umbra". Many would find the opening of #6 almost unsettling; it can be said to carry a dark-ambient hue. Are the musicians of Nebula asking questions about what lies beyond some visions of apparent beauty? We know from Rilke's first Duino Elegies that beauty is often an angel that disdains to destroy us. Therefore poetically, this moment is significant. About a third of the way through this track, familiar themes from earlier in the album return, and the ominous chords disappear. A stark emptiness envelops us, then stretches notes to introduce great swathes of silence. It is this part of the album that conjures some of the deepest meditative states. Nebula manages to sustain a minute variation of tone and sensation.

As #6 nears its end, the first stirrings of a shadow move into focus. Something hovers into our perceptions. We are not at this point sure if it is solid matter, a light, or a consciousness that wants to communicate with us. And this is what makes the album fascinating: mystery is never explained away. But we are given a clue. The final track, #7, is entitled "The Dawn of Man". It begins with a pause and concentration of energies, before shimmering waves of human voice emerge, barely audible, unfolding into nascent colours and sounds forming the backdrop to human life and imagination.

This music does not encourage a notion that human consciousness is an accidental mushroom that has sprung up on the chemical, organic soup of earth; rather, that we are among the destined manifestations of the universe.

Nebula is a melange of five talents:

1. Klaus Wiese (ex Popol Vuh member): Tibetan singing bowls, steel cello #4, synths #4.
2. Mauro Malgrande: shakuhachi flute and production.
3. Lorenzo Pierobon: harmonic chant and electronics #7.
4. Tau Ceti: synths on tracks #2 and #5.
5. Oophoi (referred to be some as a "Drone Master"): synths, samples, gongs, drones, loops, waves, processing and concept.

Recorded, mixed & mastered by Oophoi and Tau Ceti in the Kiva, April 2002.
Steveroach.com

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