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Monday, 22 July 2019

EDEN - Demain Sera Chaos de Fleurs


Artist: ÉDEN
Label: Hannah
Catalogue no: N/A

Tracklist:

1.      Demain sera Chaos de Fleurs
2.      Drowned in Space
3.      Static in the Void
4.      Rêves de Ruines
5.      Deeper, through the Light




This five track album is another release from the young Hannah label, one which appears to be issuing material solely through Bandcamp. Whereas Espaces by labelmate Nikita Fuji is one single musical expression divided up into seemingly arbitrary tracks, Demain sera Chaos de Fleurs (Tomorrow will be the Chaos of Flowers – although to be grammatically correct the French should be Demain sera Chaos des Fleurs) presents a varied selection of atmospheres and moods.

The title track begins with a pulsing organ-like tone that soon develops into a grainy fuzzed-out industrial machine noise swelling that piles up upon itself continuously, like a never-ending rumbling of thunder. Then we jump to the other end of the spectrum in ‘Drowned in Space’, echoing knocks from inside a gargantuan hollowed out metallic cocoon: an embryonic something existing in potentia that wants to born. It too, builds up steadily, its heartbeat getting stronger by the second.

‘Static in the Void’, the following track, again pulses and shimmers into view; perhaps this is the potential apparent in the previous piece now made absolute, and whatever it is has made itself manifest in three-dimensional space. The pulse of life and strength is solid and palpable here: its struggle for existence has been justified, and its living, breathing, and pulsating fleshiness has been birthed for all to see. ‘Rêves de Ruines’ is its manifesto perhaps, its announcement of the fulfilment of some idea or prophecy.

Finally, we get to what is my highlight of the album – ‘Deeper, through the Light’, a sumptuous swirling inflowing of sound and light, converging to a singularity of illumination. Does that illumination merely signify physical light, or is it the illumination of the sainted man or woman? Is it the return of matter to its source, or the mote in God’s eye into which we all return? Or is it merely a signpost, a pointer to a path on which we must all tread? Yes, it contains a subtle hint of the angelic, but simultaneously it also speaks of ineffable power. It is not to be trifled with: it may be the harbinger of a glorious future, but that future is merely the destination. The path itself is dangerous and full of peril, and we must be wary.

I thought of this as more of a sampler album on which the artist is laying out his wares on a virtual table. There is much potential apparent, even as it stands (four of the tracks are short, coming in under five minutes, but it’s only on the last track which, at over eleven minutes, gives it the room to breathe, expand, and explore properly). I suggest that perhaps that ÉDEN might consider gracing us with longer, more developed exegeses, allowing to us to become better acquainted with his vision. His work certainly deserves a wider canvas on which to paint his pictures.


Psymon Marshall 2019

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