Customer Reviews

Seven Veils

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Rich has many styles, including dark ambient and many collaborations with Steve Roach. But whatever you call this style (I have heard it called "ethnoambient") no one does it better than Rich. In fact, no one else sounds like Rich. His music is haunting and seems to come from some other planet. That's partly because of his use of (I don't know that much about music) "just intonation." It's a different tuning scale than Western ears are used to. Please excuse my limited vocabulary in trying to describe this. In a layman's terms it just sounds more haunting and more otherworldly than any other music. Two more elements make Rich's work, especially this one, stand out. Not every composer working in this vein and with these instruments has as strong a talent for rhythm. And those artists that do, often seem to produce only a few works that stand out in that area...unlike Rich, whose every selection in this vein has wonderful and original rhythms. This is partly due to his interest in mathematics (he has a CD called Geometry...it's wonderful, too). The rhythms are the main reason I like Gaudi and Seven Veils. I don't know where it comes from, but no one else can do it (in my opinion.) The other is melody. Many other composers combine electronic instruments with acoustic instruments and do it well (TUU, Suspended Memories.) But for compelling, otherworldly music with a sad, mysterious, haunting quality that will really transport you to other times and other worlds...investigate Rich, and especially Gaudi and Seven Veils.

I am a devout fan of Mr. Rich's work (I own everything he's done, whether solo, collaboration, or compilation, and I wait breathlessly for each new release), but I generally prefer his darker, less "new-agey" work, such as that released on the Hearts of Space sub-label Fathom (and on various compilations). So, when I heard that this new disc was to be released on the decidedly "new-agey" main label and not on Fathom, I was momentarily disappointed. I need not have worried, for this is NOT easy listening. Dense, rhythmic, yet still flowing, this disc is even more active and "in your face" than his last full length solo release, the excellent Propagation. It is also much more challenging and complex than that work. I've been impatiently awaiting this disc ever since I heard of its existence (under the working title Flux) at a Rich concert in the Santa Ynez valley 3 or 4 years ago. It was WELL worth the wait!

For those familiar with Rich's Bestiary album, you will find Seven Veils more traditional in its instrumentation, albeit exotic instruments. As the title suggests, the album is ambient music infused with sounds from old Arabia and ancient Persia, overlaying a background of etheral electronica. Much like Steven Roach's Australian-laced Dreamtime Return, Seven Veils is a richly themed album which sedates the listener with the sounds of the Middle East and Sahara.

Previous reviews describe this album as "too dark", to which I disagree. Rather, it is the more sublime and moody tracks which highlight the album and offset the intrusive tracks of soloist guitar work which disturb the meditative balance of the album and would have been better left out.

The album is close to being an expectional glimpse into Persian and Arabic ambient music, but the mentioned guitar injections detract from the beautiful austeriety of the album's landscape. A 5 star rating is an oasis which does not exist in Seven Veils, and the mirage of the perfect album will disappear from track to track, always when the listener thirts and reaches for more.

I've owned "Seven Veils" now for about a year, and I never tire of listening to it. The music lets my imagination soar, and has an almost narcotic-like effect on me. Carlos Santana (another of my favorite muscicians) speaks of music rearranging your molecules. "Seven Veils" certainly gets my molecules moving!

Robert Rich has more of a "Western" sound on this album. The sinuous drumbeats make you feel like bellydancing but there's still an otherworldly ethereal feel. It's all instrumentals on this one and great background music to relax to. For anyone who's looking for a male Asian/Middle Eastern Enya or a mellower Dead Can Dance sound this is it.

Robert Rich for me offers very good synthesizer artistry. Strata and much of his early to mid-nineties work plays to a strictly Dark Ambient new age audience. This recording is the first where he starts to take chances. David Torn and the other featured guests add depth and texture not heard before with Robert Rich's work (that I am aware of). I find this almost as inviting as I find Beastiary, but this is NOT as far outside as Beastiary is. Fantastic spin!

Robert Rich's Seven Veils is one of my favorite cds because it is so relaxing. The music has a Middle Eastern flare. You can put this cd on, use headsets to drown out the world & lie in your recliner and in no time, you feel as if you have become a part of the music; after a stressful day it seems as if you are going to float up out of the recliner to the music. This is a must have cd for me.

Robert Rich is one of my favorite musical artists, not nearly in the realm of Enya or Tangerine Dream, but with "Seven Veils" there is variety with rhythm that will enhance your collections. It is permeated with Middle Eastern sounds, heavilty punctuated with the sitar and drums, well suited for daytime activities such as writing, reading or surfing the web. I find that the musical patterns are great for inspiring an otherwise dull day. Recommended.

With this cd, I will love one track and hate the next. Robert Rich has certainly compiled a mixed bag here. I find it almost incredible how he can push the right buttons in one song and then pull the plug in the next one. He has done a great job at digging deep into a world music sound, and believe me, some of the tunes definitely leave a worldly taste in your mouth (some a bit too tasty for me). Most of the cd is incredibe, but the most unfortunate thing about this cd is track four, "Book of Ecstacy" (made of three movements), where, in the middle of one of the movements where the music and rhythm are great, the most annoying screeching guitar solo begins and ruins the entire tune. It's really unfortunate. The best tune, however, is "Ibn Sina", track five. Talk about rhythmic energy! I was very pleased at my purchase when I heard this tune. The opening track "Coils" and the final track "Lapis" are my other favorites on this cd because of their rich sound texture and pleasing trance rhythms.

I bought this CD feeling very expectant. It looked so awe inspiring, so uplifting, so mysterious. And it turned out to be so crappy. For those who love the world of electronic music, this is the CD for you. If you're like me, however, and hate how you feel like you're listening to a robot try to make enjoyable music, then don't buy this. I like to know that the music I'm listening to has human error, emotion, ups and downs...... I hear nothing of the man, Robert Rich, in this CD, and it bugs my dear ears tremendously.