Customer Reviews

Spiritual Archives

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Of all the Delerium albums I own, I'd have to say this one is my favorite. I own almost all of the older Delerium albums from "Faces Forms and Illusions" up to "Karma" and I've always been fascinated by this slower but every bit as dark and moving side project of Front Line Assembly. This is a gem. Without lyrics this album doesn't fail to tell it's own story. Each song creates it's own setting for the listener. This cd puts you into any dark, eerie place your imagination creates. Whether it's a haunted ship, a creepy forest or a formal dinner with your least favorite politician, this cd is perfect for meditation and visualization.
This is classic Delerium in Bill and Rhys's pre-(let's use popular female vocals and make more mainstream pop type music, hence making more money) era. These were the more original ideas coming from Leeb and Fulber. I don't hate the later style with more lyrics and female vocals demonstrated on "Semantic Spaces" and "Karma" but this album demonstrates more the 'roots' of Delerium. If when you think of Delerium you think of later efforts such as "Karma" or "Poem" and your not familiar with the older style, then this album will probably surprise you.
I recommend this album highly, regardless of your taste in Delerium.

'Spiritual Archives' is a monument of 'early' Delerium, laden with dark ambient, isolation, nightmares, and industrial mileu. This is a very organic sonic journey that provokes a very unique imagery of an inner world and eternal antiquity. Definitely listen to samples before purchasing, this album is nothing like 'Karma', chances are, unless you are a Delerium fan or are somewhat familiar with their earlier works and appreciate them, that if you loved 'Karma', you will hate 'Spiritual Archives.'

Yet another Brilliant "Leeb/Fulber" album. The last (in my mind) of the "early" Delerium albums, its also the creepiest. From the whimperings in "Sermon", the fast paced beet of "Deceased" to the calm sooting, yet creepy sounds of "Ephemereal Passage" this, like there other early albums tells a story to me. This one, of some seeming great evil that has been unleashed on man. I agree with the above review - "Sermon" is possibly the scariest peice of music ever written. This seems to be a journery - from, earth, to limbo, to ultimately hell. It's scary, but you'll enjoy it. The most "stressful" of all Delerium's almbums. Standout tracks are "Drama" "Ephemereal Passage" "Fathoms" "Sermon" and check out the mysterious "untitled" track # 9.

This is an absolutely amazing collection of songs. It FAR surpasses Delerium's new material. There isn't a track on Spiritual Archives that is bad. They flow together well..and create a rich, dark atmosphere that is creepy, yet paradoxically enlightening! "Awakenings", "Barren Ground" and "Rise Above" will take your breath away.

I strongly encourage all potential buyers to pick up this CD..if you liked the ambience of Semantic Spaces..you will surely enjoy the Spiritual Archives. It gives one the same feelings as angelic techno, but with a darker approach. Buy it! You won't be disappointed.

How do I know? Because this is my first Delerium album, and I love it! I admittedly don't have any of their other albums, but I can assure you that I will be ordering more.

This CD is very dark and foreboding; a lot of gloom and doom type stuff. The composition consists mostly of ambience to start off a song, following with a main beat which is there for the song's entirety and changes little throughout the course of the track. Having only one beat throughout an entire song might not be to everyone's taste, but the music is mostly driven by synth and other sound effects -- the beat being there mainly to give the track some backbone. Of course, if you are familiar with trance/ambient music this is nothing strange or unusual.

The CD actually contains 9 tracks: 7 listed; one bonus track (Sermon); and the mysterious untitled track 9. My favorite tracks are Drama (because of the hopeless sense of dread it envokes in me), Aftermath (much in the spirit of a John Carpenter horror movie song, but done much better), Fathoms (listening to this song takes me on a journey through dark, musty catacombs), and track 9 (more industrial than the other tracks). All tracks are great, but those are the stand-outs for me. If you are into listening to albums "for the experience", this comes highly reccomended.

Having first hear Delerium's Karma, and other new stuff, this disc was a surprise to me. It is more of an atmosphere disc than a popular one. It successfully engenders feelings of coldness, smallness and insignificance. Unlike the Spheres tracks, which sound as if they're set in outer space, these ones are down-to-earth, sometimes in dark, stony labyrinths, and sometimes under murky waters. The tracks are well worked, and do their job handsomely. I particularly liked the track Rise Above. Hearing it makes you feel so small and fragile in the universe. It's a great piece of music to work with, particularly if you're home alone. Even if you're not in the dark. It sounds good at any volume, too, which is something I cannot say for all Delerium works. Spiritual Archives is atmospheric even at a whisper. On the down side, it took me a while to get used to the album, as most of the stuff I listen to is less, let's say, intimidating. But, as often happens, one acquires the taste. I won't be putting this disc away for quite a while. It's definitely on par with Delerium's newest efforts, but it won't appeal to strictly popular music fans.

From start to finish this is a very very fine album from delerium, its as beautiful as it as eerie. And in eerie i mean a dark-gothic romance type sound. Many nice world samples mixed in with very slowed down poppish type beats, with an atmospheric mystique to it. Some very foreboding gregorian chants are mixed in pretty frequently through out the album. If you like monotone style new age with a dense Gothic backdrop, and a lush presence. Then spiritual archives will sweep you away. You must have a certain taste to like this album, but with a title like "spiritual archives" you should have an idea of what's to come.The first half of the album, from track 1 to track 4 is very eerie and haunting in a good way, then the second half of the album turns rather dark and disturbing. Turn the lights out, burn a couple of candles, lay back and listen to the dark-side of new age.

I have never before been made afraid by a piece of music. While the entire album is a tour of the darkest places of mind and spirit, the 8th track ("Sermon") is nothing less than a trip a straight to Hell. Complete with the sounds of suffering, confusion and despair, this track had me staring with terror into the shadows of my candle-lit living room and drawing my blanket up to my chin.

I wouldn't dare recommend this to any but the most intrepid spritual traveller.

Spiritual Archives is olde school Delerium. It sounds nothing like Karma, Poem or Chimera. It is more of a mix of enigma, ambient music and Enya. There are plenty of sampled choirs and the sounds are not aimed to be as dance friendly. This album can be listened to whilst studying, meditating or used as background noise for dinners or coctail parties. Spiritual Archives resecembles old Kraftwerk albums in the sense that it has an ongoing theme throughout the album and that not one track stands out but every track works for the better of the whole album. The cover art is wonderfull and the inside litographs are nothing short of stupendous.

Spiritual Archives - is a collection of Bill Leeb & Rhys Fulber's great drive and imagination. Delerium - is their collective work of musical mastery that transcends all imagination.
My favourite track is Drama, it sets the mood and tone of this CD. Deep, dark and ambient with great electronica string ins. All the tracks are good, don't get me wrong but Aftermath and Awakenings and Drama are the picks.