KVR member releases - GOSSIP

[Parallel Worlds]

A sound wave, dark and droning hops in opening of Beneath Fear. A
variegated
intro, which lets emerge a fine piano melody, stiff in a dense sound
fauna.
This soft tune shares its harmonies with a cloud of tonalities as
varied as
the fear can have its reasons; flutes, whistling synth with the
melodious
set of themes, percussions hopping and jerking in a light and
lugubrious
environment. If the tempo is of equal appearance, it becomes more
implosive
in the end, hammering the rhythm with the force of fear. Interesting?
Of
course! Parallel Worlds, or Greek musician Bakis Sirros, presents a
totally
awesome title in Obsessive Surrealism; the perfect fusion between EM
and
electronica.
A world of rich sound textures and disconcerting tempos, which are
moulded
perfectly to the sound effects and samplings meticulously proportioned
by
Bakis Sirros. This defender of analogical sonorities create thus an
extraordinary effect of richness to juxtaposed dimensions, as in a
parallel
world, which fills with wonder and which changes many data in a musical
world where the sound machines don?t have borders.
This gives additional languorous effects on titles like Different
Pathways
and the aggressive Into the Caves of the Mind where the ingenuous lead
lines
are absorbed by sound effects that propagate an opposite rhythm. An
incredible and subtle moulding, as if my invisible clone would go in
front
of me and absorb me while passing... I mould in him and am his forms.
Completely brilliant. These strokes of genius pullulate on Obsessive
Surrealism, of the avant-gardism publisher DIN Records, which
specializes in
the Contemporary Electronic Music. With its vaporous gas jets, Empty
Human
Cells presents a static intro. Gradually, a circular tempo is install
supported on deform bass and percussive, if not hammering, sound
effects
which flies, whereas environment becomes intriguing, on short symphonic
layers. With a title as striking as Increasing Complexity, we expect an
insane swirl. But we have instead a small islands beat, with
xylophonists
percussions. The beauty of this track is this distortional line of
electronic percussions, which is moulded to a suave and flowing tempo.
A
beautiful throbbing tempo wakes up Reflective senses. Slow, like a
hypnotic
pulsation, a fat and round sequence oscillates through synthetic pads
that
float gently, on a more and more hopping sequence. A strange cascade,
to
strings synths, crosses this bouncing movement which takes a form of
undulating jazz with bewitching layers and very effective percussions.
Whereas Mindmists makes us visit the corridors as deviating as Empty
Human
Cells, with more variances in the rhythms, Pale Yellow Sky is a
beautiful
meeting piano/cello, in a lounge environment of amplified percussions.
Still, the tempo is solitary and is carved around sound effects and
samplings. Aggressive and tasty, Distracted strikes us full whip with a
heavy electronic approach, as if Ramp would have built this movement. A
powerful title which is an absolute synthetic effervescence, in a loud
ambiance, bordering Mark Shreeve and Ramp limits. Still on the upbeat,
Crying Spells has the look of its title. An intense paranoiac bolero,
with
unpleasant choirs on satanic pulsations.

What an opus! From the first to the last key, I was struck by the
musical
approach of Parallel Worlds on Obsessive Surrealism, which gives me the
same
impact as Brian Eno with Nerve Net. Everywhere, samplers and sound
effects
paper the parts length into broad, over sizing the structures, all in
their
giving an artistic depth to the astonishing paradox. Very good, very
refreshing, we perceive the parallelism intrusion with an amazing
subtlety,
signs of a perfect symbiosis. (Rating: 5 out of 6)
AVAILABLE at: http://www.din.org.uk/

http://www.gutsofdarkness.com/god/objet.php?objet=9550
Sylvain from Quebec, Canada
Guts Of Darkness: The French Website of Dark, Ambient & Experimental
Music
http://www.gutsofdarkness.com/

[thomekk]

Hey parallel worlds,
I have the feeling that you are spamming this thread

[Parallel Worlds]

Hey parallel worlds,
I have the feeling that you are spamming this thread

hello thomekk,
isn't this thread for cd reviews?
best regards,
Bakis.

[thomekk]

hello thomekk,
isn't this thread for cd reviews?
best regards,
Bakis.

Hi Bakis,
you're right! This is the place for reviews and you have a lots of them so there's nothing wrong in posting 'em here. Obviously others seem not to have lots of reviews because they don't post 'em here.

cheers,
thom

[Parallel Worlds]

Artemi Pugachov / Encyclopedia of Electronic Music review (RU):
(www.pugachov.ru/eem)

"What caught my attention first was the title of this new album by Greek synthesist and sound sculptor Bakis Sirros. Now, let's see if there's anything Dali-esque about the music. Dark tones and some bleeps is what we get for a few seconds into "Beneath Fear". Then a moody melodic refrain comes in. It's all rather dramatic, with electronic rhythms and Mellotron choir. This is the moodiest piece I've heard from Bakis so far and in a way it's a progression from his previous, IDM-influenced style. Don't get me wrong, it's still very contemporary sounding, but somehow the mood is different, despite the bass drum that really adds this "techno" element to the music. This is some mysterious and at the same time melancholic music. Not bad at all. "Different Pathways" has a more stiff rhythm and strange effects. There's still that mysterious aura and a somewhat claustrophobic atmosphere that permeates this track. Some of the sounds that Bakis coaxes out of his modular synths are quite unusual and it's clear that he'd spent some days (or nights) just programming the synths, searching for the right sound (isn't EM all about creating sounds?). "Empty Human Cells" introduces a more somber and outright aggressive sound. At this stage the music really starts sounding like the album's title. A strange thing to notice is that the rhythm seems to be somewhat out of sync with the bass line, but it sounds organic and intentional. "Increasing Complexity" starts with deep sine wave bell tones somewhat similar to the sound of an electric piano. Looks like the somber, dark and melancholic mood of this album is set to continue for a while, this time in a more minimalist framing. The track has only got a sparse accompaniment of strange and /or darkish atmospheric sounds and a repetitive structure (which is a bit odd, considering the track's title). "Into the Caves of the Mind" introduces some broken rhythms, while the atmosphere itself refuses to stray from the mysterious and, once again, somewhat claustrophobic. It's like the world has collapsed and there's only here and now - the singularity of sound. As if it was not enough, "Interlude" is even deeper and darker, approaching the territory of the darker forms of Ambient. Great, simply great stuff! "Reflective" brings in more cosmic elements; at least that's how it sounded to my ears. It's also one of the more Techno-influenced tracks here. As someone who doesn't like Techno music, I found most of it a bit hard going, but I still liked the mood of this track and most of the supporting textures. "Mindmists" sounds like a title for an atmospheric track. Indeed, this is deep stuff, with dark piano notes and mucho mutating, experimental synth timbres. Another attraction of this track is the appearance of Mellotron strings (I think it's the first time they are heard on "Obsessive Surrealism"). "Pale Yellow Sky" has close to none of the darker shades present on most of the tracks, but the sense of mystery is still the focal point of this number. I really like the strings / pads arrangements of this one. "Distracted" is somewhat jarring, with its noisy textures and strident bass lines. Looks like it's the most upbeat track on the album. It's also one of those techno-ish numbers, but it beats most of what's sold as Techno or Trance to dust! Very interesting music with some tasty synth sounds. "Crying Spells" has a marching bass line that sounds like a procession heading straight into a hell hole! All the dark synth sounds, all the noisy injections make this track a real winner. Overall, Bakis presents quite stark (and decidedly electronic) music on this release. I mean, it's all grey. No other colors, just grey, mostly of the darker scales. There's hardly a bright section to be heard. The music is imbued in melancholy, mystery and claustrophobia. Going back to the title, there's a certain "manic" or "obsessive" feeling about most of this album, but "surrealism"? Hmm... I guess if Dali lived in an isolation tank that flew through cosmic void, then perhaps his paintings could have been the visual equivalent of the music presented here. A very interesting release on the DiN label and highly recommended for fans of contemporary EM and for those who simply want to hear something a bit different."



Steve Farley (Sonic Vibrations Radio show, Winsconsin Public Radio, US)
(www.wpr.org/regions/lax)

"...I love it, can't wait to air it. All the reviewers, who had positive comments on it, were right on..."
"...Been listening to Obsessive Surrealism all day. Man, I'm very impressed. Many thoughts are going through my mind as I'm digesting the music..."

[Parallel Worlds]

here is the Review of "Obsessive Surrealism" from e/i magazine:

"Drama, melodrama, psychodrama. Those states imbue the syllabus Greek
electronician Bakis Sirros, operating under the nom de disque
Parallel Worlds, has chosen as his dictum for Obsessive Surrealism,
instructing us from out of the darker amphitheaters of the Berlin
school, window blinds drawn tight. Well, perhaps 'Berlin school'
isn't the best appellation to use here. Sirros makes sounds that seem
perfectly happy at play in the fields of the lords synth and
sequencer, but what actually grunts and growls its way across the
battered landscape reveals something of a distinctly modern Modular
mind. Titles such as 'Beneath Fear,' 'Empty Human Cells,' and
'Into
the Caves of the Mind' connote a far more Freudian preoccupation with
altered consciousness than the average dessicated Krautrock hippy.
Fixating on feral pinging resonances, moody nomenclature, and the
noises emitted by scuttling tiny electronic beasties going bump in
the night, Obsessive Surrealism acts like the monkey wrench thrown in
the machinery of B.S. (double entendrι intentional, folks). To wit:
'Increasing Complexity' is all prescience and poise, muddied pulses
wafting in a nocturnal thrush of chimes and argumentative insect
chatter, something of a respite from the terminator synth-tug that
envelopes 'Empty Human Cells,' which is about as exhilaratingly
scary
as the descriptor suggests. Sirros is no doubt attuned to the fact
that space is indeed the place. But it's inner space, though, those
strange little areas in the ducts of the mind that fascinates him
most, that lead directly to the malevolent monoliths of buzz, gurgle
and drift set into motion on 'Reflective.' Yes, there's some
abject
dread here in these synthetic surrealities, as if Sirros OD'ed on a
surfeit of Philip K. Dick and 70s Harlan Ellison spec-fiction; 'Pale
Yellow Sky' is a compelling enough experience in and of itself,
curling noises eddying in and out of shimmering black vacuums that
have no mouth yet must scream. The tension here is palpable, the
music's edges serrated, pitted. This ain't your usual pixie
grinnin'
to the cosmos kind of thing, which is why time might paint Obsessive
Surrealism as a minor masterpiece of the (anti)genre."

Darren Bergstein
http://www.ei-mag.com/verite0004.php

[verstaerker]

today is the day

the new verstaerker Album "Analogien" is available


It contains Tracks from 2005/6, which predominantly developed with analogue equipment. A Korg Monopoly and a SCI prophet 1 played the basic roles. Heavy bassdrums and distorted basses providing pressure. The whole is surrounded by mystic soundcollages in a minimal garb and provides alternation for the listener. 10 tracks and 78:30 min play time.
The album for couch and dancefloor!

http://www.bodyfunk.de
http://www.verstaeker-music.net

[Parallel Worlds]

"Obsessive Surrealism" by Parallel Worlds DiN26
Review of Sonic Curiosity magazine - Matt Howarth:

"This release from 2007 offers 63 minutes of haunting electronic music.
Languid electronics laced with haunting harmonics generate melodies supported by understated e-perc of a bubbling nature. Keyboards provide dreamy chords that are supported by airy textures which exhibit a nocturnal flair. The electronics are generally lighthearted and breezy; even the periodic denser tonalities bear a soft sonic caress.

A subtle illbient quality lies buried in this tuneage, but it is not prominent enough to disrupt the overall heavenly nature with any substantial edginess. This glitchy seasoning is carefully implanted in the music in a manner that is almost subliminal, enhancing the tuneage with a ghostly charge, crackling in a fashion that is sedate and unintrusive. This fusion of contemporary EM and crackling techno gives the music a highly intriguing sound that is quite appealing.

The rhythms are equally soothing, providing a calm propulsion rather than a driving beat presence. Some of the tempos gurgle as if resounding from underwater or perhaps deep inside a cloud of glutinous gas. It's almost as if the percussives were generated by organic machinery.

These compositions display a distinctly celestial quality, ethereal yet sturdily crafted with body. The melodies consist of keyboards thriving in a textural medium, gentle riffs surrounded by cottony expanses of bewitching disposition."
www.soniccuriosity.com/sc298.htm

review of Howard Moscovitz - www.electro-music.com :
"This is an excellent CD in the genre of what some would call Space Music. Parrallel Worlds is big into the vintage analog sounds, but the music is fresh. You can relax with this music and let it carry you away, but it is still interesting. If you like Space Music and/or Soundscapes, you will enjoy this CD." (5/5 stars)

[Parallel Worlds]

review of the new album from the Synthtopia website (http://www.synthtopia.com/content/2007/ ... #more-3022 ):

"Obsessive Surrealism, the latest CD by Parallel Worlds, is a synth lover's dream.

The release is the fourth CD by Parallel Worlds, the first on the DIN label. We've been impressed by previous DIN releases, and Obsessive Surrealism is no exception. The CD is a dense blend of very electronic-sounding elements with very organic-sounding ones.

Parallel Worlds is the performing name for Greek musician Bakis Sirros. He's been active in the Greek music scene for about 10 years, and has performed at a variety of electronic music events. He's also collaborated with other musicians on other projects, including Interconnected (IDM) and Memory Geist (ambient/experimental).

Bakis' music on this CD emphasisizes synthesis, using electronic gear and software to create new sounds and effects. His music is melodic and is very effective at creating various moods, but what really sets it apart is Bakis' creative sound work.

Bakis puts a huge variety of gear to use, including: Doepfer A100 modular, Analogue Systems RS-Integrator modular, Technosaurus System D modular, modified EMS VCS-3 x2), ARP 2600, Odyssey, Roland System 100, System 100m, modified Oberheim 2-voice, Korg MS50, MS20, SQ10, Trident, PE1000, Analogue Solutions Concussor modular, modified TR606, Nord modular, JP8000, Microwave XT, MS2000R, S750, Emax 2, Korg ES1, Roland Space Echo, Korg SE500 and additional sound manipulators.

While this is an impressive gear list, Bakis appears to be most interested in wringing the most out of traditional synthesis. As a result, the music doesn't sound like the result of intense studio editing, but more like he's captured studio performances.

The music itself is pure synth music, leaning towards the dark ambient. It shares some elements with synth artists of the 70's, but also with the work of contemporary synth music masters, like Robert Rich and Ian Boddy. The pieces are relatively short soundscapes that emphasize sequenced elements, along with synth-strings, "vocal" pads and quirky glitch percussion effects.

In addition to the creative sound design, Bakis makes very effective use of stereo space; listening to the CD on a set of monitors revealed the depth of the music's range, while listening on earbuds highlighted a lot of creative stereo effects.

One of the highlights of the CD is the track Increasing Complexity. At its heart, it's a simple melodic sequence on piano. Bakis treats the piano so that it's muted and bathed in reverb, giving it an distant, underwater sound reminiscent of the piano effects on Brian Eno & Harold Budd's collaborations. Over this, Bakis layers strange echoing birdlike noises, synthesized percussion effects, a sequenced bassline and evolving synth pads, building the piece to a dense jungle of sound. By the end, the piano fragment that holds things together has almost disappeared, leaving just the organic synth effects.

Another great track is Pale Yellow Sky. Like Increasing Complexity, the track uses a minimal melodic fragment as a framework for organizing a collection of uneasy sounds. Halfway through the track, the music dies down to almost nothing, focusing your attention on water-drip percussive effects, before building up again. Towards the end of the track, the melodic elements die out, leaving just drones, effects and ambience. Throughout,
Bakis frequently shifts the focus of the music from background to foreground and back, highlighting the layers of creativity in the mix.

Parallel Worlds' Obsessive Surrealism is full of very original sound design, but also makes effective use of synth music staples like sequences, synth-strings and vocal pads. The combination draws you quickly into the pieces, where the depth of the music's quirkiness slowly reveals itself. Highly recommended."

[Parallel Worlds]

Parallel Worlds - Obsessive Surrealism Review from Industrie-Musik.de :

"Rezension:
Gleich vorweg: hier geht's nicht um Clubtauglichen Industrial, oder Szenegerechten Gothic. Macht aber nix, es geht um gute, eigenständige, elektronische Ambient Musik aus Griechenland. Bakis Sirros, aka Parallel Worlds schickt einen mit Obsessive Surrealism mit 11 Tracks für knapp eine Stunde in eine andere Dimension.

Die Tracks bieten reichlich Abwechslung, pflegen dabei aber dennoch alle den gleichen Stiel: Sanfte Synthflächen bilden einen weichen Teppich, über die sich einfache träumerische Melodien, und vor allem zahlreiche rhythmische Effekt- und Perkussionssounds legen. Mal zwitscherts, mal klirrts..
Im gesamten gibt sich ein schön melancholischer, atmosphärischer Sound, bei dem es viel zu entdecken gibt. Ideal zum relaxen, aber auch zum konzentriert hinhören. Ganz weghören ist mir jedenfalls nicht gelungen. Nach dem Motto „alternating between darkness and light" gibt sich die Stimmung manchmal positiv, und manchmal schön düster, klingt aber stets auf eine interessante Weise fremdartig.
Richtig zur Sache geht's nie, es ist eben Ambient. Am meisten dreht da noch Track 10 - Distracted auf, der sich ein wenig aggressiver gibt als der Rest der Scheibe.
Auf Gesang wird gänzlich verzichtet.

Vielleicht muss man ein wenig Synthfreak sein, damit einem ein so ausgefuchstes Sounddesign gefällt. Ein Blick in die Innenseite des Covers verrät auch gleich, dass die Musik von einem Solchen kommt: Ein Foto von einem Großen Modularschrank mit Leuchtenden LEDs (Borgschiff lässt grüßen), sowie eine Satte Liste mit „Selected Equipment" zeugen davon.

Fazit:
Soundscapes vom feinsten. " 5 out of 5 stars.

Britzel - www.industrie-musik.de

http://www.industrie-musik.de/index.php?c=review&id=740

[Parallel Worlds]

Parallel Worlds - Obsessive Surrealism (DiN26) cd review:
"Dear Bakis,
at the weekend I finally found the time to listen to your new CD
unhurriedly.
I'm very impressed and I heard the CD three times, some pieces even more. It
is by far your best album and you will have problems to top it in the future
. And believe me: I don't say it because I want to ingratiate as the
A-100 is mentioned and used. It is really a masterpiece of music but not
only of "sounds" (many of the CDs I obtain from other musicians include
excellent sounds - but miss musicality, your new album has definitely both)!
When I close my eyes I find myself flying in a spacecraft over a dark,
forbidden planet in an unknown solar system. I really love the mood that
that is generated by this music and - as already mentioned by others - it
would be an excellent movie soundtrack for a Carpenter film. My favoured
tracks are Beneath Fear, Interlude, Reflective (I think this is my favourite
at the moment), Distracted and Crying Spells. In any case the album will
obtain a place of honour in my CD collection.

Thank you for this music."

Dieter (Doepfer Musikelektronik - www.doepfer.de)

[Parallel Worlds]

a great Greek review of "Obsessive Surrealism" cd from the greek music webmag MIC:
for a few words on the cd, scroll down in this page: www.mic.gr (reffering to the album as "...the most exciting listening of this year...")

and the link with the extensive full album review:
http://www.mic.gr/cds.asp?id=13378

it would require much time for me to traslate the whole review in english, but the bottom line is that:
"this album is a point of reference for greek electronica and also... one of the most important albums (from a greek artist) of the current decade..."
review rating: 8.5 out of 10

thank you
Bakis.

[Parallel Worlds]

Parallel Worlds - "Obsessive Surrealism" DiN26 cd review from AMG (All Music Guide):

"It's a distinctly odd place, Parallel Worlds, a universe Bakis Sirros has been building up over a series of intriguing albums. Obsessive Surrealism is his Worlds' fourth, and once again we are invited into the dark recesses, but of what and where precisely?

The aural landscapes are not really dystopian, although they're all far from anything one could describe as pleasant.

One begins by walking into a world "Beneath Fear" taking "Different Pathways" through the musical maze. Both numbers induce a somewhat clammy feel, a reflection perhaps of the cool dampness of this underground world, or maybe just a primordial reactive nervousness to the unknown.

In either case, it the numbers intended to heighten this sense of disquietude, they certainly succeed. The vistas are totally alien, the rhythms often discomforting, the atmospheres quivering with a sense of foreboding, the melody lines brooding at best, gloomy at worse. Strange noises intrude from the shadows, and there always seems to be something skittering around busily in the darkest corners of the pieces.

One imagines the many sci-fi plots involving humans walking unnoticed through strange worlds, while all around them exotic creatures scurry about performing inexplicable tasks. The explorers' initial fear gradually dampen, but never quite dissipate, as wonder and curiosity arises in its stead.

Sirros is the master of this mood, his rhythms, often slightly askew, keep listeners off-balance, his simple melody lines are equally off center, teetering between light and dark, increasing

one's sense of insecurity, while the gloomy atmospheres heighten the tension. "Into the Caves of the Mind", for instance, is a master work whose center is totally askew, and "Increasing Complexity" shows how it's done, as Sirros takes a simple, pretty keyboard melody and slowly builds it sequential block by block into a thoroughly haunting number.

The richer sounds of "Reflective" is like a distorted infinity mirror, with a million lights looking into darkness.

"Empty Human Cells" is more rhythmic in orientation and thoroughly creepy in feel, while "Distracted", the set's only compulsive, driving piece, is a manic ride through the netherworld.

But for all its alien feeling, the track titles suggest this bizarre world is not to be found in a galaxy far, far away, but within the mind of a human nearly as unknowable. A chilling adventure in every sense of that word."
(Rating: 4.5 out of 5)

All Music Guide / Jo-An Greene
http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=am ... ftxzl5ldde

[Parallel Worlds]

CUE Records(Germany) review of

Parallel Worlds - "Obsessive Surrealism" DiN26 cd album:



"Hinter Parallel Worlds verbirgt sich der griechische Musiker Charalambos Sirros, der hier nun schon sein viertes Album vorstellt. Er zieht alle Register der EM. Aber man erkennt seine Reife. Absolut das Beste, was er bisher gemacht hat. Mal melodiös, mal melancholisch. Aber die Synthiesounds stehen immer im Vordergrund."

[Parallel Worlds]

Parallel Worlds "Obsessive Surrealism" (DiN26) cd review by Electroambientspace

(www.DiN.org.uk, 2007)

11 tracks, 63.27 mins


Greek musician Bakis Sirros is Parallel Worlds, and his Obsessive Surrealism album is an experimental work that is perfectly wedded to Ian Boddy's DiN label, ambient electronica that pushes the sonic envelope. "Beneath Fear" percolates with restrained aggression as light bass, beats and electronics come together sneakily in a vaguely sinister fashion. The mood reminds me much of UK favorite Node, known for their dark take on Berlin school. Though retro fans should enjoy the mellotron choirs in the opening track, Bakis' music covers a variety of electronic territory. For example, "Into the Caves of the Mind" veers into dark industrial ambient like Bill Leeb and Rhys Fulber's Synaesthesia project. "Empty Human Cells" is representative of the offerings, highly synthesized processed sounds that are uniquely assembled into tightly arranged adventurous compositions. "Interlude" gurgles and churns its way along. Bass and beats figure prominently in several tracks, such as "Reflective." Though it all has an edge to it, the music has a surprising accessibility as well. Still, the tone remains murky throughout much of it, typified by "Mindmists" as it ambles forward. A notable exception is the energetic number "Distracted" before the melancholy atmospheric "Crying Spells" brings the disc to a close. Recommended.


© 2007 Phil Derby / Electroambient Space