Search - Helios :: Caesura

Solid new album by Helios

Derek Young | Baltimore | 11/18/2008

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I was surprised to find this listed on 11/17, as I had heard nothing about it. I was doubly surprised to see that Helios had decided to buck the trend of most indie/electronica individuals who switch to vocals and never turn back. As a big fan of Eingya and Unomia, I was less pleased with Ayres simply due to the inclusion of rather bland vocals.



Caesura, however, falls more into the realm of Eingya with an emphasis on dreamy guitars and reverb, with fewer electronics and samples compared to both previous albums. Sadly, the piano seems to have moved fully to his Goldmund project, and its addition is missed, although it doesn't hurt the album significantly. It makes the tracks stand as part of a new album, so it works.



I would argue that Caesura has more tracks that "hit" than previous albums -- it's consistent from start to finish, with solid writing and production throughout. However, that's also why it doesn't get 5 stars -- it can sound *too* homogenous from start to finish. That's a plus for an ambient album, having that connectivity across the album, but it does sacrifice some of the unique factors from the previous albums.



If you're a fan of any of Keith's albums, you should be downloading this already. If you've not heard any, you should start with Eingya (which is available for download on Amazon), and follow that up with Caesura."

Starts where Eingya left off.

Benjamin M. Rutter | Oklahoma City, OK | 09/30/2009

(4 out of 5 stars)

"After enjoying Eingya so much I was excited to hear this follow up. In many ways I was not dissapointed because it really starts where Eingya left off. The same lush electronica with scattered guitar notes works just as well here as it did before. There are not quite as many stand out tracks in my opinion. 'Hope Valley Hill', 'Backlight', and particularly 'Mountain of Ice' are all wonderful pieces of music that function on their own. The rest of the tracks blend together though, as is the case with many ambient albums. I hope, though, that Helios has a few more tricks up his sleeve for the next album because I'm not sure how long this formula can last."