Starry Wisdom

Not Breathing presents us with a two-CD set, dichotomous and extreme. Disc one, Nuclear, proved difficult to listen to at first. Its hard-driving techno seems a spiteful retort to the inundating waves of jungle, drum 'n' bass and acid house. On headphones and close listen, the dense warp and woof of electronica bears hints of insightful design, and listeners will be drawn repeatedly to the shadowy lands charted on Abyss. Here, Not Breathing explores the universe's dark matter and the soul's ineffable. Restless ambient episodes seem the respirations of slumbering, world-encircling serpents; harsh, noisy segments are the sampled radio thrash of a dying world.