Devoured By Flowers (Ashkelon Sain/Dorien Campbell): Moonscape Hotel (CD)

Product Description

Devoured By Flowers is revolutionary Dream-Pop, with elements of Post-Punk but not overtly so, and elements of Psychedelia but not gratuitously so. From the musical kingdoms of Ashkelon Sain (Trance To The Sun) and Dorian Campbell (Sumerland), this alliance has resulted in an album of refinement and magical introspection. Dorian’s voice has been compared to Ian McCulloch (Echo & the Bunnymen) and Scott Walker’s lower baritone moments. His mastery of the twelve string guitar shines. Askelon’s guitar work is an otherworldly shoegaze sound, but with more theory and composition than your average rock guitarist. His bass lines and production style are reminiscent of the old 4AD recordings, and The Cure’s Disintegration.

Moonscape Hotel is a metaphorical place where the listener can find themselves outside of time and space. There are ecstatic songs that make you want to dance, and slow ballads that make you want to cry. There is music here for both the dance floor and the hotel room. These songs are cerebral and romantic. String arrangements drift in and out. The overall experience is a psychedelic journey, wherein you’re just not quite the same after listening. Just when you think a song is reaching it’s logical dream pop conclusion, something pleasantly unexpected occurs. Dramatic outros climax and subside.

A trip through Moonscape Hotel is like a ride on The Ferris Wheel at night. It is like a fine bottle of wine that sits on the table in front of the window for a special occasion. And it is possible, as well, for music to seem to halt the passage of time, and the rarefied albums that achieve this can never truly be described, they just have to be listened to.