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Talk about flow: DU's first-ever recording from Poland literally has a river running through it. Twinkling bells and deep, dark, droning synths float downstream on cold, gurgling waters while elfin-voiced Marzena Boron coos and chants. In Polish. One track flows into the next, subtle shifts in emphasis occur, but the key, mood and instrumenation hardly vary. A highly conceptual combo, Klandestein's music (it sez here) "is based on seven-note phrases, so-called 'modules.' The source of these modules is a system in which every day is expressed by a single note... a live performance is a celebration of the energy contained within the constellation of sounds, which form the module." There's more to it, but you get the idea. Founded by keyboardist/programmer Piotr Grzesik, Klandestein has been celebrating that energy since 1993, strictly holding to its "unchanging principles." One gets the impression that the group's early recordings probably sound exactly like this, as if each recording was merely a snapshot of an eternal variation on a theme. Weird and beautiful, Klandestein's music is well-suited to horror-movie soundtracks — a fact the band acknowledges by variously dubbing its sound "zombient" and "traumbient." If you're into dark music, by all means check this out. Just make sure you go to the bathroom first.

Jim Santo
Demo Universe
November 2006
www.demouniverse.com

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