DIGITALIS

Everytime I listen to the title track, I want to slip on my tan leather blazer, my aviator sunglasses, and my tight bell-bottom jeans and walk around town, and maybe even be stalked by a psychotic serial killer, unbeknownst to me.

If "Digitalis" is the title sequence to my psycho-killer movie, then "SIberia" is the song that should be playing in my persistent stalker's deranged head while he observes me from afar, with his hollow, menacing, possibly brain damaged gaze. With a steady pulse of bass drum throughout the duration of this slow-tempo track, this song definitely sounds cold and deadly as Siberia is known to be.

After a run-in with my stalker, and engaging in a battle that ultimately results in my favor, I decide to go to the disco and dance the blood off (or my mom will so totally kill me; this blazer was, like, thirty bucks, man). "Sapphire" is funky tune that is very dancelike, and could've even been the music portion of an '80s-era Earth, Wind & Fire tune. It changes about half-way through, becoming almost dreamlike, or like the music on a "Save game?" option screen in a Kirby game, but shortly gets dancelike once again. This is probably the most progressive song on this EP, and it is a banger.

So, basically, this was a good soundtrack to my average day. I can dig it.

Anyway, this is very enjoyable music if you really enjoy Goblin's soundtracks for Argento films, as I do, and it definitely sounds retro but with very polished.

Here is a relatively short bout of music from the space rock duo Zombi, a partnership between electronics wizard Steve Moore and percussionist A.E Paterra. 'Digitalis' is a three song extended play; a shorter dose of the typically fun and atmospheric music this collaboration tends to make. For anyone who has listened to the music of this project before, they should know what to expect. For those who haven't, Zombi makes a style of music that is very close in sound to the stuff Klaus Schulze does; spacey and atmospheric electronica. What makes Zombi a bit different however, is their use of more- dare I say- danceable rhythms and live percussion. In this sense, 'Digitalis' is a fairly standard outing for Zombi. Although each of the three tracks here go their own direction, Zombi reaffirms their sense of style with this one, creating an EP that is fairly good, but doesn't manage to hold my attention like some of this duo's other work.

The first track here 'Digitalis' is the most rock-oriented, based around a synth idea. It adds new layers and sounds as it goes on, and while some of the ideas here work very well, the song does seem to go on far past its due; there's simply not enough going on with the sound to even keep the track going past four minutes. 'Siberia' is a much darker piece, making use of ominous percussion and atmospheric effects. It is an eerie ambient piece, and while pleasant sounding enough, it is far from memorable. Rounding off the last half of the EP's length is the nine minute 'Sapphire', which thrusts the listener into a cheesy '80s Eurodance club, sounding much like a track that one could both dance to, and appreciate on a compositional level. It is certainly the most intriguing thing that the EP has to offer in any case, and while it plods on for far too long, the ideas here are uplifting and charming.

Without much sense of flow to it or even one track that really jumps out at me, it is difficult to call 'Digitalis' a standout release. Instead, it is an extension of Zombi's music, and is worth a listen or two before moving back to some of the band's stronger material.