THE PAVILION OF MAGIC AND THE TRIALS OF THE SEVEN SURVIVING ELOHIM

Welsh outfit SENDELICA has been an active outfit in the 5 or so years they have issued material, with at least for full length efforts and some additional singles and EP's released in various manners, from relatively easily available productions to limited editions of different kinds that presumably are rather hard to get these days. "The Pavilion of Magic and the Trials of the Seven Surviving Elohim" is their most recent effort, and was issued in June 2011.

This disc is to most extents a single track, divided into seven different segments, and with two tracks appended as so called bonus material. Which in this particular context presumably means that they are to be considered as separate entities. Besides being standalone pieces both of them are cover versions, Venus in Furs a Psychedelic Furs tune and This Is the Day a creation that first came courtesy of a certain Captain Beefhart. Of the two I found the former most interesting, a calm and smooth psychedelic effort where strong lead vocals manage to carry the tune very well. While the latter gets to be a tad too slow and gentle for my taste, ever so slightly lacking in tension inducing elements and contrasts to the extent my personal taste require.

Much the same can be said for the massive 55 minute creation that is the main course on this excursion. The seven different parts each exploring slightly different musical territories, but most of them sharing the common trait of being a tad too slow paced for my tastes, and without contrasts or additional details that manage to flavour the repeated theme and subtle improvised variations that is the main approach throughput.

The bass guitar forms the central core of the tracks, recurring circulating motifs combining quite nicely with the drums that would appear to have as the main task to set and maintain momentum alongside instigating any needed changes in pace, and to some extent intensity. I found myself thinking of acts like Eloy and Hawkwind for this detail in terms of sound an expression, more of the former than the latter admittedly and without the intensity any of the twain does have at their best.

Still, it is a good basis for these endeavours. The ever so slight letdown for me is the repetitive nature of the motifs provided and explored by the guitar, b it the dreamladen guitar soloing dominating opening effort Zhyly Byly or the light, swirling gentle guitar licks that is given the limelight on Orion Delight. To name but two. The music is pleasant and often beautiful, but in a manner I'd describe as introverted to a much greater extent than entertaining as such. Contemplative music if you like, careful psychedelic rock that should work to perfection when in need of meditation and relaxing but that only rarely manage to grab you and drag you into the music itself.

While this may read out as a rather harsh assessment that isn't actually the case. This is merely a long-winded manner in which to say that the major parts of this production consist of material that doesn't truly stand out. Good examples of the genre, which in this case is just as much psychedelic as space rock I might add, and those who like this type of music will most likely enjoy this effort too. I suspect people with a slightly introverted personality will possibly be those who gets most pleasure from it, while those fond of stark contrasts and musical details of the more challenging sort will be less impressed.

And there are a couple of highlights to be found as well. The opening part of Guiding the Night is a true joy, the darker-toned riff patterns served up here an enticing experience that ends a tad too fast for my personal taste, the following guitar solo gradually evolving back towards the initial riff pattern slightly less interesting. Later on Banshees and Fetches is an epic length creation that has a lot more going for it throughout, the fluctuating, swirling gentle guitars this time accompanied by more extensive use of keyboards, which are sparingly applied elsewhere, and two elongated parts featuring a spirited saxophone solo that works splendidly as a contrast to the rest of the instrumentation and adds a nice darker tinge to the otherwise light and dreamladen atmosphere.

Overall I suspect that this album won't have a major overall appeal, with the main audience one fond of sophisticated psychedelic rock with a slight space rock tinge that utilize careful and subtle alterations and improvisations of the main themes and motifs as the common approach compositionally and performance wise.