Eiszwielicht

Vinterriket's ambient releases can be a test of one's patience. Sometimes the compositions are too minimalistic, sometimes there is nothing really wrong with the music but the release as a whole is too long for yours truly to sit through. Therefore it's nice to see that Vinterriket has released some ambient MCDs as well. With a playing time of 22 minutes, "Eiszwielicht" is much more approachable to the listener than albums like " ...und die Nacht kam schweren Schrittes" or "Landschaften Ewiger Einsamkeit".

Contained herein are two lengthy, enjoyable instrumental keyboard tracks (no percussion on this release) that will make you drift off into a wintry forest. You're all alone in the cold embrace of nature, the only thing that you hear is the wind blowing in the trees (in the beginning of "Eisleere" the wind increases to a storm). Occasional snowfalls accompany you on your way through the landscape. In the distance you can see high snow-covered mountaintops. Both tracks contain the sound of a snowstorm in the background, although it's more prominent on "Eisleere".

"Eiszwielicht" consists only of floating and slowly changing keyboard chords. "Eisleere" contains both floating keyboard chords and a sad melodic part with a piano-type sound. Included on this disc is also a video for "Eisleere", which shows winter landscapes in negative (why negative?). A good release to start with if you're interested in Vinterriket's ambient side. It's not too long as a whole and based on this you can decide whether you can stomach any of the ambient full-lenghts. One problem is that many of his ambient tracks sound similar but if you want only one such release, you might as well go for this one.