THOLEN "Sternklang" CD Reviews
From The Ikonen Magazine (Germany)
Eisen, der Mann hinter Tholen ist ein 'Stargazer':
Er nutzt die tiefe des Nachthimmel, um künstlerische Inspiration
zu schöpfen, bis die Strahlen der Sonne das Firmament verdecken.
Doch was dort ist, ist ewig, und es verlangt nach primordialen Urklängen...
Wer Tangerine Dreams frühe Alben "Atem", "Zeit"
und "Alpha Centauri" noch in guter Erinnerung hat, wir verblüfft
sein, wie nah dieses neue Deep-Space-Ambient-Album an diese bahnbrechenden
Klassiker herankommt. Neben dunklen Drones hören wir flirrende
Flächen, schleppende Beats, verhallten Noise, dezente Melodiebögen
und geheimnisvolle Samples. Bestanden epische Tangerine Dream-Alben
dem Medium gemäß noch aus zwei Tracks, kann man auf CD wunderbar
eine monumental lange Komposition unterbingen.
Tholens Sternensinfonie (sie müsste eigentlich "Sternenklang"
statt "Sternklang" heißen) ist erstaunlich konsequent
und von hohem ästhetischem Reiz. Wer sich in meditativen Halbschlaf
versetzen will und die Weiten des Alls herbeisehnt, um endlich in der
Ewigkeit aufzugehen, wird hier zweifellos fündig. Eine abwechslunsgreiche
spirituelle Reise.
From The Tokafi Webzine (Germany)
In the end, nothing has been resolved: A look
at the stars from the perspective of a deeply romantic soul on earth.
In Buddhism, setbacks are not perceived as problems but as opportunities.
“Sternenklang” hits our galaxy a lot later than initially
announced - the release seemed all but finished and ready to ship in
early 2007 - but according to Eisen, the man with the plan on this stretched-out
statement, that was anything but a disappointment to him: “Although
nearly every artist wants his stuff released as soon as possible, these
delays are a good possibility to find new inspiration and ideas to give
it a final touch, which most times turns out best for the result.”
The album at hand proves him right. Eisen is a man with many interests
and a rarely found ability to navigate through the most diverse styles
and genres, an artists equally comfortable with the blind brutality
of Black Metal, the hypnotic mantras of electronica, frenetic sampling
and ice-cold industrial terror. A touch of gloom is inherent to most
of his output, an ear for unconventional arrangements and grand forms
its basis. “Sternenklang” fits this description well. On
the outside, it is another finely crafted piece of Cosmic Dark Ambient,
a style which allows for a lot of freedom and breathing space in musical
structures. Rather than aiming for a depressed and drooping stupour,
it has turned out a meditation on time and space, which places experience
above philosophy and prefers imagination over stark realism. Those searching
for a soundtrack to their misery should therefore turn somewhere else
for inspiration. Instead, there is something immensely consoling and
relaxing about lying down, putting headphonelevels high and the phone
on mute and allowing the music to carry you far away, beyond the outer
rims of this solar system. “Sternenklang” looks at the stars
from the perspective of a deeply romantic soul on earth, not those of
a scientist in space – it is noteworthy in this respect that a
night at a star-framed lake was muse to the seventy-minute long track.
This is even more important, as the album does not meander aimlessly
along the lines of opqaue drones and oblique reverberations. Eisen builds
his work around subtle, yet recognisable themes: A majestic yearning
and huge cathedrals of sustained harmonics in the opening quarter, abstract
metallic rumblings and a pitch-bent chord in the middle section and
even a slowly pounding bass drum with glistening melodies on top towards
the end. It sounds pretty ambitious, but “Sternenklang”
manages to sound anything but pretentious. For minutes, it relies on
nothing but the flow of its elements, drifting along minuscule variations
and pure timbre, before another effective change leads the mind deeper
into the abyss: Every action, every sound and noise contributes to the
ambiance of the music, embellishing it and highlighting another angle.
It is not necessarily going anywhere. There is no classical development
or the sense that a particular conflict has been resolved at the end
of this trip. On the other hand, there might never have been one in
the first place. As a buddhist would say: The journey is the reward
– and quite an impressive reward at that, one might add.
By Tobias Fischer
From The Gothtronic Webzine (Holland)
Our night sky is polluted by the enlightenment
of western civilization. The stars are concealed and we have lost contact
with the whole as we only see fragments of that what is above us at
the starry vault. The vast universe is reduced to a glimpse of what
is really out there.
Eisen, mastermind behind Tholen is unveiling our universe to us with
this deep and organic soundtrack taking us deep into space between the
stars Eisen likes to gaze at and dreaming of during long dark nights.
Solar systems and nebulas, an aural glimpse into the deepest regions
of unending space. Sternklang makes you travel along the stars like
Inade does with deep spacious droning sounds. Comparisons can easy be
made with Inade’s recently re-released album Aldebaran and the
Crackling of the Anonymous. This is an immense trip through the darkest
hours and the birth of space, slightly illuminating stars in the slow
opening mouth of infinity. A new star has appeared at the firmament
and its name is tholen. Cavernous dark ambient with brooding dark atmospheres
and deep pulses. Sternklang starts with the echoes of the birth of the
constellations and the boiling of the primordial substance. Hear the
blowing of the ancient winds. A slow pulsing beat get introduced and
some human voices are received by magnetic fields going beyond the borders
of time. After ten minutes the ancient winds gets tuned down and fade
out to introduce a new chapter in this 71 minute piece. A metallic wide
and spacious drone get hold of the tension as Sternklang grows into
a more futuristic approach and the atmosphere gets darker. Hear the
deep trembling moaning of the ancient ones as they travelling time in
their black gardens. The structure of the drones is tightening as the
atmosphere becomes massive. Layers of soundscapes are growing into a
multi dimensional sound trip. After thirty minutes you hear comets and
satellites snoring around your ears as you are introduced in the third
part of Sternklang. A slow melody has interfered and becomes more dominant.
You are entering the deepest cavernous parts of our universe were shadows
are darkening reality and knowledge. Feel the tight blackness around
you getting closer. A new rumbling drone like the heavy breathing of
the divine. It takes you deeper and deeper as the vastness is tearing
you apart and reducing your atoms to new forms compressing the constellations.
Mutating dissonance and alienating melodies are haunting the spheres.
Sculpturing sounds creating images of different tissues as your body
is falling apart to become one with the cosmic being. This is a superb
release for those who are into dark ambient. Unfortunately the parts
are not separated in the index so you can choose a part you like but
Sternklang is one long cosmic piece of alternating beauty. Take it as
it is and drift away in this dreamlike state. 8/10
From
The Necroweb webzine
Aus dem Hause Cyclic Law erschien dieser Tage ein weiterer Vertreter
des so genannten 'kosmischen' Dark Ambient. Das Werk besteht lediglich
aus dem Titeltrack und versetzt den aufmerksamen Hörer in entfernte
Galaxien, welche in der Ferne auf den Konsumenten warten. Stilistisch
ist "Sternklang" auf mehrere Akte verteilt, welche allerdings
fließend ineinander übergehen und nicht auf einzelne Tracks
verlegt wurden. Hätte man dies getan, wäre dieser Silberling
noch eingängiger geworden. Recht ruhig beginnt die Reise, bis sich
ein gediegener Grundrhythmus dazugesellt. Besagter Rhythmus verschwindet
zwischenzeitlich, um gelegentlich in mitunter leicht abgeänderter
Form wieder aufzutauchen. Weit entfernt vernimmt man verzerrte Sprachfetzen,
dezente Glockenspiele mischen sich ebenso darunter wie eine kaum erkennbare
Gitarre, welche wohl so etwas wie umherschweifende Kometen untermalen
könnte. Klingt vielleicht komisch, ist aber gut gelungen. Im Herz
dieser Klanglandschaft baut sich eine warme Tastenmelodie auf, welche
zum innigen verweilen einlädt und leider ebenso schnell wieder
in den Weiten des Kosmos verschwindet wie sie gekommen ist. Um das Werk
richtig auf sich wirken lassen zu können, sollte man "Sternklang"
durchaus etwas lauter konsumieren, denn so kommen die Feinheiten am
besten zum tragen. Diese offenbaren sich in dem überlangen Track
nicht jedermann sofort, da muß man schon eine Portion Geduld mit
sich bringen. Das gesamte Tonwerk ist von recht ruhiger Natur und trägt
den Hörer somit behutsam durch die klanglichen Dimensionen, welche
durchaus als angenehm zu bezeichnen sind. Dennoch ist "Sternklang"
im Gesamtbild recht düster ausgefallen, beherbergt aber ebenso
auch träumerische Elemente. Das Ganze kommt in typischer Cyclic
Law Manier im gelungenen A5 Digi Format. Wer also in die Weiten des
Universums eintauchen und sich tragen lassen will, wird an "Sternklang"
nicht vorbei kommen.