Maeror Tri - Mind Reversal

From the late 80's through the late 90's, Maeror Tri released a great deal of droning, looping, heavily processed soundscapes in limited editions, much of it on cassette, a medium that wasn't designed to withstand the test of time. I still have boxes of the things, and I wouldn't risk putting them into a tape deck for fear of watching some out-of-print limited release get gobbled up. If you weren't around to pick up a copy of the 1993 cassette release of 'Mind Reversal' or its CD-R re-release in 2000, then Infinite Fog has you covered, with a brand new CD re-release of the album.

All the tracks on 'Mind Reversal' have a common thread running among them: they're all composed of backwards sounds. This adds an often otherworldly, occasionally spooky feeling to the music. The opening track, "The Subjective Mind" is just over 18 minutes of long, droning backwards guitar recordings and vocal work; it has a very atmospheric, almost psychedelic feel to it.
The atmospheric feel is really strong throughout the entire release. Even the shorter tracks like "Sempiterna Memoria" have loops and layers that ebb and flow like waves washing across you as you listen. Most of the tracks have a light feel to them; ambient and atmospheric, but pleasant to get lost in. The final track "Dusa", which doesn't appear on the original 1993 release, seems to be composed more of vocal work, and has a darker, almost chanting or ritualistic feel to it.

If there's a drawback to the album, it's that working with 20 year old material that was originally released on cassette is bound to result in some limitations. At times, these sounds want to swell up and continue to expand beyond these limitations, and you hear artifacts, small glitches, and noises. For me, though, these artifacts aren't problematic, and serve as a reminder of Maeror Tri's origins in the world of small batches of cassette releases and tape trading that helped spread so much music in those days.

As far as I can tell,Infinite Fog's release 'Mind Reversal' is a bigger batch than all previous releases combined. At 270 copies for Infinite Fog's release, that really says something about how limited 'Mind Reversal' has been over the past 20 years. I'm glad to see this album given new light. Listen with headphones on for extra mind-altering effects. Mar 13 2012