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ascanio borga: xenomorphic

"Xenomorphic" (2008) collects four compositions. The 30-minute "Apnea" is an exercise in slowly shifting textures, starting with subaquatic warped electronic melodies and transforming into more and more oneiric soundscapes, until the guitar ends it with a raga-like invocation. This probably marks the zenith of Borga's career together with "Bad Ground".

After a brief interlude of white noise, the 18-minute "Xenomorphic" blends shamanic drumming and sinister drones to create the backdrop for a loop of heavy-metal guitar riffs that is eventually attacked by industrial clangors and hisses.

The 14-minute "Equilibrium" is a more conventional piece of ambient and cosmic music for electronics and guitar, but the 10-minute "Raw Ground" dabbles in harsh, disturbing drones that sounds like a counterpart to the stereotypical gentle textures of ambient music.

[Piero Scaruffi]