state azure - so long, eternity

State Azure

So Long, Eternity
self-released; 2013

3.7 out of 5

By Jamie Funk

Inspired by acts like Jean Michel Jarre and Tangerine Dream in the early 1970’s, what would later be known as State Azure began deconstructing these sounds and eventually creating his own material. The music is ethereal that combines textured pads, arpeggiated synths with a heavy low-end and sophisticated rhythmic palette.  State Azure’s latest is entitled So Long, Eternity. It is a solid effort that has nothing wrong with it but often left me yearning for more. The songs run around the five-minute mark and never overstay their welcome. For the most part the songs follow the same structure. Once you hear the first song you will know what the rest of the album has in store for you. It kind of reminded me of the artist Lone or Enya if she took some acid and then started making kick ass music.

Things start off good as the first song “A Fragile Purpose” slowly builds itself with different ambient textures feeling both soothing as well as introspective. The song is solid. The mixing is done well as State Azure choses sounds carefully. I can hear everything clearly which was nice and it felt like everything had its own space - no muddiness, no crowding of space, and overall good production. The third track on this album had a bit of a Persian vibe and was one of the notable standouts for me. It had a trancelike quality that left me feeling as if I was in a dream. I have to say again the production was great. The low-end especially was perfect. It hit just hard enough, almost like a hip-hop album. While I would I have loved to have a bit more experimentation on this album, State Azure knows exactly what it is trying do and does it well. Overall, this is a solid album with excellent production and plenty of well-crafted music that should make many music fans happy.  

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