30 October 2016
A peculiar thing happens in the process of absorbing Andean's Ascent. At first, it's easy to assess as pleasant, semi-ambient new-age instrumental fare. Indeed, seven-minute opener "From the Sea" beckons what ultimately proves a false sense of tranquility: What's that edgy repeated vocal sample doing in there, wrecking the vibe? And then, hello, where did those insistent electronic drum loops spring from? Now what the heck - searing lead guitar!By the halfway point you're hooked, banging your head to the full-out rave-y techno pulse. Hell yeah! Highlights: the seven-minute "I Asked My Love for Shelter" featuring slippery distorted slide-guitar work against throbbing percussion, and the dual-guitar harmonies scorching "Elastic Stomp".
David Price (keyboards/bass/loops), Elliott Lamm (guitars/piano/soundscapes) and Joseph Lamm (keyboards/percussion/vocals) bring us back to Earth with soothing tribal closer "Blue Sky Trance". But by then, you've visited some pretty far-out sonic realms.
I recommend Andean's Ascent as accompaniment to whatever creative endeavor you might be pursuing: It will slowly grab you by the shorthairs and by the end you'll be firing on all cylinders. Remarkable.
Jim Cirile
text reprinted with kind permission of Progression Magazine
issue no. 70, fall 2016