Posts Tagged ‘The Nexion Project’

The summer is not entirely over yet - so we put on some sunblock and continue our journey through albums with that warm summer sound we all enjoy so much!

The album I have selected today is to be found in our popular Island Music guide; Isle of Freedom by the Nexion Project. I simply cannot praise this album enough, and fell in love with it when I heard it last year. What makes Isle of Freedom into such a fantastic album is the light, uncomplicated atmosphere and the way the listener is taken on a musical day trip (morning to dawn) around the isle. You get to see both flowers and forests (track 3 and 6). The album has also some magnificent piano and guitar melodies, backed by a very enjoyable synth arrangement. Just check out track no. 2, The Hills over the Town, and listen for yourself.

This is not an album you want if you are looking for something complex and deep – but that is not matching with the sun&summer theme either. Isle of Freedom is an album that will give you a touch of summer even on a cold, winter day.

So yes, the Isle of Freedom do exist! Put on this album and you’ll be convinced too. 

Available on CDBaby.

Sample it here:

Track 3 – Flowers

Track 6 – Morning Forest

Movie soundtracks is a rich and influential music genre. Through carefully composed music a movie director can tell the viewer what to expect and what to feel. If the movie is scary, romantic or comical, the soundtrack adds a vital part to the overall atmosphere and the setting.

But have you ever listened to an album that is created as a soundtrack – but there is no movie? One such album is Land of Dreams by The Nexion Project. Just read the attached description in the CD booklet (which is a very dramatic story – more on that later), close your eyes and the music will take you to a land far away – and a sad part of human history too.

The artist has prepared this animation, which gives you a taste of the music:

Previous Rave Reviews
I have in the past reviewed several albums by The Nexion Project/Török Zoltán (see our dedicated page here) – and have always been very positive. This is because Török Zoltán has such impressive attention to details. He is a master in a world of synths and sequencers, and makes the music sound so live, so fresh – no matter the topic. This is also the case with the album in question today. Land of Dreams is sequenced music, but sounds almost like it is being played by a real, live orchestra. No analogue sounding synths can be heard. This gives the album an extra, very powerful dimension. It is live. Or sounds like it.

Török Zoltán/The Nexion Project has such impressive attention to details. He is a master in a world of synths and sequencers

The Story Behind
The dramatic backdrop to the Land of Dreams is the brutal Khmer Rouge regime in Cambodia. In the booklet you can read story about a family of farmers where the topic is a son’s relationship with the daughter of a Communist’s deputy leader. It takes place in the second half of the seventies.

Without giving too much away, I can say that by following the short storyline you understand the dramatic images communicated through the music.

Reminds of Kitaro and Mike Oldfield
The album has many Asiatic influences, both in the instruments used and the way they are played. I cannot listen to it without thinking of Kitaro. A comparison to Mike Oldfield’s The Killing Fields is also very relevant since it is a soundtrack for a movie with the same topic. But Oldifeld’s 1984 album has a more analogue synth approach on the main tracks (for instance Evacuation and Execution, which are both very dated in terms of sound). Land of Dreams instead has a complete, very delicate orchestral arrangement.

The first track is entitled The Family. Close your eyes, and the music will introduce you to the strong bonds in the family and the struggles in their daily life. The music has a larger-than-life-feel, and makes me think of Vangelis’ best moments.

The second track, Over the mountains, is a true masterpiece. The segment starting at 2min25sec is impressive, and gives the whole album an unforgettable theme. Wonderful, simply wonderful! The tracks Burning Rice, Evacuating the Village and Lost Memories are built around the storyline, and you can see the drama unfolding before your inner eye.

The Land of Dreams Suite is a worthy conclusion to a magnificent album. The drama, the struggles and the grandness of it all will make the listeners jump in their seats.

Land of Dreams is a different, fresh and bold album by The Nexion Project. It could have been pretentious, but is not so at all. Instead it comes through as a heartfelt and passionate album by an artist who is just as much a dream movie director as he is a first rate musical artist. It is also a proof that even the most brutal history can inspire an artist into creating beautiful art - which in turn makes the history harder to forget.   

You can buy the album on CDBaby and make sure to visit the artist’s homepage.

It is always interesting when an artist does something new, something quite different and original. The music of The Nexion Project is usually close to the style of Enigma or Mike Oldfield, but the album entitled Far Away is in most respects closer to smooth jazz in style. Or perhaps we should say lounge? But whatever we choose to call the style, the music speaks for itself. It is a downtempo collection of melodic and atmospheric tracks that will take the listener on a magnificent journey far away.

The Nexion Project is run by Hungarian artist Török Zoltán. We have previously reviewed some of his albums (see the reviews here) – and they have all become personal favorites (his Isle of Freedom is on this reviwer’s top 10 album list of all time). Bottom line: The Nexion Project has NewAgeMusic.nu’s seal of approval. It is quality music, pure and simple.

Before we move on, I would like to quote what the artist is saying about this album:

Over the last ten years I was trying to get my own musical style, but several albums has some a characteristic feeling, recognizable motives, harmonies, instrumentation from the performers, composers, bands what I like to listen. The idea of this revise process was born by my 2008 album, ‘Far Away’. Mostly it is a slow, melancholic, “smooth” music, where main instruments are classical guitar, cello and viola, and piano combined with light acoustic drums and other orchestral instruments with minimal electronic sounds. The purpose was to compose natural sounding as far as possible.

Torok Zoltan

This is the very essence of Far Away. I am amazed of the live sound of songs such as The Field (especially the violin part in the end) and Landscape(the sax). It reminds me of Mars Lasar’s more jazzy tracks, which also have a nice live sound (even though it is synth based music). A comparison to Mars Lasar here is actually very in place, since both artists have a solid grasp on the melodic construction. I might be tempted to use the word perfection.

But I must stress that this is not a smooth jazz album. Not at all.  Fans of The Nexion Project will be glad to hear that some of the songs here have the “good old” style that Torok Zoltan mentions above (I am thinking of the songs Daylight and Sidestreet).

Far Away is in all respects a great album; it offers something new to the project, while staying true to the original artistic expression. We all want to go far away sometimes, and this album might be your ticket.

Sample the album on CDBaby.

ConSequence is the title of a revised edition of the albums Contacts and the sequel The Consummation by The Nexion Project, plus the brand new Prologue and Epilogue. ConSequence is a rare combination of dreamy space music and worldly chill out; it has the larger-than-life qualities of Vangelis’ music, and the emotional aspects of Enigma. Overall it is an impressive package!

The Nexion Project is run by Hungarian Torok Zoltan, and 16 albums are so far released in The Nexion Project series. He’ll give you wonderful music with layers of synth, piano, guitars and tasteful effects. It is masterful sound design, with attention on details.

ConSequence starts with three tracks, The First Sign, The Ascent and A New Place, that gives the listener a feeling of vastness and space (but without an analogue sounding synth). Then there are two tracks that Vangelis fans for sure will enjoy; Mountains and Fading Distances. This is truly majestic music, filled with colors and feelings of greatness. A day is never gray when you put on this music.

The song River of Belief has its name from the Enigma song, the ending on MCMXC a.D., but the Nexion Project song is an entirely different song. This one is more positive and upbeat, but lacing lyrics (even though there are some nice vocals in background).

The most interesting track on the album is without a doubt the 13 minutes long A New Chance. And wow, it is really like an album in itself! In style it is like Mike Oldfield’s Tubular Bells and Amarok. Here are multiple melodies, several dramatic build ups and conclusions, one replacing the another. It is very creative, and could have been composed by the man with the bells himself; it is really that good. In style it reminds of Tubular Bells III, with its focus on synths. Still you don’t feel that it is a Mike Oldfield copy, not at all. It has its own identity and style.

ConSequence is simply an awesome album in The Nexion Project’s already impressive discography. The track A New Chance is a must have for any Tubular Bells fan.

So take a chance on ConSequence, and let your next purchase be this magnificent Nexion Project album!

Get it on CDBaby or

A tropical island is for many the very idea of a paradise on earth. It is a dream about white sandy beaches, clear blue water, palm trees and endless holidays. And if you add a dolphin or two, the image of paradise is complete.

Based on this it is easy to understand why tropical islands also are a frequent theme in new age music. Many of the genre’s most popular artists have created albums with this theme (Medwyn Goodall, David Arkenstone and Deuter to name a few). It is almost like a new age music sub genre. The Nexion Project also has released an album with this theme, which now is available as a digital download for the first time. It is entitled The Isle of Freedom. Here The Nexion Project is as good as any of the before mentioned artists; it might even take the island theme to the next level.

The mastermind behind The Nexion Project is Hungarian Torok Zoltan. There currently are 16 albums released under the The Nexion Project name (see the discography here). Zoltan’s style is somewhere between chill out and new age; it has the classy lounge style of DJ Claude Challe’s Buddha Bar series and the deep, intense emotions of Michael Cretu’s Enigma. It is really like a bridge between two different genres. I must also mention that every album and every song have a sound design that is nothing but impressive; there is this attention to details that you just have to experience yourself.

The Isle of Freedom starts slowly. It is the dawn of the album, and you can almost see how the sun is slowly rising over the tropical paradise, and the day’s first sunlight is glittering in the ocean. Track two, The Hills over the Town, is like an instant classic in the island theme genre. It has a very satisfying build up, a catchy piano melody, strings and great guitar solo conclusion. Marvelous!

From here on you are taken on an expedition around the dream island. You get to see the Flowers (track three), Morning Forest (track five) and enjoy the Dusk – End Sequence (track ten). There is also an Enigma reference in the titles: Towards the Towers of Wisdom (track six). It is the Gravity Of Love lyrics: The path of excess leads to the tower of Wisdom. All Enigma fans will love this Nexion Project track, with its great sample use and dramatic, highly melodic segments.

The Hills over the Town is like an instant classic in the island theme genre. It has a very satisfying build up, a catchy piano melody, strings and great guitar solo conclusion. Marvelous!

Is it possible to make something that already is perfect, like the dream of a tropical island, even better? Yes, the Nexion Project’s The Isle of Freedom is a proof of this. It takes the island theme to the next level, creating a dream sphere that is both relaxing and energizing at the same time.

It is everything and more, just like paradise itself.

Sample and buy the album on CDBaby

or

New age music is perfect for movies and animation. A proof of this can be seen on The Nexion-Project homepage. It creates an atmosphere that not takes attention away from the animation but enhances it.

And when you are done watching the animations, why not check out all the albums in the The Nexion-Project series. They are amazing!

It is hard to combine chill out with new age. Either the artist creates a song that has the easy listening qualities of chill out, but lacks new age’s special atmosphere. Or the artist creates a song that has the mystic of new age, but isn’t quite chill out. But it is possible to build a bridge between these two genres. A successful example of this is the album Movements by The Nexion Project. It has the best of two worlds, it is like a movement towards the new age of chill out.

The man behind The Nexion Project is Torok Zoltan (see his discography here, which contains an impressive collections 16 albums released since 1999). Movements was recorded in 2005, but is now for the first time being released as a digital download on iTunes Music Store. And it was about time, since this is a jewel, a true find, for fans of both new age and chill out.

And it is, as mentioned above, really hard to combine these genres. Perhaps you remember what happened when Mike Oldfield tried to make a chill out album, the Tres Lunas project. This was for the most part too much new age for chill out fans and too easy listening for the new age crowd (but I liked it though, but just because it was so different from anything else by mr. Oldfield). But here comes The Nexion Project and shows how it can be done.

Zoltan uses lush synth pads, light electronic piano, guitars and occasional flutes. And I must stress that the album is extremely well produced, to the brink of perfection. It is 75 minutes and 10 seconds long, with a total of 13 tracks. Every part of the album is quality, and you won’t hear a single weak melody. It is truly inspired. I can almost not believe that it is mastered by the artist himself, and not a world class producer. It is that good.

The album starts with a track entitled Opening. It is from the very beginning easy to hear that Zoltan is heavily inspired by Enigma (especially the more ambient parts of the MCMXC a.D. album). The only thing missing is Sandra’s voice saying Let the rhythm be your guiding light. But as soon as the second track, Parallel Dreams, starts you hear the difference: the wonderful, chill out atmosphere that is without the depth of Enigma (or depth of new age if you will). A Gregorian chant sample would have changed this in a heart beat, but Zoltan does not use this. And that’s great, since it keeps the mood easy and laid back.

Track three, Twilight, is a little bit darker. The piano sounds fresh, a bit like Robert Miles’ Children. From here on you can close your eyes, and let The Nexion Project take you to the next level of relaxation. Songs like Bodies, Ancient Lullabies and Falling are perfect chill out songs that also have a mystical (yet light) new age element. And, like Enigma’s MCMXC a.D. album, the songs does not tone out, but the next track takes over without a break. Wonderful for relaxation.

The most interesting track on the album is Way of Eternity. It is just as dramatic as the title implies: it reminds of Clint Mansell’s Lux Aeterna from the Requiem for a Dream soundtrack. The song has a marvelous build up. It is hard-hitting, aggressive, yet beautiful.

The last track on the album is The Road Home. The rhythm is easy and the guitar sample sounds care free. It is a perfect ending, in a quiet and slow way. Some might argue that there is not a lot of variation on the album, but I enjoy that it is consistent and complete. You don’t get a lot of surprises, but in a setting like this it is only positive.

Movements is all in all a simply irresistible album, filled with beautiful melodies and light beats. Put it on your iPod, and a dream world of rhythm and movements emerges. It doesn’t get better than that.

Visit the nexion-project.com. On the front page is the link to iTunes Music Store where you can sample the album. The album art is by the artist himself.

Picture copyright BigStockPhoto, Enjoylife