Aranos – “Whilst Your Gaiety Melts ” – [Beta-Lactam Ring Records]

A limited release on this fearlessly experimental label. Aranos (pronounced, I believe, AIR-an-yosh), of the Czech Republic, offers two medium-long pieces. Side A (10 minutes) is the stranger of the two: it starts with bouncy piano/violin, adds some creepy crooning, then moves into a long, pulsing, echoing mass of violins. A melancholy violin solo appears, then some abstract whispering (“dragonflies! fragrant villages!” etc.) Finally, rattling percussion takes it out. Side B (15 minutes) is a soundscape thing, deep and mysterious; mostly quiet, things being bowed, rattled, etc. Very nice.