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Steve Roach & Serena Gabriel — Entering Elysium
(Projekt 436, 2026, CD / DL)

by Peter Thelen, Published 2026-04-08

Entering Elysium Cover art

Much like Nectar Meditation (2020) and Temple of the Melting Dawn (2021), this third collaboration between Steve Roach and Serena Gabriel brings together the power and majesty of analog synth textures with the mystery and medieval dreaminess of centuries-old acoustic instruments, melding together the contemporary and the ancient. For his contribution, a studio full of analog synthesizers create multiple levels of textures and currents in a shimmering far reaching atmospheric fabric that folds and drifts freely, untethered and unbound in a powerful cosmic dreamscape. Gabriel’s contributions are more subtle but every bit as important to the organic shape of the sound, playing lyre, flute, and harmonium, as well as the angelic wordless vocals that one can hear on several of the album’s five long cuts. In addition, there are some gentle percussive sounds that can be heard here and there throughout, not a cadence, but gentle beautifications that adorn the sound amid the droning and melodic elements. Above all, however, this is floating ambient music tailored for meditation, far reaching into the cosmos. The door opens with the title track, where Gabriel’s voice mixes freely with synths, loops and persistent dreamlike effects, drifting freely in space, reaching deep into the unknown. Compositions herein are credited to both artists, although much of what’s here seems to be thoughtfully improvised, bringing a spiritual sensibility to every piece. “First Rays” reveals an undercurrent that propels the listener onward, through scintillations and sparkling percussive sounds, guided onward by a shimmering backdrop of moody flutes. The longest track, at twenty-one minutes, is the deeply emotive “In the Garden,” a piece that slowly emerges from the mist, evolving slowly as it proceeds, a warm and moving piece where the melodic fragments are defined by the lyre mixing with synths in a heightened dreamspace. Two more pieces, “The Beauty of It All” and “In the Grace of It All,” round out the program, the former pushing the listener’s imagination far into the depths of space, while the latter closes the set majestically, with Gabriel’s voice a most powerful element in the mix of sounds. Followers of both artists, as well as Aglaia, Alio Die, and others will find plenty to enjoy in Entering Elysium.

Filed under: New releases, 2026 releases

Related artist(s): Steve Roach, Serena Gabriel

More info
http://projektrecords.bandcamp.com/album/entering-elysium

 

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