Lycia : Ionia

ARTIST: Lycia
TITLE:  Ionia
LABEL:  projekt (PRO32)
TRACK TIME:     58:20

It was with great pleasure that I decided to explore the early offerings of projekt (they can't release material fast enough to keep me satisfied. What will happen when I have it all? God, best not to consider). Since Lycia is my favorite projekt band (hell, it ranks up there in the top five of all time on any label) I could think of no better place to start, and since "Ionia" is my favorite Lycia disc...well, here's a review (as unbiased as a worshipper of Mike Van Portfleet) can be.

This disc is flawless! Hell, this is coming from me, the man who can find something to bitch about no matter what. Once you accept that nothing is perfect, it only becomes a task of finding what's wrong. I'm still searching Ionia for some tiny error. This disc scares the hell out of me.

A friend of mine and I found ourselves drinking alcohol, of some sort, late one night, when for the first time we discovered Lycia. "Everything is Cold" seeped from my speakers and it seemed as if it was the only song to be played for over an hour. Every time either of us thought that there was no way that we could take this song again, that we would finally descend completely into depression, the likes of which there is no escape, the other would reach out and begin the whole torturous process over again. This is a unique experience, and not one that I would suggest for the feeble. It was because of this song on "From Across This Gray Land No. 3" that I knew I had to have more Lycia. Ionia was the curse to followed.

I never thought that anyone could recreate the hour of sublime pain, my friend and I put ourselves through--I'm a sadist, I really am--but here comes Ionia and I wonder at the sanity of Portfleet. This disc clocks in at almost an hour, but I am screaming for it to stop well before then. Sometimes, the good hurts too bad to bear, and the bad is too good to let go. This is one of those times.

There are no bad songs on this disc, but some are better than others. Oh, to pick among greats is such a rare pleasure! From the first song this disc exhibits a scary beauty, and it just doesn't stop. "A Brief Glimpse, Granada, and The Realization" all make me want to cut my wrists in damp diagonal slashes. About half this disc is instrumental. Which for me usually impresses me less, as I need the images lyrics paint to enjoy most songs, but Ionia is different--different even than other Lycia releases. Here the music carries its weight and doesn't just act as "filler." Ionia wouldn't be as good without Portfleet's evil whispering vocals, but even lacking these, I'd still pull this one out again and again.

It's impossible to go wrong with this release, and if one was limited to only one Lycia disc, Ionia would be it!

for contact with Lycia:

P.O. Box 41135
Mesa, AZ.
85274-1135

send for a free catalog of gothic-ambient music
projekt. box 1591. garden grove, ca 92642-1591

argent@iastate.edu