ART
OF HEALING magazine February 2004
"Peace & Quiet is the perfect music for your guided meditation.
Japetus has taken the best music from a 20
year career and remixed it to create a deliciously relaxing
flow of tranquillity. Every track oozes peace and quiet. There
are two CDs in the set - the first 'Peace' has the moving
and relaxed tracks, whilst the second CD 'Quiet' has the still
and relaxed pieces. If you like background music that sets
the true tone of tranquillity, then this double CD is a must-have
for massage, studying, driving cars and meditations."
BYRON
SHIRE ECHO newspaper October 2003
"Peace & Quiet is the kind of music which should be
listened to when you are naked, lying on a table covered in
oil, being worked on by your masseuse. This is the perfect
soundtrack for breathing and getting in touch with that deep
quiet within, perhaps a spot of yoga... a perfect accompaniment
to those extended tantra sessions... it's like having your
psyche teased with a feather... perfect for conflict resolution
sessions, perhaps in court and even better... in council chambers
to enhance the likelihood of thoughtful decisions."
NEXUS magazine
"Japetus has been a leading ambient and New Age
musician in Australia since the 1980s. Over the last year
he has been remastering all his earlier works. Deep Space
is a collage of cosmic moods that wash through you, taking
the soul on a trip through the universal mind. The CD is divided
into to lengthy tracks: 'Starlite' - winner of a 2000 Dolphin
Music Award and 'Celestial Ocean' which ebbs and flows into
the soul. Deep Space is a broad sweep, taking you on an extra-human
journey, not unlike Kubrick's 2001. Very powerful and profound
music."
LISTEN.COM
- primary internet MP3 reviewer:
"Japetus draws you into his soft, ethereal works
without overindulging in bombastic melodies... the common
pitfall of new age composers. Cascading harps and ambient
synthesisers slip through your pores."
WHOLE
LIFE TIMES magazine
"New Age composer - Japetus - similar in style
to Kitaro and Vangelis, has released two very good albums
'The Great Great Silence' and 'Once Around The Sun'. Melodic
interpretations of natural cycles within and without using
synthesisers to create a peaceful, spacious yet awe inspiring
atmosphere. As good or better than Kitaro, this is by far
the best New Age music to emerge from an Australian composer
so far.
"
NATURE
AND HEALTH magazine
"Japetus has recently emerged as one of Australia's
leading New Age musicians. As his compositions show, there
is certainly no reason to feel a sense of cultural cringe
with local product. Japetus is every bit as
good as many of his overseas counterparts. 'The Great Great
Silence' sets a very high standard indeed, exploring several
different aspects of self realisation with muted and delicate
sounds. His second tape 'Once Around The Sun' captures the
grandeur of a planet circling the sun, in a seasonal framework,
melded with the life-death-rebirth of its inhabitants. The
music and sounds of Japetus are welcoming, sensitive,
varied and colourful - and... very accomplished."
SOUTHERN CROSSING magazine
"Of all the releases by Japetus, I find 'Visions
Of Paradise' the most accessible, but also the hardest to
describe. It is music unto itself, an emotional feeling, a
cosmic mood. As with places we may journey to, we feel we
have been there before - deja vu. If that feeling could be
translated into music, you would have 'Visions Of Paradise'.
Composed, arranged, produced and performed by Japetus,
an Australian master musician.... this is deep soul music."
THE
CRYSTAL VISIONARY magazine
"Australian artist - Japetus - is well known
to listeners of meditation music. His past recordings are
all adventurous works being applauded in the press as belonging
alongside popular overseas artists. 'Visions Of Paradise'
was inspired by and composed for International Year Of Peace.
This music is superbly suited to meditation and transcendental
states of consciousness. Each side moves through three different
phases, blending together to form an unbroken flow. A fine
example of New Age music at its best!"
NATURE
AND HEALTH magazine
"What a beautiful, soothing way to work away the stresses and
strains of day to day modern life. Slip into something comfortable,
put on this video and be visually and aurally caressed while
the problems of the world slide down the drain for twenty
two relaxing minutes. Known to many of our readers for his
composing abilities, the multi talented Japetus
goes a step further with Visions of Paradise, The Video and
combines his music with a wonderful visual experience. This
video flows so smoothly, it literally hypnotises the viewer
with the sweeping natural vistas, including mountains, waterfalls,
forests and Sun transitions. The music, arguably some of the
best from Japetus, is an abridged version of
the original album, Visions of Paradise. As an aid to reIaxation
this video is one of the best, and serves as an easy-to-use
tool to help with any regenerative or rebalancing processes
such as healing, meditation relaxation and stress release
and lends itself to use in the home or wherever a state of
relaxation is beneficial. What a great way to connect the
beauty of this planet with that special place deep inside
each of us, helping to create one's own vision of paradise."
NATURE
AND HEALTH magazine
"Japetus stands out as one of Australia's most
adventurous synthesiser musicians, and he has ventured into
unfamiliar areas where few others have dared to go. On the
Radiant Self he is exploring new territory. It is at times
melodic, but there are also sequences that are confronting
and mechanistic, as he contrasts the utilitarian world of
mankind with the infinite reaches of space, beyond. The Radiant
Self is intended as a musical journey of self-exploration
and makes few concessions to the blandness which characterises
much New Age Music."
ALL MUSIC Guide...
Infinity
In the liner notes of Infinity, Australian new age composer Japetus writes that the record is supposed to be played at or just above hearing level, and can even be put on continuously at this low volume for days to provide a subtle, relaxing background. There are no track titles on Infinity, as Japetus urges his listeners to experiment with shuffling the songs to create a slightly different sound each time. The emphasis should definitely be on the word "slightly," as each track is practically a continuation of the previous one, with gentle, nearly rhythmless synthesizer noises and echoes that melt into one another, more similar to a painter's palette than to an actual album. Japetus' intent, after all, is to create auditory colors, and he seems to be particularly drawn to the soft pastels rather than more vibrant or forceful primary ones. The music sometimes borders on eerie, so that while it might be suitable for daytime meditation, it could cause a slight feeling of unrest as it grew darker. However, its low, soothing, drawn-out chords and sounds are perfect for providing a level of tranquility and inner peace for those within hearing distance of the music, and overall provides a very calming soundscape.
The Kabbalah/The Zodiac
The first of his Mystic Pathways Series, Japetus tackles two more spiritual traditions in The Kabbalah/The Zodiac. As the composer is wont to do, the first disc includes spoken directions and explanations of both Kabbalah and the Zodiac over music, while the second is simply the instrumentation of the first disc. The Kabbalah, which begins the album, is divided into four listening sections -- "Preparation" (comprised only of spoken breathing instructions), "Elements," "Praxis," and "Transformation" -- while the Zodiac has just three: "Preparation," "Elements," and "Praxis." Though Japetus' gentle Austrialian-accented voice certainly is calming, he tends to give a very cursory explanation of the traditions, introducing their more universal aspects as opposed to delving into the intricacies of each. Musically, Japetus doesn't venture much from what he's done for the past 20 years, using gentle, often rhythmless synthesized chords and sound effects with each of his pieces, though he does include some vaguely Native American-sounding chants and something that resembles a waltz in the Kabbalah section, which adds some nice diversity, though its connection to the ancient Jewish tradition is a little unclear. Without the spoken guidance, the instrumentals seem a bit directionless, relying solely on a low, constant drone to bring them together as opposed to any greater spiritual significance, but for the most part the tranquility of the music could be a good aid in the meditation or relaxation techniques of the listener.
The Major Arcana of the Tarot
This
is the second album in the prolific Australian new age composer Japetus' Mystic Pathways Series. Meant to be a guide through the 22 cards in the Major Arcana, which are often believed to be an allegory of the journey of the soul, Japetus offers his listeners two approaches in understanding the symbology of the Tarot. On the first disc, Japetus provides what he calls a "guided visualization," introducing each of the cards in the set, explaining their elemental value, and then describing a scene that illustrates the card over a generally calm, synthesized background. Japetus has a smooth, serene voice that fits well with the soothing instrumentation, and his use of the first-person plural is decidedly comforting, reassuring us that we can take this voyage together. For listeners who feel more equipped to take the trip alone, or wish to simply enjoy the soothing music, the second disc contains only the instrumentation from the first. It's 22 short songs, whose brevity can actually be a bit distracting, simply because the tracks often end right as tranquility is setting in. However, Japetus has been using synthesizers for over 20 years now, and he is very capable of producing descriptive soundscapes to both guide and inspire his listeners, and The Major Arcana of the Tarot accomplishes this.
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