Genre/Influences: Industrial, technoid, rhythmic-ambient.

Content: Tobias Lilja is a Swedish artist you might have discovered on a previous work released by n5MD. This musician remains a rather unknown name in the wider fields of electronic music, but I really hope that this album will get a great exposure, which might increase the popularity of Tobias Lilja.

This album is characterized by a real high degree of production. The mix is absolutely impressive revealing great artistic skills. But the writing is even more impressive. This musician is constantly merging styles with each other, which appears to be a trademark of Lilja. There’s a kind of chemistry between the genres. A big and somewhat technoid kick merges with industrial elements and haunting, ambient atmospheres. That’s the way this work takes off while the upcoming track sounds like a ballad rapidly moving towards a pure sonic explosion.

There’s a constant move from cinematographic passages towards a kind of rhythmic electro-ambient music, which sometimes becomes industrial as well. It moves from pure reverie to overwhelming sound vibes, which are sometimes joined by technoid grooves. The work has been accomplished by multiple sound effects and great treatments. “Medicine Sings Triptych” is an atypical album revealing an artist who clearly doesn’t want to get labeled in an established music genre.

Tobias Lilja belongs to that genius ‘race’ of sound makers who are exploring unknown sound paths. He’s using established influences to create an original melting pot. I’m not surprised this album ends with a remix by Hecq who’s a more renowned sound architect.

Conclusion: The magic of this work resulted from the hard labor of a musician who clearly strives for sound creativity.

Best songs: “Flaming Mouth”, “Frozen Lake”, “Medicine Sings”, “In The Dead Zone”, “There Is No Other”, “Sun-Eater”.

Rate: (DP:8½)DP.

Band: www.tobiaslilja.com / www.facebook.com/tobias.lilja

Inferno Sound Diaries

I have been working for over 30 years with Side-line as the main reviewer. My taste is eclectic, uncoventional and I prefer to look for the pearls, even if the bands are completely unknown, thus staying loyal to the Side-Line philosophy of nurturing new talents.

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