ZAUM released their first album back in 2014 to much critical acclaim (mainly in European markets). Ethereal, calming, slightly unsettling, and hauntingly beautiful "Eidolon" is named for a spirit or phantom of a deceased person; and considering the supernatural sounds that permeate this album, it is an an apt name. Whilst it is tempting to classify it as an EP, given that it only has a total of 2 tracks, each one is actually twenty-one minutes long. Whilst not, strictly-speaking, Metal, for those of you out there with a love of music and a desire to seek out new things, give a bit of a listen here and see what you think.

Featuring Mongolian throat singing and meditative sitar music, the "Influence of the Magi' is consumed with memories of past ancient civilizations, conjuring images of long-lost splendor. The deep and resonating throat singing is the real star for most of the track, as it underlays much of the 21 minute track. It takes almost 15 minutes for identifiable lyrics to debut, and it comes in the form of gruff throaty vocals that are almost out of place alongside the airy atmosphere that has been building up until that point. The multi-layered sound here has incredible depth that makes it an auditory as well as an almost spiritual epic.

Beginning with the chittering of chimpanzees and rainforest birds"The Enlightenment" has a different resonance to it; more of that of a brass instrument, likely from the synth but still enthralling. The underlying brass here punctuates the natural sounds of the animals and would normally be discordant, but here it adds a sort of base for the chaos of the animals. This reminded me of those 'nature sounds CDs' people used to listen to all the time, but with a creative twist. The rhythmic, echoing vocals slide in unexpectedly - so quiet I almost didnt notice because they blended with the music so seamlessly - and the sitars here are fantastic, providing a foreign yet familiar underlying note supplying what is essentially the bassline for the second half of the track.

While I definitely wouldn't recommend it to my diehard fans of brutal Death Metal, "Eidolon" is an engaging and powerful album with something different to offer. There are so many layers of sound going on at all times that it can really grab your attention. For someone like me, whose mind is always wandering, this is a huge compliment. If this sounds like something up your alley, you'll find a link to an official ZAUM sampling of the album on Youtube.