It took me several hours after receipt of Tahitimas by Poesboes before I realised that the back cover is… uh… mine. It is, of course, just like me to take so long to figure something like that out. I was pleased to see it though - its an old Noumenal.Net logo, one that I always liked. But I felt it wasn’t quite right for Noumenal.Net, so I’m happy it’s found a home one one of the best new EPs to grace my ears in a while.

The front cover is a beautiful photo taken of the most recent lunar eclipse, a magickal event portrayed on the cover of a magickal album.

The Tahitimas EP seems to have found its genesis in an ongoing conversation over on the Shattered Prayer, when the Shattered Prayerians and I decided to overthrow Christmas in lieu of a vacation in Tahiti. The idea of Tahitimas arose, and this album is - I suppose - the soundtrack to our new holiday. And so much more.

Tahitimas is a single song divided into four tracks. It begins with Winter, an icy electronic soundscape that evokes visions of snow-flurries lifted upon chill-winds, the crack of ice, the buckling of a tree-limb beneath the weight of snow. Winter is fittingly icy, sparse and moody and after about nine minutes, warms into the track called Spring.

Spring is by far the most melodic track, a slow and ticklish tune that hints of droplets of water, dripping from melting icicles. Deeper tones call up Persephone from the depths, heralding the flowers that bloom in her wake. Buds open, spring into colourful glory, and adorn the earth in the beauty of their blooms.

The final two tracks are my favorites. Summer is something I would choose to soundtrack a ritual. A dronish and hypnotic veil of sound hangs over the song, like a summer heat that blankets the land, the hum of bees, the sizzling of sidewalks. From beneath, an electric rhythm crackles, strangly reminiscent of a Polynesian dance. I have no idea if thats what Poesboes intended, but it fits the Tahitimas theme beautifully. My only complaint about the song is that it doesn’t last long enough, but perhaps Poesboes could be persuaded to make an extended version for the Summer Solstice - it would be lovely for a Solstice rite.

One would think Winter would be the most cthonic of the tracks, but it’s Fall that takes that award. I would like to say Fall would make a good meditation track, with its deep, sonorous drone. But the truth is, its a song that refuses to fade into the background. It holds the attention - when you listen to it, you want to hear every nuance, every shift in tone and depth. Its just that gorgeous. This Fall is no happy harvest, rather, it draws you deep into the earth, perhaps in preparation for the long hibernation ahead. Fall is visceral, animal - its both moving and soothing, lulling without stupifying. It is a descent into darkness, the shortening of days, the waning of light, the darkening of the leaves as they fall from the trees. Its the dark side of autumn, Persephone’s sorrow as she descends back into Hades.

I’ll admit I’m completely underqualified to review music. I can only give my impressions, the visuals evoked by the music. “I know what I like”, as they say. And I do like Tahitimas.

You can find Tahitimas as a free download on the Poesboes website, and I encourage you to give it a listen. I don’t know what plans are in the works for marketing the CDs, but you can contact Poesboes through the website to find out.