Michael Brückner :: The Seven Planes of Dreams (Cyclical Dreams)

The Seven Planes of Dreams draws from a lot of different sources, such as the esoteric idea of five levels of consciousness, the scientific view of different phases of sleep, elements of our daily lives mingling with messages from our subconscious mind and with impressions received from books, or movies, from pictures and also other music.

Weaving worlds into a granular palate

In the land of dreams, both at night as well as in the form of daydreams, there always has been a source of inspiration. The Seven Planes of Dreams allows the constant listener to dream up an immersive journey through the different stages of dreams. Drawing from a lot of different sources, such as the esoteric idea of five levels of consciousness, the scientific view of different phases of sleep, elements of our daily lives mingling with messages from our subconscious mind and with impressions received from books, or movies, from pictures and also other music.

Michael Brückner has mastered the art of making music with synthesizers, electronic, programming and zither, to create an otherwise all electronic tapestry, weaving worlds into a granular palate that stays with the classic kosmische muzic feeling. I hear exhilarating sounds bringing to mind Wendy Carlos electronic jams and Kitaro-minded swirling crystal snowflake rainbows. Opening with “Descending to the First Plane” (9:28) I feel a sense of swirling light, a nimble quick sequencer flourishes, bringing new rhymes that blend into a positive and uplifting tempo. We are going down into something, with an odd glimpse of something dark that dances off, into a long tone, “Memory Surfing” (5:41) commences bubbling like the waves on the beach and we are coasting along. Now the beat is here, the dance escalates, playing with imaginary lights on the ceiling like a mirror ball.

“Cloud Formation in the East Central Section (City of the 7th Plane – Part 1)” (9:37) brings mysterious voices speaking through time, for me it is hard to make out what the words are but I sure love the sound, also the way the zither mingles with the drone tones. I might hear melodic strums and drones with a shaman beat, portraying motion up in the clouds with colors. I think I hear a theremin and a drum kit, which have the floor until the voice shows up again at fades. Imagine spooky cold shadows transforming into minimal forms, the next track starts low, perhaps within an empty haunted place, “Downtown Ghosts” (9:09). This is where I see dark shadows that watch my every thought. I ask you, do downtown ghosts travel in large groups? Or is this one just passively watching me?

Traveling in a different direction ::

I am captured by the strumming zither, while there is an enhanced atmosphere. This song uses less electronica, “A Few Minutes of Inner Peace” (3:41) strums a calming story. “Under Starry Skies” (6:32) opens into an electronic peppy groove with a sinister illuminated background. The night is darkest when the starry skies form dancing points of light employing all the colors, until the keyboard takes over the heroic journey, coming into a sci fi fade, I found some of the most spectacular ghosts at the close of the track.

Begin again, traveling in a different direction, in a different part of space than where we were, “Three Gates Deeper” (9:10) could be a story of a distant romantic white castle, the big gates open and the whole thing begins, the wordless story is gradual and detailed. Perhaps we are mostly just looking at the castle over on the hill, beyond that are clouds and lost mountains. Perhaps the story is about going into the castle and what they found, and why they left. Now we are talking to the troll in the basement, who seems a bit harsh and certainly colorful, nonetheless I feel comfortable in the darkness.

“Floating Towards Oblivion (City of the 7th Plane – Part 2)” (22:21) seems to connect with track three, the cloud formation. The story is getting more complex but continues to be relaxing, the drones have a sequencer melody embedded within, acting in very slow motion. This is where the album ends, but there are two bonus tracks, “Some further moments of inner peace” (5:04) features atmospheres with a guy talking, the strange voice is different, maybe a poet is performing with the strums and drones. “Moogroovia” (4:54) has a very different ‘lectric boogie bounce, this could be the pop hit on the lineup, add a drum kit, and the sound of a real cymbal emerges, a dance beat takes over for the remainder of the listening experience, it sounds like real drums with the drones.

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Born 1969, Michael Brückner started to compose and record electronic music in 1992. He was inspired by the experience of mantra chanting in a Yoga group in the early 90s. He started to promote his music via different social networks from 2006 on. Michael has collaborated with many different artists and is a member of P’Faun, Bridge To Imla and La Mansarde Hérmetique.

The Seven Planes of Dreams is available on Cyclical Dreams. [Bandcamp]