Amir Abbey's early releases as
Secret Pyramid conjured up an intensely sad, starry mood similar to space rock groups like
Windy & Carl but with a dose of
Popol Vuh-inspired mysticism. Following several self-released cassettes and two vinyl LPs issued by Students of Decay,
Two Shadows Collide appeared on Ba Da Bing Records in 2017, and it's just as gloriously bleak as its predecessors. Instead of building deep, slow-burning guitar drones, Abbey employs the elusive Ondes Martenot for many of these compositions, and its grainy, eerie sound is perfectly fitting for his haunting fog-scapes. While the album never gets abrasive, some of these pieces seem to have a crushed, decaying texture which sounds like an invocation of the world ending in slow motion. As gloomy as the looped melodies are, there's a bit of a cosmic sparkle to them which makes them somehow seem uplifting. Certainly less intense and voluminous than past
Secret Pyramid releases,
Two Shadows Collide seems a bit more otherworldly, and is no less fascinating. ~ Paul Simpson