Review Summary: Awareness of eternity
“I guess we all have our special place. A place where we can be alone with ourselves and have a moment of reflection. I have such a place and even though it exists only in my mind, it gives me shelter when nothing else does. It’s a stranded beach somewhere, between unknown degrees of longitude and latitude, with soft sand and gentle waves crashing contempt on the land. Sometimes I watch the lonesome gulls hovering above the ocean. Sometimes, dip my feet into the sand and enjoy the profound moment of childish bliss. At night I can see the lights of a passing tanker or trawler. From up on the cliffs they are mundane, but down here they fudge into ambiguity. Sometimes the moon is cresting the junction between the cliff path and a large stone circle. It casts a shadow of the ridge across the beach, as if you had signed your name across the sand in untidy handwriting. I like to be here. I like to become featureless as this ocean I’m walking besides. I like to ascent the cliffs and watch the sunset. It keeps me calm and dreamy.”
Every time I plug in my headphones and press play I have a concrete purpose. Often its music that’s dynamic and fast to give me that extra boost necessary for productivity in whatever I’m doing. Occasionally it’s something droning and repetitive to keep my mind busy, but sometimes – music that lets me slip in an imaginary place that helps to distance myself from everyday bustle and hustle.
In 2007, because of someone’s reckless maneuver and a very good friend of mine suffered a terrible car crash and entered a state of coma. Doctors couldn’t predict anything, but we were all hoping for the best of course. In 2011, my friend unexpectedly awoke from her come. The initial happiness was short-lived. The previous state had a terrifying aftermath – a persistent vegetative state. No one could help and we were left again with our vain, naïve hopes and insomnia. It occupied my mind most of the time and I had trouble sleeping at nights. A terrible thing to live in an endless grief. Eventually I found escape though music, specifically – Helios. The soothing ambience and quiet instrumentation helped me drift away. Ever since I have developed the ability to shift from reality to a day-dream in a matter of seconds, whenever it’s needed. And it’s this exact album that had put me through hard times back in 2011.
Just as I do, people listen to music for various reasons and if one of them is the same as mine, I urge not to hesitate and try spinning some Helios, you won’t regret it. It’s beautiful, it’s nostalgic, it’s happy, it’s sad, it’s perfect.
