I thoroughly enjoy reviewing new music but sometimes gathering all the necessary components (photos, links, contact info) takes a lot of time and energy to research. Few artists/labels put together all the info we reviewers need here at Chain D.L.K. and time that could have been spent listing and reviewing ends up going for playing detective. I got lucky with this one. Musician, composer and synthesist Simon Ferris (from Devon, UK) began creating music with tape machines and keyboards in 1989. Since then he's had a slew of releases under the name zYklen of which 'Desire Paths' is the latest. Unfortunately I have not heard any of his previous efforts, but if 'Desire Paths' is indicative of his earlier work, then I'd definitely recommend a stroll through his back catalogue. This album consists of eight ambient high quality soundscapes, broadly cinematic in their scope. A quote from zYklen's Bandcamp sire may provide some insight into the album's concept. "The human obsession with exploring; risking life — whether to establish a name, expand human knowledge, or simply discover what’s over the horizon. A theme repeated by civilization over thousands of years. Our planet-wide presence is evidence of our compulsion to explore and fulfill our desire to create paths. It will continue for as long as we remain curious."

Opening with "The Lost City" I get the impression of lazily drifting over a landscape unto the the repeating but melodically subtle theme emerges, becoming more forceful as it evolves. It eventually declines, subsides and disappears. "Pytheas and the Frozen Ocean" does sound frozen its own way, and features wordless female vocals that enhance the atmospherics. "Legend of Cape Bojador" explores a rather obscure place, a headland on the west coast of Moroccan-occupied Western Sahara. It was historically known as the "point of no return" due to its treacherous navigation conditions and the fear of the unknown beyond it. Sailors believed it was the edge of the world, with legends of boiling seas, sea monsters, and insurmountable currents. From there we journey to the "Canyons of the Escalante" in southern Utah. This piece has somewhat of a melancholy and oppressive theme, possibly due to the heat? (Keep hydrated when listening to this one.) Next stop is Alaska to visit "Aniakchak Caldera," a raw and rugged volcanic feature located in a landscape that is, because of its remoteness, little affected by human occupancy. The slow beat measured at first by gentle noise pops, taken over by bass forms reminds me of certain 70's electronic music albums along the Tangerine Dream lines. I'm not sure if "Roanoke" refers to the city in Virginia or not, but it's an exceptionally sad piece. Mountain climbing time with "Denali Ascent," so it's back to Alaska we go. Mount McKInley to some, Denali is considered the tallest mountain on Earth from base to peak. This track has mysterious and dreamlike elements, but I was surprised to not find any indication of motion in it. Perhaps the view from above? Last on our world tour of strange places is "Lop Nur," a now largely dried-up salt lake formerly located within the Lop Depression in the eastern fringe of the Tarim Basin in the southeastern portion of the Xinjiang Autonomous Region, northwestern China. More mysterious cinematic ambience. Definitely a worthwhile album, but I would have liked to have heard a bit more motion here and there.