john flomer: night in the vapor jungle john flomer: night in the vapor jungle (Spotted Peccary - 1999) I know New Age is a term/style many of us love to hate; even self-assumedly open-minded folks as myself may find lips curling into a sneer around that term and the worst of sounds associated with it... Though, when you spend a night in the vapor jungle, you find yourself surrounded by the atmospheric moodiness of 10 pieces of john flomer's new age piano music... and in this case, that is largely a comforting prospect to look forward to. Cascading piano notes twinkle in ori arin's majestic choral/synth stream, radiating with faraway thunder and effervescent light. A glistening bauble from some neo-medieval fantasy world, the chiming doublets and triplets of trinket bask in simple, sweeping loveliness. Progressive new age arrangements guide the charm wind on its semi-symphonic course. This would be a track that, despite its poise and grandeur, leans toward the overly emphatic... unlike weeping cavern where melancholy pianotones hushedly radiate within their own little expanse. A light tribalistic rhythm propels listeners through the veil, into Flomer's world, revved up with magic synthsounds, choirs and his pianofortes. The lush choral drifts of centuries (7:00) are overlain with multiple layers of ivories a'tinkling. My favorite moments are where the notes veer into wholly unexpected territories. Solemn beauty flows during moon breaks free (3:21) as nimble fingers send notes skyward, leaving a trail of resonance. I enjoyed my night in the vapor jungle; the calming sounds genuinely warmed my listening space during the hectic December pre-holidaze. While I would personally prefer a little less polish, the composer obviously has his own vision and seems to have attained it. An 8.1 for gorgeous sounds, no matter what title one might choose to apply to them. john flomer has his own website where you can learn much more... This review posted December 28, 1999 AmbiEntrance © 1999-97 by David J Opdyke (except CD cover art, rights retained by original owners).