Yagya - Rigning

The third full-length from Icelands' Aðalsteinn Guðmundsson under the Yagya alias sees a partial return to the deeper and dreamier sounds of Rhythm Of Snow. This will be a welcome change of direction for those who criticised his 'Will I Dream...' CD for being a unbalanced collection of tracks; 'Rigning' (translation: Rain) provides a beautiful and soothing soundtrack to a walk in the rain. There is enough diversity in the music to captivate you, yet sufficient depth to allow you to drift within youself. The first time I listened to Rigning I closed my eyes and found myself walking through puddles, warm, dry and carefree, along the old harbour in Reykjavik.

Unsurprisingly all tracks are based around the sound of rain, either fading in/out with a gentle pitter-patter or continuing to rain softly for the length of the track. The vinyl release sadly omits Rigning Einn and Fjórir; a real shame as Rigning Einn is a gem of a track and left me with no choice but to buy the CD as well. To summarise, this release is outstanding in every sense of the word; more mature than 'Rhythm Of Snow' and more accomplished than 'Will I Dream During The Process?', Yagya continues to astound me, keeping his head firmly above water in a sea of increasingly soulless ambient/dub releases. Highly recommended!