NICK RHODES & WENDY BEVAN
TAPE MODERN
ASTRONOMIA II – THE RISE OF LYRA
★★★★
With the Summer Solstice comes Nick Rhodes’ second collection this year alongside Wendy Bevan. Woman Of The Apocalypse layers operatic voices over Moby-like ambience and high-pitched celestial voices lift The Masked Portrait Of Tempesta, while Draconis sees Bevan’s violin floating through shimmering galaxies of textural synth. Not all these sketches are astronomically sublime, however, with Almagest breaking down nervously midway and the title track significantly more ominous.