Label: Chill Tribe Records
Released: 2006

01. Altitudes - Altitude II
02. Nada - Earthgarden (Jong Remix)
03. Adham Shaikh - Indu
04. Digitalis - Noodles
05. Jong - Unexplored Depths
06. Makyo - Nothing Is Real (Sensual Mix)
07. Solar Quest - Tokers Dream (Remix)
08. EldarLife - Gone Gong
09. Circular - Ambulo
10. Saafi Brothers - Multiverse

Chill Tribe Records, Norwegian label owned by Per Kristian Slagsvold, passed the first exam. Great, though not perfect, result of the challenge named "the debut" ("Quality Relaxation") aroused demands that wish to hold at least the same level in the future. In 2006, year after first release, only one new CD was released by Chill Tribe, it's "Relaxed Journeys". And once again we have four good points related to the label's compilation: 80 minutes of the music (CD is filled to the maximum), concept design of the cover (nice one, not any - what sometimes happen on the scene), eight-pages cover-booklet with the message from PKS and informations about every artist involved in this work (release's oneself uniqueness will always be a great plus), and interesting tracklist (even very interesting). To fill up the end of technical aspect I'll add this CD is compiled by PKS and is not mixed, so another tracks are autonomous, pure compositions.

The CD begin with the music by Altitudes (Gabriel Masurel + Yannis Kamarinos, this time also with Johannes Regnier). This project made his debut in the previous Chill Tribe's CD, here we have the second composition in its history titled simply "Altitude II". This track measure up to mine expectations from this act a lot better than "Altitude I", because have larger depth, a lot more individualistic style, moreover big plus here is a skilfully laying out emotions' accents: born is blissful, while with a lazy time it sails into the waters of light chillout. Very smiling set of sounds, perfect for induction in the listener a melodious, but ethereal as well, excitement. The track number two is "Earthgarden" in the Jong remix (Jonathan Garnier); original one was finalized by Nada (Russel T. Davies + Humphrey Bacchus). We are receiving optimistic rain in bright sunlight. While the sounds are generally cheerful, they undoubtedly have got clearly kind of a small, but notable in expression, sadness' or concern' particle. Voice of this particle is perhaps mostly expressed in the main melody. As a whole, this is a dub composition with influences of world music; we have here a shy female vocal and also quite a lot of percussion details. Beautiful track, of course. In comparision with the original version - more colourful. Into the world of extensive world music we enter with "Indu" by Adham Shaikh. This Canadian artist is one of the best in the world creators of more traditional, local, exotic variety of the music compiled with a contemporary electronica's structures. Composition titled "Indu" is the best proof for the confirmation of this opinion. By dynamic architecture of the arrangement we have a lovely vocal of extraordinary beauty by Gemma Luna, which with expansion layer of percussion and atmosphere of journey deliver us, or at least deliver me personally, one of the greatest compositions that can be heard in this type (type of world music) scale of sounds. "Indu" is the perfect composition; absolutely compilation of the best elements of world music and electronic music.

On the fourth track we welcome "Noodles" by Digitalis (Sebastian James Taylor). Digitalis is one of the many musical ideas of Taylor; this one is act of over ten summers already. And the sound of "Noodles" positively surprise. I am not saying under no circumstances that Digitalis' music was or is bad, but I want only to say that in the context of this compilation this composition was paste in excellently. Because in fact "Noodles" contain more elements typical for Kaya Project's music (this is world music idea of Sebastian) than for - more breakbeat after all - Digitalis. We have here greatly devoted atmosphere neither explicitly optimistic nor explicitly pessimistic, it's difficult to describe it, but it is nicely and pleasantly to devote oneself to these sounds each time. The next one is "Unexplored Depths" by Jong. Of course this is a similiar composition to the remix of "Earthgarden", since always twin constructions characterize artists that have conception for their own. (Particular conception if not for a whole life, than at least for its certain period). So "Unexplored Depths" is a lightly frugal world music in the arms of dub and effectively catched flying sounds from filter's atmosphere to it. In a quite dynamic tempo we have a female vocal, percussion's pulse, a lot of effects, but also sort of miss of main motive (what I am not accusing in category of bad point). For sure this is a very nice continuation of the previous sounds, although I am missing a bigger dose of oddness sounds, so the track is not falling into the memory as others. Makyo (Gio Fazio) is opening the second half of the tracks with his version ("Sensual Mix") of his "Nothing Is Real". Makyo is a unique artist who not only have a very personal style, but also who is brave to create it on different levels of the music, i.e. ambient, dub, trance. The remix of "Nothing Is Real" is a floating track. There is no steersman here, because it's simply a journey that highlight more particularly atmosphere side by side of important participation of quite strong, hipnotic percussion loops, beautiful female voices and pads. This is excellent composition that shows a being of something like that like trance of dynamic sound without using permanent kicks on 4/4... Short reflection. Sometimes we hear something so many times, that a newly heard musical dissent is at least weird. This is why for a long, long time I felt disappointment to this track, only after maybe fifteenth listening to it I found a place in my heart for this composition. This is probably an effect of blinding brightness of Makyo's "Swara Mandala" album's excellence, which for a long time illuminated my ideal musical path named "Makyo" - virtues of every other Makyo's works were stopped by that forced wall of the perfect's outline. I remember that similiar problem I had at one time with the whole Shpongle's "Nothing Lasts... But Nothing Is Lost" CD, which only after some good months exploded finally with an ecstasy in contact with me. Also before this, some years ago, I had over one-year(!) of convincing to the whole (!) music of... Hallucinogen and Shpongle. But now, when I am in full possession of mine's faculties and when I can control of what is perfect in "Makyo" case, I say: marvelous composition. It's weird after all, that the judge of one thing in different time can be diametrically disparate. And this lead to such an effect, that behind every review an absurd is hiding, because if the sense of review have to be a real description, then when this description is definitively real, definitively objective: now or then? Perhaps tomorrow, or in ten years, this review would be even more definitively? Or maybe it was definitively already for two months ago?...

But from the other side every sentence of this review, apart of those related to the track' of Makyo and Solar Quest, were born in me practically after the first listening to this compilation, so rather you can trust in judges of mine's. We can back to "Relaxed Journeys", we just have the remix of "Tokers Dream" by Solar Quest (George Saunders, also remix' author). This track is very characteristic because of high concentration of sitar. But first of all, I would like to direct your attention to the magical beginning - first sounds (which waves perversely I won't describe) arouse the fire of passion in the mind. While in general content what this track looks like? In the vast background, where many sounds fly, we have female's short monologue as well as voices as well as singing and that sitar. This local oriental-cosmic atmosphere is one of a kind, excellently arranged. Whereas the most beautiful in the mentioned arrangement is a situation when sitar's motives at times come for each other as if they hasten the rhythm, and at the same time other sounds are levitating with the immutable dignity. For a small minus - minus of mine, not of the music - subjective feeling: it's probably even very subjective feeling, but sometimes that sitar is too loud, and this bring a small irritation that sitar is not harmonized with the whole. Composition number eight is "Gone Gong" from EldarLife (Eldar Von Essen). Very spatial reverb and echo also in this track creates a journey not earthly, but more a journey that is going there somewhere into the sky, that is heading to the orbit. Pads and melodies stylized on futuristic mould are swelling this theme. In the medium tempo and thoughts you can experience a bliss here, because we have, we have mythological Mrs Harmonia here, daughter of Ares and Aphrodite. On the ninth track of this CD is "Ambulo". The author of this composition is not stiffly connected with the psy-scene Norwegian Circular (Bjarte Andreassen + Jostein Dahl Gjelsvik). Their four minutes of ambient landscape I can describe as a great in every respect. Very sophisticated arrangement brings the dimension created by piano, pads and other sounds that I don't know how to express - the dimension that in sum up can be listen to hours and hours. And every that time the track will be fresh, very fresh. "Relaxed Journeys" CD crowned with "Multiverse" of Saafi Brothers (Michael Kohlbecker + Gabriel Le Mar). I personally think this is an absolute ambient masterpiece. There is those masterpieces hundreds or thousands, but lack of words for describing every newly meeted such a specimen causes that only a total glorification can return that psychological excitement of centres that are reliable for a pure happiness. This isn't the first time when Saafi Brothers deliver something uniqe (here: cosmic, abstract, psychedelic and trance-like as well), and for sure not the last, when only words like "absolute masterpiece" will close the judge of given artistic activity of this project.

The previous compilation of Chill Tribe was more diversed in the styles and it was quite difficult to describe the depth of its nature, this time the vision is definitely more cohesive. With the first, bigger part of "Relaxed Journeys", we are in the world as if present, real - it's easy to feel an influence of world music, which with a bigger or less intensity is on every of that five, six, seven tracks. In the later stage we fly away from our planet to the space, but we are on the orbit in the end - so not so far away. It's because world music's influence is fading out, and on pedestal are putting the sounds of more abstract expression, form, more alienated from "human" motives, though they are not alienated in pattern of dark music, no. So we fly from the Earth into the Earth's orbit. Because of this, finally, great virtues of "Relaxed Journeys" are emerging: perfect tracks' order and consistently builded transparent tunnel from which we - the listeners, can only see with admiring feelings the beauty of this external world composed from the notes by the Artists. PKS is receiving a gigantic applause for compiling this CD, because in the soul of "Relaxed Journeys" it's easy to see a well thought out idea, which the final of many listenings order me to dictate a words in the way: this CD is better than "Quality Relaxation", and besides everything: this is definitely one of the best compilations ever made on the chillout scene.