Through the Cosmos by David De Michele

 

Through the Cosmos

By

David De Michele

Written by

Steve Sheppard

 

I can remember back in 1976 buying an album called Albedo 0.39 by Vangelis, I think that was possibly my first steps into what we lovingly call space music. in ‘78 I grabbed a copy of Kosmos by the amazing Isao Tomita and never looked back, I’m lucky enough to have the UK’s leading space music magician Kevin Kendle as one of my closet friends, so my soul is invested in this genre, now I believe that this artist David De Michele stands right up there with them all, as one of the finest exponents of this genre in the world today, and this new album entitled Through The Cosmos is a return to his beloved stomping grounds, and one of the artists most powerful releases in this genre as of yet.

This album and its contents, explores the vastness and mystery of the universe itself, it touches the hem of humanity’s place within the cosmos, and it all starts with a truly moving beginning called Through the Stargate, the speed and tension is built perfectly here, there is a palpable expectation of something quite breath taking about to happen.

A slow beginning can be found on our next oasis of space themed sound with the composition Starport, within the smooth narrative we can explore the theme and perhaps reflect on our human existence within something so vast and infinite, here is our little port, or safe harbour in space, the sweeping synths deliver a sense of grandeur, and the fast paced electronic nuances gift us something very Vangelis like in construction.

The repeating motif on Time Warp floats across the borderlands of the western rim of space, the synth work is explorative and creates a sense of awe, there are symphonic gestures here that are utterly cinematic in proportion and filled with ethereal vocals and lush structures of beautiful sound, whilst on the piece A World Within, we garner a retrospective look at how humans are small in scale, but deeply connected to the universe, worlds within worlds, the fractal dynamics of the cosmos, all of it interwoven and grand, this is the anthem for that aforementioned description, in yet another deeply moving opus form the space master David De Michele.

Hyperspace in theory is space with more than 3 dimensions, but perhaps a more fascinating and interesting description would be to call it a “hidden route” through space that makes long journeys short, it could explain a lot.  David’s work on mixing Vangelis like sounds and keyboards with ethereal vocalisations, partnered with an orchestrated back drop on this piece is simply breath taking.

We have crossed the half way marker, the shimmering lights of the continuum fade away, and we are immersed in a track that reminds me a little of Pullstar by Vangelis and called Intergalactic. This entire album has been incredibly powerful, but this one piece from David has to be one of the most moving and emotive in this style I have heard from him, as we watch vivid descriptions of stars, galaxies, darkness and light all rush past our musical starship view port.

On Stellar Voyage we have a softer yet more mystical offering, one almost translucent in texture and tone, perhaps exploring the journey through space mirrors a journey of discovery and understanding for each and every listener, the angelic like harmonies and voices float around the bow of our ship with a ghost like precision, whilst on our next voyage we have the title track, of course entitled Through the Cosmos, in my view this is the most beautiful piece I have heard David produce thus far, deeply cinematic and reminding me in context and tone to that of Kevin Kendle’s Stellar Nursery.

There is a real warm feeling about the penultimate offering, and on the last but one piece called Velocity perhaps we are moving towards change and acceptance, regardless it feels like a celebration through the chords and notes used, one that truly raises the energy in a beautifully optimistic fashion.

The concluding narrative is a true return to greatness as the music builds up to another moment of almost Berlin styled Vangelis power and intensity, as we brace ourselves for the piece Voyager, perhaps not the one lost in the Delta Quadrant, however this music would have worked well on the Star Trek series with ease, and is simply and utterly a truly crafted way with which to leave the album.

Through the Cosmos by David De Michele as albums go is simply legendary, I would state that in my view that this is David’s best work thus far, considering I have albums of his in my vault that takes me back some 22 years, that’s quite some achievement, David has returned to the genre of space music with new fire in his musical belly, and it shows, as such I quite confidently predict a top 5 place on the charts for Through the Cosmos by David De Michele, it is that good.