Emme Ya — Atavistic Dreams and Phallic Totems

A very strange thing happened when I first started listening to Emme Yas’ most recent cd, Atavistic Dreams and Phallic Totems.  While concentrating intently on the sounds that were emerging from my headphones, a pack of coyotes decided to start howling not so far off in the distance.  For someone trying to interpret an already intense piece of work, the natural element that was brought in (whether the coyotes were aware or not) made everything fall into place.

Emme Ya is the creation of Colombian artist Edgar Kerval.  He is the maker of soundscapes that lean generally towards the ambient direction.  Yet there’s more to it than that.  It is sounds that are experimental, cosmic, organic, primeval and ritualistic.  Atavistic Dreams and Phallic Totems is based on the legendary Dogon tribe of Mali.  Countless books and dissertations have been written about the tribe, including the tribes’ secret oral traditions.  The Dogon, as it has been written, seem to possess an uncannily advanced astronomical knowledge well beyond their means.  They revealed secrets of the star Sirius, its elliptical orbit, and foretold of another start which they called Emme Ya (now Sirius C).  How did they gain such advanced knowledge?  From their own history they claim it was passed to their ancestors through contact with beings from the star system Sirius; or as they call them, Nommos, or monitors of the universe.

Quite a story to start with, bursting with cosmic secrets, ancient civilizations and modern curiosity.  The five songs presented here give us at least the aural journey.  Pulsing sounds differentiating in pitch and tone create a disturbing atmosphere; yet chiming bells bring out a celestial almost calming quality.  There are haunting echoes that sweep hazily on to be interrupted by jarring, sharp and shimmering sounds.  There’s a feeling at times we are interrupting something very esoteric, like wandering on a magickal rite.   It’s all very organic, with sounds of fire and air, yet the gritty ambience is never far away.  Human voices scream and wail, but they also speak in hushed in whispers; maybe trying to inform us to their meanings.

Emme Ya crafts soundscapes with many meanings and interpretations to them.  Projects like MZ 412 and Arckanum also come to mind when listening (at least in their theoretical leanings).  What is created is very special, ritualistic and magickal and Kerval presents these ceremonies in a way that is enlightening.  The combination of cosmic and earthy elements is done to the extent that it all seems so natural yet unique.  We are introduced to ideas and riddles just a bit to grab our inquisitiveness to learn more.