Tuesday 3 March 2009

The God Machine- The Desert Song

Everyone remembers 'eureka!' moments; like the time you finally figured out how to do long division in maths class. Life is full of such moments, when a difficulty is surmounted and you finally 'get it'. Sometimes, we even get such 'eureka!' moments when something has not been playing on us, when we have not been experiencing any difficulty. We can be surprised by insights sometimes, as if someone has given us an unexpected gift.

When I first heard The God Machine's "The Desert Song' this was such a moment. The production is full of middle eastern influences that provoke the imagination, of incidental bits of music that push forward what music can achieve.

The desert is the location for the production of the three main monothesitic religions. One can imagine the wide open spaces, the sheer size of which is both intimidating and inspiring. Unlike city dwellers, it is impossible too become to wrapped up in your own circumstances as a desert rat. You are forced outward, needing to rely on your wits in an environment that is intoxicating.


This track intermingles such influences sonically by suggesting important influences like the music of prayer in mosques. Even the 'talking track' is subtle in its execution, referring to a theme of western philosophy since Descartes: "Why people are destroyed by lack of knowledge because doubt has rejected knowledge." This is music that really pushes the imagination in a creative and engaging way.

The desert is the home of the prophet.

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