Mare Somniorum

I have to admit, I first heard anything from this album while playing “Need for Speed Underground” (yes, the first one of the lot). It features “Wonders of You”, which in the game is a bit more subdued, a bit less refined and a lot less screaming of energy than the original. It was however quite enough to make me to and think, “dang, I need to get myself some of that”. And thus, I found “Exodus”.

Now “Exodus” is an interesting conception, it is the Book of Exodus, yes, from the big book called “The Bible”. The story is told in a beat you’d rarely think of as “religious” though, it’s fast, it’s loud, it’s noisy — it is pure energy pumping at you from the word “Go”. I liked it the first time I heard it, and it grew on me.

The opening track, “Go” is good, it sets the stage, establishes the mood and winds itself up to “Wonders of You” — a track I’ve heard so many times now it feels like a familiar beat through my veins. I love this track. The tone, the pace, the movements, the lot of it. Even if you know whom the author thought about as he wrote the text, it’s easy to see, and feel, how it matches other aspects of life. It’s a stellar track, one of my all-time favorites.

From here we move into “Radiate” onto “Amazing” and well, just onwards. It’s really a great piece of work. Hours could be spent on each track. The soundscape Hunter produces is fantastic. It really is. It brims with energy, but also with heart and soul.  Now, you might ask if being religious helps you when listening to “Exodus”, and to be honest, I wouldn’t know. What I do know is that I love listening to the album.