“Voices on My Skin” by Maeror Tri

In recent years, Poland’s Zoharum label has made a name for itself by reissuing classic ambient and experimental music, including titles from the likes of vidnaObmana, Rapoon, and Desiderii Marginis. Their latest reissue, however, is a new edition of Ambient Dreams by Germany’s Maeror Tri.

Originally released on cassette in 1990 by ZNS Tapes and then reissued by Beta-lactam Ring Records in 2007, Ambient Dreams found the enigmatic trio of Helge Siehl, Martin Gitschel, and Stefan Knappe working with natural sounds sans any electronic sources, as opposed to their usual brand of guitar-generated drones and soundscapes. (See Ultimate Time or Hypnobasia, which were previously reissued by Zoharum.)

“Voices on My Skin” is certainly abstract, bringing to mind Flying Saucer Attack or lovesliescrushing distilled to their barest essence. Are we listening to giant slabs of granite being dragged over each other? The rush of a waterfall? The hum of a distant factory? In any case, the sounds are so heavily processed that it’s really quite pointless trying to identify the original sources — which is all part of the intrigue.

The Ambient Dreams reissue will be released on April 4, 2024.