The latest release by the Mexican avant-garde label Akumandra is founder Sainte Vie’s three track auditive voyage: From Desolate Places and Forgotten Times. Going beyond previous experimentation with sound assemblage and sampling from non-western musical traditions, Sainte Vie crafts his signature mesmerizing soundscapes by combining dreamlike synth textures, monumental drops and vibrant melodies that feel deeply melancholic. Insistent arpeggios and expansive build ups bind the tracks together in an ebb and flow of dynamic energy.[info sheet from distr.]