Space Gambus Experiment’s ‘First Steps into Inner Space’ feels very different to their 2009 self-titled debut. It is rawer, more aggressive and yet is just as full of beauty and tranquil moments. ‘First Steps into Inner Space’ is a fascinating fusion of traditional Malaysian folk music and more contemporary, global, electronic sounds; this combination of aesthetics produces a seductively rhythmic body of work. The album is full of songs which acknowledge a discomfort with the world around us; song titles such as ‘Living is Easy with Eyes Closed‘ and the albums opening piece, ‘The Earth is Not my Home, I’m Just Passing By’ confirm this, however, there is intense optimism in other songs ‘One Day I Will Find The Right Words And They Will Be Simple’ ends the collection on a positive note and with a suggestion of projects to come. At times this album sounds a little like a combination of interests in trip-hoppers Four Tet and post-rockers Mogwai but it goes beyond what you would expect from that, it adds a sound that is very much Space Gambus Experiments own and it’s not the always the Malaysian folk influences that suggest that but a true belief in experimentation and that the smallest noise layered into the work can have a huge impact on the listening experience. Overall joyfully melancholic and darkly uplifting. -Ryan Hughes Curator