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NIMH / ONASANDER: Unveiled Lights (CD 2025 - Fluttering Dragon)
It will shine still brighter when night is about you. May it be a light to you in dark places, when all other lights go out.
― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Two Towers
“Unveiled Lights”, the latest release by Nimh & Onasander through Fluttering Dragon Records, is a five-track journey that centers on light as a profound thematic element, suggesting the revelation of some truth. The album cover, depicting a blue sky, clouds, rocks, and dust, paints a picture of natural elements that set the stage for soundscapes evoking ideas like infinity, transcendence, and perception.
The album opens with “In Absence Of Light”, which, contrary to its title, conveys a sense of renewal and immersion in light. As the track progresses, the atmosphere darkens, transitioning to a stormy night that illustrates the natural cycle—how light always gives way to darkness, reflecting the order of the universe. The addition of subtle sound details, like footsteps and the sparkle of fire, adds a cinematic dimension to the unfolding narrative. In “These Bleak Days”, a dominant air of gloom and melancholy prevails, conjuring images of cold winter days. It evokes the feeling of walking alone without a clear destination, lost in thoughts about the fleeting nature of life, and the fragility of existence. The soundscapes here are evocative, resembling the endless expanse of a sky filled with clouds, underscoring the impermanence of everything. “Electric Storm/Calm” follows with a haunting atmosphere reminiscent of a storm. The initial chaos evokes feelings of uncertainty and inner turmoil, yet as the track progresses, it gradually slows, shifting toward hope and transformation. This track emphasizes the cyclical nature of life: after every storm, calm will inevitably follow.
“Primordial Futures” explores the theme of the unknown future. The track unfolds with layers of sound, from crackling fire to rain-like textures, interwoven with distant spoken words that fade into the mix. This soundscape instills a palpable fear of the unknown, conjuring an eerie sense of foreboding about what lies ahead. The track gradually dissolves into the sound of waves, which fades out, leaving a sense of quiet uncertainty. The closing track, “Blurred Horizons/The Last Human Trace”, begins with rain—symbolizing life and renewal—and introduces the idea of the horizon as both a literal and metaphorical boundary, representing the unknown and the unexplored. The sound of the rain intensifies, blending with fading human voices. This evokes the idea of traces left by human existence, yet the diminishing voices suggest that no trace truly remains, as if everything has been erased, leaving only a pristine, untouched scene—much like the one depicted on the album cover.
“Unveiled Lights” is an immersive dark ambient album with five extended tracks that carry a deeply atmospheric weight. The soundscapes are so captivating that you lose track of time, enveloped in the experience. It’s a mesmerizing exploration of light, darkness, and the spaces between—another exceptional addition to the dark ambient genre. I truly enjoyed this collaboration and look forward to more from Nimh & Onasander in the future. (9/10)
- Pegah - Blessed Altar Zine
Deep spiritual thoughtfulness.
All along his career veteran Italian based sound artist Giuseppe Verticchio has expertly provided a balance between moody industrial ambient music and ethno-ritual soundscapes, alternating raw and sophisticated electronic sequences with processed acoustic soundscapes and occasional eastern-like consonances. In this new album he teams up with Maurizio Landini (alias Onasander), a young drone-scaping sound wizard and artisan of ominous cinematic ambient which rapidly gained recognition in the ambient musical galaxy with releases published on highly acclaimed specialized labels such as Winter-Light and Cryo Chamber.
This collaborative effort drives me back to moments of affectionate nostalgia when l joined creative force for a collaborative with Giuseppe Verticchio in 2012. However the compositional context in this mutual effort is quite different because both artists are confirmed, skilled and experienced. This is the second tremendous collaboration for Onasander with one pioneering project from the dark understated experimental music scene, the first was with Empusae and the album Umbrosyne (2024) published by Winter-Light.
Unveiled Lights is an introspective space ambient electronic voyage of classy quality and style, occasionally evolving through darkened realms. Healing sounds, meandering textures, electro chordal moves, and slowly evolving melodic themes give to this album moments of poignant emotional vibrancy. The isolationist feeling of being lost in terrestrial/cosmic wideness is constantly perceptible, leading the listener in a state of deep spiritual thoughtfulness and synesthesia with primordial elements taken from the sovereign nature. Thanks to a sonic array of electronic textures and a sensient dimension, this album is quite transportive, deeply resonating, and exquisitely atmospheric.
Unveiled Lights‘ tapestry of sounds will ravish fans of silky drone tones and spacious electronic sonorities from Lull, Vidna Obmana, Phelios, Steve Roach, Ajna, Forrest Fang, Numina, and Caul.
- Philippe Blache - Igloomag
Ci sono dischi che si ascoltano e dischi che si attraversano come soglie verso un altrove insondabile. “Luci Svelate” di Nimh/Onasander è una fenditura spazio-temporale, un viaggio a bassa frequenza in cui il suono non si limita a esistere, ma si insinua, muta, respira. Non un semplice album, ma un rituale di dissoluzione nel buio e di lenta rivelazione. Fin dal primo istante, si viene risucchiati in un ambiente sospeso tra il minerale e l’etereo: droni stratificati come onde sismiche, voci che affiorano da distanze imprecisate, suoni ambientali che si confondono con pulsazioni ancestrali. Giuseppe Verticchio (Nimh) e Maurizio Landini (Onasander) non si limitano a evocare scenari, li rendono tangibili con una sintassi sonora che oscilla tra l’evocazione mistica e la deriva psichica. L’album si snoda come una migrazione interiore, tra detriti di armonie appena accennate e schegge di luce che fendono l’oscurità senza mai illuminarla del tutto. Il riverbero della chitarra, lontano e spettrale, sembra l’eco di una civiltà scomparsa, mentre i ronzii elettronici tessono una rete magnetica che cattura e trasporta l’ascoltatore in un non-luogo insondabile. Questa non è musica per chi cerca un’esperienza passiva: “Luci Svelate” chiede attenzione, assorbimento, abbandono. È la colonna sonora di un sogno febbrile, di una contemplazione notturna ai confini della percezione, di un film che non è mai stato girato ma che si proietta dentro la mente. Qui l’oscurità non è solo assenza di luce, ma una sostanza densa, viva, in cui si muovono presenze inafferrabili. Il risultato è un’opera che trasuda coerenza e intenzione, un vortice di suoni che non cercano la mera suggestione atmosferica ma scavano direttamente nell’inconscio. Nimh e Onasander hanno costruito un varco sonoro in cui la musica non è semplice materia, ma un’entità viva che osserva, attende, si insinua. Per chi ha il coraggio di lasciarsi attraversare, “Luci Svelate” è più di un disco: è una soglia. Di questo CD esiste anche una versione “De Luxe” in edizione limitata che oltre al digipack a 6 pannelli ha un ulteriore scatolotto esterno, e dentro un poster e uno sticker.
- Cesare Buttaboni - Ver Sacrum