We begin with "Night Vision," which opens with heartbeat deep bass pulses and synth lines that cascade in washes of warm sound. There is a distance to the sound here, as if we are watching the warmth of a far off star as it continuously radiates. Eventually a plaintive piano, often tampered with electronically, recalls Harold Budd's piano decaying in deep space. Momentarily, the track ceases into quiet but fades back to the previous elements in a surprising and breathtaking use of silence. "Subterranian" is a quieter affair, with an increased focus on synthetic drones and slowly phasing textures. The mood here is icy, rather like the sonic equivalent of aurora borealis. Midway through, the track recedes to silence (as with track one), and returns just like the tides--certainly intentional, given the album title. "Sinter" begins with rustling, as if of earthy feathers, which melds with psychedelic synth vibrations recalling Biosphere's seminal Substrata material. If these are waves of earth, surely this is the sonic movement of glaciers or tectonic plates beneath the surface of the planet. "Sinter" transitions directly into "Altocumulus" which begins with radio transmissions and disembodied voices. Gorgeous synth washes permeate these transmissions creating a disorienting effect, (though it is particularly pleasant disorientation). Perhaps our Telluric Waves are of the Earth, but it is an Earth viewed from the atmosphere by alien eyes, attempting to interpret signals that are unintelligible to off-worlders.

"Half-light" contains Scanner-like transmissions mixed with more icy synth textures. The cloud masses cover the sky; as depth perception is lost while we view the obscured heavens. The track deepens into Thomas Köner deep-bass rumble. "Lumen" is altogether brighter, featuring the deep washes as before but this time with synth chimes reverberating. This is pure bliss out, as we watch the sky pass overhead (perhaps from our isolated home's front porch?) and lose all sense of time as the sun slowly glides over the ecliptic. A highlight. "We Are Linked" is pure ambient drift with textured drones, manipulated vocalizations, and unrecognizable sonic detritus. The influence of Biosphere is particularly evident here, though Maitreya does ambient chill-out with the best of them. This track remains progressive over its length, rather than keeping with one static element as is often the tendency of many ambient practitioners. Finally, my favorite track, "Telluric Waves" contains the best new ambient has to offer. Gorgeous, at once chilly and warm, synth textures lull you into reverie like sun in eyes on freezing cold days. Here are the waves of Earth as we lie and witness, in our slow and ephemeral ways, the motions of our planet. Extremely beautiful synth hushes the track to silence. The waves return (as waves always do), sometimes punctuated by unusual synth textures. This is the sound of life blooming and fading over and over into forever. Indeed, I could easily listen to this particular track for an album's length.

Maitreya's Telluric Waves is a memorable experience that would assuredly appeal to both ambient purists and fans of newer electronic styles equally. The sonics sound surprisingly natural though they appear to be wholly synthetic. Biosphere fans should especially take note of this release, as it features all of the strengths of albums like Substrata without the album filler that clutters many newer ambient releases. In fact, each track is progressive from beginning to end, signaling an artist unwilling to dwell on long spaces of ambience just to fill a CD's length. It took three years for the second Maitreya album to appear and it shows. Telluric Waves is a finely detailed and impressively executed work of modern chilled textures; trippy, entrancing, and consistently interesting.