Note: The score above only reflects Objekt4’s newest material, Other Side of Light, tracks 1 through 6 of disc one.

Objekt4 (read: objective) is dark ambient filtered through industrial, focusing on the sounds of everyday life.  This is not metal.  The songs wander and wane, scrape and howl like the wind, full of sparks and scratching metal, turning gears, and a deft hand for exploring truly psychological horror.  As a reviewer without much experience with either dark ambient or horror films, I still feel that my recommendation is justified if only because of the oppressive weight Other Side of Light lays on me every time I spin it.  The six tracks that comprise the only new material on Mindscars at first come off as repetitive, a little aimless, and very off-putting.  But on subsequent listens, the repetition becomes structured, a play on a running motif that builds towards the final haunting climax – if you can call it that – that emerges in track six and finally lets you go in the ensuing denouement. 

This is dark ambient, a sub-genre of ambient that explicitly aims to create atmospheres instead of traditional songs, and judged as such, Other Side of Light fits the bill in its sole use of everyday sounds.  The emphasis on “ghost sounds”, however, sets this apart from other ambient/dark ambient releases because the sheer gravity of the atmosphere sucks you in and Eno’s definition of ambient as music that is “as ignorable as it is interesting” is quickly broken – you can’t ignore these pieces, they haunt you.  The album still earns high marks, though, because it is interesting.

From track seven onward, Mindscars is a compilation of Peterson’s earlier, unreleased EPs, albums, and demos.  Their tone and quality differs only slightly from Other Side of Light, and if you dig Objekt4, you can’t really go wrong with this purchase, nearly two hours of dark ambient that should more than fulfill any need you have for a minimalist night of horror.  Although, I will say that 2005’s Otherside Scenery, tracks 8 – 15 on disc one, are the scariest on tap, and shouldn’t be played alone in dark rooms at night.