Album Review: Pantha Du Prince & The Bell Laboratory - Elements Of Light

It takes a highly evolved mind to concoct – and follow through with – an idea like Elements Of Light. German producer Pantha du Prince, however, has realised his artistic ambition with incredible effect on what essentially is a 43-minute continuous piece of work.

The concept behind Elements Of Light was born in Oslo in 2010. In that city, every day a three-tonne instrument called a bell carillon plays out multiple times and sweeps across the city. It was here that Pantha du Prince (real name Hendrik Weber) heard the bells, and – with the encouragement of friends – composed a piece especially for the carillon.

When combined with percussion and Weber's own minimalist, electronic beats underneath, the result is captivating. The piece is split across five tracks. Each song (varying in length from three to 17 minutes) gives some idea of the premise behind the album, but to fully appreciate the scope of this project one must devote a full hour to it. Yes, Elements Of Light only goes for 43 minutes, but after that it will take time to fully sink in and, pardon the bell-related pun, resonate through.

The strangest part is, despite Weber's obvious grand ambitions, the results are not that dissimilar from his earlier work. The minimalist house of his 2010 album, Black Noise, and his live shows set this project up, to the point where Elements Of Light almost seems a natural progression.

Given the fact that the carillon is 3,500 years old during China's Shang Dynasty, it seems unlikely that it would just get shipped over to Australia any time soon. Instead of waiting, turn the lights out and just sink in.