The Shamen's founding member, Colin Angus, had this to say about their new album, Axis Mutatis: "The shaman is an archetypal hero, the outsider at the center of the world. And at the center of the world, at the intersection of all possible worlds, is the Axis Mutatis." However, to say this is the defining Shamen album, or the culmination of the Shamen's work, is quite inaccurate.
More than any other album the Shamen have done, Axis Mutatis is one that sympathizes with all kinds of causes - independence for Hawaii, legalization of hemp for use in industry, the unfairness of Britain's "Criminal Justice Act", the promotion of the psychedelic culture and (of course) various aspects of Shamanic culture.
Frankly, the lyrics could use a little work. There are some bands that can pull off being so-called "political bands," that is, bands that can address political issues in their music. Whether or not the Shamen are capable of this I cannot say, but they didn't quite pull it off this time. It seems as though this is not the fault of the lyrics themselves but their structure, which (in songs with lyrics) is arranged with the music in a way that seems just a little too direct, as if there is a heavy emphasis on the lyrics. This made this album a bit tedious. Ex-Soul II Soul member Victoria Wilson-James loans her talent to the album, and indeed there is a marked change in vocal style with Axis- but it is just another changed aspect of the Shamen that might make many fans long for the old days.
The instrumentals serve to de-emphasize the sloppy lyrics, making them the strong point of the album. The Shamen need to realize that they don't have to make a statement in addition to the music - the music is the statement. Many of the instrumentals are fantastically ambient and soothing, yet energizing, transporting one to the depths of the cosmos.
"S2 Translation" is probably the most interesting piece on the album because of the way it was constructed. The MIDI sequence was created by the use of data from "the amino acid characteristics and the DNA coding for protein S2, a receptor for serotonin and other tryptamines." This incredible feat was accomplished through the use of a computer program devised by Colin.
The title Axis Mutatis refers to "the tree of life," which links earth to the spiritual realm. Even though the album's concepts are not well-executed, they are rather interesting. For more information on the Shamen and Axis Mutatis, check out the Shamen's home page NEMETON at [http://www.drci.co.uk/drci/shamen].
Axis Mutatis is an average album from the Shamen, but I would only recommend it for devoted Shamen fans - everyone else, please refer to Boss Drum or En-tact.
