Despite the imposing artist moniker and release title, Lunar Miasma's "Blackest Haze" is neither suffocating nor dark. There are no harsh noise walls or power electronics violence to be found here-- only free-floating analog synths.

Lunar Miasma is the prog synthesizer project of Panos Alexiadis of Heavensore. Those familiar with Heavensore will recognize Lunar Miasma to be quite a departure from Alexiadis' doom metal act. The two untitled tracks on this 3" CDR are of the "spaced-out synthesizer drift" variety. I hate to fall back on lazy comparisons to the Berlin school, but the rather droll and uninspired material on "Blackest Haze" travels streets that are a bit too familiar, even if the pavement is a bit cracked and jagged in spots. Alexiadis does a solid job in weaving his synths together, occasionally introducing some minor noise elements into the mix, but none of it is enough to establish that transcendental feeling that is so vital to this style of music.

That isn't too say "Blackest Haze" is bad-- it's just very ordinary. Alexiadis has stepped out of a realm known for its domineering brutality and into a world where finesse is paramount. It will take some time to make that transition. 5/10 -- Robert Oberlander (2 February, 2010)