The Mystery of Heaven

Dutch composer/lutist Josef Van Wissem and film director Jim Jarmusch have carved out musical territory together with a series of releases that feature a disturbing ambience. Van Wissem is a talented stringed-instrument player, and his dexterous weaves are obscured behind Jarmusch\'s wailing amps. The overall effect is a sensual tour of the cinematic. Actress Tilda Swinton adds spoken word to the intro of \"The More She Burns the More Beautifully She Glows,\" a minimalist track with a lute melody that\'s enhanced by the growling chaos of Jarmusch\'s effects. \"Etmasia\" lets Jarmusch attack his guitar strings more conventionally. That short piece is brought back for an even shorter reprisal midway through, as the album finishes with two alternate versions of an 11-minute instrumental, \"Flowing Light of the Godhead.\"