Third Eye - Ancient Future

Third Eye’s Ancient Future is the debut release from Psy-Harmonics, an influential Australian trance label that became a major force during the early years of Goa trance. Behind this project is the legendary producer Ollie Olsen, also known from his work as Shaolin Wooden Men and The Visitors (with Andrew Till and Geoffrey Hales). Released in 1993, Ancient Future captures the embryonic movement in transition from straight trance and techno to something recognizably psychedelic. There are hints of ethnic vocals and hypnotic acid lines amidst the more calm and contemplative atmospheres that characterize this album. Tempos remain fairly low—from about 110 to 130 BPM—and the beats themselves are simple and straight-forward. The title of the album fits perfectly—there is a sense of both the primitive and the technological in this pioneering work.

Morphic Resonance is an exercise in simplicity. Only about half of the song features any sort of beat—it is padded by plenty of mood-setting ambiance. It builds slowly, deploying a single crystalline tone that seems to shimmer in the air alongside a sparse arrangement of Indian vocals. This soft and seductive opening number makes a very strong first impression.

There Is Nowhere To Go But There melds a minimal tribal groove with gloomy atmospheric themes in a mind-numbingly monotonous manner. This is not altogether undesirable; the results are extremely haunting. Interesting work—even if it seems to lead nowhere.

Think plods along with a bass-heavy groove and light hints of sparkling synth-work. It seems a little less developed than some of the others here.

Ancient Future resembles the sound of early releases on Dragonfly Records to some extent—perhaps due to a more prominent use of acid lines. The arrangement meanders through more than nine minutes of somewhat aimless dabbling, but it still sounds decent enough.

Sea Of Tranquility is an eerie piece of pure ambient music. No beats or percussion intrude on this unnerving trip into the void.

Chemical Angels achieves a sense of profundity through the use of a rich canvas of deep atmospheric sounds. The unchanging rhythm is drab, inhibiting some of the enjoyment of the otherwise captivating detail work in the higher frequencies, but this remains a substantial effort.

You Know is the most upbeat song on the latter half of the album. It is somewhat reminiscent of Orbital’s classic song Remind, released that same year. Arpeggiated melodies swirl throughout the introduction, boldly presaging the oncoming beat. An electronic delight.

Morphic Resonance (Slight Return) is an ambient revision of the opening track, bringing the album full circle.

Ancient Future bridges the gap between psychedelic trance and its various electronic music predecessors—techno, house, “ambient trance,” and new wave. It is one of a handful of groundbreaking albums that set the stage for the rise of the global psychedelic trance counterculture in the mid-nineties. While it was likely to have been highly influential on the development of trance culture in Australia, Ancient Future appears to have been somewhat overlooked elsewhere despite a Nova Zembla re-release in Europe. I suspect this album has been overshadowed by Transmissions and Abduction, the debut album releases from Juno Reactor and Eat Static. In any case, Ancient Future remains one of a handful of forward-thinking releases that helped to shape the scene in 1993. Anyone with an interest in the earliest roots of psychedelic trance would do well to check it out.

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