Gothtronic reviews Bone Music:

The still relatively unknown Ad.ver.sary project of the Canadian Jairus Khan surprises with a debut album which combines the best of spherical ambient IDM and technoid rhythmic industrial. Here the worlds of Asche and Converter on the one hand and acts like Displacer and Tonikom, merge into a perfect one. But beware, Bone Music is an album with tracks that aim for the dancefloor with a focus on the rhythms. Constantly changing patterns and sound textures in the various tracks go well together with technoid atmospheres and in a song such as ‘Waiting for Gira’ also a rocking guitar and bass lick is included, later joined by heavy drums. At other moments a track is build up with piano loops and violins to create a more majestic atmosphere together with slowed-down breakbeats.

Next up are atmospheres which are more claustrophobic and threatening, with fast distorted beats and glitch sounds. What is striking is that the compositions have been carefully arranged, with layer upon layer resulting in a complex microcosm of sampled sounds, synth textures and rhythms. ‘Ancient’ perfectly illustrates this. Also the aggressive ‘Number Nine’ is an impressive sonic spectacle, which in the remix by Synapscape gets a more compact treatment. Bone Music is a refreshing album in this genre and it furthermore combines a wide array of electronic influences into a complex yet terrifying cold sound. The album furthermore contains remixes from Tonikom and Antigen Shift and a bonustrack, in which Ad.ver.sary has remixed fellow Canadians Urusai. Recommended and also another splendid release from the young Tympanik Audio label. (8.5)

A new Bone Music review (in hilarious english) from Side-Line:

Jairus Khan aka Ad-ver-sary is a Canadian artist we discover through some remixes he made for Converter and Iszoloscope. It took more or less 3 years to this musician to write and achieve his debut release. It’s for sure a good thing to remain patient when composing your first release. Ad-ver-sary seemed to have taken the time to meticulously elaborate and create an own sound. The result is a fascinating mix between astonishing rhythms and well-crafted ambient atmospheres. The rhythmic is an essential element in the music. The complexity and power of the rhythms is simply great. It moves in between ritual and tribal styles while it sounds industrial as well. The percussion for sure makes the sound identity of this project!

Behind this overwhelming rhythmic side comes a sonic puzzle of cold ambient soundsculptures. Here again Ad-ver-sary surprises in maturity and especially in knowledge for creating such arrangements. The main mood of this ambient part sounds definitely cold and a bit industrial like as well while some cool samplings have been added on top. It’s not that easy to define the style of this project, but once again Tympanik Audio has signed a progressive ambient project covering a wider layer of influences.

Once again it’s quite difficult to give you some favorite tracks as the entire album is worthy of examination. The tracks “Number Nine” and “Just (Spooks)” are probably both belonging to the best part of this album. As a bonus we also get remixes by Tonikom, Antigen Shift and Synapscape. Tonikom did a cool job on the remix of “Friends Of Father” sounding less dark while the remix of “Number nine” by Synapscape is also quite well-done. One more great release on the promising Tympanik Audio!

ReGen reviews Bone Music:

Bone Music is a rather impressive outing for Jairus Khan, proving that he has the chops to become a hero in the industrial music scene. With a hearty helping of melody and thoughtful arrangement coupled with a command of experimental noise and sound manipulation, Ad·ver·sary finds a balance between the brutal and the beautiful, sometimes unsettling and sometimes soothing, while still maintaining its own personality in the wake of a number of similar artists.

A track-by-track Bone Music review, from Reflections of Darkness:

…a quality blend of the organic and the electronic, the destructive power of distorted beats and complex arrangements side by side with the majestic beauty of ambient textures. Feelings made audible. (9/10)

1: An interview with Side-Line:

SL. The music on your site is released under a Creative Commons license. Any particular reason?

A. I download a lot of music. A lot. I’ll go through gigs and gigs of it, and buy the albums I like – and it really frustrates me when I open the cd and there’s some snarky message in the liner notes saying “thank you for not downloading this like those other scumbags”. Well, I did download it, and that’s why I bought it.

2: A review from ChainDLK:

Bone Music offers a very well thought out and developed blend of instrumental industrial, EBM, ambient, and noise. The key to this album is Khan’s ability to blend organic soundscapes and harsh industrialized rhythms and noise in a way that strikes a balance between what many would consider to be two mutually exclusive musical forms. Indeed, throughout the album, neither approach dominates the other. Some of the stand out cuts from Bone Music include the album’s lead off track “Ancients” which utilizes very simple samples and effects that gradually build up into a very powerful and driving industrial tour de force that is harsh and mechanical while maintaining a sense of musicality, and “Waiting for Gira” which features a very ominous militaristic beat that is backed by subtle soundscapes and a very evocative guitar part that is interestingly reminiscent of U2. For those of you who like harder hitting noise driven pieces “No Exit” and “Number Nine” are aggressive and cacophonous workouts straight from the factory. Overall, Bone Music is a great album that provides a glimmer of hope that industrial music is not dead.