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Writer's pictureMike Dynamo
Sep 152 min read

The Review of The Tale of The Desert Mountain

Updated: Sep 16



I've been into music for a very long time... long enough to come up with sayings for my musical experiences. The Tale of the Desert Mountain brought one to my attention as I listened to it, "Anything that makes you meditate is magnificent." Meditation is the point of this album. According to Marinho Nobre, the artist who created this musical tapestry, he wants to create a vibe of traveling through a desert by, "blending a deep sense of spirituality with evocative sounds."


Therein lies the tale behind The Tale of the Desert Mountain. Each of the 8 songs on this project is part of a story played out across deep Mediterranean sounds. I closed my eyes and focused on what I was hearing. I heard the baglama or "saz" ( a 7-string teardrop-shaped Turkish folk instrument), some interesting percussion, an oud (a Middle Eastern lute), and what I think was an accordion. The songs aren't long, but they are evocative of being a desert traveler.


I closed my eyes as I listened to The Tale of the Desert Mountain. This album wants you to feel. It wants you to go where its story is taking you. I could see sand dunes. I could sense that I belonged there and it was my home. I could look out across the ocean of sand towards a mountain I may have been to as a child. My mind's eye was right where the music wanted to take me. That is the most interesting thing about this project. No matter who you are, I believe we will all see and feel similar things as we listen:

I can feel my chapped lips covered by a light scarf. I don't want to drink the rest of my water just after the Misty Dawn. I'll save most of it for when the sun goes down to prepare for tomorrow's travel. I see myself waiting For All The Animals quietly scurrying across the sand as I sit atop my camel. I stop at The Shrine to make piece with my ancestors as I follow the path towards the Desert Mountain I see in the distance. I feel the sun bearing down on me as I work my way through a storm made of cutting minerals. I know that if I want to make it To A New Beginning, that I can't stop. I have to keep going for as long as I can.


That is the impression that I get from The Tale of The Desert Mountain. As creator Marinho Nobre said, he wanted to create an "immersive experience designed to transport the listener to a contemplative and serene journey." I believe he has succeeded in that goal. I'm excited for new people to see where this musical experience takes them. While the human mind is uncharted territory, I believe The Tale of The Desert Mountain is flexible yet solid enough that most minds will perceive a similar spiritual experience. Marinho's music takes on the difficult feat of balancing itself across storytelling and meditation. It uses a variety of instruments to make its point and must be heard to understand the experience.






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