Byzantine Meditation

Not to be confused with the French death metal band who debuted with 2000s Cut Your Flesh and Worship Satan, this Antaeus is a Greek-born, New York-based DJ and producer who — as the album title suggests — specializes in a brand of world fusion electronica heavily influenced by the music of his homeland. Unfortunately, the resulting blend of bouzouki and ambient techno does no particular favors for either style of music; rather than integrating the two forms, too much of Byzantine Meditation simply sounds like Antaeus is playing an old Nonesuch Explorer compilation of Greek music over backbeats. This lack of imagination, combined with a seeming lack of ideas (the title track appears in four not-very-different mixes, and "Kyrie" in three, together accounting for over half of the album's 65-minute running time), makes the album's occasional bright spots, like the skittering stop-start rhythms of "Delfic Gong Seven," stand out that much more, but it does overall make for a pretty dreary listen.