What Ajemian and his fellow musicians have been exploring sounds a lot like meditation in certain ways, as they have been attempting to develop a style of playing which allows them to sustain moments sufficiently that they are able to explore all the emotional possibilities available to them. Whether pain. joy, grief, or love, society, according to Jason, doesn't normally allow us the time to see the beauty in what moves slowly We aren't encouraged to plumb the depths of an emotion and experience them to their fullest.

The expression, being in the moment, which means existing completely in the present; not thinking about what just happened or about what is just about to happen; could well have been coined to help describe what Jason and his band mates are attempting. What they have tried to do with their music is create the circumstances where the listener can appreciate moments to their fullest.

Talk about your abstract concepts that are highly subjective! Obviously I can't speak for others about what emotions the music made them feel, yet I can't help but feel like they are on the right path with what they have created on The Art Of Dying. The first song of the disc "With Or Without The Universalator (Birdie's Dream)" (The Universalator is a machine that creates a drone like effect) was written by Matt Schneider who plays guitar on the disc, in response to being asked if a song should be played, with or without The Universalator.

What he did was write a song that allows a band to emulate the drone sound created by the Universalator with what ever instruments they have at their disposal. The drone like effect made with the full band extends each moment of music far longer then most of us are used to hearing and allows us to go deeper into the moment. What emotional chord that the moment strikes I think has been deliberately left in the listener's hands by the band. It's not important what you feel, what's important is that you feel, seems to be their credo on this attempt.

The next thirteen tracks on the disc are all variations on playing with what can be accomplished with short moments of sound. Tracks range in length from thirteen seconds to five minutes and have titles like "Ludicrous Dreams And Solar Guided Lovehandles", "Miss O" and "The" that don't suggest a particular feeling one way or another. They all take up moments in time, and those moments have been given titles that don't suggest anything in particular, allowing the listener to take from each track what they will.