Hundred Dragons Heaven Elevator

The wind did not merely blow at these heights; it shrieked, a choir of a thousand invisible demons clawing at the thick, laminated glass of the Hundred Dragons Heaven Elevator.

Swirling in the mist, the Dragon Spirit was a ribbon of incandescent scales and ancient fury, its ethereal coils lashing against the transparent walls. Each time its massive body buffeted the car, the steel frame shuddered, sending a metallic vibration through the soles of the samurai’s feet.

Through the glass, the spirit’s golden eye, vast and unblinking, locked onto the man inside.

He did not flinch. His fingers, calloused and steady, tightened around the ray-skin hilt of his katana.

He could feel the elevator’s heavy-duty cables humming like bowstrings, strained to their limit as the machine clawed its way toward the heavens.

To the spirit, this glass cage was a trespasser; to the samurai, it was a vertical battlefield, suspended over a thousand-foot drop into the emerald abyss of Zhangjiajie.

I really enjoyed toying with the mix of genres on this one. With its eastern flavour, shadowy atmosphere, and a rhythm that makes your head-nod, I think it turned out alright.

My search for Chinese lantern images led me to the discovery of the Bailong Elevator (Hundred Dragons Heaven Elevator). The world’s tallest outdoor elevator.

I had originally planned on using an old ghetto blaster built into a stone lantern as the cover image, but when I saw the elevator I immediately pictured a samurai riding to the top (elevator music?) all set to do battle in the heavens.

I’ve never been to China, but it certainly looks breathtaking! One day maybe…🐉🏮☮️🕊️

Gear Used

Software

• Ableton Live 12
• D16Group Nepheton 2
• Arturia Analog Lab
• u-he Diva