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After the demise of Savage Republic, guitarist Bruce Licher formed Scenic, which creates similar moody (and occasionally doomy) guitar-dominated instrumentals with strong Middle-Eastern influences. Unlike Savage Republic, however, Scenic -- a trio which also includes Brock Wirtz on drums and James Brenner, formerly of Shiva Burlesque, on bass -- plays entirely instrumental material.

Their debut album, Incident at Cima (1995), took Savage Republic's post-punk raga-rock into gentler, more melodic territory.

The post-punk is still there, but the influences of Ennio Morricone and southwest border music are just as prominent, reflecting Licher's relocation to Arizona in their evocation of desert landscapes on releases like 1995's Incident at Cima and 1996's Aquatica and Sage.

While this is similar to their debut disc in its wide-screen cinematic instrumental rock, it's also an improvement, expanding their palette of lush textures and melodic ambitions without sacrificing any of their uniqueness. It should also be noted that this is the most melodic, and even upbeat, material ever heard on record by one of Bruce Licher's groups.

The unusual layers of guitar clang and shimmer are still there, but the moods and timbres are more user-friendly (which is a compliment, not a knock); he's certainly come a long way since the dissonance that typified much of Savage Republic's records.

The influence of Ennio Morricone remains, especially as there are occasional touches of harmonica, melodica, bouzouki, and even trumpet.

At 75 minutes this might be on the long side, but it's worth hearing for highlights like the weeping guitar sounds of "Angelica," and pieces like "Ionia" that fuse grandeur and tension; "All Fish Go to Heaven" even betrays a bit of a lounge/exotica influence.

If someone's looking for a post-punk equivalent to Morricone to score their films and hasn't been directed to Scenic yet, he or she should.