Description:
Even given the trend of cultural crossover in music, Ekova inhabit a world uniquely all their own. Their second full release (following 1998's Heaven's Dust and 1999's remix compilation Soft Breeze & Tsunami Breaks) furthers Ekova's commitment to a pulsing, gently swaying mélange of exotic instrumentation and captivating vocals. What emerges is a new sort of global pop music, blending past with present, acoustic with electric; seldom have drones sounded so lively and a subtle undercurrent of electronic programming so organic. Vocalist-cellist Dierdre Dubois emotes from a deep well of her own digging, occasionally in English
Even given the trend of cultural crossover in music, Ekova inhabit a world uniquely all their own. Their second full release (following 1998's Heaven's Dust and 1999's remix compilation Soft Breeze & Tsunami Breaks) furthers Ekova's commitment to a pulsing, gently swaying mélange of exotic instrumentation and captivating vocals. What emerges is a new sort of global pop music, blending past with present, acoustic with electric; seldom have drones sounded so lively and a subtle undercurrent of electronic programming so organic. Vocalist-cellist Dierdre Dubois emotes from a deep well of her own digging, occasionally in English, frequently in a language of her own invention, and in who knows what other tongues? Iranian percussionist Arach Khalatbari and Algerian oud (Arabic lute) and guitar player Mehdi Haddab provide a dense, infinitely flexible bed for Dubois's incredible vocal flights of fancy. Ekova unquestionably evoke the ghost of Dead Can Dance at times, especially on numbers like the upbeat "Siip Siie," the a cappella "In the Garden," and "A Soul's Delight," which weds a text by Rumi to a hypnotic drone with striking chanted vocals by both Khalatbari and Dubois. But they are much more lively and suffused with a sly, intelligent mischief than the occasionally somber D.C.D. "The Chase" is incredibly fast without being frantic, an interstellar gypsy race from past to present; "The Storm" is as mesmerizing as the sea itself; and "Cruel Sister," a traditional English ballad covered by folk-rock pioneers Pentangle, is a modern epic that turns Ekova's rolling flow of sound into a wide-eyed torrent. Ekova's music is wonderfully full of life and perfectly accessible, and Space Lullabies should easily find a home with both armchair travelers of world beat and those at the center of the international dance floor. --Carl Hanni
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Manufacturer: Six Degrees
Release date: 30 January 2001
EAN: 0657036104228 UPC: 657036104228
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