Tuesday, August 28, 2007

The Silver Voice

Lisa Gerrard's voice is an experience that is the closest I have come to what people describe as "spiritual". Sweetly haunting, it usually sings no words, but you feel it says so much.
Her career with Dead Can Dance offered us albums of unsurpassed quality. Her later collaborations, including quite a few Hollywood movie soundtracks, were both artistic and commercial successes, mostly due to her own presence.
"The Silver Tree" is her second official solo album and while I was pretty certain of its quality before listening, I wasn't prepared to be surprised. Yes, it seems we haven't heard everything from Lisa Gerrard just yet. "The Silver Tree" is a very dark album...not in the gothic way of "Within The Realm Of A Dying Sun", but touches ambient and trip hop territory. You will hear Gerrard sing in ways you haven't before. Of course, her trademarks are still present...the eerie chants, the heartbreaking incantations. You will not find the ethnic elements that dominated the last Dead Can Dance albums, but all the haunting creepiness is there.
"The Silver Tree" is not recommended for everyone or for everytime...it's best enjoyed in the dark, with your eyes closed and your mind open.