myndstream Collection
Volume 1
By
Various Artists
Written by
Steve Sheppard
Various artist albums are a growing concern these days, yes
we seem them all the while in the pop industry, but rarely until this year have
I seen so many in the contemporary instrumental genre. However if there was one
label you would be more than happy to receive one from, then it would be a myndstream
collection, and in this case volume one, which of course bodes well for future
releases.
We have a stylish and soothing collection of 13 compositions
that literally fall from the tree of abundance to enjoy, like the first opus Blue Steel, I have a soft spot for this
style of performance and Daniel Lanois
provides the listener with an excellent starting point indeed, but from where I
hear you ask, well each and every artist on this creation of crafted cleverness
were posed a question, that question “What does mindfulness sound like?”
Lanois creates something special with the steel guitar which
is an almost guilty pleasure, then one of my personal favourite tracks lulls me
further down the line of unadulterated bliss, with a track entitled Parting of the Ways by the ever so
talented Lisa Bella Donna, a quality
ambient track that you just never wish to leave.
Mindfulness is special to me, after all the now is all we
will ever have, tracks like Whispers of
Hope, a fine piano performance by Jordan
Rudess roots me to the moment with ease, and crafted arrangements like The Sunflower Ghost, by non-other than
a king of prog rock, mister Rick Wakeman,
manifest something so stilling and serene, that is far from the court of King Arthur, but a composition that
allows us to float down a never ending river of the peace, like the Lady of Shallot.
Composer extraordinaire Michael
Whalen creates a moment of great beauty as well with his quite soothing
musical narrative entitled Always
Returning, a delicate touch on the keys and embracing the lighter side of a
synth heaven with such consummate ease.
There are more great tracks on the album too, these include Song of the Firefly Harmonium by Mark Isham, Realize by Gustavo
Santaolalla, Sierra Dreamscape
by Kathryn Bostic, Garish by Michael Brook, and then
there were no words... by David Torn,
Circles by Marcelo Zarvos and Ambient 2
by Cliff Martinez.
myndstream Collection
Volume 1 by the Various Artists have all quite
brilliantly answered the question posed, and by buying this wonderfully fluent
and peace filled album, you will find that the answer is a meditative ambient
dimension of music, that will relax and de-stress you with such a tender touch,
it may be a well-worn phrase to say, that this is an album that you must have
in your collection, but it actually is, this is a prime example of truly
excellent relaxing music that helps you be calm in both mid and body, and in
this day and age, that can’t be a bad thing at all can it?
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