Customer Reviews

Adiemus Iv-The Eternal Knot

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

When I first heard Adiemus "The Eternal Knot" I was a bit taken back by the Celtic feel to the album only because I didn't expect it. However, "The Eternal Knot' feels like a return to Adiemus "Songs of Sanctuary". The raw tribal feeling has returned only with a Celtic twist. There is still a hint of a classical influence to Eternal Knot but it is not overwhelming.

To put it simply I love Adiemus and this album was very enjoyable.

Track One, CU CHULLAIN, is very energetic. It reminds me of "In Caelum Fero" it has that same drive and power behind the music and vocals used. My personal favorites are track 5 "KING OF THE SACRED GROVE", tarck 4 "THE WOOING OF ETAIN". My favorite track however on Eternal Knot would have to be track 11 "CERIDWENS CURSE", This song is very different, even for Adiemus. What makes CERIDWENS CURSE exceptional is the accoustic guitar used during what appears to be the chorus combine that with the singers of Adiemus and we have a upbeat and delightfully wicked song.

You either love or hate Adiemus and The Eternal Knot is no exception.

First things first: I am a HUGE fan of Adiemus (own all their albums), Miriam Stockley, and Karl Jenkins. I'd been following the buildup to this album's release, and when I first read it was going to be a soundtrack, I cringed. "Adiemus? Doing a SOUNDTRACK?" I braced for the worst.

It wasn't as horrible as I thought it would be, but it is FAR below earlier Adiemus albums. It starts out all right: "Cu Chullain" is a VERY good piece throughout, and comes close to being worth the price of admission all by itself. The rest of it, however...

The title cut has a very grating, over-loud, fortissimo section toward the end that does not work for me. "Palace of the Crystal Bridge" is admittedly fun, but it doesn't hold up to repeated listenings: I used to love it, but now I usually skip it. "The Dagda" has a KILLER intro, but it wears out its welcome after almost eight minutes.

Is this a *bad* album? Not at all! In fact, if you haven't heard any of Adiemus's albums before, you might want to give this one a listen, knowing that the rest are even better. It's not horrible by any stretch of the imagination, it's just not up to Karl's stellar efforts on earlier Adiemus albums.

About a year ago I got "Songs of Sanctuary", which I found to be one of the most beautiful albums I've heard, but this new album by Adiemus is even better. Like their first album, this album has well organized orchestrations, clear vocals by Miriam Stockley, powerful percussion, harmonic recorders, and music in a secret, chanting language. But this album also includes Celtic themes and accompiant. Davy Spillane plays uillean pipes and sometimes the music includes accordian and harp. The songs all relate to mythology and religion of Ireland and Wales. The melody and harmony came together so well and the whole atmosphere and mood is very calm and highly spirited. Some of my favorites include "Cu Chullain", "The Dagda", and "Hermit of the Rock". Many people have compared this album to Enya's "The Celts", and don't find too much of a difference between the two. Both albums have Celtic themes about heroes, saints, and mythological places. They may be different in style, but they are very much the same in meaning. So I don't see why people should be so critical of this album. It's just as melodiac as their other albums, but this album contains more meaning. I've always loved Karl Jenkins' way of blending classical and African music, and now I think he has done a fine job in combining these styles with Celtic music.

When I purchased this album, I was expecting the same type of music that we came to know from Adiemus. Although all of Adiemus's sounds are there (Expansive Phonetic Vocals, "Classical" Strings, Tribal Percussion), I was in for a very pleasant twist to the type of music included in this disc. Celtic Music!

This is a story that happenned last year. I was at home, in a chat room, and Adiemus came up as a subject. I mentioned to them that Adiemus's next album might have a more Celtic sound to it. You should have seen the response! They though that Adiemus taking a Celtic twist would be horrible! Karl Jenkins has proved them wrong.

I would highly recommend this album to anyone with a musicla taste higher than that of any "Pop Lover" (Teens, etc.). Anyone who likes something new and interesting should find this album fascinating and captivating in all ways.

Some earlier reviewers would suggest that this isn't up to the standards that Karl Jenkins achieved in some of his earlier output. I couldn't respond to that because this is the first Adiemus recording I've ever heard and, frankly, I loved every second of it. I'm thrilled that other listeners think the earlier recordings are better because I've now got something to really look forward to.

For me this recording evinced a blend of emotional responses - quiet contemplation, relaxation, toe-tapping, a satisfied smile, that whole body moving response to a driving rhythm and a joyful sense of participation in an all-encompassing musical experience. The recording is an eclectic blend of styles that cover an enormous range - Celtic rhythms and fiddling tunes in the style of River Dance; hard rock and steady beats that took a page out of Enigma's play book; a beautifully blended chorus of female voices that might well have included Enya, Diane Arkenstone and Loreena McKennitt; orchestral backgrounds that ranged from lush full orchestral accompaniment to pizzicato violin arpeggios that would have done Tchaikovsky proud in The Nutcracker; simple but effective, pleasing blues style acoustic guitar; full-bodied high speed choral sections that might have been penned by Karl Orff as part of the unforgettable Carmina Burana; and, a very effective seven beat piece that reminded me of the rhythms of Dave Brubeck's Unsquare Square Dance or Moe Kaufman's Swingin' Shepherd Blues!

Well, to each their own I suppose. It's certainly possible that this CD suffered by comparison to the quality of his other works but as a first time listener, I've got nothing but praise for it!

Paul Weiss

I have been hearing bits and pieces of news regarding Karl Jenkins as one of the greatest orchestral/New Age musicians of the decade for quite some time now. I have also enjoyed a few pieces of his music in the Adiemus series, but never had I actually bought and listened to an entire album. With his forth release - "The Eternal Knot" - my love for Celtic music overwhelmed me, and I was quite excited to listen to a full-length Adiemus album, fashioned to my liking!

Admittedly, I expected too much, and I was mildly disappointed. For starters, I think Karl should revamp his style of strong strings and percussion backing up choral vocals, because it's starting to lack punch. Unlike one of his earliest releases (or was it his first?) - "Adiemus", which had a very dreamy, hypnotic and lulling feel to it - the music on "The Eternal Knot" has the listener hardly stirring emotionally, aside from catchy or humorous tunes. After the majestic but not-quite-there opening track "Cu Chullain", those pleasant and playful melodies to look out for are "Palace of the Crystal Bridge", "King of the Sacred Grove", "Saint Declan's Drone" (you'll love this one over and over again...), "Connla's Well" (the trivial title gives way to a tantalizing composition), "Ceridwen's Curse" and "Isle of the Mystic Lake". These are tracks that should bring Adiemus to its next level in musical variety, after its try at African music.

But, alas, even the title track doesn't jolt you! Tracks like "The Dagda" and "The Wooing of Etain" could lull you to sleep with their monotonous lengths, and others like "Salm O `Dewi Sant'" prove ineffective in putting Irish traditional instruments to good use.

Overall, this soundtrack emphasizes the power of even a simple, basic tune. Enya's "The Celts" was very skeletal in its music, but the tunes were so beautiful they made you sit up and marvel at their wonderfully creative simplicity. Yet with all the instruments Karl Jenkins could have made better use of, he just had to spin out another record that shames the rest of the Adiemus series.

I would normally give an Adiemus CD 5 stars, however, something went wrong with this one, which makes me feel a little cheated. But just a little. I noticed immediately after having my first listen that there was something wrong with some of the songs, I had heard them before. Jenkins had cheated me slightly by recycling some of the songs from his album "imagined oceans". That's why the Eternal Knot only gets 4 stars. There are only a few songs on the knot which are recycled, so that's a real relief, but an irritation nonetheless. I've complained enough about it now. It still deserves the 4 stars though. The album is a happy return to the stuff from songs of sanctuary, with a lot less booming from the brass that the second and third album seemed to be shaking us with; more quiet serenity, something I needed when i bought the album. Maybe its something you need, but beware, if you're a longtime Jenkins listener, you'll see where he goes wrong with his recycling.

I'm a big fan of the "Mannheim Steamroller", this is Chip Davis and company...believe Karl Jenkins with "Adiemus" is in the same league...if you get my drift, their music is different and yet the same, have the originality, drive and outstanding talent that delivers a just reward.

Entire album is peaceful, reflective and spiritual as it's predecessors ~ "Songs of Sanctuary"(1995)..."Adiemus II:Cantata Mundi"(1997)..."Adiemus III:Dances of Time"(1998)..."The Journey:The Best of Adiemus"(2000)...this brings us up to the present release ~ "Adiemus IV:The Eternal Knot", believe this is the epitome of Karl Jenkins, each selection enters into your very soul, bringing out feelings you've never experienced.

You might try other Higher Octave releases, all worthy of a good listen ~ "Tierra de Nadie"(Hevia)..."Barcelona Nights"The Best of Ottmar Liebert"(Ottmar Liebert)..."Tree"(Gaelic Storm)... (...)

Total Time: 52:12 on 14 Tracks ~ Higher Octave OMCD-49965 ~ (2001)

I have concluded that people who are forced to listen to the music they might not voluntary listen to ought not to farm out their opinions to the rest of us. By that I mean, I have read some merciless criticisms of Karl Jenkins and Adiemus' work on these very pages by the Amazon.Com gods. In stark contrast, I have read more evenhanded reviews of those who have purchased Karl Jenkins and Adiemus' music because they are fans of Jenkins' work or were turned on to his music by others who already had one or more of the Jenkins - Adiemus CD's.

Personally, I think the man is a genius. I have heard music from his CD's that I have never heard anywhere else by any other musician/composer. There simply is no one to compare Karl Jenkins or Adiemus to, there are, however, many who copy his sound with some degree of success, but it cannot and will never compare to Jenkins' work.

If you are not a fan of the mediocre drivel we are all forced to hear these days on the Top 40 charts, then you are bound to like Jenkins music. If you are one of the people who feel that the wrong people get Grammy's every year, or have grown weary of one hit wonders and whiny singers and singer-songwriters, then you will probably like any of the Jenkins - Adiemus CD's...

When the entire lot of one hit whiners have come and gone Karl Jenkins will still be around ... that I have no doubt about.

If you are confused by the subject line, you won't be by the music. The album has a wonderful flow to it. Songs don't seem to end but to become the next song. I usually put it on as background when I am reading a book set in Ireland to set the mood. It does just that. It is, in turns, jubilent, yearning, sad, and thoughtful. I have enjoyed it again and again.