Customer Reviews

Volume 5: Anatomic

5 star:		(25)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Ok, before reviewing this CD, let me just say that as of this writing (5th October 2005) the sound clips on this site are still WRONG. Wake up amazon! If you're considering buying this CD and want to hear what the Afro Celt Sound System sounds like, you might want to check out some other online music retailers. At the very least, look up one of the band's five other albums on amazon and listen to those sound clips, which will give you an idea of what the band is like.

Now that the ranting is over, let's talk about the music. ACSS released their first album ten years ago to wild critical and commercial acclaim. That recording, VOLUME 1: SOUND MAGIC, was a world fusion masterpiece. Their subsequent releases have all built on that foundation, from the club-friendly beats of VOLUME 2: RELEASE and the global power of VOLUME 3: FURTHER IN TIME (which featured pop and world music guests such as Peter Gabriel, Robert Plant, and Altan) to the more organic and ethereal sounds of 2003's SEED and the dramatic reinterpretations of last year's POD (a remix project that was more creative and fulfilling than anything else in its class).

ANATOMIC is proof positive that the Afro Celt Sound System has honed its craft to near perfection. The opening track, "When I Still Needed You" is a heart-wrenching epic that marries accordian, bouzouki, bodhran and other percussion, and superb programming with the impassioned vocals of Dorothee Munyaneza, a survivor of the Rwandan genocide who first collaborated with the band on the HOTEL RWANDA soundtrack. This is followed by "My Secret Bliss," a funky duet between Iarla O'Lionaird and guest vocalist Sevara. The 10-plus minute "Mojave" is the musical and emotional high point of the album, with atmospheric keys, spiritual Gaelic vocals courtesy of Iarla, and a vast array of instrumentation including uilleann pipes by Emer Mayock, dhol drums courtesy of Johnny Kalsi, some very soukous/East African-inspired guitar by Simon Emmerson, and beautiful Irish whistle and bodhran by James McNally, who plays just about every instrument imaginable, and plays it well.

Each song that follows is a joy, from the gentle African strains of "Sene" (featuring vocals and kora by N'Faly Kouyate, with a sound reminiscent of Youssou N'Dour) to the beautiful electronic ballad "Beautiful Rain" with English vox by Iarla. The title track is a classic Afro Celts instrumental with swirling keyboards, uilleann pipes, fiddles, and percussion that will light up the dance floor, while "Mother" features another appearance from Dorothee Munyaneza, trading vocals in a touching duet with Iarla. "Dhol Dogs" assaults the senses with aggressive programming and a symphonic, "Europe meets Asia" vibe, and then "Drake" ends the hour-long journey on a mellow note with a predominantly acoustic sound that eventually morphs into electronic bliss.

Producer/engineer Martin Russell ties the whole package together with sensitivity and grace, proving once again that the Afro Celt Sound System is the only act around to have discovered the perfect musical balance between man and machine. ANATOMIC is a feast for the ears and the perfect capstone to ten years of musical milestones from this ground breaking band.

The new Afro Celt Sound System album "Anatomic" is superior to their previous release, 2003's "Seed". "Anatomic" returns the band to their electrobeat roots. Sonic workouts like "Mojave" and "Dhol Dogs" bring the group back into focus. Yet, I still felt that their 2001 album "Volume 3: Further In Time" remains their best, and most realized work. Elsewhere, you will find other solid tracks here like "Sene (Working The Land)", "Mother" and "When I Still Needed You". There's just enough variety here to keep things interesting at nearly 61 minutes.

My only complaint here is that the band seems to become more like a country/Christian/new age band here, which is fine, but I'd prefer them to be a little more electronic worldbeat band instead. Still, if you've liked their four previous albums, you ought to enjoy this one. The music is still identifiable as Afro Celts, and the band hasn't changed that much from album to album, so it would be nice for them to really stretch themselves at this point in their career. We'll just have to wait and see.

I have the other four volume's and I find this to be one of the best. I enjoyed this CD so much that I purchased Laria O Lionard/Invisible Fields one of the singers of the Afro Celt Sound System.

I have most of this group's recordings, and this new CD is of a piece with the rest of them. Wonderful driving rhythms and aching yearning in the voices, some songs, even those in other languages, so heartfelt it's hard not to sing along once the melody lines become familiar. To my ear, this group just keeps getting better and better as they weave together many strains of world music and varieties of instrumentation into a seamless aural tapestry.

Iarla's voice is as beautiful as ever, and plenty of the beats that make me spontaneously get up and dance

There may be a limit to the speed of sound, but there seems to be no limit to the quality of music this group can produce. They get better and better with each release and I they have never been a disappointment. I highly recommend any of their past compilations. This one is especially good. I confess to leaving the CD player on loop and not tiring of their sound. :)

Five albums on - six if you include the their excellent "POD" remixes from last year - and the Afro Celts just get better & better. Totally in command of the complexities of seamlessly fusing African & Celtic melodies with western club beats they now radiate complete confidence in using the unique, multi-layered sound they've developed to make highly original music that switches effortlessly from the beautifully reflective to the genuinely exciting. Closer in feel to their first two albums, "Seed" & "Release", but more sophisticated and consistent than either, brilliantly produced, perfectly executed and now vastly richer & broader than any simple categorisations such as "world", "fusion" or "club" imply, "Anatomic" is the stunning result of a 10 year journey of exploration... a record in which every track's unforgettably good and several are quite exceptional. So good in fact that it must be a serious contender for the best album of the year.

I heard Afro Celt on a Aer Lingus flight to Dublin once and have been hooked since. This is their fifth and probably their best. Then again I said that about their fourth, third, etc. The sounds and blends of music are just undescribable. You need to play it alone and play it loud. Their sounds just penetrate you and go into your inner being. I listen to a lot of different types of music from all over but I truly believe Afro Celt to be one of the best groups of musicians in the world.

Excelent piece of work. I have all their albums and this one could be a good start. Their musical approach is different, very interesting and enjoyable. I highly recommend it !!!

I have followed afro-celt from the first. And, from the first I have anxiously awaited the next release. But this one blew me away. Is there a bad track? Hell no!! I cannot wait for the next. It will be hard to surpass this one.