Customer Reviews

Moonsung

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

When a friend of mine asked me if I would listen to this album I was skeptical to say the least, but I agreed to listen nonetheless. Oh, what rewards can come with so little risk. It turned out that I found Sheila Chandra's vocal range, style and tonality to be one of the most beautiful sounds I have ever heard. The uniqueness of her Hindu background and culture of the British Isles collide to produce a sound like no other I have ever heard. I could be dreaming in Bombay or Dublin and never have imagined the balance demonstrated in this work. A must have for soothing the soul. If "Heaven" has a soundtrack, this album should be included on it. Only "criticism" is the track "Speaking in Tongues". While further demonstrating Sheila's incredible talent, it jars you back from the meditative state that the rest of the tracks work so hard to induce. Please be advised that this is mostly a collection (A "Best of", if you will), so if you own other Sheila Chandra works you may duplicate some tracks.

I can't put her style of music in any specific category, but it is a cross between Indian, Arabic, and a bit like Enya. A wonderful album, and one that can be appreciated for its beauty and technical excellence. You will enjoy it.

Sheila Chandra deserves to be heard. On "Moonsung," Chandra's simplistic droning form gives rise to an otherworldly voice. The space the sparse arrangements creates, allows Chandra's crystalline voice to breathe. I liken the whole of "Moonsung," to something in the neighborhood of Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan's spiritual Qwalli chants. Don't read me wrong--the sound is different, but Chandra's Indian raga style puts you in the neighborhood of spiritual chants, but just with some folk balladry mixed in for good measure.

One of the more interesting tracks is "Speaking in Tongues III," in which Chandra pulls off this new age world music rebirth of bebop. It is what would happen if Ella Fitzgerald had been from India and sniffed a whole lot of incense. It truly is remarkable what Chandra can do with her voice as a primary instrument. The only fault I can find with this disc is that the CD's strength is also a weakness. The simplistic arrangements can give off a kind of "sameness" that hurts the album only ever so slightly when listened to all the way through. Bottom line, Sheila Chandra sings and shoots the moon. Turn off the lights, turn on the lava lap, and meditate while Sheila drones.

I heard one track on the NPR show "Sound & Spirit" and bought it 5 minutes later! Hauntingly beautiful and totally relaxing. I think everyone would find something to love about this album! I highly recommend it. BTW: Amazon.com had it to me within two days of my order. I'm not a huge Online shopper, but way to go Amazon!

This is a "best of" disk. If you have other Chandra cds forget this one. It would make a great gift, though. It has (by my count) 5 cuts from 'weaving my ancestors" and only 2 new cuts. Insofar as I am concerned it is a ripoff. I agree with what others say about the sublime quality of her voice and the deeply spiritual nature of the music.

I first heard this CD playing at Tower Records in London and was so mesmerized by her voice, that I had to get it. It was really worth it. What an amazing voice - one of the most beautiful I have heard in quite a while.

... Sheila Chandra is one of the truly unique performers of vocal music today. Although perhaps not broadly accessible, her music is a living treasure that demonstrates the versatility and beauty of the human voice.

A good jumping off point for understanding Sheila Chandra's music is Bobby McFerrin, who introduced American audiences to the concept of the voice producing a wide, and unexpected, range of sounds and tones. Chandra achieves the same kind of goal in her own music, exposing and demonstrating the human voice's capacity to create sounds. "Speaking in Tongues 3" demonstrates her discipline and concentration as she rapidly sings out rhythms and sounds associated with Indian percussion. The Drone pieces provide access to the starting point for Chandra's imagination, the sound of the drones acting as kind of primal soundscape out of which her pieces arise.

While people may disagree on the merits of the music itself -- a question of personal taste -- her genius and cleverness in generating these unlikely gems should not be disputed.

This is a masterpiece. Of course, it just a "best of" and the purists would say that one should get Sheila's complete works--I have no definitive opinion on the subject, owning just this CD of hers. Like another reviewer said it, it is technically perfect (Peter Gabriel is the man behind the "Real World" label), but also an artistic wonder.

It is a beautiful work of art because it was inspired by what matters the most in life: love. Sheila is so sensitive that, to her, "Love is an Ocean."

One of my very best CDs, along with Sinead O'Connor's "I do not want what I haven't got." If you like "a capella" songs, there is a great one on "Moonsung." There are connections from here to Sinead O'Connor and even to Barbara Hendricks's "Sometimes I feel like a motherless child[1]."

[1] from "Sacred Songs" [..]

when I first purchased this CD, I was a little dissappointed because it was not the type of Indian music I was expecting. However, I gave it a chance and it's amazing. Sheila Chandra's voice is extremely soothing. There is an eclectic mix of her Indian and British roots. Song number 9 on this CD is a perfect example; there is a mix of traditional Latin and Hindi in the lyrics. This is truly a beautiful CD to fall asleep to or to just relax.

A wonderful collection of her recent work. She brilliantly blends the alien and familiar, the experimental and conventional.