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25 of 27 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
The Many Faces of Enigma, October 1, 2008
Enigma is back with their seventh foray into the pop ambient movement that began with their pioneering 1990 debut album aptly titled MCMXC A.D. which artistically infused Gregorian chant into neo-classical dance electronica with the hit singles Sadeness, Pt. 1 and Mea Culpa, Pt. 2 and instantly became internationally recognized trademarks spawning an entire Chant subculture movement whose motifs were further explored with ethnic cultural chant mixing on their brilliant follow-up album, 1993's The Cross of Changes and by 1996's Enigma 3: Le Roi Est Mort, Vive Le Roi!, it seemed Enigma could do no wrong having dominated the 90's with their trendsetting ambient style continuing into the turn of the millennium with The Screen Behind the Mirror whose thematic operatic sampling of Carl Orff: Carmina Burana seemed destined to be integrated with Enigma's signature breakbeats which were already beginning to diminish. By 2003's Voyageur, all of the familiar choral motifs that had given an identity to such an Enigmatic visage were all but jettisoned in favor of Michael Cretu's heavy reliance on synergistic pop vocals. In 2006 Enigma made something of a return to innocence to their New Age electronica style with A Posteriori which abandoned the dominating Cretu vocals by embracing the spacey ambiance of trance. In 2008 Enigma releases the 2-disc Seven Lives Many Faces which is an extrapolation of many previous styles in their repertoire but again more of the same-old, same-old. You'll recognize many familiar trademarks beginning with the "Voice of Enigma" and ethnic vocals on tracks like "La Puerta Del Cielo" and "Between Generations" and vocals peppered sporadically throughout on tracks like the hip-hop sounding "Seven Lives" to "Distorted Love" and "J'Taime Till My Dying Day." Seven Lives, Many Faces sounds quite subdued compared to the evolutionary pioneering mixes that brought Enigma to the forefront in the 90's and it's certainly not as edgy as their earlier works. If you're hoping for a return to Enigma's glory days, you might be a bit let down but that doesn't mean that you'll be in for an altogether disappointment. The many faces behind the mirror are still unmistakably the same face.
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15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Passionate, but not persuasive...., September 30, 2008
I am a longtime Enigma fan and a composer by training. While the production values and many signature Enigma sound artifacts are very present, I simply did not enjoy this offering as much as previous efforts.
The compositions seemed, to me, to be overly repetitive. Two words kept coming into my mind: "House Trance". I found myself clicking through the songs before they finished. I didn't find enough melodic or harmonic development to keep me interested. It's unfortunate for me, but I am sure this offering will please many others, regardless.
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11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
It's ENIGMA, October 7, 2008
For me, a new ENIGMA album is a "must-buy." Admittedly though, I can't listen only once through an ENIGMA album and make a final judgment. Nearly every ENIGMA release has taken some time to sink in and take hold (some longer than others). I can still remember hearing all of MCMXC a.D. for the first time and wondering if I liked it or not. Now? It's classic. This (and every other ENIGMA) is no different. I can honestly say that I don't have one favorite ENIGMA album; they all have unique aspects to them that I enjoy. To me, they all compliment each other and build towards something new and exciting.
At first listen of every ENIGMA album I definitely ask myself, "Do I like it?" The answer is never "no" but it's also rarely an instant "yes." However, after a week of solid listening to Seven Lives Many Faces I can honestly say that I very much like this album.
Yes, Seven Lives Many Faces is different and no, it doesn't have every element that made MCMXC a.D. so popular. I also find some of the lyrics to be cheesy in Seven Lives Many Faces (e.g., "Touch me, I'll be your daddy. Smell me, I'll be your mommy"). However, what it REALLY has is what all the others DON'T have. Just what is it? I can't tell for sure. All I can tell you is that for me, what makes ENIGMA such an enigma is that each album is so different yet, somehow when you hear it, you know you're listening to ENIGMA.
So, don't open Seven Lives Many Faces with demands of what it should be. Simply let it unfold to tell you what it is. ENIGMA.
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