Customer Reviews

Siddharta: Spirit of Buddha Bar 2

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2 star:		(2)
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After discovering Spirit of Buddha Bar vol 1 ("Siddartha 1") some time ago I was delighted to find vol2 in my local record shop. Siddartha 1 has become one of my all-time favourite albums - even beating most of the Buddha Bar titles hands down in my opinion - so Siddartha 2 had a lot to live up to.

Unfortunately (for me anyway) this latest album from Ravin doesn't come even CLOSE to Siddartha 1. The Bliss track that starts CD 1 begins the album promisingly, with Afterlife and Ratnaball giving the illusion of reassurance that you haven't poured $xx down the drain. Unfortunately it quickly goes downhill from here on in. With the singular exception of Nitin Sawhney's "Falling Angels" the rest of CD1 is uninspired and insipid.

CD2 just gets worse. All of the asian-influenced CDs from the Georges V stable have a more uptempo second CD. Siddartha 2 is no exception, but the fine line between uptempo-clubby and still-listenable-at-a-cocktail-party has been crossed. CD2 of Siddartha 2 is just too clubby compared to CD2 of Siddartha 1.

Maybe the album will grow on me in time. I'm certainly going to give it a chance over the next few weeks. The thing is, Siddartha 1 didn't need such 'bedding in' and I'll be very surprised if I can EVER put on CD2 on for very long before pulling faces at my speakers.

If you want to try the Siddartha series, start with Siddartha 1. This is a classic album that just improves the more you listen to it. If you already have Siddartha 1, try Claude Challe's "Nirvana Lounge" series.

Sorry to say this, but my advice is to leave Siddartha 2 on the shelf.

Just got an ipod nano for Christmas and with the addition of this CD it made life a whole lot sweeter. This Cd is amazing!! The best thing about these compilations is you can really float away in your own universe to really feel true bliss. Never have I experienced music like this before. Got into the Buddha Bar Cd's with Vol. 1-7 and found Siddharta as the icing on the cake. It's great to hear diverse sounds from all over the world. Spirit of Buddha brings this to you and it doesn't all sound the same like most CD's. If you enjoy trance, dance, and relaxation with some really hot sounding grooves, get this CD you wont be disappointed. The music covers all spectrums of the world, many of which I have only envisioned with this music...but oh what beautiful visions they are.

I found this CD to be exceptional in the quality of music, the variety and the mix in both CD's

I already had Volume One and the volume two is as good as the first one.

I was going to hold off on buying the second volume of "Siddharta: Spirit of Buddha Bar" but when I was looking at the track list yesterday, I just had to have it despite the fact that I have yet to buy the first volume. I have always mean to buy the first "Siddharta" but I always seem to find something I want badly and end up buying. After listening to "Siddharta: Spirit of Buddha Bar 2", I definitely will have to buy the first volume. Anyone who reads my reviews on a regular basis knows what a big fan I am of the Buddha Bar series (and its siblings like "Chill Out in Paris" and "Barlotti"). Outside of goth/industrial/EBM music, my other love of music is chill out music especially when the music is released through George V records. I find the music very relaxing and soothing to listen to. The music is very spiritually comforting for the soul.

I personally enjoyed "Siddharta: Spirit of Buddha Bar 2". Although I have yet to hear the first volume, I must say that this compilation is equally as good as the "Buddha Bar" and "Chill Out in Paris" series. While "Buddha Bar" is more Asian influenced and "Chill Out in Paris" is Middle Eastern influenced, "Siddharta" is heavily influenced by Indian music which really shows in songs by Karsh Kale, Gaudi, and Nitin Sawhney. Like its siblings, there are two discs. The first disc is called AWAKENING which is basically the mellow side of the record. I found the AWAKENING cd absolutely breathtaking. I particularly enjoyed "Speck of Gold" by Afterlife and "Sleep Will Come" by Bliss. A spectacular cd. Disc 2 is called EUPHORIA which is consists of more uptempo songs and the perfect accompaniment to an after dinner cocktail. I particularly enjoyed the EUPHORIA cd quite a bit.

Unlike the other reviewer who didn't care for this particular compilation, I personally enjoy it. For me it is hard to find a good quality chill out compilation when so many compilations copies from each other. The people at George V Records really knows what people want. After listening to "Siddharta: Spirit of Buddha Bar 2", I definitely plan on buying the first volume right after the holidays.

I have bought this cd last december and I'm still playing it every morning...!! It is a great album.
My favorite track from cd1 Awakenings is "Sufani" by Gaudi, a sensual song with an amazing groove!! From cd2 Euphoria, "Luna" by Ganga, an athmospheric music journey.
Thanks Ravin (thanks Gaudi, and Ganga)

The CD is enjoyable to people of all age. I specially enjoy the
track Breeze by Ratnabali. It is as good as other CDs of the Buddha bar series. It has a special blending of calm electronic music with voice. I enjoy listening to this CD and recommend it to all. It will have a permanent place in your collection.

Big fan of the Buddha Bar series .. always the best music for all kinds of late night chillout sessions. Love the asian vibe to them .. And if you like that sound, I've recently discovered some more authentic tunes you'll love: Hong Kong's "Celestial". Check them out, they are titled:

Hong Kong Dub Station
Happy Valley
Spirit House

And these album probably take a deeper step into Asia, possibly because they originate from there.

CD 1 is pleasing while CD2 is unimaginative, dull and repetitious. This set lacks the layered depth, intensity, imagination and multidimension of Siddharta 1 and 3. Invest in sets like Sun and the Nirvana Lounge series by Claude Challe or the Chill Out in Paris series and Buddha Bar 2 and 4 of the Buddha Bar series to establish a truer comparitive baseline for what exquisite chill & dance/lounge music mixes should sound like...those sets you'll play forever and likely never get tired of them...

I really enjoy this album, my first album of this nature ever! So I happy to expand my horizons with the world music. I would love to try vol.1 but its so expensive, when it goes down in price I'm getting it!
This is a great purchase, you would love it, if you like this kind of music.

It's just astoundingly beautiful. Especially disc one.