StellamaraCountry of origin:U.S. Type of music generally:Gothic ethereal from traditional/world sources Status:Most recent release, The Golden Thread (2009) See also:Stellamara's site Comparisons:Dead Can Dance, The Changelings Covers/own material:Adaptions/arrangements of traditional materials General comments:Against shimmering electronics, brittle dulcimers, dolorous bells, and percolating poly-rhythms, Sonya, the lead singer's, voice unfurls. Like Lisa Gerrard, her vocals are a bewitching mix of Eastern and Western vocal styles, and while the group (a duo, with Jeffrey Stott handing other duties, including guitars and oud, an African harp-like instrument) is influenced by the same liturgical music, there's a different feel. With Dead Can Dance, I feel the music is almost escapist; with Stellamara, there's an anthropologic reverence, that's not so much *academic* as it is *resonant* with history. Part of this is due to the fact that the lyrics are taken from actual medieval texts—there's a song in Croatian, a Persian song, and musical forms from Serphardic Jewish music. (ethereal_lad@livejournal.com) Recommended first album:Star of the Sea only album we've heard Recordings:
Star of the SeaRelease info:1997—City of Tribes Records, 3025 17th Street, San Francisco, CA 94110, U.S.A.—cotcd-017 Availability:U.S. sources that carry indie labels Ecto priority:Highly recommended if the description sounds good to you Group members:Sonja Drakulich—voice, bendir, riqq, zills, keyboard samples Guest artists:Gary Haggerty—violin, viola Produced by:Sonja Drakulich and Jeffrey Stott Comments:Please see general comments above. |
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