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Debut CD..."This
amazing offering begins with the track
Into the sun
- a gentle ascension into the heavens with
little packets of wonder sprinkled all
over the place in the form of widely
creative sweeps and percussion and truly
magnificent vocals. It's a piece that
drains negativity completely out of your
system.. and some people pay LA dealers
and gurus good money for this kind of
experience! With
Mystic
Visions, your feet
and toes and fingers work in unison with
the driving beats and semi-industrialized
rhythms that are escorted by Nessa's
colourful vocal efforts. It's one of those
tracks that you'd love to see performed in
some massive open air venue complete with
sweeping white and blue lights and an
audience of delighted thousands.
"Perfect
meanwhile, is one of the albums most
stunning anthems of escalating chill and
soothing sweeps. I wasn't there when this
track was mixed down but I know for a fact
that they were having the time of their
lives with this one... it's one of THOSE
tracks... pure transcendance... pure
bliss.. and you want more... much much
more! Of course, Dreaming Blue do not
disappoint... the follow up to Perfect
happens to be
Shine On..
five minutes of hi fi euphoria enveloped
in some of the most incredible sound
collages ever to be assembled over such a
short time span. Nessa's rather angelic
and soul engaging vocal gives new meaning
to what many might consider to be
'ethereal' ... well it's so much more than
that... and when you consider what's going
on in the innovative arrangement
overall... it's Grammy material... pure
and simple!
"Eternia
is the track that took everyone here
completely by surprise. With a rather
mysterious and completely unpredictable
slow paced opening, the track begins to
unfold in an electrifyingly magnificent
fashion seconds before the vocals sweep
you clean offf your feet! There were five
people in this office while the track was
playing... only one managed to keep a grip
on reality while the others went happily
floating around the building in a state of
sheer bliss muttering the words: 'Can I
borrow that when you've finished the
review?' Retaining my grip, the next title
'Hikari'
really did do the trick! Here we have a
wonderful blend of piano and bass opening
up the first few bars until you reach the
percussive strides that transport you to
the other edge of the known universe. When
the pads enter into the horizon, along
with Nessa's supreme vocal talents, you
are drawn into the lyrics like a bee to
honey. I haven't mentioned the strength of
the songwriting thus far because I've been
so captivated by the musical
progressions.. but the writing is indeed
first rate here and everywhere else on the
album. By the time you get to
Jealous,
Dreaming Blue have become embossed into
the little hall of fame we all have in our
appreciation of wonderful music. I love
this track... it's a pleasant mid-tempo
piece that is every bit as skilled as it's
predecessors so far. I like what happens
when Ian's keyboard arrangements come to
the fore... one hell of a talented
musician in every sense of the word and
that talent is truly abundant here!
"Shades
of blue
is, without doubt, a startling assemblage
of sweeps and pads, choral turns, and
illuminated vocals all settled confortably
into Dreaming Blue's digital audio
workstation heaven. There are plenty of
reasons to enjoy this track... superb
musicianship, production, arrangements,
and a truly perceptive and experienced
insight into what Dreaming Blue's audience
would most want to hear... the thing is...
I'm now a part of that audience and I want
to hear MORE!
Stars go by
on the other hand exceeds any expectations
you might have had from listening to the
previous collection. I have decided that
this is my favourite track so far... it's
more the kind of chill I richly and
selfishly deserve but Nessa's highly
versatile vocal work here is what makes
the track truly glow in the dark. Ian
continues meanwhile to do what he appears
to do best... make phenomenons occur at
the swing of a couple of fingertips. Stars
go by is a superbly synchronised
collective effort and I'm wondering at
this point if the following tracks are
going to equal or surpass my delight here!
"Dreaming
away
is the kind of chill up/down/in/out track
you'd want to hear being played through
carefully positioned speakers at the end
of the night... talk about relaxed... it
often gets hard to know whether you are
enjoying one of the best soundscaped
dreams you ever had or whether you really
are floating approximately six feet above
the sofa with the volume set to 11!
Lillith
meanwhile, is the remarkably atmospheric
and brilliantly written track that brings
your attention back to the skills and
talents that have been combined to make
Dreamng Blue a superbly electrifying heart
and soul engaging digital audio
experience. Vocals are so well arranged
and performed that you are left in an
occasional state of awe and the keyboard
and percussion work involved has got to be
very much a cut above the rest. What
happens as far as audio delight is
concerned, by the time you get to
Magic Lady
with it's enthralling electronica blessed
with transcendent vocals, is another thing
all together. Musically, this is one hell
of an accomplishment by any standard...
laid back, dark in places, and very very
remarkably produced. Sweeping choral
pieces are woven intricately into the
chilled electronica tapestries provided by
Ian's skill and expertise in a highly
unpredictable fashion. Dreaming Blue have
done very well indeed in putting this
track together and again I am quietly
demanding that, should this album ever
make it to the stage, there'd be one hell
of an appreciative audience and one hell
of a sought after video of the event! You
see, everything Dreaming Blue have managed
to accomplish in producing this album
could sit very comfortably with any number
of diverse film settings.
"Angels
of Avalon
tells me I was right all along... if you
can merge innovation and inspiration with
pure creativity and boundary-stretching
compositional abilities... you end up with
this kind of an album. It seems to me that
Dreaming Blue are among the few that would
regularly make this happen as a matter of
habit. The final track confirms that this
album has been a worthwhile listening
experience from beginning to end and one
that deserves to be played over and over
again.
"If
ethereal, consummate chill out, and
engaging electronica are all parts of your
audio vocabulary and you think you've
heard it all... I am telling you... you
haven't!" -
Colin Lynch - International
Online Music Magazine
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