New Age Music Reviews

Acoustic New Age Guitar Review: Geoff Hall-While It Lasts

Release Date: March 28th, 2019

Label: Hall Studios

Geoff Hall started learning how to play guitar listening to Rush and the like, and when he heard Will Ackerman and his stable of acoustic artists on the Windham Hill label playing the fingerpicking style, everything changed. The electric rock took a back seat for few years but he still plugs in, and his love for six-string continues.

Well, it certainly looks like all that practicing has paid off for Geoff. While It Lasts is his second solo venture. It is a beautiful album that embodies his choice of instrument and style of playing. I think Will Ackerman would be pleased.

I did not hear his debut but it did not take long for me to realize that this is a significant release. I am sure that the new age community will embrace this artist and his music. And by that, I mean listeners and peers alike.

“Lifted” was the track that got my attention, so much so that I put it right on my New Age Music Reviews Spotify Playlist. (Side Note: For the uninitiated, that is located on the sidebar of my site right at the top).

The simplicity and beauty of this music is its greatest asset. Even when there is orchestration added like on “Pheidippides,” it still comes across intelligible and easily digested by your senses. With a title like that, you just need to add the orchestration, that is all there is to it. The pace of the song fits, as that name is a central figure in a story that inspired the marathon race. So, I tip my hat to you sir for making such an excellent and exciting piece of music. I could easily envision that track as part of a soundtrack in a film. Not only is it represented well as a standalone work of art, which the entire album is, but it could also be used as a tool for various purposes, and all positive. As cliché as this may sound, it is a win/win any way you look at it.

If you have an affinity for moving music that relaxes or a few tracks in between that offer that exhilarating climb and crescendo, you find it all here on this recording. Go ahead, give yourself a nice relaxing cup of gorgeous sounds and positive vibrations and enjoy it all While It Lasts, then repeat the same exercise. You will be glad you took my advice; I promise.

Keith “MuzikMan” Hannaleck

October 1, 2019

Founder of:

New Age Music Reviews

Rate The Tracks

Review Provided By New Age Music Reviews

Tracks:
1. Arrival
2. Something on the Wind
3. Resolved
4. Solitary Alignment
5. Lifted
6. Remembering
7. Pheidippides
8. While It Lasts
9. Departure

New Age Chill: 7and5-Rhythm of Life

Release Date: September 20, 2019

Label: Nix Records

Website

Add caption

7and5 is Mr. John Nixon, a man of many colors that has produced a lot of music over the years. I am now embarking on my third journey with his instrumental voyages on the Rhythm of Life.

I love the way this album started with “Gravity.” It is an energetic opener and just the perfect setting to get your pulse to rise. It makes it rise in a chill kind of way, the only way John knows how, with thumping dance-like beats and a layer of keys that invite you on this magic carpet ride of music. I absolutely love it. I made it my Spotify Playlist pick without a second thought.

If I had been born during a different decade, I think I would have lived in the dance halls filled with trance and thumping beats. But alas folks, I am a rocker at heart that happens to enjoy a wide variety of music and I have a true appreciation of any creative process. Music just happens to be my sweet spot that I derive so much happiness and peace through. It serves as the looking glass into my soul, the mirror of my true self. Speaking of that, check out “Reflection,” it’s an epic ride on the clouds that brings you peace and makes your heart smile.

With music that portrays the Rhythm of Life, what more could I possibly ask for? The eleven tracks encompassing this recording shines the light on a very talented and creative human being. He wants to impart all of these sounds, textures, and colors into one beautiful package for us to consume. I think there is a lot of crossover appeal with this release as well, not fitting into a neat little box but a broad scope covering new age, chill, ambient, and contemporary instrumental slots on your streaming stations all over the planet.

I appreciated the nice gentle touches of the piano with the other key layers and beats swooshing in and out, creating a colorful tapestry of instrumental bliss. It comes together very nicely and I am sure this kind of project takes a while to put together considering it is one person doing all the composing.

The maestro is 7and5, the alter ego of John Nixon, a brilliant instrumentalist, and composer that knows how to touch your soul with his music. I say play it again maestro! I can’t wait for the next album in 2020!

Keith “MuzikMan” Hannaleck

September 26, 2019

Founder of:

New Age Music Reviews

Rate The Tracks

Review Provided By New Age Music Reviews

Tracks:
01. Gravity
02. Take Me Back
03. Air Meets Water
04. So It Begins
05. While the Rain Falls
06. Wildflower
07. Rhythm of Life
08. Reflection
09. Paradise
10. Heartbeat
11. A New Horizon

Contemporary Instrumental Review: Jarred Walker-Becoming Tomorrow

Release Date: January 1, 2019

Label: Independent

Website

Jarred Walker started tinkering with the ivory keys when he was four years old. Now all his all-instrumental acoustic piano comes flowing out of your speakers, phone, or whatever device you happen to be using. Even today that sounds so different to say rather than your stereo or car radio. Luckily for Jarred all the music on Becoming Tomorrow transcends time and all barriers.

One of the more gorgeous tracks is “Dream of the Firefly.” I quickly put it on my New Age Music Reviews Spotify Playlist. Folks that do not read the review will be able to hear it if they go to the site.

Spotify has a huge market share of streaming music now and it looks as though they are here to stay. That is just fine with me, it is a handy tool to access music and sample some new artists or listen to your library or anyone you follow. It is a great platform to get your music out there and people like Jarred need to be heard, it's as simple as that. It works I cannot deny it.

One of the more difficult things to accomplish with instrumental music is to keep a listener’s attention, particularly those that are accustomed to hearing vocals accompanying all the music. The music needs to demand your attention and paint a picture within each song. Jarred does accomplish that within the ten tracks on Becoming Tomorrow.

Songs like “Turning Point” are uplifting. The rhythm and pace are something that you would hear playing during a more positive fast-moving scene in a movie. Whether it is one that you are watching or the one developing in your mind's eye, you feel it happening. This is the kind of realism that needs to happen in instrumental music or your audience is lost. Music such as this gives you pause, perhaps a moment to reflect, or just kick off your shoes, sit in a comfy chair and put the day behind you. It is satisfying, like a good day’s work, it keeps you going strong then lets you down easy when the track comes to a close.

All the music you will hear on Becoming Tomorrow was composed by Jarred. His ability to take a diverse array of influences, colors and various complexities within compositions is his greatest attribute. What you get is a composite of everything the man knows coming together like a patchwork quilt with perfected stitching everywhere. It is a contemporary instrumental potpourri that is sure to calm your nerves and satisfy from beginning to end.

Keith “MuzikMan” Hannaleck

September 19, 2019

Founder of:

New Age Music Reviews

Rate The Tracks

Review Provided By New Age Music Reviews

Tracks:
01. SOMETHING NEW 3:37
02. ALONG FOR THE RIDE 3:25
03. DREAM OF THE FIREFLY 4:06
04. FILL THE STARS 4:00
05. STEAM HORSE 3:22
06. THIS TIME 4:27
07. TURNING POINT 2:25
08. LOOKING BACK 4:16
09. AROUND THE BLOCK 2:20
10. END OF THE LINE 3:05

New Age Instrumental Review: Michael Stribling-One World

Release Date: September 20, 2019

Label: Leela Music

Website

Michael Stribling sent me his last album almost two years ago. I was fortunate to have the pleasure of covering Union-Music For Lovers.

Now with the arrival of One World, I get another opportunity to explore his diversity and explorations of world and new age music.

I was a bit in awe of the talent this man has at his command. I was looking for this long list of credits and what I saw was all tunes, tracks, and tinkering by Michael Stribling. I certainly did not expect to see that when I heard the first and title track as it filled the room and enter my consciousness.

Tom Eaton did the final master of this recording and as with so many others, he did an excellent job. And so, it is, as many that have traveled that road before him, Michael made the right choices. Because of that series of events and choices he has created an absolute masterpiece of eclectic world new age music.

The lead-off track “One World” is one such track that is the perfect introduction and pacesetter for what will follow. There is something mystical and alluring with the wind chimes these artists use in their music, and that was one of the finishing touches for that track.

The one thing you can count on with One World is an amazing cross-section of music utilizing traditional world music instruments and the new technology for the finishing touches, so everything comes through crystal clear and the kind of gentle and impactive persuasion that you would expect from a recording like this.

The lighthearted “African Marketplace” puts you right there walking down the street and visiting with all the vendors. I imagine it is quite different than what you would witness in the U.S. I would expect the goods being offered would be interesting as well. I have a feeling Michael is speaking from his own special experience. If not, he sure knows how to paint a picture with his music. It gave me a sense of being there. That is what any recording artist would want his or her audience to experience while listening to music. So, from my perspective, it was mission accomplished!

Michael takes you to a “Shaolin Garden” then to an “Aboriginal Campfire” and then back to the rat race with “Marching Through Manhattan” (although that term may be out of context when it comes to this music). The point is that you become an instant world traveler through the music and colors brought forth on every track of One World.

The whole point is that we are One World, one community, one people, and that is not only obvious with the track titles, but the music also speaks for itself. This is all done very with a very impressive recording with a panoramic view of the world that is conveyed through one man’s music.

Keith “MuzikMan” Hannaleck

September 12, 2019

Founder of:

New Age Music Reviews

Rate The Tracks

Review Provided By New Age Music Reviews

Tracks:
01. One World
02. A Gathering of the Elders
03. Shaolin Garden
04. Aboriginal Campfire
05. Buddhist Nursery
06. Barcelona Nights
07. Persian Night Caravan
08. African Marketplace
09. Asian Dawn Maneuvers
10. Marching through Manhattan
11. Across the Moor
12. Black Forest Cuckoo Shop
13. Gaia Weep
14. One Planet, One People
15. Benediction (Prayer for World Peace)

Instrumental New Age Music Review: David Wahler-Two Hearts

Release Date: August 30, 2019

Label: David Wahler Music

Website

David Wahler’s Two Hearts album is a combination of instrumental new age and ambient tracks. The 11 tracks offered on the CD are from 4+ to 5+ minutes of playtime.

That amount of time is perfect for those seeking a period that allows for a deep relaxing or meditative state right from the first track onward. I think the running time is key to get you to that level and then keep you there. Two Hearts accomplishes that.

David is an interesting individual and blessed as well. He was a successful businessman for several years then “retired” to make music. It is people like him that give me the inspiration to carry on and do something else once I finally leave the routine of a day job. Being in a daily routine day job does not allow for the spontaneity one desires to keep the energy level high and your mindset in the excited mode. David is one of the fortunate individuals that found his way rather quickly after stepping away from the rat race.

“Paris Rain” caught my ear for the ambient textures and spacey interludes. I added it to my New Age Music Reviews Spotify Playlist right after I heard it. There is more to hear besides that kind of style, however. For example, directly after that track, “Night Sky of Orion (Remix),” starts with a nice acoustic guitar and all the other elements of keyboards and layers come in to create that instrumental magic that you will be accustomed to hearing throughout this release.

I think what David may be saying with the title of the album is it takes two hearts to beat as one. All the birds on the wires maybe all the thoughts one person can communicate through the lines of communication we now have at our disposal. That is my interpretation that may provide some insight for potential listeners, I am not sure if that is the correct insight, but it’s a thought.

The music is exceptionally relaxing and it was all composed, produced, and performed by David Wahler. It was also mastered by Tom Eaton at Will Ackerman’s Imaginary Road Studios. All of those credentials add up to excellence from start to finish on Two Hearts.

Keith “MuzikMan” Hannaleck

September 8, 2019

Founder of:

New Age Music Reviews

Rate The Tracks

Review Provided By New Age Music Reviews

Tracks:
01. Always
02. I Remember You
03. Paris Rain
04. Night Sky of Orion (Remix)
05. You and Me
06. Love Lost
07. Two Hearts
08. Bloom
09. One Fine Day
10. Confession
11. Then She Went to Sleep

Meditation Review: Merrill Collins-Every Man, Woman and Child Yoga Flow Suite

Release Date: August 1, 2019

Label: Spiraling Music

Website

I think the best way to start this off is with an introduction to the Every Man, Woman, and Child Yoga Flow Suite I received from the artist.

Every Man, Woman, and Child is a musical presentation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. This year, Spiraling Music has released a dozen new improvisations on the original ballad, which was the first grassroots expression of the UDHR ever performed for the UN (1987). More recently, the chant version won a Global Peace Song Award in 2016.

So, with the beginning of this three-part suite, I am thinking, stress causes disease and kills and music is the ultimate healer and connector to our higher power and higher self. I do not doubt that today. The connection I have with these wonderful music makers is a gift and I treasure it every time I sit down to listen and write my words.

This is a collaborative effort with Merrill Collins and David "Vito" Gregoli producing together at his studio. The featured vocalist is Kimberly Haynes with Laura Halladay on flutes and Maksim Velichkin on cello. Merrill has worked with these talented people extensively (Merrill’s Trio) and the chemistry is evident in the three suites. Don’t be persuaded to believe that this is an EP or 3 quick tracks, it’s actually 56 minutes in length and has been entered as a full album for the 62^nd Grammys New Age category. You will hear flutes, wind chimes, percussion, cello and more on this presentation.

These blessed individuals go from strength to strength with all of the instruments and gorgeous vocalizations of Kimberly Haynes on the “We The People” track. The mixture of instruments is musical divinity taking shape before your eyes, ears, and spirit. It will envelop, caress and stimulate you, all at the same time while creating your mediation bubble for healing.

The Every Man, Woman, and Child Yoga Flow Suite is a masterful performance with significant meaning for a world of confusion and negativity that needs healing in every way. If we the people heal, so will the world around us. Mother earth and its inhabitants have hope and it is music like this that injects us with the spiritual energy that drives us down the right roads to the recovery of humanity from shore to shore.

Thank you, Merrill and friends, for helping us to see the light at the end of the road.

Keith “MuzikMan” Hannaleck

September 4, 2019

Founder of:

New Age Music Reviews

Rate The Tracks

Review Provided By New Age Music Reviews

Tracks:
1. Every Man, Woman and Child: Yoga Flow - Om Mani Padme Hum
2. Every Man, Woman and Child: Yoga Flow - Ambient
3. Every Man, Woman and Child: Yoga Flow - We the People

New Age Music Review: Sangeeta Kaur-Compassion

Release Date: August 2, 2019

Label: Sangeeta Kaur Music

Website

This is the third recording I have had the pleasure to enjoy from Sangeeta Kaur. Previous to Compassion, I covered mirrors and Niguma Vol. 2 The Mantra Project.

It is the absolute goal of this artist to have people listen to her music and open the door to everything positive. We all know what a difficult time we are living in with a multitude of issues going on all over the globe.

Recordings like Compassion will help those feelings, attitudes, and situations melt away for a time and give you a different perspective and optimism that things really can change.

“Rise Up” is an excellent example of the prevailing attitude and approach can deliver to a listener. I also added the track to my New Age Music Reviews Spotify Playlist. It drew me in very quickly and I felt the words were prolific and very engaging.

I also took note of the first track “Om Tare Tuttare,” which is a Buddhist Mantra specifically for the blessings of the compassionate female Buddha Green Tara. It is to help those facing mental, physical and emotional blockages as well as relationship blockages. This came at the perfect time for this listener as I have been struggling with some blockages. I will carry this mantra with me and recite it as many times as I can during my day.

What I am trying to illustrate here is that music can do so many things for you. If you take a moment to understand what the track is about, it puts an entirely different light on your listening experience. I always take the time to read about the tracks in the CD notes, particularly with New Age and Meditation music. The purpose of this music is for you to get in touch with your higher self, the vocalist presenting this music is surely locked into this phase of development and quickly taps into her higher state of being.

“Song of Compassion” takes Sangeeta to a different place and her vocals are that of an opera singer. Her range and octave are amazing. She gives new age music a slice of heaven and it translates to warmth and peace within for the astute listener.

Compassion is what the world needs so desperately and recordings like this speak loudly to that need. One listens to this beautiful collection of tracks and you will find a different mindset and a new road will be forged by its prompting. It is a beautiful thing how powerful these ten tracks could change the course of your life. Another incredibly influential classic by a renowned vocalist that continues to contribute to the new age and meditation culture regularly.

Keith “MuzikMan” Hannaleck

August 30, 2019

Founder of:

New Age Music Reviews

Rate The Tracks

Review Provided By New Age Music Reviews

Tracks:
01. Om Tare Tuttare
02. May the Long Time Sun
03. Transcendence
04. Rise Up
05. Song of Compassion
06. Om Vajra Sattva Hum
07. We are One
08. Sa Re Sa Sa
09. Voices and Crystals
10. Voices of Compassion Medley

Pages