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Afro Celt Sound System: Volume 1 - Sound Magic

 A l b u m   D e t a i l s

Artist: Afro Celt Sound System
Title: Volume 1 - Sound Magic
Released: 1996.09.24
Label: Real World
Time: 65:48
Producer(s): Simon Emmerson
Appears with: Peter Gabriel
Category: Pop/rock
Rating: *********. (9/10)
Media type: CD
Purchase date:  2000.10.17
Price in €: 15,84
Web address: www.afrocelts.org

 S o n g s ,   T r a c k s


[1] Part A: Saor/Free - Part B: News From Nowhere
[2] Whirl-y-Reel 1 (Beard And Sandals Mix)
[3] Inion/Daughter
[4] Part A:Sure-As-Not Part B: Sure-As-Not (Jungle Segue)
[5] Nil Cead Againn Dul Abhaile/We Cannot Go Home
[6] Dark Moon, High Tide
[7] Whirl-y-Reel 2 (Folk Police Mix)
[8] House Of The Ancestors
[9] Part A: Eistigh Liomsa Seadlad/Listen To Me - Part B: Saor Reprise

 A r t i s t s ,   P e r s o n n e l


Simon Emmerson - Guitar, Programming, Producer, Liner Notes

Ronan Browne - Flute, Mandolin, Harmonium, Uillean Pipes
James McNally - Accordion, Whistle, Bodhran
Martin Russell - Keyboards, Programming, Producer, Engineer
Jo Bruce - Keyboards, Programming, Producer
Zil - Vocal Drone
Massamba Diop - Talking Drum
Simon Edwards - Sintir
Manu Katché - Cymbals
Caroline LaVelle - Cello
James MacKintosh - Bongos
Ian MacLeod - Mandolin
Ayub Ogada - Vocals
Kauwding Cissokho - Kora
Myrdhin - Harp
Levon Minassian - Doudouk
Malcolm Crosbie - Guitar
Gary Finlayson - Banjo
John Fortis - Electric Bass, Loops
Davy Soillane - Whistle, Uillean Pipes
Angus R. Grant - Fiddle

Ron Aslan - Producer on track [5]
Martin Russel - Add. Production, Recording
Jo Bruce - Add. Production
Simon Emmerson - Mixing, Engineer
David Bottrill - Mixing, Engineer
Ian Cooper - Mastering
Jamie Reid - Paintings

 C o m m e n t s ,   N o t e s


You may never have thought of Celtic and African rhythms as complementing one another, but this very interesting effort takes both idioms into new territory with some engaging results. The outcome is a sort of hip-hop jig and reel, like the Chieftains meet the Chemical Brothers. Masamba Diop's masterful talking drum creates an exotic pulse under Myrdhin's fine Celtic harp, and it sounds like a party at some global crossroads. Indeed, the most fascinating aspect of the project is the very real sense that a common language can be found between any cultures, no matter how divergent they may seem. This effort is worth a listen just for its audacity alone.

Tim Sheridan



An explosion of contemporary styles and ancient traditions, coming together to explore the Celtic and African roots of modern music in the British Isles.

RealWorld.com



Bodhran and kora? Talking drums and Uilleann pipes? Echoing ancient trade roots from a thousand years ago, Sound Magic reunites two seemingly disparate music traditions in a contemporary setting, reaching for a dance-oriented but spiritual hybrid that takes on a life of its own. Producer Simon Emmerson assembles some noteworthy artists including Ayub Ogada, Davy Spillane, Manu Katche, Caroline Lavelle, James McNally (of the Pogues), Iarla O Lionaird, and Masamba Diop to create evocative, clubby grooves that also incorporate samples and flavors from Armenia and the East. With its multilayered rich textures, Sound Magic grafts cultural respect and urban hipness for the global village of the '90s.

Derek Rath, Amazon.com



Modern dance music has seen a dramatic rise in the use of sampling in order to bring Third World music to techno-heads and ambient fans. Afro Celt Sound System completely subvert this aesthetic by playing live acoustic instruments along with programmed rhythms, creating a new brand of modern ethno-dance, taking Celtic music through the avenues of Middle Eastern, African, and Eastern musics, while accompanied by various slow house and trip-hop beats and faster techno and jungle rhythms. The clear-cut winner here is the Celtic techno cut "Whirl-n-Reel (Folk Police Mix)," a solid crossover from world music to the dance floor. The whole album is a strong attempt--though one not fully realized--to marry dance and world music, without sacrificing too much of the purity from either side.

Bryan Reesman
Copyright © 1994-1999 CDNow, Inc. All rights reserved.



Moorish calls to prayer infused with the soft air of western Ireland, floating African whispers which build into whirling dervish Celtic jigs ... Hearing is believing.

Mojo (UK), August 1996



Sound Magic’ is one of those rare albums, an eye-opening, uplifting, musically innovative creation, a real all-rounder full of perpetual surprise.

Hot Press (UK), April 1997



... a superb synthesis of acoustic worldbeat textures and state-of-the-art studio technology.

Scotsman (UK), 3 February 1997



... Sound Magic is quite mystical and pure. The textures of strings and driving rhythmic force underlay some spiralling pipes and evocative low whistles - complex and beautiful.

Folk Roots (UK), August/September 1996



Producer Simon Emmerson’s entwining of Celtic and Senegalese traditions is in a different class, setting dazzling musicianship against daring productions...Thrilling stuff.

The Observer (UK), July 1996



Sound Magic aims high - and hits.

Q magazine (UK), July 1996



... that one awesome groove - a worldwide sound, universal in appeal yet like nothing you’ve heard before.

Keyboard Connections (UK), September 1996


Shropshire Star
... the most vibrant and fresh take on world music for a long time.

Top (UK), June 1996



A truly ground breaking album....

Sunday Life (UK), August 1996



For some more refreshing sounds, Afro-Celt Sound System unleash Volume One, a magical potpourri of different cultures. For something uplifting, this will definitely get your toes tapping

OK! (UK), August 1996



....an intoxicating mixture of ancient and modern, probably best experienced on a warm summer’s afternoon in a Somerset.....festival field. But even in a deck chair in your back garden there’s still real magic in these grooves.

Birmingham Post (UK), July 1996



....truly extraordinary and intoxicating piece of work.

Shropshire Star (UK), 1996
 

 L y r i c s


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 M P 3   S a m p l e s


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