There has been quite a bit of coverage of this album in the Christian press here in Britain. This is probably because Maire is the singer from Clannad as well as Enya's sister. This, her third solo album, is her first in the Christian marketplace and follows her appearance on Iona's Journey Into The Morn.
The vocals kick in immediately as the album opens, which I find disconcerting. Maire has a beautiful voice, but it seems as if the arrangements are too weak to make much of that voice. The instrumentation suffers from the same affliction; it's well-performed but lacks any real personality. Maire plays the harp and keyboards, while others take uilleann pipes, low whistles, guitars, fiddle, and bodhran - a similar list of instruments to Iona, but without the interesting arrangements of that band.
This album is not awful, but really doesn't hold my attention for more than a couple of minutes, which is a shame as I really like Celtic music. It's good to see Maire acknowledging her Christian faith, but does that really mean the music has to be bland?
2.5 tocks
Other coverage for this album
The Phantom Tollbooth 1998Reviewed by Dave LandselWhile the platinum-sellers Clannad certainly cannot be called obscure, somehow the Irish pop/folk pioneers never came to enjoy the name recognition of Enya, whom everyone knows as a purveyor of those ethereal, spiritually flavored, Celtic pop treats which have found their way onto radio, into film soundtracks, commercials, and into the hearts of music-lovers world wide. The stuff of legends.…Similar sounding releases
1996IonaJourney Into The Morn
1998Eden's BridgeCeltic Worship
1997Genie and Troy NilssonWhisper
1995Adrian SnellCity of Peace
2001Mary-KathrynOne Spirit
2000Sheila WalshBlue Waters
