Loreena McKennitt - The Mask and Mirror (1994)

Many things fit into the concept of world music, both in terms of genre and quality. What is popularly called world music is usually music that is too sugary and doesn't fit here or there for ears that don't have a specific, developed musical taste. This - thanks to the heavens - is far from true for the best, artists like Loreena McKennit, for example.

Small or large tragedies befall all people, while they stomp through their lives, sometimes with two feet, with iron-on boots, sometimes on tiptoes and bare feet. It's true that this album was already born when it happened, but Loreena McKennit lived through the most repulsive nightmares that life can throw at us. And here is the difference between an artist and a counter. These are heavy words, but this is the point: the mental and spiritual world of an artist grows at least as much from soul-crushing tragedies as from pleasant experiences. Maybe even more. And this is what the artist uses, even if he has to relive the events.

It is typical of Loreena McKennit's previous albums that she avoids the trap of monotony, which even the best representatives of world music often fall into. His album The Mask And Mirror is as diverse as the world itself. It is not surprising that the album was born during long trips in the mind of the singer and this experience can be felt in the music. Of course, many people go on long journeys, but they don't spit out a single spit, at least when they get dust in their mouths. Still others are able to give worlds to mortals even in the midst of a life spent in the same room.

The album mostly instills the Celtic feeling in the listener. We don't immediately run to cut mistletoe with a golden sickle and worship nature - although it would be wiser to do so - but there is no doubt that it captures the atmosphere well.
So much so that one of the songs even echoes from a movie about Avalon.

So far so good, but there was no mention of the woman's voice. If my wife had a voice like that, I'd even enjoy her yelling at me. Not to mention other things. I don't even know if the mountain crystal could dress in velvet and speak - Huh? And if I had ears to hear - perhaps he would have such a voice. Or not even for him. So, Loreena McKenni also stands out among world musicians, and her album The Mask And Mirror can enchant even when we are swimming in reality.