Lotus Lounge exists in a place where the velvet ropes disappear and the only price of admission is a fertile imagination. It's a moveable feast where you can come to dream or to dance any time of the day. The sounds of the Lotus Lounge have been gathered from cities around the globe -- Angel Tears are from Tel Aviv, Cineplexx from Buenos Aires, the Sismik Napkins Adventures from Lausanne -- and blended into a single seamless mix. There are no geographical borders or language barriers here. If some of these tracks already sound familiar, it's because they've been featured in movies and on the hippest of our contemporary television shows, as well as in night clubs and chill-out lounges throughout the world. Then again, maybe these grooves have just been lingering in your subconscious, waiting for you to turn up the volume.
There's no need to wait any longer. Change in to something more comfortable, turn down the lights, and turn up the strobe. The doors are open and everyone's invited. The music's about to start.
Welcome to the Lotus Lounge.
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Good Gravy: Good Music by www.goodthings.com
Another new collection of world music is significantly more adventurous but no less satisfying. Bar/None's Lotus Lounge Volume 2 is a stirring set of ambient music from around the world. Anchoring these electronic "global grooves" are traditional elements of music from China, India, Spain, Morocco, and beyond. This is the ideal collection for the experienced world music listener eager to move to the next level. Indeed, techno is not for everyone, and it doesn't always have the best associations. But this is an album full of mostly quiet songs that exploit all the possibilities that electronic music affords -- particularly where tempo is concerned -- to create an ideal musical background for any mood. With its world full of influences, Lotus Lounge is a journey worth experiencing.
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In Music We Trust by Alex Steininger www.inmusicwetrust.com
Described as "a continuous mix of global grooves," Bar None's Lotus Lounge Volume 2 - A Worldly Mix of Global Grooves is a fierce, fiery concoction of airy, vibrant electronic grooves. It is pumped full of plenty dance beats as well as experimental, quirky melodies that are more than sufficient enough to make you sit back, sit there silent in awe of the creations pumping out of your stereo. Featuring No Man, Cineplexx, Oforia, Max 404, Angel Tears, and Mystica, among others, Lotus Lounge Volume 2 is the perfect collection of grooves for those that want to hear new, interesting sounds. I'll give this an A-. (Issue 44 January 2002)
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Ink 19 by Bill Campbell www.ink19.com
In recent years, the electronica global village has exploded into a thriving metropolis. With the expansion and lowering prices of technology, everybody who's ever had the desire to become a DJ is doing so, and no Chinese Exclusion Act is going to curb citizenship. This second volume of Lotus Lounge celebrates the electronic music that's coming out from the less celebrated corners of the world. This disc skips around the globe from Argentina and Switzerland to Israel (where it spends most of its time) for an enjoyable mix.This is truly a Hydra-like adventure with ambient and lounge and world and dance music all popping up their heads. Angel Tears' Middle Eastern ambient tribal jam, "Inshalla (Ya Salam)," is the jewel in this crown. However, the nu-jazzy "Global" from The EQs will move you. Sismik Napkin Adventures' "Faith" is just plain funky, and Cineplexx's "Facil" is a smooth, melodic electro-pop ballad that will move you. There are a few songs by the likes of Access Denied and No Man that trespass a little too deeply into New Age territory for my liking, but overall, this is a disc worth the price of a tourist visa.
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Dance 1 by Stacie Robbins www.dance1.net
This global groove extravaganza is an eclectic and mellow mix of music from all over the world. It is certainly not your everyday chill out album. This is a cd to throw in when you want to take the crowd down a notch but don't want them to leave. The sound effects used are subtle yet effective. With the fading of sound from one speaker to another, you feel immersed in another world. Listening to this album with headphones give you the full immersion effect. The international flair along with a sprinkling of some foreign language vocals make this a global winner. Don't think the typical light and airy chill out album because there are some slow dark beats on track 9 that will make you question what is real. This is a definite must have for those nights when you are still going as the sun comes up and need a good transition into the new day.
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MetroSource by A. Blair Boone www.metrosource.com
This exquisitely familiar compilation features the works of 12 international artists spanning the globe from Buenos Aires to Switzerland. With a compelling combination of rich diversity and skilled musicianship the CD virtually gives the listener a first class ticket to travel through a seamless mix of world, dance, ambient, and lounge music. The disc also refreshingly offers its audience a rare glimpse at the product of a collaborative effort between the Islamic and Hebrew cultures.
The result is an intoxicating international atmosphere filled with some of the hippest contemporary music around, and further proof that true artistry has no boundaries. Although the CD has to be viewed as a journey, and heard from beginning to end, one notable moments is "China", featuring an organic blend of electronica with rich ethnic beats. The group behind this piece, Mystica, comes from Israel, but interestingly enough traces their musical influences back to Morocco, Iraq, and Russia.
Although Lotus Lounge, Volume I, was exclusively passed along to fellow DJ's, our main goal this time around was to deliver an accessible compilation of music where East meets West, geographical borders fall, and language barriers disappear. By tapping into an almost metaphysical realm, the CD fiercely delivers with an infectious groove.
This CD is released on LoveCat Music.
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