Album Notes

Star of the Sea Reviews

By all means dive in...From the very first track, the music's historical references obviously draw upon the medieval era of Europe as well as the sounds of the Middle East...Even with all of these reference points, the music of Stellamara is not derivitave, but rather quite refreshing. Fine late night or early morning sounds to fill the air.
--Detroit Metro Times

...Something astonishing...Drakulich pulls lyrics from 13th century Galicia, Croatia, Persia, and from deep within her own musical experience and inspiration. The music thus produced defies simple description. This is one to hear with ears and mind open. Given the opportunity, Stellamara will transport you to a place outside of time... This is world music for another world- one well worth a visit.
--Cosmik Debris

...among the most appealing releases of the year.
--MicroTimes

Stellamara is a global symphony spun through minarets and grounded in the earth.
* * * * - John Diliberto/ Pulse!/Echoes

It has become to easy to compare anything that
sounds remotely Middle Eastern to Dead Can Dance.
Though indeed similar to DCD, if Stellamara had
formed first they would be the comparative standard.[Stellamara] is an earthly blend of ethereal hymns and instrumental reveries with the benefit of contemporary ambient atmospherics.
...Drakulich has as singular a vocal style as Lisa Gerrard does, but with the added allure of a siren.
- Alternative Press

Stellamara manage to maintain a balance of reverence for the music of other peoples cultures with a haunting elegance of expression.
-Electronic Musician

There is retro and then there is retro... the group time-travels across continents, channelling transcultural rhythms and melodies into a striking contemporary amalgam... Stellamara cut directly to the devotional essence of music and that's the only kind of retro that matters.
--S.F. Weekly

Drakulich, while contributing her skills on the bendir, riqq and zills, provides incredible vocal stylings that seperate Stellamara from bands like Dead Can Dance... Stellamara, perhaps the future poster child for world music...
--RockLove

'Zephyrus' by Stellamara is a languid love song about the sea- from a14th century Galician text. The seductive womans voices and the steady rowing cadence brought images of sailors luring sailors onward.
--New Age Voice

Some of the most ancient melodies and rhythms of the world drawn into the modern style of electronic ambient music...The result is timeless music that has depth, inner resonance, and mystery...You are gonna love Stellamara.
--Album Network


One moves from track to track as if in shifting scenes of a dream, from a medieval cathedral to a synagogue to a mosque... From a passionate beginning with Arabic strings and percussion, the music drifts ever more slowly, like rocking into a deeper mystery in a boat on gentle swells.
--NAPRA ReVeiw

Stellamara combines understanding of diverse sourses of music with an ear for accesible grooves, perfect for music fans ready to move beyond the easier sounds of Enya or Peter Gabriel's Passion.
--Exclaim!

Stellamara manage to maintain a balance of reverence for the music of other peoples cultures with a haunting elegance of expression...
--Electronic Musician

The results are more than impressive...Often achingly beautiful...
inspiration and solace.
--Aiding and Abetting

The missing link between Goth and New Age
--Oculus

...vocal reverberations and dark bowed string timbers weave in and out of now dense, now diaphanous textures, punctuated by plucked strings and hand percussion of every sort...undeniably beautiful.
--S.F. Bay Guardian

Drakulich chants a sumptuous Galician vocal from the 13th century, then
slips into Judeo-Spanish, 15th century tongue. Whether it be Persian or Croation, Drakulich's voice makes the transition an easy and beatiful one. Propelled by exeptional playing, Star of the Sea flows at a fluid and hypnotic pace, culminating in a rousing percussive finale. I dig.
--Thrust- Record Roundup

The finest songs here draw on traditional sources... but were written and arranged by the duo itself.... Dead Can Dance now have a worthy challenger in Stellamara.
--Seattle Weekly

Exotic instruments have been carefully and gently molded to form an other-worldly base for the evocative, gossamer rich as a golden bell voice of Sonja Drakulich. Stellamara is steller.
--Anodyne