And Awake sees Ishq return with a fine album of their trademark tropical liquid sparkle. Colourful, vivid and intricate...
And Awake sees Ishq return with a fine album of their trademark tropical liquid sparkle. Colourful, vivid and intricate; Ishq establishes a warm sense of the exotic right from the start. Drifting pads with meandering melodic phrases, a childlike voice mouthing "...and awake..." are given a special lustre by means of bright electronic effects. There are many layers to most pieces: interwoven harmonic motifs; secondary melodies; underlying drones; water and nature sounds; glitch flicker and, on the initial tracks, a dreamy digital beat. The tone of the music is always inviting; suggestive of soft sunshine and the wonders of the world: somehow managing to carry the listener from floating on the lapping calm of a clear lagoon to wandering among the curves and curls of moist frondescence right down to marvelling at the veins of a single leaf. Soft flutes, oriental strings and Jacqueline Kersley's wordless vocals along with heaving tides and the cries of seagulls all combine to ensure that the Ishq journey is lush, expansive and truly captivating.