★★★★★
Loreena McKennitt is simply magical. If heaven were to send an angel to sing to me, it would have her voice. Ever since I heard "The Mummer's Dance" back in 1996, I was in love. In love with her voice, the Celtic sound, her. Fifteen years later, I am even more enamored with the Celtic/Irish sound and especially the voice and music of Ms. McKennitt...
- www.ink19.com
2011-02-20
★★★★★
No text for this review; see http://robertchristgau.com/xg/bk-cg90/grades-90s.php.
- www.robertchristgau.com
2009-07-10
★★★★★
Canada's answer to Enya wanders even further into the musical woods on her seventh album, singing about "riding o'er the land" and the "fountain of forgiveness" to misty, Celtic-renaissance-fair pop. For all her New Age pretensions, though, McKennitt knows a hook when she hears it: "The Mummers' Dance" is the most memorable tune ever written about a traditional, mask-wearing dance troupe.
- ew.com
2009-06-12
★★★★★
Parallel Dreams, the Canadian harpist/songwriter's quietly moving sophomore release, finds the mystical red-haired siren in true balladeer form...
- music.aol.com
2008-08-28
★★★★★
Recorded in various halls and abbeys in Ireland, and completed in the Church of Our Lady in Guelph, Ontario, harpist/arranger/vocalist Loreena McKennitt's first foray into the crowded field of holiday music -- she would go on to release an EP called Winter Garden in 1995 -- is steeped in old-world atmosphere. To Drive the Cold Winter Away celebrates the winter solstice through eight traditional English, Scottish, and Irish carols and ballads and two Mckennitt originals...
- music.aol.com
2008-08-28
★★★★★
The Book of Secrets, the follow-up to 1994's The Mask and Mirror -- there was a Christmas EP, A Winter Garden, released in 1995) -- finds Loreena McKennitt in the same musical vein, mixing Celtic, Spanish, Italian, and new age to create her own distinct sound. The only problem is that she did not seem to progress much during the time between releases. This is not necessarily a bad thing, since she still knows how to write incredible melodies and layer instruments to produce peaceful images...
- music.aol.com
2008-08-28
★★★★★
Nights from the Alhambra chronicles ethereal Canadian Celtic/folk/worldbeat artist Loreena McKennitt's 2006 tour in support of her Ancient Muse album. Recorded in September in the Palace of Charles V at the Alhambra, a southern Spanish fortress on the eastern border of the city of Granada built by the Moors, McKennitt employed a 12-piece band that included hurdy-gurdy, oud, uilleann pipes, kanoun, strings, and multiple percussion players...
- music.aol.com
2008-08-28
★★★★★
Loreena McKennitt is in her element in front of an audience, telling interesting stories about the songs and assembling a topnotch backing band. This is her first live release available to the public, and uses material from three concerts (one from Paris and two from Toronto) to put together a complete show. As with The Book of Secrets tour, the first half is The Book of Secrets in its entirety, arranged in the same order as the studio CD...
- music.aol.com
2008-08-28
★★★★★
Loreena McKennitt's fourth release, and first for a major label, is a quietly majestic tapestry of worldbeat and Celtic pop that effortlessly weaves together traditional and contemporary songs into lush showcases for her fluid voice and harp. The multi-talented Canadian utilizes all of her strengths here, resulting in her most rewarding batch of tunes to date...
- music.aol.com
2008-08-28
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