VA - Angels of Hope (An Angelic Compilation) (2015)

The great thing about Real Music’s compilations is that they have a tremendous amount of talent to draw upon when putting together these themed collections for which they are so well known. Many of us who have been buying music for decades and have been converting them to MP3’s to take with us out into the world often do the same thing that Real Music does as we gather our favorite artists that invoke whatever theme we are looking to create and put them into a folder for our enjoyment. Real Music’s upcoming compilation called Angels of Hope takes all of the work out of the process and leaves listeners with the pleasure of simply popping the disc into their players and enjoying the music.

Terence Yallop, President of Real Music, was the person behind this assemblage of songs and talent and he has done a fine job mining the catalog of Real Music to offer up a collection of songs that fills the listener with light and airy feelings one might associate with angelic beings while creating a contemplative mood that is conducive to meditation or simply relaxing after a hard day dealing with the stresses of life in the 21st century. There are twelve tracks on this compilation and the album runs right around 60 minutes which allows the listener plenty of time to cast off from the shore and drift for a bit on the tranquil ocean of sound offered up on this collection.

Angels of Hope features many of the biggest names on the Real Music roster including Peter Kater, Kevin Kern, Gandalf, Omar Akram and Liquid Mind, aka Chuck Wild. Surprisingly you really don’t notice that as each track plays you are listening to a different artist because the track arrangements are such that the music seems to be telling a single story through many different musical voices and styles. It is not that the music is homogenized or repetitive, but rather the spirit of the music, or as Terence puts it in the liner notes, the “song vibrations” are such that they stimulate similar emotional responses from the listener. It is always a difficult proposition to take music from a wide variety of artists and find those songs that speak to the heart in a similar fashion and with one voice, but it can be done as Yallop demonstrates with Angels of Hope.

The music on Angels of Hope has a way of wending its way into your soul the more that you listen to it. The emotional texture of the music runs the gamut from meditative, to ethereal, to mystical and creates an intimate setting with which to share all of these emotions with the listener. The album is instantly engaging and its nuance and delicacy will be with the listener long after the music has stopped playing and you are left with just your thoughts. I always like to choose a couple of songs that stand out in my mind, which ordinarily is difficult, but when talking about a group of artists such as you will find on Angels of Hope, the task becomes even more of a challenge.

That being said I found several songs on the album that I went back to again and again because they made an impression on me that would not be satisfied without many more listens over the course of reviewing this collection. One of those songs is called “Om Namah Shivaya” by Sacred Earth and features the vocals of Prem Williams along with Jethro Williams on flute. The song is filled with deeply passionate vocals and heartfelt playing that communicates with the listener on a level that is more felt than understood with your mind. After many listens I have to say that I am still not tired of this song and it still packs quite a punch. Two songs by the same artist had a similar effect on me because of their simplicity and how much they touched my heart regardless of how many times I had listened to them. Two more stand-outs are by Kevin Kern, “And the Light is Forever” and “Keepers of the Flame.” The tracks are simply enchanting in their simplicity and in their ability to fill the listener with a sense of peace and contentment regardless of what kind of day you might be having or have had. All in all this collection will be a great addition to your musical library and will be one that you put in your player on a regular basis. Recommended by Ambient Visions.

Tracklist:

01. Gandalf - Angel of Light
02. Kevin Kern - And the Light is Forever
03. Peter Kater - Heaven’s Window
04. Omar Akram - Angel of Hope
05. Hilary Stagg - Sweet Return
06. Mars Lasar - The Blessing
07. Danny Wright - Angel Voices
08. Sacred Earth - Om Namah Shivaya
09. Bernward Koch - The Blue Light
10. Gandalf - In the Presence of Angels
11. Liquid Mind - Into the Light
12. Kevin Kern - Keepers of the Flame