Michael Crétu's attempt at fusing everything from easy listening sex music and hip-hop rhythms to centuries-old Gregorian chants couldn't have been more designed to tweak the nose of high art, a joyously crass stab straight at a mainstream, do not pass go, do not collect 200 dollars. The result is something that shouldn't exist, but in its own way results in as much of a cultural scramble and explosion as anything Public Enemy were doing around the same time, crossing over the Euro-disco and new age spheres with style…
Highly successful worldbeat dance project headed by Michael Cretu that broke through with the international hit "Sadeness" in 1991.
A worldbeat dance fixture of the late 20th century and beyond, having sold tens of millions of albums worldwide, Enigma were an instant success with their unlikely combination of new age tones, chilled-out club production, and samples of Gregorian chant. The project arrived with their single "Sadeness (Pt. I)," which immediately became an international hit and the calling card for their unique sound. Over the next three decades, Enigma would release upwards of eight albums and collections, many of which spent time in the Billboard charts.
A greatest-hits package sampling four Enigma discs released between 1990 and 2000, LSD splendidly documents the influential output of Michael Cretu, a techno-bohemian who successfully creates cinematic, otherworldly New Age-like musical suites. Now, more than a decade removed from the arrival of Sadeness (Part 1) and its eyebrow-raising mix of sacred and sensual subplots, people can debate whether Cretu's music represents savvy commercial calculation or satisfying art. LSD suggests a split decision, though tracks with intriguing blends of atmosphere and rhythm, such as "Gravity of Love," "T.N.T. for the Brain" and "Morphing Thru Time," reveal an inventiveness that demonstrates Cretu is capable of more than sophisticated novelty tunes. Two new songs, neither especially noteworthy, open this package. Meanwhile, remastered older tracks segue beautifully to exude a satisfying, seamless unity. Big bonus: run time exceeds 76 minutes.Terry Wood
Trilogy is a box set by the German musical project Enigma. This set includes the first three studio albums by Enigma, MCMXC a.D., The Cross of Changes, and Le Roi est mort, vive le Roi!, which comprises their artistic output from 1990–1996. A worldbeat dance fixture of the late 20th century and beyond, having sold tens of millions of albums worldwide, Enigma was formed in 1990 by Bucharest native Michael Cretu. The project is based in Ibiza, Spain, where Cretu has lived and recorded since the early '90s. With its 1991 hit "Sadeness," Enigma brought the new age fascination with Gregorian chants and old-world culture to the clubs; the resulting single was both unique and irresistible.
Stratovarius, the top name in the melodic power metal scene, is back with a new album with some fresh and some very rare material! "Enigma: Intermission II" features three brand-new songs as well as, for the first time in the band's history, four beautifully arranged orchestral versions of popular Stratovarius songs. The album is similar in concept to "Intermission", released 17 years ago between "Infinite" and "Elements" in the sense that these seven tracks made in 2018 are completed by nine very rare, very hard to find power metal gems…
Enigma is a German electronic project formed in 1990 by Michael Cretu, David Fairstein and Frank Peterson. Cretu is both the composer and the producer of the project.
Enigma brings the first album in eight years, and its Japanese edition exclusively includes two Japan only bonus tracks "Sadness" and "Return to Innocence." Also features Japanese original cover artwork & sleeve case packaging. The musical project, known globally as ENIGMA, has proved one of the most successful of the last quarter-century. It has delivered more than 70 million sales across seven albums, 60 Number One albums around the world, and received over 100 Platinum awards. Now, in 2016, Cretu reconnects with that very first multi-platinum album to transfer its bold, pioneering sound-world to here and now. The Fall Of A Rebel Angel is the musical parable of a sensitive artist's view on the human condition. The album tells the story of a protagonist setting off on a symbolic journey of development and change to find a new, fulfilling life.