Era The Very

Founded in 1996, ERA (an acronym for Enminential Rythmn of the Ancestors) is the project of French musician Eric Lévi, whose ethereal, evocative soundscapes began in the tradition of artists like Enigma and Deep Forest. ERA's self-titled debut LP was released in 1998 to widespread success. A mix of dramatic pseudo-orchestral fare and lyrics in a self-designed language similar to Latin and Greek, Era also incorporated elements of world music, electronic, and new age. Following up in 2000 with Era 2, Lévi returned in 2003 with The Mass - whose title track referenced Carl Orff's masterpiece O Fortuna - and sales subsequently hit platinum status in France and Switzerland. The Very Best of Era was released in 2004 and featured all the popular tracks from their previous three records as well as several remixes…

Although they only attained the huge success of the Beatles, Rolling Stones, and the Beach Boys for a short time in the mid-'60s, time has judged the Byrds to be nearly as influential as those groups in the long run. They were not solely responsible for devising folk-rock, but they were certainly more responsible than any other single act (Dylan included) for melding the innovations and energy of the British Invasion with the best lyrical and musical elements of contemporary folk music. The jangling, 12-string guitar sound of leader Roger McGuinn's Rickenbacker was permanently absorbed into the vocabulary of rock. They also played a vital role in pioneering psychedelic rock and country-rock, the unifying element being their angelic harmonies and restless eclecticism…