Mirror World

Press play and enter the world of Loreena McKennitt, where walls dissolve into thick, billowing mists as the ground beneath your feet turns to compacted earth and the sky above opens up to reveal a black cloak dotted with shimmering stars draped beneath silk-like clouds. Were McKennitt's composing and songwriting abilities lacking of any luster (as they most certainly are not), her voice would still possess the strength to hold her fifth album, The Mask and Mirror, up on its own. But the combination of this talented woman's vocal prowess and songwriting ability makes her all the more similar to her work – ethereal and almost unbelievable in its level of quality.

Percussionist Airto Moreira, his wife, vocalist Flora Purim, and Joe Farrell (heard on flute, soprano and tenor) had teamed up several times through the years, most notably in the original version of Return To Forever. Farrell would pass away just eight months after this album, but is still heard in fine form on the interesting set.An atmospheric and at times haunting effort.