The Quiet Hour
Spirit Voyage, 2021
8/10
The duo of Markus Sieber and Angelika Baumbach, as Mirabai Ceiba the pair deliver a drum and percussion free listen with the appropriately The Quiet Hour, where contributions on strings help illuminate their meditative formula.
“Ma” starts the listen with no shortage of atmosphere as precisely plucked strings and wordless vocals float in a dreamy, meditative climate, and “She” follows with soft, expressive singing in a bare, poetic delivery.
In the middle, “Take On A Thousand Forms” recruits Margéta Irglová on vocals for the light and harmonic delivery, while “Que Quede Escrito” takes on a emotive quality, where sparse keys complement the moody strings amid the Spanish ballad.
Approaching the end, “Ra Ma” uses repetition strategically in a hypnotic and absorbing 11 minutes, and “The Time Given To Us” exits the listen with much beauty alongside a sublime intimacy that’s both charming and surreal.
Baumbach wrote some of this album while on a solitary retreat, and it certainly lends itself to a tranquil affair, where well placed harp, cello, lovely singing and guitar from both members make for a uniquely serene body of work that is much needed in these often abrasive times.
Travels well with: Chrystal Für- Elusion; Orions Belte- Villa Amorini