Enya - Dark Sky Island

Enya
Dark Sky Island
2015
Enya - Dark Sky Island

There probably is not anyone out there who would come out and say "I hate Enya" but there probably also is not anyone who would say "I fucking love Enya". Her music has that ambient tone that every doctor's office has used for years to keep people calm and really not engaged. That probably is not fair to someone who actually creates something so pretty and so encompassing that we forget it is even there. There is a radio station in southern California called "The Coast" and they alone probably account for 95% of Enhya's radio airplay. Much of this new album Dark Sky Island focuses on the theme of much of New Age music, time. There is either a passage of time going on, looking back a time spent or pining for some time in the future. This is nothing new for Enya as one of Her most popular songs to date is called "Only Time". This record really does not have much in the way of newness, though it seems the scale of the instrumentation has been paired down a bit from her previous releases, it is just Enya doing what she does best.

Her voice has aged a bit which is understandable over more than two decades of a career, but with age their has come a wisdom. Instead of her songs just sounding pretty now they sound more authoritative like there is some kind of knowledge to be passed. This may just be a sense rather than something intentional but it remains there just the same. There is also some weird shit going on; two of the tracks are sung in a language wholly invented by her lyricist and some of the tracks make you feel like you are on an interstellar journey. New Age music for some can be hard to digest because it does take the stance that listeners should be willing to go on the journey with the artists despite where that path may take them. Even when things become a bit odd there is still a sense of place and belonging when it comes to Enya, that is why Her music is so widely accepted and enjoyed. Dark Sky Island may not be the most aggressive or artistic album you hear this year, but denying the power and beauty that it creates would simply be silly.

7.3 out of 10