Afro Celt Sound System

The latest CD by Afro Celt Sound System brings you more pan-culturally informed dance music, featuring guest vocals by living legends Peter Gabriel and Robert Plant. Peter Gabriel's song, "When You're Falling," seems to be the most natural and seamless track on the recording, since this kind of music is mostly his territory. As for Robert Plant's "Life Begin Again," flavoured with Middle Eastern instruments, one gets the sense that he is trying to recapture the storytelling essence of Kashmere, without certain musicians to back him up. As for the rest of the album, ethnic styles are sprinkled like seasoning from a global food court. Yet the overall content tends to lean more to a clubby version of Lord of the Dance, with Celtic-Welsh tones, such as "Silken Whip" and "Colossus." The exception is "Further in Time," a dance club track mixed with African vocals similar to the Youssou N'Dour dance mixes. Further in Time is a cheery album for those not too familiar with world music, serving as a pleasant introduction to some non-Western sounds.