Clouds Below begins with "Soulmate," an expression of warmth and tenderness that features, piano, flutes, vocals and keyboards - a beautiful beginning! Sarah plays violin in a Celtic string ensemble led by Uzbekistan-born KeyReel Raskolenko. He plays five- string violin, so when Sarah composed "Glimmering Hope," she had his instrument in mind and created the violin part for him to perform on the album. Smooth, elegant and dreamy, it's one of my favorites and also prominently features the piano. "Landing" is much more ethereal and ambient, but also feels very dreamy. "City Blue" is an interesting surprise that features Ryan McCullough on sax in addition to synths/keyboards, vocals, and piano. Slow, free, and very expressive, it feels like how I imagine floating on a cloud would feel. "First Light of Dawn" is classic 2002 with harp, vocals, and keyboard - very beautiful! The title track is mostly piano with ethereal, atmospheric sounds. behind it. Very ambient and unstructured, the visuals it creates in my mind are of gliding effortlessly over a sea of fluffy white clouds with a bright blue sky all around - heavenly! "Riding the Current" is the most rhythmic of the tracks, but is still very relaxed and soothing. Guitar and flute are in the lead with backing vocals, harp, strings and keyboard washes - also classic 2002! The closing track, "Everyday Miracles," features James Song on violin in addition to harp, guitar, vocals and keyboard. Overflowing with wonder and sunshine, it's a sure to brighten any day.
(from MainlyPiano.com)
