CD: Eco Zen 1

One World Music’s newest release, Eco-Zen is all about re-connecting with the world around us. Promoting the challenging message that for too long we’ve been over-stimulated, blinded and numbed by a frenetic swirl of images and messages that assault us everywhere we go in our daily lives. We’ve switched off that magical part of us that connects us to the greater consciousness, that little part within us all that unites us with every other person around us – humanity.

Inspired by the desire to awaken our senses through thoughtful and beautiful music from all over the globe Eco-Zen sets out to shake us from our reverie, to ignite that spark within each of us. With our eyes open again we can see what’s happening to our world and become a part of the solution.

CD1, compiled by Leigh Wood, is a diverse blend of soulful melodies fused with hypnotic beats. From the delicate and beautiful ‘Weebles Fall’ by Slovo to the urban electronics of Coda’s ‘Super Pod’, each track brings with it a greater sense of awareness. Gentle acoustic meanderings flow into intricate and lushly produced tracks like ‘Journey’ by Nitin Sawhney, and then to the bustling inner city landscapes painted by Melbourne’s Amanaska, this music is as contemporary as it is vital. Compiled by UK DJ/Journalist Ben Mynott CD2 is deep, intense and hypnotic. Sparse soundscapes that give space for thought and contemplation give way to melodies sublimely woven together in this more intimate collection of global harmonies.

A perfect compliation for a sunday afternoon chill-out session or dinner party/bbq get together…