SurfacingIn my current playlist (among other things) is Sarah McLachlan’s Angel from Surfacing. On Angel she hits it perfectly. The rich mix of piano and cello sets a nice spartan atmosphere for her breathy-then-full-again voice to glide over. While a bit on the repetitive side, that’s part of the grace of it. You can become immersed in it easily.

Her engineers have also mastered the use of reverb for her style. Super wet, but still transparent. If you listen in headphones, the trails last forever giving an additional other-worldly sense, which enhances the immersion experience.

I’m not keen on the rest of the album, although there are a couple decent tunes, but this one has some sticking power.

Originally published on WordPress on January 06, 2007. Migrated to this blog on May 29, 2025.