Reviewed by Ryan Connor

As anyone with even the haziest knowledge of popular music will tell you, Enya (sister of the renowned Moya Brennan) is one of the biggest selling artists in album history, her ethereal, other-worldly voice emanating from the stereos in millions of homes. Her Christian credentials though are unclear and in fact on previous releases her lyrics have teetered dangerously close to the spiritual nonsense of the New Age. Be that as it may, with this best-selling Christmas album originally released in 2008, Authentic Media took the decision to put Enya's music into the Christian retail CD racks. The Irish colleen's unique, choral voice and songwriting give this album a charming depth. The reverb effect on her voice really expands the music while the production quality is superb and very clear. The album begins with the instrumental title-track which leads you in with its soft guitar picking and background choir effect. There is certainly a Christmas and winter feel to the album which you notice as soon as you begin to listen. "O Come, O Come, Emmanuel" is a particularly moving version of the carol sung in both English and Latin. The album is great as ambient background or music to unwind to with Enya's soothing voice and soft instrumental accompaniment almost give some songs the sense of a lullaby. The final track "Oiche Chiuin (Choral)" is sung in Gaelic which all will recognise as the Irish version of "Silent Night".

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

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