Note For A Child - Impossibly Beautiful

Reviewed by Tony Cummings

At long last this breathtaking album has been picked up for shop distribution by ICC. As far as I am concerned, it is one of the best albums of the year and an exciting indicator as to what is happening in the Christian music underground. From CR80 This Cambridge duo staggered Cross Rhythms last year. They seemed to arrive from nowhere with a breathtaking sampler EP which was of such towering quality that it deservingly landed a 10 square review in your favourite magazine. Now comes the full album and it's every bit as gripping, an ethereal blend of music which delicately fuses world music rhythms and haunting Celtic-tinged arrangements with wistful vocals which bring home the full force of the poetic lyrics. Singer Susie Beatie has that most rare of vocal characteristics, the ability to breathe warmth and sincerity into words and music with understatement while Daniel Goodman helps conceive soundscapes which are eclectic yet coherent, intelligent yet never self indulgent. An album you can play over and over and always find new haunting streams of invention. The fact that this inventive project was recorded entirely independently is nothing short of staggering. Why can't we find it in all UK's Christian bookshops?