Sacred Spirit is a musical project by Claus Zundel, Ralf Hamm, and Markus Staab.
Musicians have made astonishing leaps of the imagination in recent years in fusing often contradictory music - Celtic with African, reggae with Bhangra. Sacred Spirit Volume 2: Culture Clash is an album that attempts the audacious: to combine the raw essence of the blues with the sophisticated orchestral structures of classical music, and then to underpin the two with contemporary rhythms.

Sacred Spirit is a musical project by Claus Zundel, Ralf Hamm, and Markus Staab. This album was nominated for a Best New Age Album Grammy and spawned the international smash hit "Yeha-noha (Wishes of Happiness & Prosperity)," which topped the singles charts in numerous countries, including Germany and France.
"Chants and Dances of the Native Americans" (sometimes labeled as "Indians") is an 11-song journey bridging the gap between ancient and contemporary history, tradition and modern instrumentation. While it is impossible to fully realize such scope on a single disc, Sacred Spirit makes the choice to represent all indigenous Americans rather than become mired in the potentially divisive bog of politics and tribal allegiance. All but two melodies are entirely traditional, bringing together flute, drums, and vocals with a cello and keyboard wash…

Deep Forest awash in the Pacific. There is certainly the flavour of that region, with Polynesian chanting and rhythms. However, unlike their other releases, Pacifique is a soundtrack to a movie rather than a stand-alone album.
For Pacifique, they've collected percussion samples and vocals from Samoan and other island cultures. The raw components are fairly good. The sampled voices on Pacifique form a nice melodic and rhythmic counterpoint to underlying percussion. La Legende (Part 2) provides similarly well blended vocals with a solid, if unextraordinary, rhythm and melodic line. And Huaine Reggae is a nice upbeat piece to close the album.

This (mostly) live album from a pair of Iranian sisters is an absolute melodic feast. Sampling the range of music – from the classical modes of "Saghi Nameh" to the opening lush Kurdish theme of "Mina" – is a joy, and nowhere more than on "Dorna," where their voices shine, largely unaccompanied, on a more contemporary piece that manages to sound timeless. There are some fascinating little diversions, as when the lullaby "Gole Laleh" morphs into the spiritual "She's Got the Whole World in Her Hands" (note the gender change!) sung softly by guitarist Knut Reiersrud, who also brings a lot to this CD instrumentally. Apart from the lovingly sinuous voices, what impresses most is the rich, loving variety of sensual and exotic melodies filling the disc. It's close to a sensory overload – but stops short, just at the perfect point.

Battle of the Field was recorded by the Albion Country Band in 1973, but it wasn't released until 1976. The delay didn't really matter, since the group's music – traditional English folk played on electric instruments – is essentially timeless. The group wasn't quite as skilled as Fairport Convention, but they were nevertheless extraordinarily talented, and this arguably remains their finest moment.

Expresso 2222, Gilberto Gil's first album back in Brazil after spending two years in exile, is a spirited return to form, filled with driving, funky bass, hammering piano, and percussive guitar work. Gil's compositions are on par with the best of his 1968 and 1969 self-titled albums, but is a more even overall affair forsaking the outright diversity Gil showed on those previous albums for a more cohesive set of songs, and while the performances aren't as outrageously groundbreaking, with Expresso 2222 Gil had already proved how far he was capable of pushing the envelope, and so the insane arrangements were no longer necessary. This makes Expresso 2222 one of Gil's most immediately palatable releases of his entire career, and compared to the standards of global rock & roll it is of the most compelling and complex yet accessible albums released in the 20th century. Gil's compositions are melodic and beautiful, and his arrangements are imaginative as always; from using a chorus of backing vocals to great effect on "O Canto de Ema" and "Sai do Sereno" to the rhythmic interplay between Gil's guitar, vocals, and layered percussion on the title track, Gil is in top form throughout the album.

The duo's third album, Comparsa, continues the world music potpourri Deep Forest are known for, though there is a pronounced focus on Latin and Caribbean grooves provided by musicians from Cuba, Belize, Mexico, and Madagascar, among other places. Although the nationalities present are truly global, the actual sound of Deep Forest hasn't changed that much, centering mostly on lush new age music with just a bit more of an edge than is usual, plus several tracks with whispered or restrained vocals.