And Winter Came (CD - 2008)

Audio Mixer: Nicky Ryan.

Recording information: Aigle Studio.

Photographer: Simon Fowler.

Arrangers: Enya; Nicky Ryan.

Unlike Enya's 2006 EP, CHRISTMAS SECRETS, with which it shares no tracks, AND WINTER CAME is not a traditional Christmas album. It's more impressionistic than most, placing a handful of Christmas songs such as "O Come, O Come, Emmanuel" in the midst of a shimmering soundscape of keyboards, strings, and Enya's trademark overdubbed vocal chorales. The mostly original material does an exceptional job of evoking a comforting midwinter landscape without resorting to sleigh bells or other Christmas music clichés. Highlights include "White Is in the Winter Night," "Last Time By Moonlight," and the evocative, childlike "Trains and Winter Rains." AND WINTER CAME is an unusual but lovely addition to the Christmas music pantheon. minimize