Dreamers in the Field

Tuvan khöömei/throat-singing elder statesmen Huun-Huur-Tu have made many collaborations over the years. Acclaimed producer Carmen Rizzo has worked with them before and Dhani Harrison is a long time fan. The seven well-produced tracks here are dreamy, bordering the line between meditative, new age and library music. The title-track and ‘Boidus’ are original, with the rest versions of Huun-Huur-Tu’s back catalogue, however lacking the rhythmic power and earthiness that Huun-Huur-Tu have delivered on previous releases. Some of the chordal piano and string passages struggle to chime with the natural harmonics of khöömei, while ‘Song of the Caravan Rider’ is watered down by the addition of floating piano voicing, losing the trotting cadence supplied by the three-string Tuvan doshpuluur lute, which is too low in the mix. Dreamers in the Field is a calm and somnolent addition to Huun-Huur-Tu’s ouevre.