Both Sides of the Sea
Taking songs from two Israeli albums "Achinoam" and "Achinoam Nini Gil Dor,"Both Sides of the Seashowcases Noa's evocative singing and song-writing skills, born of her Israeli heritage and American residence. Working with longtime collaborator Gil Dor, she moves effortlessly from Middle Eastern-tinged songs to more western light jazz/pop fair with plenty of exotic instrumentation coloring compositions with great mainstream appeal. Noa's lyrics, and those of fellow writer Leah Goldberg, are modern poetic odes to love and the dichotomy of dual homelands. Behind the contemporary themes and production, Noa's senses are folk-rooted, making for a beguiling combination.--Derek Rath