Angels of the Deep
Angels of the Deep, Raphael's 1995 outing for Hearts of Space, is the sonic swirl of liquid dreams, water nymphs, and whalesong. Both Raphael's Hawaii residence and his work teaching and lecturing about sexuality and spirituality have indubitably informed the making of this recording. Excellent accompaniment for bodywork or meditation,Angels of the Deepprovides the feeling of warm and watery cradling of both the physical and emotional self and features the celestial strings of shakti harp and guitar, as well as flute, in addition to Raphael's other worldly synthesizers. The title cut opens this seven-song cycle with whales singing, watery blips, and swelling strings, all of which combine to make music befitting any voluptuary. Raphael goes for "more is more" here, and because of the skill and sincerity of the overall production, it works.--Paige La Grone