Universal Light Remixes (From The Unchanging), Donna De Lory CD Review
De Lory Music
Donna De Lory is a strong presence in both the pop and world music scenes; her initial career boost came as a hard-working back-up singer for Madonna before taking off as a pop star in her own right. After some successful pop releases in the early 90s, she shifted her focus toward world and sacred music.
Her latest release, Universal Light Remixes, completely reimagines the songs from her album The Unchanging, and the attitude and risk-taking in the innovative musical arrangements and production really won me over, especially since I found The Unchanging needed a bit more yang to support Donna’s delicate voice.
Here, “Om Namah Shivaya” features a rousing, African-influence groove, with Donna’s vocals taking on more attitude. I’m a huge fan of David StarFire, and I enjoyed his cubby, dark remix of “Jai Mata Kali,” another track where Donna’s vocals assume some serious attitude. It works and is a reminder that mantra can be rousing and magnificent. “Amma” has an addictive momentum in the beat – you won’t want it to end. The spacey tech-house feel of “Praying for Love” is one of my favorite tracks. And, you’ve never heard a take on “Amazing Grace” as unique as Donna’s, which says a lot.
This album is another beautiful example of the successful bridge between world devotional music and electronica.
Universal Light Remixes (From the Unchanging) [Bonus Track Edition]
Reviewed by McKenna Rowe, a DJ, yoga teacher, and founder of Chakra 5 Yoga which provides mobile yoga classes on location and by appointment to students throughout Los Angeles.
McKenna caught the “yoga bug” as a little girl, watching Lilias Folan on PBS. She leads an active life hiking, running, sometimes snowboarding, and once was a nationally-ranked equestrian. After years of working in the digital industry for clients in entertainment, publishing and fashion, she took a sabbatical to acquire her yoga teacher certification. A desire to help people heal soon followed. Also a successful musician and composer, McKenna shares cutting-edge music during yoga classes, recruiting musicians and DJs to perform with her. She owned and operated East Hollywood’s Chakra 5 Yoga studio throughout 2011, creating a vibrant community on and offline, but decided to shift to a mobile model. Now Chakra 5 brings yoga classes on site and by appointment to businesses, schools and organizations throughout greater Los Angeles. McKenna was certified in Hatha/Kundalini at Karuna Yoga, and has additional teacher training in Restorative Yoga with Master Teacher Judith Lasater. She teaches yoga at Chakra 5 classes and international retreats.