Accordion, violin, thin beats, and foreign flavors form the core of this dreamily chill, deeply wistful hybrid of world, electronica, and pop. Think Zero 7 meets Massive Attack meets Banco de Gaia, all with a strong Balearic, Buddha Bar vibe.

Some of this was too vocal or New Age for me, but other tracks hit the spot. The concept and aesthetic here are far from original, yet that doesn't prevent this from being enjoyable at times. This is straightforward chill-out music with no strings attached and no airs. Bliss puts it best in their liner notes, writing "... don't have to question everything you feel." I'll buy that.

Bliss is a Danish group on emerging chill-out label Music For Dreams. Several of the tracks (#2, 3, 11) feature Zero 7’s Sophie Barker. NOTE: This is a different Bliss than the solo Swedish net-label artist who also has an EP on A-File.

My favorite tracks: 1 and 9, but also try 5, 6, 11.

- Captain Dee, 11/04

**1. Tragic soundtrack-ish orchestration and accordion morph into a dreamy swirl of trip-hop beats, poignant piano, and thick ambience. Beautiful! (6:02)
2. Melancholy pop vocals and cold background ambience. (4:50)
3. Bluesy keys, rainy day vocals, then tender Spanish singing, flute. No beat (5:05)
4. Echoing singing, hypnotizing drum beat underneath heartfelt chanting. (6:53)
*5. Warm electronic ambience with intricate drums and shakers, and flute. Mostly instrumental. (6:13)
*6. Prominent accordion, rolling piano, sad strings. No beat. Lovely. (1:55)
7. Cheerful comforting vibe, pop vocals, strings, guitar, simple shaker beat. (6:13)
8. Dark. Breathy, slightly disturbing vocals, quiet piano hits, harsh trip-hop beat.
I keep laughing though, because it sounds like she’s singing "This potty's almost over" even though the line is clearly "This party's..." Ah, bathroom humor. (4:22)
**9. Distant opera-ish singing and sax slowly give way to catchy, groovin' drum rhythms, chants, and jazzy riffs. Gorgeous yet dancey. I dig this one. (11:16)
10. The pop, trip-hop-y version of Track 6 (lyrics, rolling piano, violin). (6:13)
*11. Loopy drum beat, pulses of female voice, foreign chants, sultry vocals. (5:28)
12. Slow fuzzy beat, introspective piano, synth ambience, echoing samples. (4:22)