Latest CD releases reviewed

DANNY ELLIS
800 Voices Commercial Arts/Universal ****

If musicality was the only bar by which an album was judged, then Danny Ellis's debut would hold its own alongside such otherworldly voices as Brian Kennedy. But 800 Voicesis much more. It's a searing testament to the resilience of the human spirit and the depths to which that spirit can sink. Ellis is an Artane Industrial School survivor. His tales of childhood innocence shredded asunder, of the divine inspiration of a fellow inmate's angelic singing and the characters who populated eight long years of his life, are every bit as compelling as the Ryan report. Ellis's refusal to yield to a consuming bitterness elevates this chronicle to a place where the listener can savour the musicianship while never losing sight of the murderous mayhem that forged it. A musically healing and lyrically breathtaking debut. www.800voices.com

Download tracks: Tommy Bonner, Stolen Child