Title - 'The 11th Hour' (Lakeshore Records)
Artist - Various
It would be a mistake to dismiss the valuable environmental documentary "The 11th Hour" as a mere redux of "An Inconvenient Truth." Whereas the 2006 Al Gore-starring film, which won an Academy Award for best documentary, focused intensely on global warming, "The 11th Hour" takes a broader approach in examining Earth's ills.
In describing the impact on the planet's ecosystems attributed to industrialized society, writer-directors (and sisters) Leila Conners Petersen and Nadia Conners marry images of natural beauty with natural disasters, stressing exactly how unnatural many of these catastrophes are.
Backed by the musical talents of Deaf Center, Sigur Ros, Triola and the always inventive Cocteau Twins, the soundtrack could well be considered completely instrumental save for a few of the songs (such as Arve Henriksen’s “Chiaro” and Sigur Ros’s “Svefn G. Englar”) feature flowing Enya-ish vocals; that work more as a musical instrument than as anything lyrical. For the most part, though, it’s simply the musical instruments that are used to create the somber-yet-hopeful thematic mood showcased throughout the album.