Artist:   Juliette Commagere
Song:   "Where I Go"
Album: Queens Die Proudly
Label:   Aeronaut
Year:    2008

Certain sounds are timeless, and “Where I Go” could be a hundred years old or from tomorrow. It begins with overtones from India, as Amir Yaghmai’s yali tambur and Joachim Cooder’s percussion add an instant ancient wisdom before Juliette Commagere’s exquisite voice begins singing. She immediately takes us on a dreamy excursion to the moon, sweeping into view like a vision from a Hollywood movie. There is a breathy drama that starts to unfold from the very first verse, and Commagere is definitely directing the movie. The song sounds like it was recorded on a huge old Warner Bros. Pictures soundstage, with dozens of musicians playing together as one. Meanwhile, the music feels like a cold winter night--a mystery waiting to unravel--creating a tension that never quite lifts off but instead teases us mercilessly. And like all the other great mysteries, it’s in the not knowing that the real pleasure lies. Julliette Commagere has been someone who always sounded like she was searching for something, a place she could call her own and then explore endlessly. On Queens Die Proudly, she has found it, and while “Where I Go” might be the most accessible song on the album--Enyaesque with an edge--every single one will pull you into her world and make you not want to leave--ever. Of all the albums released in 2008, none has announced a major new musical presence like this one.