Personnel: Sheila Chandra (vocals, water wok, percussion, bells); Martin Smith (sitar, santoor, synthesizer, bass, tamboura, bells); Dharambir Singh (sitar, dilruba, tamboura); Steve Coe (eqtara, piano, synthesizer, bells); Preston Heyman (santoor, hi-hat, cymbals, gong, gamalan, shaker, water wok, wind chimes, bells); Dinesh (madhal).
Recorded at Indipop Studios, London, England from April-May 1984.
Includes liner notes by Sheila Chandra.
Considering that Sheila Chandra had built her reputation as the lead singer for '80s UK pop act Monsoon, her solo venture QUIET is a significant detour, containing no words, no pop hooks, and no throbbing rhythms. Chandra works with her former bandmates, Steve Coe and Martin Smith, to come up with 10 pure, untitled vocal excursions, set varyingly against austere keyboards, tablas, and sitars. It's easy to forget that the album has no lyrics, though. Chandra's voice, while not possessed of a huge range, proves quite malleable, particularly on the standout fourth track (no song titles per se on QUIET), where her vocals progress remarkably from a steady, percussive patter to a something like a throat-driven, human drum machine.
