Walking into my apartment one day (before I was married), my roommate greeted me with a "You gotta hear this!" He then proceeded to turn on the first track from this CD. Vienna's lovely voice, her melody-driven songs, and her intelligent use of instruments (especially her piano playing) hooked me from the first minute. Waking Hour is Vienna's first "official" album, and it is fabulous. Style-wise, her music (in her own words) is "somewhere between folk and pop, with a bit of classical and jazz" mixed in. Her influences include Simon & Garfunkle, James Taylor, Mozart and Beethoven, 60s Mandarin pop, Elton John, Billy Joel, Tori Amos, and others.
Vienna's albums would not be classified as Christian music—I listen to them mostly for their musical beauty and variety, and there she shines! There is nothing I find offensive in her lyrics, but her worldview is questionable. To learn more about her and to read song lyrics in advance, visit Vienna Teng's website. —Eli
Track Titles:
Samples in MP3 Format
- The Tower (3:49)
- Momentum (5:22)
- Gravity (3:38)
- Daughter (3:12)
- Between (3:30)
- Say Uncle (5:26)
- Drought (4:03)
- Enough to Go By (4:17)
- Unwritten Letter #1 (3:34)
- Eric's Song (5:06)
- Soon Love Soon (4:37)
- Lullabye for a Stormy Night (3:49)
- Decade and One (4:58)
Live performances of some of these tracks:
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