An RIP Holiday

First, I heard that Vic Chestnutt died over the Holidays. Then I heard that Lhasa died on New Years Day. What a sad holiday for music buffs. Lhasa’s full name was Lhasa de Sela and she grew up with some amazing parents. Lhasa spent her early childhood traveling around the US and Mexico in a converter school bus, with her parents and her brothers and sisters. How cool would that be? They spent many evenings singing around the campfire singing. She totally embraced her Mexican heritage and her first couple cds have a definite Mexican influence. But they’re much more than Latin—they have a New-Age/World Music edge to them. While they’re hard to classify, they’re also very listenable. One thing you’ve got to remember, I’m a huge Bjork fan. So you might like Lhasa if you share my taste in music. Her last cd is in English, which in my opinion, somewhat detracts from her charm. However, Lhasa died soon after she released the cd after a long battle with cancer, so in my opinion this is in her way of saying, “Goodbye.” Goodbye, to a wonderful spirit.

P.S. I heard that it snowed in Montreal for 40 straight hours after Lhasa passed away. I think she would have liked that.