REVIEWS . . .

John Tucker Freelance Music Writer
http://www.johntuckeronline.com/

"...the songs themselves – all originals aside from a cover of The Magnetic Fields’ ‘The Book Of Love’ – have almost an unbearable lightness of being, a delicacy and passion from which the performers draw both inspiration and delight.  This beguiling fragility is counterbalanced by the depth of emotion conveyed by the two performers, sympathetically supported at times by a small string section. The material is rich in quality and diversity, with the minimalism in backing and overlaid instrumentation often adding to rather than subtracting from their opulence. At times in fact the very sparseness of the arrangements allows Helder’s exquisite and enticing voice to breathe life into the songs and send them soaring..."

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Tim Hall Freelance Music Writer & Blogger
www.kalyr.com/weblog

"...It's an extremely varied record; rich and layered in places, sparse and minimalist in others, experimental in some ways yet anchored in melodies that get stuck in your head after just a few listens. This is a work that's pointless even to try and pigeonhole, It's not really a rock album as such, certainly not prog-rock in the traditional sense, yet with its elements of classical music and touches of electronica it's progressive in the original meaning of the word. The quality of the songwriting combined with Anne-Marie's ever amazing voice should appeal strongly to Panic Room's existing fans, but I can also see this record having a far wider crossover appeal..."

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MUSICAL DISCOVERIES (Russ Elliott)
www.musicaldiscoveries.com

"...While the album works well as a whole, several tracks stand out over the others. "Scream At The Sky" has an especially great dynamic range that develops through the song's length. While the power of "Fight Or Flight" is created with light percussion, the rich string arrangements and Anne-Marie's soaring vocal parts contribute an airborne component to the mix. The sparseness of the brief track "Cloud" provides a unique insight to Anne-Marie's piano prowess and a close-up of Anne-Marie's British voice. It perfectly serves up the album's final dramatically delivered "Gasp," that will certainly leave listeners longing for more...."
(*****)

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Dave Cooper

"Sleeping Pills and Lullabies" doesn't sound like anything so much as itself, occupying a place outside of genre. This is not rock; this is not prog; this is not pop, or folk... it is all of these things, often at the same time. It's the sound of two musicians throwing aside expectations and finding the space to create whatever feels right, taking their music to places they didn't realise existed. Richly emotive, confessional, funny, touching, sad,  beautiful, introspective, dark and joyfully optimistic, "Sleeping Pills and  Lullabies" is a triumph..."

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Dave Ormston

“This  is not a Panic Room record"... I chanted this mantra as I prepared to play the songs of Luna Rossa's debut album ‘SLEEPING PILLS & LULLABIES'. With Jon and Anne-Marie involved, and them consisting the heart of Panic Room, it was perhaps natural to ready my ears for 'Room-style cinematic rock, but I wanted to give this new project a listen with my preconceptions switched off.  It was soon clear that ‘SLEEPING PILLS &  LULLABIES’  is an even more intimate experience than Panic Room..."

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