Ancora (Italian for “again” or “encore”) is Il Divo’s third release, if one counts their 2005 Christmas album in addition to the self-titled debut released in April 2005. Three discs in less than a year seems rather ambitious, but is anything less expected from ringleader Simon Cowell of American Idol fame? He searched for, combined and signed the dynamic voices of Il Divo in 2003 after an exhaustive two-year international talent search. The debut disc currently sits at platinum level sales, and Ancora seems to be following suit with more than 2 million copies sold so far.Released in January 2006, their latest effort exemplifies the masterful blending of each member’s voice. These boys are without a doubt brimming with talent, although the producers seem to be reaching into left field with covers such as Mariah Carey’s “Hero,” a song Dion herself has already covered, “All By Myself,” and a track already recorded by Josh Groban, “You Raise Me Up.” The obvious reason for these selections is to give prospective audiences something familiar that they can relate to. Why not give the talent some more credit and allow them material that's a bit meatier to sink their teeth into?Ancora is the perfect soundtrack for a candlelit evening, but listeners may have a difficult time singing along unless they are fluent in Italian, Spanish and French, as only a few verses of “I Believe in You” are in English. Comprised of members David Miller, Sebastien Izambard, Urs Buhler and Carlos Marin, their various backgrounds lend the group more than enough credibility to lift them out of pure-cheese territory. Plus, four chunks of eye candy as sweet as this make the case liner photos alone worth the price of the disc.
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