Originally released in 1996 on Peter Gabriel's Real World imprint, 'ABoneCroneDrone' is the third and final part of Shiela Chandra's trilogy of vocal-led albums, and blends Indian raga techniques with English folk melodies.

Chandra originally emerged as an actress in Grange Hill, but soon drifted into music, fronting the band Monsoon before embracing a wildly creative solo career. 'ABoneCroneDrone' followed 1992's 'Weaving My Ancestors' Voices' and 'The Zen Kiss' in 1994, each album made almost exclusively from Chandra's voice. This record might be the best of the bunch, layering her wordless vocalizations into heady drones and light-hearted cries. The root of the music is Indian, specifically the sustained tones that underpin each composition, but the toplines are more identifiable as archaic English folk music - the combination of the two is still beguiling, and makes for a record that's like Enya on a South Asian vacation. When instruments do appear, they're there to back up Chandra's pristine performance. A harmonium appears on the fourth segment, allowing Chandra to lean into the raga style a little more. But she's at her best when she works almost unaccompanied, singing into the stars over delirious vocal drones that have rarely been bettered. It's hardly surprising that she contributed to the 'Lord of the Rings' soundtrack.