Songs about the exuberant nature of love and life artfully combine with meditative tunes about the world's rich mysteries to create an evocative blend of Eliza's most poetic and accessible music to date. Beautiful World has an optimistic tone that is present even in the most political songs. "This may be my most joyful recording yet," says Eliza. "Maybe it is because dark times can illuminate all that is good and decent and worth living for."

The seeds for this CD sprang from a monthly gathering Eliza hosted in 2007 with University of Texas professor/activist Robert Jensen and Presbyterian minister Jim Rigby called "Last Sunday." Held at various venues around Austin, these community forums covered a broad range of topics, including politics, art, spirituality and the environment. "We wanted to provide a place to discuss, grieve and mull over our future without having a need for an immediate solution other than the comfort of each other's presence," Eliza says. "The first song I wrote was `Great Correction,' which I penned as a way to console myself as I grieve the devastation of the human and natural world." This anthemic song spurred a whole cycle of tunes about perseverance and hope for a more beautiful world.

Mixing Americana, rock, jazz and folk styles, Beautiful World has a decidedly different feel from her last few releases, and certainly can be called Eliza Gilkyson's most beautiful album to date.

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