ClassicsToday.com, February 2008
By now The King's Singers certainly can record almost anything they want, and this program, focusing on repertoire from the "Golden Age" of Spanish, Portuguese, and Mexican vocal music, grew organically from the group's church concerts. The result is a collection of rarely-heard primarily polyphonic works from the 16th and early 17th centuries, most notably several settings of the text Versa est in luctum (from the Book of Job) and two remarkable and substantial works by Alonso Lobo--Lamentations and Libera me--both notable for their rich textures and vibrant, often surprising harmonies that these six singers exploit to the fullest. The opening work, Crux fidelis, from King John IV of Portugal (1604-56), is an exquisitely crafted hymn that captivates with its gorgeous harmonies interspersed with verses of plainchant. Here all aspects of the singers' impeccable diction, phrasing, blend, balance, and expressive nuance are on display, absolutely clear and with pleasing, natural presence (engineer Mike Hatch, a veteran of so many first rate vocal recordings, also must receive at least some of the credit for this!)

In other hands, a program focusing on sacred music with sombre themes--lamentations, mourning, sorrow, fasting and tears, deliverance from everlasting death--might be doomed before it began; but The King's Singers as usual bring a freshness and vitality to their vocalism and a warm, welcoming quality to their sound that projects a certain "personality" that not only makes listening easy, but brings substantial rewards as well. No one who enjoys this repertoire or The King's Singers needs further encouragement; and it's always a pleasure to be reminded of or introduced so favorably to composers such as Alonso Lobo. Highly recommended!
David Vernier

The Times, 7th March 2008
No coffee or whisky blend matches the suavity of the unaccompanied King's Singers. Their intonation is excellent in this sumptuous collection of Spanish, Portuguese and Mexican church Music. The opening processional raises the risks of British politeness, but the voices gather colour and character, and Alonso Lobo's Lamentations offers abundant rewards. The music is centred on death; but where there is beauty there is life.
Geoff Brown

BBC Music Magazine, April 2008
The Golden Age of Iberian arts and culture effectively began with the reclamation of Granada from the Moors in 1492 and fizzled out sometime late in the 17th century. In recent years many early music groups have been re-discovering the rich storehouse of Renaissance and Baroque music composed in the Hispanic colonies of South and Central America, and here The King's Singers draw on music from Mexico as well as Spain and Portugal.

The recital focuses on music of lamentation, both for death and for humankind's wilful separation from God. Simple and subtly-gleaming like the lamp over a church tabernacle, Crux Fidelis, composed by King John IV of Portugal, opens the programme perfectly. If it's a cliché to draw parallels between the music and the dark, rich interiors of the time, it's nonetheless a useful one. In these performances the colours pulse with the glow of a fire controlled, tended and kept ready rather than with the bright radiance of the heavens. The King's Singers perform with their customary clarity of line, rhythmic grace and attention to texture.
Barry Witherden