28.01.05
David Sylvian is acclaimed for his work in the world of the singer and songwriter, a world that, despite occasional sonic adventurersí visits, still exists far apart from that of contemporary remixology. Blemish, Sylvianís first release for his new label Samadhi Sound took a brave leap into the unknown collaborating with contemporary improv guitarist Derek Bailey and electronic musician Christian Fennesz, producing a series of powerful new songs that emerge from a swirling formlessness.
On The Good Son vs. The Only Daughter Sylvian takes these recordings, and, in collaboration with a group of remixers including Ryoji Ikeda, Akira Rabelais, Burnt Friedman and Readymade FC, offers a set of radical re-workings of the originals, transforming them into yet unheard of delights.
The sheer minimalism of Blemish offers a vast amount of space for collaborators to work with and transform these songs, and in a number of cases on this disc, actually producing somewhat more familiar song-like structures. Sweet Billy Pilgrimís lovely rebuilding of "The Heart Knows Better" brings out a fiercely pop quality to the song, as does Burnt Friedmanís reworking of "Late Night Shopping". Yoshihiro Hannoís work on "The Good Son", with its Rhodes keyboard sounds, hearkens back to the jazzier textures on Sylvianís late-1990s classic, Dead Bees on a Cake, but interrupts them in marvellously abstract ways.
On hearing the re-workings of his songs Sylvian says "I enjoy hearing a distillation of an aspect or aspects of the emotional content (of a composition) explored in a new context. Itís not unlike the re-staging of a play."
This album will be available for pre-orders from the 31st January 2005 from Samadhisound.com, and on general release fhereafter. Click on Samadhisound in the menu below to be taken to the site. We will be adding an mp3 jukebox of the tracks shortly, and will let you know when it is online.
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Website design and build: Rebels In Control, after cover art by Chris Bigg. Art direction: David Sylvian. Banner images from the Hypergraphia book.