Walk On Glass In The Twilight Belt

Lucrecia Dalt is an example of a 'new' artist that I discovered through my curiosity in another, 'established' artist.

Earlier this year, my inbox bursting with the barrage of Bandcamp mailshots, urging me to buy the latest music releases, my attention was caught by Lucrecia's EP, cosa rara, featuring "a rare appearance by cult music legend" David Sylvian.

I enjoyed the EP so much that I featured two of the three versions in a couple of Dubhed selections in May, one focusing on David Sylvian, the other a round up of 2025 highlights.

As is frequently the case with my discoveries, 'new' is subjective. Colombian born María Lucrecia Pérez López has been releasing music since 2005, initially as Lucrecia for two albums and an EP, then as Lucrecia Dalt from 2010, with several albums, soundtracks, EPs and collaborations under her belt in the last decade and a half.

A Danger To Ourselves is added to the discography, coming out in full on Friday (5th). Thirteen songs, opening with cosa rara, and featuring the other three singles/videos to date, no death no danger, caes and divina. There's a bonus dub version of caes on the digital version.

To these ears, finding a sweet spot somehwere between Bebel Gilberto, Laurie Anderson and David Sylvian's own work, I can appreciate why the latter was drawn to work with Lucrecia, not only providing spoken word vocals and "feedback guitar" on cosa rara, but also co-producing and mixing the entire album.

One for the curious and another addition to my Bandcamp Friday shopping bag.

 

 

 

A Danger To Ourselves

Ten songs featuring David Sylvian, spanning his first solo single in 1984, an unexpected collaboration earlier this year and eight more diversions over the past four decades.

This is a sequel of sorts to Saturday's post, which focused on the Top 10 Jaoan songs challenge, posted by Top10Nathan on Bluesky. 

Whilst I enjoyed but didn't participate in it, I couldn't resist the inevitable follow up challenge, to post the Top 10 David Sylvian songs.

It was a fairly open brief, spanning not just David's solo albums (of which there are plenty) but also his collaborative efforts, including his 1993 partnership with Robert Fripp, the Nine Horses collective, and many, many guests appearances with other artists. 

I didn't have a defined sequence of ten songs to start, rather a short list of about 15-20, which I was deciding on instinct for the first five days, by which time the final five and order had been settled on.

These are not my Top 10 David Sylvian songs: there are far too many for that; I could have pretty much posted the whole of Brilliant Trees for example, and 'padded out' with a few more songs. 

I also imposed a couple of rules: vocal songs only, no instrumental pieces, and only one pick from each release; not that it made the shortlisting process any easier.

I knew from the start that the opening song would be Cosa Rora by Lucrecia Dalt, which came out on 28th February 2025. It's a great song as it is, but the completely unexpected spoken word passage by David at the end seals the deal. Check out the EP on Bandcamp, if you haven't already.

I also knew that the selection would end with Waterfront, from 1987's Secrets Of The Beehive, another album that I could have posted in its entirety for the majority of my 'Top 10'. 

My one song rule meant that I had to forego other brilliant songs such as Orpheus and Let The Happiness In, though others picked up on these and more on Bluesky.

It had to be Waterfront, though. The piano and strings arrangement by Ryuichi Sakamoto is sublime, and David's voice is so rich and deep that it gets me every single time. I've been moved to tears on occasion when the song has caught me in a moment.

To me, Red Guitar and Darshan represent the populist end of the Sylvian spectrum. The former was such a striking solo single in 1984, and a stark change of direction from where Japan had been heading. In sequencing Red Guitar as the immediate follow up to a new song, I also appreciate how timeless David's music is. Hearing the opening two songs for the first time, I think you would be hard pressed to guess that forty one years separated them.

Darshan appears on the David Sylvian and Robert Fripp album, The First Day. The original studio version is over seventeen minutes long. I instead went for a remix by The Grid, which clocks in at a 'mere' sixteen minutes and eight seconds. 

After an ambient introduction for three minutes, the beats kick in and David's voice and Robert's guitar lock into the groove, to great effect. I love Dave Ball and Richard Norris' partnership, but it's one of my favourites of their many remixes. 

I don't know if this was a label prompt (both were with Virgin at the time, alongside The Future Sound Of London, who also provide an epic reconstruction) but I'm siure that it would have needed David and Robert's buy in. Either way,  I'm glad that the Darshan EP came to be.

The natural follow on is 1989 one-off Pop Song, which of course is anything but...and yet. I loved it then as I do now, but Pop Song's quirky time signature and sudden pauses and, despite it's non-conformist structure and against all odds, for being an ear worm. 

I've paired a couple more collaborations, separated by a decade. David continued to work with his former Japan bandmates, including early contributions to Mick Karn's solo career. Buoy was the single from 1986 album Dreams Of Reason Produce Monsters, and it's great, though for this selection, I've gone for When Love Walks In which I think could also have been a contender for a promotional release.

David first collaborated with Russell Mills on 1991's Ember Glance (The Permanence Of Memory), comprising a near 33-minute piece The Beekeeper's Apprentice, and Epiphany, just shy of two and a half minutes. 

David returned half a decade later to guest on Russell's first album under his alter ego Undark. Notorious for returning to, refining and reworking his music, the Undark song How Safe Is Deep? is no exception, appearing a few years later on the Godman EP in two variations, re-titled Shadowland.

The rest of the selection comprises songs from the 1990s and 2000s, perhaps a period that many are less familiar with, though none the less rewarding in my experience. Dead Bees On A Cake (1999) and Blemish (2003) particularly resonate with me and whilst I've only relatively recently come to Nine Horses, it's another rich and deep addition to the Sylvian oeuvre. The song pick here features Stina Nordenstam, who proves a perfect vocal foil for David.

For something that began in a very loosely planned way, I'm really happy with the end result. Far from comprehensive, yet I think it captures the essence of why David Sylvian's body of work is so challenging and so rewarding. As ever, you'll be the judge of that!

1) Cosa Rara (Single Version): Lucrecia Dalt ft. David Sylvian (2025)

2) Red Guitar (Album Version): David Sylvian (1984)

3) Darkest Dreaming: David Sylvian (1999)

4) When Love Walks In: Mick Karn ft. David Sylvian (1986)

5) How Safe Is Deep?: Undark ft. David Sylvian (1996)

6) Darshan (The Road To Graceland) (Translucent Remix By The Grid aka Dave Ball & Richard Norris): David Sylvian & Robert Fripp (1993)

7) Pop Song: David Sylvian (1989)

8) Wonderful World (Album Version): Nine Horses ft. Stina Nordenstam (2005)

9) Late Night Shopping (Album Version): David Sylvian (2003)

10) Waterfront: David Sylvian (1987)

1984: Red Guitar EP / Brilliant Trees: 2

1986: Dreams Of Reason Produce Monsters: 4

1987: Secrets Of The Beehive: 10

1989: Pop Song EP: 7

1993: Darshan EP: 6

1996: Undark 3396: 5

1999: Dead Bees On A Cake: 3

2003: Blemish: 9

2005: Snow Borne Sorrow: 8

2025: Cosa Rara EP: 1

A Danger To Ourselves (58:48) (KF) (Mega)

If you like this, why not try Nostalgia Burns, my previous David Sylvian selection from February 2023? I didn't look at it prior to picking my 10 songs for Nathan's Bluesky challenge but incredibly I've managed to avoid duplicating any of the above tracklist. Even more incredibly, I managed to fit 11 songs into under 47 minutes!

Note: A few hours after posting this, I received an email from Lucrecia Dalt's mailing list, advertising her upcoming new album. It's title? "A Danger To Ourselves"...!

Still Life

Forty seven minutes of Japan, spanning all five studio albums from 1978 to 1981.

This selection started off earlier this month, when Top10Nathan had the idea of posing a Top 10 Japan songs on Bluesky.

I didn't actually take part in the end, as I couldn't even begin to think where to start. My older brother was obsessed with Japan in the early 80s and therefore I was immersed in their music, all the albums, the Assemblage double play cassette, the live album Oil On Canvas and the final compilation Exorcising Ghosts.

I really enjoyed seeing what others were picking each day, whether their lists were ranked or unranked, random or carefully considered and curated. By this point, I felt that I'd bottled it and started thinking about it some more. 

Technically, I'd already been there. Around 1989, I recorded a C90 side of Japan music called Polaroid, though this was mostly drawn from my 12" vinyl singles and only ran to 9 songs. The flip side was resequenced songs from the Associates' album Sulk.

So, I started to imagine this less as a Top 10 Japan selection, but more of an imaginary Side 2 to the Polaroid cassette from 1989. Still Life In Mobile Homes was an early pick, which provided a complimentary title for this compilation.

Assemblage (on vinyl) was the first Japan album that I bought for myself, and I have never had a problem reconciling the band and sound of the first two albums, with the transitory period of Quiet Life, and the dramatically different aural palette for the final two albums. 

Which is lucky, given that here I have followed up Ghosts with Adolescent Sex...!

As with the first 'side', there are a couple of cover versions. Whereas the previous two reimagined songs by The Velvet Underground and Smokey Robinson & The Miracles, here the focus is on Marvin Gaye and Barbra Streisand. 

Sadly, the world has lost Mick Karn (2011) and spiritual/honorary member Ryuichi Sakamoto (2023), but David Sylvian, Steve Jansen, Richard Barbieri and Rob Dean have all continued to make music in recent years.

What a legacy to be found in Japan, though.

1) The Art Of Parties (Extended Version By Japan & John Punter) (1981)

2) Ain't That Peculiar (Cover of Marvin Gaye) (1980)

3) Ghosts (Album Version By Japan & Steve Nye) (1981)

4) Adolescent Sex (Single Version By Ray Singer) (1978)

5) Don't Rain On My Parade (Cover of Barbra Streisand) (1978)

6) Despair (1979)

7) Still Life In Mobile Homes (1981)

8) Stateline (1978)

9) Sometimes I Feel So Low (1978)

10) Taking Islands In Africa (Remix By Steve Nye) (1981)

1978: Adolescent Sex: 5

1978: Don't Rain On My Parade EP: 8

1978: Obscure Alternatives: 9

1978: The Unconventional/Adolescent Sex EP: 4

1979: Quiet Life: 6

1980: Gentlemen Take Polaroids: 2

1981: The Art Of Parties EP: 1

1981: Tin Drum: 3, 7

1981: Visions Of China EP: 10

Still Life (47:37) (KF) (Mega)

You can find the 1989 C90 compilation Polaroid right here.

If you're left wanting more Japan-inspired music, here's more, much more!

Big In Japan: various (March 2022)

KarnAge: Mick Karn (January 2023)

Pioneer: Ryuichi Sakamoto (April 2023)

Doused In Dopamine

Another round up of 2025 highlights so far, this time focusing on the electronic end of the musical spectrum.

I posted my first review in March and only one of the ten artists featured then reappears in today's selection. No surprise to find that it's 10:40 aka Jesse Fahnestock, with the flip side of his excellent Powder Wax Vol. 2 EP. 

A few surprises: it was a delight to discover that Montjuïc are James Hackett and Ian Carmichael, old buddies from The Orchids, the latter also delivering era-defining music with One Dove. 

Not only that, but the remix is by Cold War Cowboys, who happen to be Martin Watkins, long-time Marc Almond collaborator, and Phil Bloomberg, bass player with The Polecats.

But I've saved the best 'til last, with a beautiful dub-infused remix by Matias Aguayo of Lucrecia Dalt's Cosa Rara, with a spoken word vocal from none other than David Sylvian, who also co-wrote, played guitar and produced the song. A real "how did she do that?!" moment.

1) Dagger (Radio Edit By Charlotte Caluwaerts & Reinhard Vanbergen): Charlotte & Reinhard (Dagger EP)

2) Falling (What Time Is Love?) (Tronik Youth Remix By Neil Parnell): Blavatsky & Tolley ft. Gene Serene (Falling (What Time Is Love?) EP)

3) Field Of Dreams (Hardway Bros Cosmic Interpolation Mix By Sean Johnston): Hugo Nicolson (Field Of Dreams EP)

4) The Third Wave: Matt Gunn (Nowhere EP)

5) We're All Gonna Hurt (Extended Vocal): Le Carousel ft. Jolene O’Hara & Jess Brien (We're All Gonna Hurt EP)

6) Let's Change (Cold War Cowboys Remix By Martin Watkins & Phil Bloomberg): Montjuïc (Let's Change EP)

7) Miracle Me: 10:40 (Powder Wax Vol. 2 EP)

8) Popolina 90: Follytechnic Music Library vs. Pop Will Eat Itself (FML25 Baggy Ravers 3)

9) Like Fire (A Space Age Freak Out Remix By John Paynter & Ben Lewis): Airsine (Like Fire EP)

10) Cosa Rara (Matias Aguayo's Dopamine Dub): Lucrecia Dalt ft. David Sylvian (Cosa Rara EP)

Doused In Dopamine (1:00:09) (GD) (M)

You can find my previous 2025 selection, It's A Glamorous World, right here.

Monoliths

Four sonic slabs to stir the senses on a Sunday. Rescued from the abandoned shopping trolley of an overstuffed music collection, these are not for the faint hearted - the pieces run between 15 and 23 minutes long - but will hopefully have an energising not enervating effect.

1) When We Return You Won't Recognise Us (Manafon Variation): David Sylvian (2011)

2) III: Taj Mahal Travellers (1974)

3) The Monolith: The Beta Band (1998)

4) Alpha Phase (Retranslated By Global Communication aka Tom Middleton & Mark Pritchard): Chapterhouse (1993)

1975: August 1974: 2

1993: Blood Music: Pentamerous Metamorphosis (Retranslated By Global Communication): 4

1998: The Patty Patty Sound EP / The Three E.P.'s: 3

2011: Died In The Wool: Manafon Variations: 1

Monoliths (1:13:25) (KF) (Mega)

Pioneer

Celebrating Ryuichi Sakamoto 坂本龍, 17th January 1952 to 28th March 2023.

 

I was born in 1970 so it's little surprise that my entry point to Sakamoto's music wasn't Yellow Magic Orchestra but Japan, although I wasn't particularly aware of it at the time, and the follow up singles Bamboo Houses/Bamboo Music and Forbidden Colours with David Sylvian.

 

My brother had a giant poster of Japan on his bedroom wall, featuring honorary band member Masami Tsuchiya and I appreciated the beautiful synchronicity of a band called Japan having a Japanese musician in their line up. It was probably from reading my brother's copies of Smash Hits (delivered every week by the paper boy) that I read that Ryuichi Sakamoto had performed with Japan on their Sons Of Pioneers tour in 1982.

 

That seemed the natural starting point for this selection, which I've wrestled with since news on Sunday of Sakamoto's inevitable and heartbreaking passing, following a long battle with cancer. One of my favourite Japan songs, Taking Islands In Africa, from 1980's Gentlemen Take Polaroids, is credited to Sakamoto and David Sylvian and features Ryuichi on keyboards. In researching this post, I came across a fascinating post by David J Nibloe on his Vista blog which reveals some of the deeper story behind the Sakamoto's meeting with Japan and the recording of the song.

I've skipped the aforementioned Sakamoto/Sylvian collaborations as they both appeared on my recent David Sylvian selection (which I've made available again via a link below), but the two worked together many many times over the subsequent years and decades. I've picked Midnight Sun, arguably a lesser known, bluesy track from Sylvian's 1999 album Dead Bees On A Cake, featuring Ryuichi Sakamoto and Marc Ribot. 

 

The main, instrumental theme from Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence, in it's vocal version better known as Forbidden Colours, also makes an appearance alongside The Last Emperor. I was incredibly moved by both films when I first watched them, not just for the striking visual narrative but also Ryuichi Sakamoto's soundtrack which is a character and voice in it's own right. I've barely dipped into his film composition work outside of these two but it's incredible to think that Sakamoto was creating something on the scale and power of The Last Emperor in 1987 whilst also releasing the poppier Risky with Iggy Pop. 

 

Ryuichi Sakamoto's capacity to ignore boundaries, to blend genres and create new ones, has been a constant source of fascination even if I've only intermittently followed his career. I draw parallels with John Cale, who to me has similarly pursued a desire to explore new paths, different ways of (musical) expression and artists to collaborate with.

So this selection ended up not being a straightforward Ryuichi Sakamoto selection at all, including not just his work with Yellow Magic Orchestra and as a solo artist but also his remixes, co-writes and appearances on other people's songs. This is how I discovered his wider body of work and it felt appropriate to try to capture that feeling across a mere 80 minutes. The original 'shortlist' was over two and a half hours, so some tough choices along the way.

 

Some of these songs will be familiar, though not necessarily in the versions presented here, there are frequent changes from upbeat to downtempo, quiet to loud, vocal to instrumental, pop to something harder to define.   

 

Having started with the band that first introduced me to Ryuichi Sakamoto, it seemed somehow fitting to close with a remix that he produced for his daughter Miu. Hard to believe that this alone is now 25 years old. Harder still to believe that Sakamoto-san has gone, but his vast musical legacy leaves much to discover and re-discover in the years to come.

 

Rest well, 坂本龍

 

1) Taking Islands In Africa (Album Version By John Punter): Japan (1980)

2) Fatalism (Ryuichi Sakamoto & Yukihiro Takahashi Remix): Massive Attack ft. Guy Garvey & Martina Topley-Bird (2010)

3) Rocket Factory: Sheena & The Rokkets ft. Yellow Magic Orchestra (1979)

4) Firecracker (Special DJ Copy): Yellow Magic Orchestra (1978)

5) Risky (Extended Mix By Julian Mendelsohn): Ryuichi Sakamoto ft. Iggy Pop (1987)

6) eena ferroix (Ryuichi Sakamoto Mix): CoH (2014)

7) The Last Emperor - Theme Variation 1: Ryuichi Sakamoto (1987)

8) Midnight Sun: David Sylvian ft. Ryuichi Sakamoto & Marc Ribot (1999)

9) Love & Hate (Message Mix - Single Edit): Ryuichi Sakamoto ft. Holly Johnson (1994)

10) Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence: Ryuichi Sakamoto (1983)

11) Behind The Mask (Remixed By Mark Gamble): YMO Versus The Human League (1993)

12) 0318: Fennesz + Sakamoto (2011)

13) Completion: Willits & Sakamoto (2012)

14) Drip Dry Eyes (Album Version): Sandii ft. Yellow Magic Orchestra (1980)

15) Field Work (Long Tokyo Mix): Ryuichi Sakamoto ft. Thomas Dolby (1985)

16) solari (Jóhann Jóhannsson Rework): Ryuichi Sakamoto (2017)

17) Awakening (Endo Mix By Ryuichi Sakamoto): Miu Sakamoto (1998)

Pioneer (1:21:28) (KF) (Mega)

If, like me, this leaves you wanting to hear more Ryuichi Sakamoto then you may be happy to know that I've re-posted a few of my previous Dubhed selections where he makes an appearance. 

 

David Sylvian: Nostalgia Burns (February 2023)

Mick Karn: KarnAge (January 2023)

Various: Big In Japan (March 2022)

Nostalgia Burns

A selection of David Sylvian songs has been percolating since I posted about his first 'interview' (actually an audio diary), broadcast on Mary Anne Hobbs' 6 Music radio show last October.

Undaunted (or just plain foolish), I've matched the ambition of David Sylvian's career-spanning compilation A Victim Of Stars, released in 2012. Whereas that sought to encapsulate three decades in 31 songs, I've attempted the same with 11 songs and just over three quarters of an hour.

My other constraint was to avoid using any songs that appear on a David Sylvian C90 compilation that I recorded in the early 1990s, spanning 1984 to 1989 and most of the singles from that period. Inexplicably, The Ink In The Well didn't feature on that cassette and I used a different version of Taking The Veil, so they’re in. However, it does mean that this selection doesn't feature anything from Secrets Of The Beehive, possibly my favourite Sylvian solo album, jostling for pole position with Brilliant Trees. On the plus side, that battered old tape didn't include either of David Sylvian's hit singles with Ryuichi Sakamoto, so they make the cut here.

 

David Sylvian's music has arguably taken an increasingly esoteric path and I've only relatively recently started to dive back into his catalogue, having stopped regularly buying his albums with 1999's Dead Bees On A Cake. This selection falls slightly short of A Victim Of Stars' scope, 'only' covering 1982 to 2011. Rather than mirror that compilation’s straight chronological path, I've mixed things up, finding my own way through the songs in a direction which I think makes sense from start to end.

 

The selection didn't start with the intention that it would specifically be a Sunday post, but I think it works particularly well, listened to on a dark, cold weekend in winter.

 

1) The Ink In The Well (Remix) (1984)

2) The Greatest Living Englishman (Coda) (Manafon Variation) (2011)

3) Taking The Veil (7" Version) (1986)

4) Dobro #1 (1999)

5) Godman (Wagon Christ Mix By Luke Vibert) (1999)

6) Forbidden Colours (Theme From "Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence") (Vocal Version): David Sylvian & Ryuichi Sakamoto (1983)

7) Small Metal Gods (Album Version) (2009)

8) Blemish (Remixed By Burnt Friedman) (2005)

9) Five Lines (2010)

10) Bamboo Music (Full Length Version): David Sylvian & Ryuichi Sakamoto (1982)

11) A Fire In The Forest (Album Version) (2003)

 

1982: Bamboo Houses EP: 10

1983: Forbidden Colours EP / Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence OST: 6

1984: The Ink In The Well EP: 1

1986: Taking The Veil EP / Gone To Earth: 3

1999: Dead Bees On A Cake: 4

1999: Godman EP: 5 

2003: Blemish: 11

2005: The Good Son vs. The Only Daughter: The Blemish Remixes: 8

2009: Manafon: 7

2010: Sleepwalkers: 9

2011: Died In The Wool: Manafon Variations: 2

 

Nostalgia Burns (46:50) (KF) (Mega)

The Strangest Days I've Ever Seen

Today's selection is a small selection of artists, songs and albums that I've discovered or rediscovered during 2022, either by diving into my vinyl or CD collection, digital purchases from Bandcamp or via the many wonderful posts from fellow travellers in the blogosphere, listed in the sidebar if you're viewing the web version. A special thanks to Charity Chic Music for introducing me to Blaze Foley and reminding me of the brilliance of I Want To See The Bright Lights Tonight by Richard & Linda Thompson.

For the second year running, the rather wonderful 5CD New Age Steppers collection, Stepping Into A New Age 1980-2012, gets a look in. There have been some fabulous CD box set reissues in 2022. My favourites have included Satellite Life, collecting Billy Mackenzie's recordings between 1994 and 1996 on 3 CDs. The Times' run of albums from their first incarnation were represented with a ton of bonus tracks on the 6CD set My Picture Gallery: The Artpop! Recordings. It actually came out in 2021, but I didn't buy it until May this year. Ironically, neither artist features in today's selection.

Researching respective posts got me going back to several artists from my teens, notably The Jesus & Mary Chain, Ramones, Orbital and David Sylvian. David Holmes' new album with Unloved this year also prompted me to belatedly buy the soundtrack to Series 1 and 2 of Killing Eve, which includes a fair few 1960s and 1970s nuggets, including out there husband and wife duo Ramases and Selket (Kimberley and Dorothy to their neighbours).

 

There are a couple of artists from my birthplace, Bristol: Babyhead, who I rediscovered when reminiscing about the annual festival at Ashton Court and Emily Breeze, who I heard for the first time this year and have been a huge fan of ever since.

 

To bring things to a close, The Abyssinians with an unreleased 'extended mix' of a 1982 song, courtesy of the 27 Leggies music blog during the summer after yet another postponed gig. Fingers crossed it's sixth time lucky in 2023, Ernie.

 

Today's photo was taken in the Gloucestershire village of Wotton-under-Edge a couple of weeks ago. It's the tried-and-tested hairdresser/barber shop staple of using a bad pun for a business name, but this one made me smile. I've never visited, so please don't take this bit of free advertising as an endorsement. I've also not eaten at the Indian restaurant with the garish orange frontage a few doors down. Parking's a nightmare, though.

 

More 2022 highlights tomorrow.

 

1) Тютюнник (Tiutiunnyk) (John Peel Session): The Wedding Present (1987)

2) Clay Pigeons: Blaze Foley (1977)

3) Move Ya Loin: Roots Manuva ft. Lotek (2005)

4) Pulling Punches (Album Version): David Sylvian (1984)

5) Call In Sick Today (Album Version): Emily Breeze (2019)

6) Good For My Soul: The Jesus & Mary Chain (1992)

7) Drown: Karen O & Danger Mouse (2019)

8) Chime Crime (Remix): Orbital (1992)

9) Distraction (Radioactive Man Remix By Keith Tenniswood): C.A.R. (2020)

10) Good Voodoo (Gaudi Remix By Daniele Gaudi): Ganga Giri (2011)

11) The Bottle (12 Inch): The Tyrrel Corporation (1992)

12) My Whole World: New Age Steppers (1981)

13) Killing Time: Babyhead (2003)

14) I'm Not Jesus: Ramones (1987)

15) Screw You (Single Version): Ramases & Selket (1970)

16) Withered And Died: Richard & Linda Thompson (1974)

17) Praise Him / Praise Him Dub: The Abyssinians (1982)

 

The Strangest Days I've Ever Seen (1:14:48) (Box) (Mega)

Call In Sick Today: Emily Breeze

When I was young I thought I’d bring the world to its knees
Smoking skunk in the daytime, skim reading Socrates
Please....
Jesus said, I should get out of bed and I replied
Fly me first class to heaven in a neon pink cocktail dress
I don't get up for less

Because these are the strangest days I’ve ever seen
So give me C.B.T and sertraline
As I sashay through the decades on a vast indifferent sea

Lets get high in the cemetery,
Call in sick today
Waste a day with me,
I'm gonna start a cult
And you'll build a time machine
Let's go rob a bank
And go on a killing spree

Because these are the strangest days I’ve ever seen
So give me C.B.T and sertraline
Did you catch my million dollar movie?
It went straight to T.V
But I still believe, I still believe
That it's easy to bury reality
But hard to dispose of your dreams
So I still believe, I still believe
When I was young I thought I'd bring the world to its knees
Call in sick today baby waste a day with me
When I was young I thought I’d bring the world to its knees
And I still believe, I still believe
Call in sick today baby, waste a day with me
Cos I still believe, I still believe.

Fourteen Years Of Silence

I listen to very little radio these days, so it was a YouTube trawl that landed me David Sylvian's audio diary, extracted from Mary Anne Hobbs' Spirit Of Sylvian special on her BBC Radio 6 Music show, first broadcast on 27th October.  

 

The full show runs to just under an hour, with a playlist including influencers and the influenced such as Yellow Magic Orchestra, Holger Czukay, Roxy Music, Burial, Savages, Goldie and Pa Salieu.

 

Raised On Radio has posted David's self-authored piece on YouTube and it's a compelling listen, 26 minutes spanning everything from his departure from Virgin at the end of the 20th century, the birth and death of his own label Samadhi Sounds, his collaborations, photography, looking back (and not looking back), Japan's legacy and a refreshing view on when and why artists wish to sample his work.

 

None of that begins to do it justice, give it a listen:

 

What immediately struck me is David Sylvian's voice. I have all of David's solo albums on Virgin, but I realise that the last album proper that I bought was 2005's The Good Son vs. The Only Daughter, itself a remix of 2003 album Blemish. His singing voice in that time was becoming richer, deeper, but that was twenty years ago.

It had been even longer since I'd heard David's speaking voice. What I remember best is the London accent from early 80s interviews when in Japan:

 

And I found this great clip of an interview with Gary Crowley in 1993, promoting his collaboration with Robert Fripp, The First Day. The voice is more refined but still recognisably David Sylvian.

 

At the end of his piece for Mary Anne Hobbs,. David apologises for his Mid-Atlantic accent, shaped by living in America for nearly three decades and "inevitable, but it would annoy the [bleep] out of me if I had to listen to it."

Yes, it was a bit of a shock at first but once David starts speaking, I found it impossible to stop listening. I'm on my third listen at the time of writing this post and each visit reveals another fascinating layer of insight that I missed the first time around. An essential listen, whether you're a David Sylvian fan or just have an interest in the inner workings of an artist.

It was a short hop from there to another YouTube gem, offering up 40 minutes of raw, in-the-studio footage of the Berlin recording sessions for David's first solo album, Brilliant Trees. Again, a must-see.

 

David's last solo album proper was 2009's Manafon but as mentioned in the BBC 6 Music audio, he collaborated with Franz Wright and Christian Fennesz on There's A Light That Enters Houses With No Other House In Sight, released in 2014. You can view an extract - Wintersleep - or listen to the full 64-minute album.

 

On 28th October, Twinkle³, released a new album, Upon This Fleeting Dream. I haven't yet heard anything other than the closing track of Side 1, If I leave No Trace, which features a spoken word contribution from David Sylvian, but it's an intriguing three-and-a-half minutes.

In the opening section of David's Spirit Of Sylvian audio piece, he reflected on whether accepting Mary Anne Hobbs' invitation was the right thing to do as he hadn't spoken to the media in 14 years, even longer for radio or TV. He closes by saying that he's "not going to listen back to what I have spoken to you about because I know if I do, I'll delete it [laughs]... this is inevitable."

What was perhaps also inevitable is that less than half an hour in David Sylvian's company has reignited my love and admiration for his artistic integrity and vision but also his ability to not take himself too seriously. I'm now digging back into my existing Japan and David Sylvian but also inspired to look forward to catching up with the solo records and collaborations that I've missed in the last thirty years.

Diving For More Pearls

Side 2 of a CD-R compiled by Atom Boy @ Metropolis Studios, Shizuoka, Japan, for me and Mrs. K in November 2004.

 

The second half of a rather brilliant compilation that we received as a gift in the winter of 2004. Six months later, Mrs. K and I spent a mind-blowing and unforgettable month in Japan, solely focused on the largest island Honshu, taking in Tokyo, Nara, Osaka, Kyoto and Hirsohima, amongst many other places. As part of the trip, we spent a week with Atom Boy and Atom Girl, who lived in Shizuoka not far from Mount Fuji. It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience for many reasons, packed with happy memories.

Side 2 of Diving For Pearls if anything ups the ante. Pink Industry's exhortation to throw "Morrissey in the bin" has appeared on one of my previous mixtapes, which I'm surprised to find I haven't yet posted here. I love Pink Industry's album New Beginnings, which features What I Wouldn't Give, and various tracks frequently populated my cassette compilations in the mid- to late-1980s.

Seamlessly flowing into The Smiths, the first album of theirs I bought was the Hatful Of Hollow compilation on cassette, so the radio sessions of several songs have remained the definitive versions for me. The version of Back To The Old House recorded for John Peel's show is sublime and a clear example of Johnny Marr's musical brilliance, coupled perfectly with the Manchester Racist's lyrical skill.

In an another obvious-but-it-works pairing, This Mortal Coil with Elizabeth Fraser covering Tim Buckley is followed by another song they covered on debut album It'll End In Tears, namely Another Day by Roy Harper. I don't think I'd heard the latter until receiving this compilation. Elizabeth Fraser's version is indelibly etched in my memory but Roy Harper's is beautiful and disturbing in it's own right. 

As for the final two songs, I'd be hard pressed to think of a better way to close this collection than with The Clash and Joy Division, whether in it's current incarnation as a two-sided compilation or in it's original 20-song, 80-minute mix as Atom Boy intended.

One of my favourite selections, full stop.

 

1) What I Wouldn't Give (Album Version): Pink Industry (1985)

2) Back To The Old House (John Peel Session): The Smiths (1983)

3) Gather All The Hours: Heidi Berry (1989)

4) Happiness Is Easy (Album Version): Talk Talk (1986)

5) Song To The Siren (Cover of Tim Buckley): This Mortal Coil ft. Elizabeth Fraser (1984)

6) Another Day (Album Version): Roy Harper (1970)

7) Maria: David Sylvian (1987)

8) Listening Wind: Talking Heads (1980)

9) Straight To Hell (Album Version): The Clash (1982)

10) Atmosphere (Sordide Sentimental Single Version): Joy Division (1979)

 

Side Two (41:35)

Polaroid

In 2005, my wife and I spent a month in Japan, barely a whistle stop tour in the scheme of things but taking in Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto, Hiroshima, Nara, Mount Fuji and the beautiful Shiraito Falls. It was about halfway between getting married and becoming parents and was a thrilling, enlightening few weeks for us both.

A decade and a half prior to that, I'd spent a year working and travelling in Australia. I started in Perth and then went anti-clockwise around the continent, again in retrospect barely scratching the surface, but having a life changing experience and meeting some incredible people along the way. As I was travelling anti-clockwise, at the same time my future wife was travelling clockwise around Australia. I didn't meet her for another decade but we've often wondered and smiled at the what ifs and coincidences.

 

Music was, unsurprisingly, a staple of my travels and I didn't go anywhere without my Walkman and a bunch of cassettes. One of my C90s for my Oz tour had Associates' Sulk on side A and a homemade Japan compilation on side B. Looking at the selection, I think it's reasonable to assume that at the time I recorded this (circa 1989) my collection was limited to a vinyl copy of Assemblage and a few singles, including an Old Gold 12". One featured a version of Life In Tokyo that I'd previously only heard on my brother's cassette version of Assemblage, which had a whole side of bonus tracks. For this playlist, I've swapped the single edit of Gentleman Take Polaroids from the Cantonese Boy 2x 7" for the full length album version because... why not?!

 

1) All Tomorrow's Parties (12" Version By Steve Nye) (Cover of The Velvet Underground) (1983)

2) Quiet Life (Album Version By John Punter) (1979)

3) Gentlemen Take Polaroids (Album Version By John Punter) (1980)

4) European Son (12" Extended Mix By John Punter) (1981)

5) Life In Tokyo (Special Remix By Giorgio Moroder) (1979)

6) Suburban Berlin (1978)

7) Nightporter (Remixed By Steve Nye) (12") (1982)

8) Alien (Album Version By John Punter) (1979)

9) I Second That Emotion (Remix By Steve Nye) (Cover of Smokey Robinson & The Miracles) (1980)

1978: Obscure Alternatives: 6

1979: Quiet Life: 2, 8

1980: Gentlemen Take Polaroids: 3

1981: Life In Tokyo EP: 4

1982: Assemblage (Special Edition · Double Play Cassette): 5

1982: I Second That Emotion EP: 9

1982: Nightporter EP: 7

1983: All Tomorrow's Parties EP: 1

Polaroid (49:22) (KF) (Mega)