David Sylvian-Brilliant Trees

NTI, you expressed something I had been trying to figure out - why I absolutely adore Hassell's work with Sylvian but struggle with his solo work outside of his collaboration with Eno (and also why I love the first Sylvian/Czukay album much, much more than P&P).

I think Hassell's collaboration / guest work is similarly enhanced by his partners focus on melody (e.g. Talking Heads).

Yeah, it's something I've thought a lot about over the years. My CD of Brilliant Trees has Words With the Shaman stapled onto the end of it -- I like it much better there than with the Alchemy material which is a bit more clinical. As a post-script to Brilliant Trees you get a very steady, but digestible dose of Hassell. I think it comes down to Sylvian, while a bit of an oddball, having some very romantic tendencies that I think he teases out of his collaborators in this era. Flux & Mutability is nowhere near as abstract as Plight & Premonition, but one side is chock full of Czukay's wonderfully emotive varispeeded guitar soloing.

There are times, BTW, where I feel like I could listen to Czukay do Dictaphone stuff for days. I suspect Sylvian was just as big a fan of "Boat Woman Song" as I am.

Good album.

i would go as far as to say 'great album'

definitely one that gets better with age.

bought 'blemish' today on the back of knowing fennesz was involved. lovely stuff. his voice is surrendering.

is that the right word? arresting? ya know.