Jan Bang "Reading The Air"

[missouriman]

The new release by Norwegian artist Jan Bang is very Sylvian influenced to the point it sounds like him on a few tracks - which is no bad thing. Bang has created a set of tracks that sound wonderful. The title track itself is worth your time. Reading the air is a Japanese term for understanding how somebody feels on meeting them or something like that.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FL2PeW9l3E8

[Quiet Visitor]

Wow, indeed very much in the style of Sylvian, although I also hear Exit North

You can listen to the whole album on Bandcamp: https://janbang.bandcamp.com/album/reading-the-air

As you can read it is Bang's first vocal solo-album since 1998.

Stellar line-up:

Jan Bang voice: keyboards and electronics
Anneli Drecker (Bel Canto, Röyksopp, a-ha), ECM artist Simin Tander and young talent Benedikte Kløw Askedalen: voices
Arve Henriksen: trumpet
Canberk Ulaş: duduk
Adam Rudolph: percussion
Eivind Aarset: guitar
Audun Erlien: bass
Erik Honoré: synthesizers and co-production
Anders Engen: drums

Thanks for sharing!

[kitaj]

Hi, fellow Sylvian nonproductivity mourners

The resemblance in Bang's voice is very striking, yes, but I detect a whole lot of Scott Walker in it as well.

Anyway, you'll be glad to know this one's not really his first vocal album since 1998: solo-billed, yes, but recently he had put out as many as two further vocal albums with his supergroup of sorts, Dark Star Safari (incl. both Honoré and Aarset), both to be found on Bandcamp and streaming services as well:

the self-titled debut (2019): https://arjunamusic-records.bandcamp.co ... tar-safari
the second album (2021): https://arjunamusic-records.bandcamp.co ... gh-lightly

[Quiet Visitor]

Anyway, you'll be glad to know this one's not really his first vocal album since 1998: solo-billed, yes, but recently he had put out as many as two further vocal albums with his supergroup of sorts, Dark Star Safari (incl. both Honoré and Aarset), both to be found on Bandcamp and streaming services as well.

Welcome back Kitaj and thanks for the correction. I've edited my post

[Quiet Visitor]

Finally got the CD (a lot of delay because of troubles at the Dutch distribution-centre Bertus). Strange the cover mentions P 2022.

[silentwings]

Finally got the CD...Strange the cover mentions P 2022.

The album was originally scheduled for release in 2022 but for some reason there was a delay. I was at Punkt in September 2022 when some of the material was performed.

This from the publicity for the concert that evening:

The concert on Friday 2 September will feature music from the first Punkt Editions release, Dai Fujikura and Jan Bang’s album ‘The Bow Maker’, plus the premiere of more exciting material to be released on the label later this year. This includes Jan Bang’s ‘Reading the Air’, a song based album co-produced, mixed and with lyrics by Erik Honoré, featuring vocal contributions by Anneli Drecker, Simin Tander and Benedikte Kløw Askedalen, who will all be on stage for this very first Punkt Editions label night.

They will be joined by other musicians featured on these and other future Punkt Editions releases: Nils Petter Molvær, Canberk Ulas, Eivind Aarset, Audun Erlien and Anders Engen.

The Bow Maker is another excellent release, worth checking out.

[Quiet Visitor]

Thanks for this inside-information!