FlyingPig wrote:What's your thoughts?
By collaborating with the innovative artists who work within the field of Electro-Acoustic Improvisation, Sylvian obviously intended to challenge himself and in turn, challenge his audience. These improvisors prefer to remain free from rigid structure and refrain from any adherence to strict tempo. And the initial listen to such an experimental approach may give one pause...especially if the listener dares to bring his or her own preconceptions. Yet as the seemingly discordant relationship between vocal and instruments becomes less unsettling, the textural beauty of each individual track is made vividly apparent.
Sylvian's voice is front and center, confidently evincing more melody than that on previously recent releases - possibly due to the freedom afforded him by the openended nature of the accompaniment. And yet, I have no doubt that other commentators will miss this aspect and instead make heavy mention of the minimalistic instrumentation on this release. But the music on this cd is not nearly as stark nor as barren in the manner which has been portrayed in advance notices. In my opinion, the contributions from both pianist John Tilbury and saxophonist Evan Parker are absolutely stunning and allow the listener to focus on solid instrumentation at an equal level with Sylvian's vocal. Cellist Marcio Mattos' contributions are beguiling...at one moment, soothing - the next moment, harsh. The plucking, scraping and striking sounds produced by bassist Werner Dafeldecker and cellist Michael Moser give greater dynamic to the sessions they took part in. The concept of guitar playing is taken to another extreme on this cd - indeed, there exists conventional acoustic guitar, provided wonderfully by Sylvian on a couple of tracks and, to a lesser degree, Burkhard Stangl. But elsewhere, the unique stylings of Derek Bailey are properly paid tribute to by Yoshihide and Akiyama, while Keith Rowe provides sound (high and low pitched hums, drones, oscillations and piercing tones) that does not seem capable of originating from an electric guitar.
I'm intrigued by the lyrical concepts, and greatly appreciative that Sylvian has decided to focus more on character studies rather than producing more personal reflections. 125 Spheres is the only track that I have any sort of negative feeling toward, but being it is so short, it is easy to neglect.
There will no doubt be many comparisons and contrasts put forth by other reviewers, but if allowed to stand on its own, "Manafon" makes for a satisfying listen, and is clearly a strong testament to Sylvian's ability to successfully integrate his unique sound with radical musical styles.
