Hypergraphia

[hitch]

everything that we have seen in 35 years, is in the book.everything in one plase. pure joy

[Simonp]

My copy arrived today - what can I say...its quite beautiful. It's a bit overwhelming at first glance and I think it'll take a few days to enjoy all the different elements but there's something beautiful on every page.....enjoy!

[Blemished]

Yes - it's quite stunning - full colour, heavy paper stock, wonderful images - an extraordinary summation of his work. The design and images are really magnificent.

Some of the unreleased lyrics are very interesting - I'm wondering if the ones near the end are from the unreleased work with Joan?

Also the poem 'Neither Litany Nor Lament' is very intriguing - at first glance thought it might be about Mick (despite the apparent hostility), but then thought it might be Simon Napier-Bell? Maybe neither...in any event quite extraordinary.

Cannot believe how spoilt for books we've been - Steve's wonderful photos, Anthony's great book and now this Trophies to the power of 100!

[Simonp]

I think the poetry is one of the highlights of the book. Neither litany suggests to me some kind of childhood trauma, it's certainly explicit in its sexual content. It's lovely to see his parents get a thanks at the end of the book as well

[missouriman]

I think the poetry is one of the highlights of the book. Neither litany suggests to me some kind of childhood trauma, it's certainly explicit in its sexual content. It's lovely to see his parents get a thanks at the end of the book as well

I'd say that particular poem is one giant kick in the face of a very dead Mick Karn. As unpleasant a poem as I've read.

[Simonp]

A very dead as opposed to just dead? should all poetry be pleasant? Shouldn't sylvian write about his difficult relationship with Karn. Karn openly wrote about Sylvian in his book and wasn't exactly singing his praises. sylvian writes about his life experiences. Yes it's sad he didn't get on with Mick but should he putting false words down on paper to appease the fans (and Mick's memory). I wouldn't describe the poem as unpleasant. it might not be what we want to read but sometimes that's life

[Foales Arishes]

Amazon are now shipping orders, and I should have mine by Monday.... I nearly caved in an ordered via SS when they shipped early, but I'm glad I waited... I'm sure it will be a great book, but maybe not seventy-five pounds great. Considering they didn't have to sell such a limited edition via Amazon, I'm surprised they allowed such a price disparity... this must have hurt their direct orders.

Much as I like to support the artist as much as possible, there was no way I could justify spending almost double under current personal circumstances... also, past experience with SS put me off dealing with them again [or for one last time in this case]

[Simonp]

Its more than worth the full asking price in my opinon. The production costs must've been huge and David himself has said they'll be lucky if they even break even if it sells out. I suspect Amazon only have a very small quantity of the books for sale and even then I've heard of people getting emails from Amazon saying they've been unable to fulfil order due to lack of availability. Its a different distributor that SS are using this time round anyway which might explain why I received my books before the original delivery date. So thumbs up to them

[Foales Arishes]

Amazon.uk still have stock, but maybe other territories have less... I believe this title is being distributed from the uk, so maybe those ordering through Amazon here will be more lucky... I must admit I was worried about them being able to fulfil the orders, with only 3000 copies worldwide... I guess the books value depends on your attachment to DS over the years, but seventy-five pounds for any book is very expensive for me - and I love books, and own way too many. Even forty quid was a bit of a stretch at the moment, so I hope it lives up to my expectations... from the comments of those who do have it already it sounds like it will. I'm very intrigued to read that poem too, although I don't know the full history of the relationship (and any war of words) between DS and MK, so it might go over my head.

[Simonp]

amazon appear to have gotten more copies in. They had removed the "buy it now" option on the page couple of days ago and I see there's a slight price increase. It's not a cheap item but when you look at how much Sylvian charged for the much slimmer Trophies volumes I think you're getting good value for money. Its a beautiful thing and you can see why it's taken the last four years to produce.

That poem? Its hard hitting, yes. But the lyrics to Blemish weren't exactly filled with words of love and affection towards Ingrid either. Sylvian speaks from the heart. I don't think it's for us to decide whether the poem was ill judged or not. Be keen to know what you make of it though once you read

Interestingly there are a couple of really lovely previously unpublished poems, one which seems to be about David's father and the very last untitled piece in the book is a thing of beauty

[Foales Arishes]

The book arrived today!!! (thank you Amazon)... it is certainly a doorstop of an object, not that I'll be using for that I can't say I'm a huge fan of the thick glossy pages, which make the pages very stiff and the book awkward to look at (and oddly cheapen it for me)... it needs a bit of breaking-in and loosening up. The content is pretty special though and that's the most important thing; I'll be dipping in and out a lot over the next few days... there's lots I've not seen before. As a piece of visual design, its remarkable... although I find the cover seriously lacking [but, don't judge a book etc....]

As for 'that' poem - which was the first thing I read - well, he certainly had some issues to get off his chest, and there is no beating around the bush that's for sure. As I said, I don't know the history here, and who did what, and said what to whom, but there is certainly no love lost. I would describe it as a pretty brutal portrayal of someone’s character and if it was about someone I knew, or loved, then I would be deeply saddened to read it.

Perhaps someone can fill me in on some of the history and events that led to this?...

[Haldeman Gracie]

My Amazon.uk copy just arrived.

On a first flick through, my comments would echo David's appraisal of The Blue Nile: 'too polished for my taste'.

Judging just on the paper, hardcover and binding, its primary influence seems to the Next catalogue!

[Simonp]

Hat did you expect from it knowing that Chris Bigg was involved? Surely his design work for Samadhisound over the last 10 years might've given you some indication what it would be like from a design point of view?

[Haldeman Gracie]

Judging just on the paper, hardcover and binding...

[Foales Arishes]

....its primary influence seems to the Next catalogue!

That is certainly doing it something of a disservice

I do dislike the books format though... its too small and too thick, and the pages are horrible (way too thick and stiff for the size). It would have been so much nicer if the width and height had been bigger [and I don't mean some huge coffee table thing]. It would have given the art more space to breath, rather this this novel type format where everything is cramped.. and the weight of the paper would have worked better then. After only a few days my dust jacket already looks a mess (I've been careful)... matt white is not a practical colour I would liked to have seen more of his photography included as well. Its still a nice book though, with Blemish and Manafon being my favourite sections art wise... those two albums visual style is simply gorgeous.