Blemish

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Editorial reviews

Amazon.co.uk Review
IBlemish/I is ex-Japan frontman David Sylvian's long-awaited follow-up to 1999's IDead Bees on a Cake/I. That album was, in part at least, a celebration of his love for wife Ingrid Chavez and couched in suitably blissful and luxuriant jazz/ambient tones. IBlemish/I, by contrast, is a fraught, wracked and occasionally embittered affair, a more difficult though equally rewarding listening experience. The opening title track, for example, is a lengthy and anguished excursion, its lyrical theme of estrangement set to a broody, quivering guitar chord and punctuated by moments of musical violence. p There are three bold collaborations with veteran British improv guitarist Derek Bailey, whose spare, atonal haiku tones will present a challenge to those who turn to Sylvian for comfort listening. The scratchy, CD-skipping effects of "The Only Daughter" are also calculated to disconcert the listener, while "Late Night Shopping" is shot through with disquieting intentions and laced with sinister strains of avant-garde noise. This, however, is a brave album and in its own way as beautiful as its predecessor in its starkness. I--David Stubbs/I

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Customer reviews

review by: date: 2009-03-13 rating:
A Masterpiece
If you're into Sylvian in a 'Brilliant Trees' or Fripp collaboration vein you could be in for a shock. Blemish is very minimalist, personal, and very strange. If you need drums with your music, or you need to tap your foot occasionally then I would advise against purchase. Acceptance of the weirdest moments of 'Dead Bees' will be no preparation. However, if you feel at home with (for example) atonal 'classical' music, or free jazz, it should be a cinch. In short Blemish is an uncompromising artwork that could conceivably belong to many peoples top 10 albums of all time, and in my opinion, it's a masterpiece.

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review by: Piers Moktan date: 2008-03-28 rating:
Surely a one-of-a-kind classic?
This is simply incredible; a starkly minimalist suite of songs for voice, guitar, and electronics with a formidable emotional potency,`Blemish' provides the type of music where the spaces between the sounds are of equal significance as the sounds themselves. We can delight in being able to fully discern the elements of its aural architecture; every vocal tone, echoed refrain, and electronic flutter. And the use of the spatial metaphor is no mere rhetorical pretence. As David Toop remarked in his review for The Wire, he noted that this music self-evidently results from a recording process rather than an accretion of aggregated data (as is so typical these days)- you can tell that this occurred in real space and time. Indeed, the songs emerged from a month of improvisations in the studio, with Sylvian only occasionally aided by other musicians; the celebrated free-jazz guitarist Derek Bailey, and the acclaimed avant-garde sound processor Christian Fennesz. br / br /Whilst the whole album sustains a muted intensity, it nonetheless takes you on a dynamic journey in which Sylvian's vocalisations are in perfect harmony with their accompanying sounds. His whispered, almost-spoken tones have a captivating effect, bringing the listener into a painfully intimate space, a small place in proximity with Sylvian and his heartfelt reflections, which are best deciphered as evocative enigmas whose meanings can be multiple. Although this album lacks any truly propulsive pieces, this should not be seen as a flaw, for such an interruption would fracture the sacred atmosphere Sylvian magically creates. br / br /`Blemish' is like nothing else I have ever heard. Its production techniques and palette of sounds may not be entirely dissimilar from other electro-acoustic composition, but its creative process and effect most certainly is. I should also mention that there is an added bonus to the album. It's so bloody good, so thoroughly admired by fellow musicians, that it led to an album of remixes in 2005, which instead of allowing others to bend Sylvian's intent to their own whims, actually stays true to the original, expanding upon its musical vision without any loss of authenticity. Remixers include Sylvian's collaborator on the Nine Horses project, Burnt Friedman, as well as Akira Rabelais, Ryoji Ikeda, Readymade FC and Sweet Billy Pilgrim. `The Good Son vs The Only Daughter: Blemish Remixes' is in fact an indispensable addition to `Blemish', making this review an endorsement of them both. I urge you to listen. br /

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review by: the TRUTH is out there... date: 2007-11-03 rating:
The man is back ..
Dead Bees on a Cake was mostly a big disappointment as was a lot of the Nine Horses project. But this is our man Sylvian back to what he does best. Yes there's a few difficult moments (the Derek Baily pieces .. he's an RSI suffering guitar player who AFAIK reinvented his playing to suit his crippling disability) but then what Sylvian album is ever easy listening? They all require some work on the part of the listener and are ultimately more rewarding for it. br / br /You should also be directed to the album of remixes which turns some of these songs on their heads and is equally, maybe even more brilliant. The three Baily tracks have been reworked and are easier to appreciate as a result.

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review by: date: 2007-08-16 rating:
A huge Blemish on the Sylvian catalogue
The title of this album says it all for me. Having been a huge Sylvian fan since Japan's "Adolescent Sex" (although the album "Obscure Alternatives" had its faults)all the way through the Sakamoto 'years',Rain Tree Crow and up to the present with Nine Horses and "Snow Borne Sorrow" (buy that!)I feel I am extremely qualified to review this album. br /My review - It is truly awful! br /I can see what he was thinking - there's a similar track called 'Albuquerque' featured on his 'best of' collection, "Everything and Nothing", which is really good. It is Sylvian and a guitar. "Blemish" tries to repeat some of that rawness but misses the mark by a mile. It reminds me of the scene from Jaws when 'Quint' plays by Robert Shaw draws his finger nails down the chalkboard - in fact some of this album sounds like that. br /In Sylvian's defense I think he realised what a massive blunder he'd made when he agreed to and then released the fantastic remix of "Blemish" entitled "The Good Son vs The Only Daughter". Why would he have done that if he didn't realise what a massive mistake he'd made. So, in short, give "Blemish" a wide berth and buy the infinitely better and hugely superb remix. You get all the fantastic Sylvian lyrics and vocals, great sounds and none of the garbage.


review by: BassPlayerFromRazorCuts date: 2007-06-22 rating:
Dreadful
I bought this when it came out - couldn't wait to play it as I love his music! br /Played it once nearly threw up! it's dreadful! I nearly fell into a coma! br /Took it straight back got a refund.

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