Added: link to buy David Sylvian's new album, Blemish, @ the US site cduniverse.com (low price)

ACHTUNG! The New Album By The Forgotten Man of Japan

Sorry to use this page to promote another album but please bear with me as there is a connection to Sylvian and I think it is worth mentioning.

Many of you may not know that a new album by the multi-talented former Japan bass player, Mick Karn was released last week. It is called Each Eye A Remix (cat no: MPCD15) and features remixes by among others, Ryuichi Sakamoto, Richard Barbieri, David Torn & Paul Wong among others. So from these names alone one could say it's an important album. AND IT IS! It is also beautiful and well worth buying.

So I have no hesitation in recommending this album and would suggest to fans who have not previously purchased a solo Karn cd to use this solo work as a perfect introduction to the strange and beautiful world of Karn.

Re-discover Mick Karn today!

buy:
- amazon.co.uk (uk)
- amazon.com (us)
- cduniverse.com (us)
- amazon.fr (france)
- amazon.co.jp (japan)

New Album: David Sylvian's Blemish climbs 12,500 places in the US @ amazon.com in the last 12 hours!

Since putting up the note about the sales ranking at the US site amazon.com yesterday, the new album has climbed from 13,407 to creep in to the top 1000 @ 901. Some movement!

US Sylvian followers can buy the new album from amazon.com by clicking here.

I'll keep you posted should the album climb the US amazon charts any further.

New Album: David Sylvian's Blemish still in the top 30 sales ranking @ amazon.co.uk!

Solid sales have meant the album has reached number 21 @ amazon.co.uk! Great news for Sylvian and Sylvian fans alike.

Unfortunately, the US sales ranking @ amazon.com is not so good. Currently the album's pre-order sales means the album is currently languishing @ 13,407.

US Sylvian followers can buy the new album from amazon.com by clicking here.

I'll keep you posted should the album climb the US amazon charts.

David Sylvian's Blemish has a No. 23 sales ranking @ amazon.co.uk!

What an amazing achievement for Sylvian's new album and the first release of his label, samadhisound!.

The album has reached just outside the amazon.co.uk top 20 on the 30th June after brilliant pre-order sales for the past week. Puts the major record labels to shame!

But what an achievement it would be if we could push it up to number one, ahead of the pop idol rubbish that has eaten up the charts of late! It would be one in the eye for those major record label bosses who seem intent in killing off quality music! By buying it from amazon.co.uk each and every one of us can put two fingers up at those who control the record industry and play a part in making this album the independent record label success story of this year or many a year for that matter!

Every sell counts so every one of us can play an important part in getting the album to number one! Moreover, amazon.co.uk's price of just £ 12.99 is great value for money!

If you haven't bought the album yet then you are missing out on the album of the year! It is a brilliant album - Sylvian has never made a more personal album. It is Sylvian up close, naked and the melancholy is unlike anything you will hear anywhere. All tracks have Sylvian's beautiful vocals and it can be argued that Sylvian has never released a better track than the last one on Blemish, A Fire In The Forest!

The reviews in publications like The Wire & The Independant are testament to the quality of this album.

You can check the sales ranking on amazon by clicking here. The top 100 Chart is updated hourly and can be found on the amazon.co.uk welcome page

Buy Blemish from amazon.co.uk today by clicking here and watch it get to number 1!

I'll keep you updated on the sales ranking.

David Sylvian's Blemish
Order the new album at:
- amazon.co.uk (uk)
- amazon.com (us)
- cduniverse.com (us) (low price)
- amazon.de (germany)
- amazon.fr (france)
- amazon.co.jp (japan)
- this site

14th july 2003

david sylvian: blemish

it was me who posted the original query and i've now read more than one review referring to it, so it must be intentional. as to the artistic purpose it seems to me the (or a) theme of the album is disappointed expectations, breakages and breakdowns - in this track he creates what's potentially a beautiful, tranquil vocal line and then disrupts it, frustrating the listener's expectations. it's actually quite painful to listen to.

as for marks out of 5 I'd give it 5 by anyone else's standards.

- nick - leicestershire (uk)

9th july 2003

david sylvian: blemish

hi, hope you can help me.

on your david sylvian web site someone has asked the question "...does anyone else's copy sound like there's an unintentional glitch on track 3 ( the only daughter )? - i.e. vocal cutting out - is this deliberate, or do I have a duff copy?"

i have read one review referring to the 'cut up' vocals, so i'm assuming it's a deliberate technique, but can you confirm this? any idea as to its artistic purpose?

thank you

richard

7th july 2003

david sylvian: blemish

sorry - this a very prosaic query - but does anyone else's copy sound like there's an unintentional glitch on track 3 (the only daughter)? - i.e. vocal cutting out - is this deliberate, or do I have a duff copy? apart from that (or including that, if it's intentional), i think it's brilliant.

valerie, uk

4th july 2003

david sylvian: blemish

i've only managed to listen to it once since buying it yesterday, but i'm going to take the advice from other reviewers and give it alot more time. that said i kind of think he might have lost the plot a bit, but david sylvian has been my hero since I first heard quiet life when I was about 10 years old so it really pains me to criticise him at all.

the artwork is interesting, not really my taste, i prefer the look of something like secrets of the beehive , for that matter I prefer the sound of secrets of the beehive. blemish is too sparse musically and doesn't feature half as many lyrical twists as his earlier works. david's vocals are pure heaven though but considering how much I revere david sylvian I was shocked I didn't enjoy the album more. i hope it's a grower!

3/5
anna, england

3rd july 2003

sylvian interview

hi there,

we yesterday completed an exclusive interview with david sylvian on our website, barcode. i was wondering whether you would like to mention this on your wonderful david sylvian web-site.

any help you can give will be truly appreciated. enjoy the interview!

warm regards

- danny turner (editor) http://www.barcodezine.com

2nd july 2003

blemish: my review

upon reading initial press regarding this disc, i set myself up to expect something very different and beautiful. in fact, i had the pleasure meeting david a few weeks before the release and in the brief time we discussed the new disc, david promised me it would be very "different". i must say it met every expectation i had and then some. while every person has their own opinion, i feel that those who are dissapointed with this release probably went in with different expectations that those of us who enjoy it. with that said, i will explain why i like it. it is not every day you hear a piece of work created so minimally yet sound so complex. davids voice is on top of his game and he definitely went into this release with an agenda. i will save the review of each song as I feel the disc fits best as a piece (both in music and message). the lyrics are haunting and raw. the words of someone baring their soul for us. the music is trance-like at times. i have been a fan of christian fennesz for some time so obviously, i am speechless over the final track....it is truly breathtaking. i would love to hear cd this performed in a small intimate setting. my favorite disc of all time is by a band called slowdive. the cd is called pygmalion and it will always be my favorite. somehow, blemish has the same effect on me that pygmalion does. i feel they are very similar in many ways. a disc to cherish and spend quiet time with. a disc to reflect upon. thank you david

- jason

23 june 2003

blemish

well, it would seem that many of us fans are not warming up to this new release. i must say that while i DO agree with many that stated that their first listen to blemish was a bit of a shock (i had the same feelings), i'm surprised that more of you haven't completely changed your mind like i have. i absolutely LOVE this album! i think it's wonderful that david is taking such chances. do we really want him to cover the same territory forever? not to mention, it's not like he hasn't had an experimental vibe in the past...go back and listen to plight and premonition if you've forgotten. i kind've thought this might be coming based on the two tracks included in the tour program for the everything and nothing tour, especially camphor. and I for one am happy that he's namechecking such experiemtal artists as oval and fennesz. i will admit to preferring all of the more electronic-based pieces more that the bailey pieces simply because they flow better and I think they are better songs. a fire in the forest is a classic sylvian song and the only daughter is very cool. i'm looking forward to the album with his brother. oh yeh, i'm glad I didn't have to wait another three years to hear a new album.

- brooke, us

21 june 2003

blemish: the best of all?

okay, i have to hold my hands up and say i may be biased. i run this website and am selling the cd and earlier i said this was a great album...but having listened to it some more i have to say that this album is better than great - it is the work of a genius in his field! it is brilliant. late night shopping is the best track i have heard from anybody for a long time.

sylvian has stripped himself bare on blemish & the hurting is there for all to see. i don't know sylvian or anything of the circumstances in which this album was made but the results as found on blemish are beautifully melancholic and sincere.

this is better than anything sylvian has done before and has to be one of the albums of the year. blemish also deserves as big an audience as possible though from the various amazon sales ranking around the world it seems to be already selling well. but if you're unsure about buying it you shouldn't be. if you don't buy it from this site then buy it from amazon, shops like sister ray, hmv etc...from anybody who is selling a copy.

we all can play a small part in ensuring sylvian's new label samadhisound does well and thereby securing each and every one of us the chance to purchase music of this calibre for years to come.

- paul, uk

18 june 2003

blemish

beauty is in the eye of the beholder

buying this album directly from sylvian's website (saved a few $$'s) and living in the u.s, I have now had this album for a couple of weeks and have listened to it a several times.

on first hearing I absolutely hated this album, and it really sounded to me like it had been put together in a hurry (something that we certainly do not expect from sylvian), and was hoping this is not a sign of what we can expect from samadhi sound.

second hearing was not a lot better in earnest.

as I listen to the cd as I write it is growing on me by the minute, that said, I do not envisage sylvian winning over any new fans with this material.

track 1) blemish I actually found the most accessible song on the album.
track 2) the good son, the jury is still out on this one.
track 3) the only daughter, is getting better with each hearing.
track 4) the heart knows better, is quickly becoming my favourite track.
track 5) she is not, far too short to have any opinion.
track 6) late night shopping, I think this opitimised was I disliked about this album on 1st hearing, this to sounds better on every hearing.
track 7) how little we need to be happy, still hasn't made me happy!
track 8) a fire in the forest, this could be the jewel in the crown.

blemish definitely gets better with every listening (thankfully) and should be persevered with. whether any of these tracks would make a sylvian best of in years to come is yet to be seen. unfortunately we have been very spoilt with sylvian's previous work, and this album would compare very favourably with any other artist.

ss far as this album being described as beautiful, I am now listening to damage on it's namesake, this is a beautiful song and is where sylvian has set the bar. i wouldn't put any of the above tracks in the company of damage, backwater, orpheus etc. but don't let that put you off, this is an album that needs to be listened to time and time again.

like the album, I first found the artwork disappointing, I guess this is more due to the incredibly high standards sylvian has produced throughout his career, as opposed to it being poor (though I shared simon's view on his 'new" look on the front cover!) arguably you would be hard pushed to find another artist who is producing artwork for his projects that compares favourably with sylvian's.

- 3 points out of 5

- jeremy, us

15 june 2003

blemish

i run this website and hearing the album i think it is great! the artwork is beautiful (i don't know atsushi fukui's work) and the design by yuka fujii is what you come to expect from yuka : a work of art in itself. ask yourself where you would see anything similar and you wouldn't find anything close.

i found like all sylvian albums that i have listened to that it takes time to unlock it. that is the beauty of a sylvian album: you have to work hard to get into it. and the rewards are quite breathtaking : i find it really beautiful.

sylvian can't seem to win: if he takes a long time to deliver an album some fans moan; if he delivers it in a relatively quick time then there are more moans. its a miracle that albums like this are produced at all in the current music climate.

we should all be grateful for that.

i look forward to hearing more from sylvian's new label and seeing projects from yuka's osmosis.

- paul, uk

15 june 2003

blemish: i get it

like simon i hated this album at first. but after several listens it has me. i'm sure if you give the album a chance it will grab you. i just love derek bailey after this!

- mike, uk

15 june 2003

blemish

i think simon's being unfair. okay, not the best album but late night shopping is good. better than most releases from other artists. its a shame though sylvian did not spend more time finishing and producing it. he has gone from the sublime to the ridiculous! dead bees on a cake took, how long? 7 or 8 years. and if simon is correct blemish took a month.

but do buy it because it is worth investing in. some of it i like. it just seems a wasted opportunity. blemish could have been so much better had more time been spent on it.

- andy, uk

14 june 2003

still the best artist to come out of britain

- dawn, uk

13 june 2003

blemish: down to earth

this is the worst solo sylvian album i've had the misfortune to listen to! forget what those who are subjective about this album say, those with an ulterior motive for trying to shift as many copies as possible of this album, including this site: this is instantly forgettable rubbish. reading that this took a month to complete you wonder why it took so long. what was sylvian thinking of releasing it in this state? the songs remain as fragments, half finished and pointless. i've had this album for over 2 weeks and it doesn't get any better. only a fire in the forest, the last track, should have made the cut. the other songs meander aimlessly and sylvian's voice hollows over each track as though he were trying to drown out the mess.

this is depressing nonsence, the sleeve's artwork a bad joke. why is sylvian trying to look like david beckham for? i don't know how old he is, 40, 50, but a guy his age should not be trying to look like a guy half his age. leave that to david bowie.

i will not buy anything by him again as he hasn't released anything of merit for the best part of a decade. i have been patient with him but my hard earned cash will be going elsewhere.

for sylvian completists only - others buy the new radiohead album. sorry to sound so negative but i can't hide my disappointment at another sylvian letdown.

- simon, uk

04 june 2003

hi there!

received my copy yesterday: i must say it's unlike anything I've heard of sylvian (and I have almost everything!); at the same time though it's a real ds-album. expect nothing! a small hint: the track camphor with lyrics as in the dobro pieces on e&n. in some ways even better than dead bees... which says a lot i think. makes you wonder what he and steve are brewing up in the states!

- adrian, the netherlands

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