Vista blog

[silentwings]

In case folk are interested and haven’t seen mention elsewhere, this is to let people know about my recently launched blog inspired by David Sylvian and his collaborators - Vista.

David’s music has always reached me like no other, and I’ve harboured thoughts of writing about it for some time. In recent years I’ve enjoyed exploring the work of the many musicians I’ve been introduced to through David’s work. With more time now, I have the opportunity to bring these two strands together in the blog. These are just the thoughts of a non-musician fan - I hope people might find them of interest and that the posts perhaps prompt a listen to a track you haven’t played for a while, or an exploration of an unheard piece from one of the collaborators.

I’m aiming for fortnightly posts. It’s been great to see how many people have visited the site since launch - from all over the world - and to know that there are others who really appreciate this music too.

You can find the blog at http://www.sylvianvista.com.

[Foales Arishes]

That is a wonderful looking blog silentwings... I'll be working my way through the content and looking forward to new posts.

Great work!

[silentwings]

Thanks Foales Arishes! I really appreciate the feedback.

I’m eager also to hear others’ views on these tracks. The blog is just one person’s perspective.

[Blemished]

Ah, so this is you SilentWings. Been really enjoying your posts. A fantastic read!

[silentwings]

I just published a new blog on ‘Brilliant Trees’. Link below - thanks for looking!

https://sylvianvista.com/2018/06/15/brilliant-trees/

[silentwings]

A new blog is published on the track ‘Come Morning’, one of David’s collaborations with Nicola Alesini and Pier Luigi Andreoni.

I’m grateful to Nicola Alesini for contributing to the blog.

https://sylvianvista.com/2018/06/29/come-morning/

[silentwings]

I was really fortunate to be able to ask Richard Barbieri about the creation of 'Sons of Pioneers' as part of my latest blog.

His insights certainly gave me new perspectives on a track I've known for over 35 years! I hope it might be the same for you.

You can find it here: https://sylvianvista.com/2018/07/13/sons-of-pioneers/

[silentwings]

Thanks for all the interest in the 'Sons of Pioneers' blog.

I've just published a new article on 'Firepower' from 1993's 'The First Day'. I'm glad we got to hear this extended collaboration between Robert Fripp and David Sylvian. I've also been delving into the archives on Robert's DGM Live site.. .. 'Fire Scape' which I mention in the blog is well worth checking out, that track is very reminiscent of the Fripp/Gunn/Sylvian trio shows and with excellent sound quality.

Here's the link to the blog: https://sylvianvista.com/2018/07/27/firepower/

[silentwings]

The latest blog is on the track 'Blemish' and the instrumental 'Camphor'.

I was totally disoriented when listening to 'Blemish' for the first time, but time revealed its qualities and now for me it's among the highlights of David's output..

You can find it here: https://sylvianvista.com/2018/08/10/blemish-camphor/

[silentwings]

'Laughter and Forgetting' is featured in the new blog posted on Vista.

I love the imagery and the musicianship of Kenny Wheeler and John Taylor - both much missed.

The article can be found here: https://sylvianvista.com/2018/08/24/lau ... orgetting/

If you are on twitter you can follow Vista here: https://twitter.com/Vistablogger

Thanks for all the interest - 10 blogs to date with just short of 15,000 hits on the site.

[silentwings]

I've written a piece on 'Playground Martyrs' for the latest post on Vista.

I've always loved this song - quite a unique lyric from David, I think, and it's a rare track featuring only Steve & David. 'Slope' was such an excellent debut solo album from Steve.

Here's the link: https://sylvianvista.com/2018/09/07/playground-martyrs/

[silentwings]

I was very pleased to have the opportunity to ask Erik Honoré about the opening night of Punkt 2011 - where David Sylvian was artist in residence. He talks in the latest blog post on Vista about his memories of that evening and how it inspired the album 'Uncommon Deities', giving some fascinating insights into the creative process behind it.

You can read 'The God of Silence' here - https://sylvianvista.com/2018/09/28/the-god-of-silence/

Thank you for reading!

[silentwings]

I've published a new article about the Rain Tree Crow project and featuring the track 'Red Earth (as summertime ends)'.

I've been re-listening to the instrumentals from the JBK album _ism and it seems to me that they come from the same well-spring of inspiration.

I hope you enjoy it. Thanks for your continuing interest in Vista.

Here's the link: https://sylvianvista.com/2018/10/18/red ... time-ends/

[silentwings]

The latest article is on 'Small Metal Gods' and the surreal accompanying video by Hiraki Sawa.

I really admire David's lyric for this song and his vocal delivery. Hearing this piece and others on Manafon sent me off exploring the other works of the improvising musicians, and this page was a great help in selecting some of those recordings - thanks to Jon Abbey and others for their recommendations.

Please do read and maybe take another listen to this track, where every sound seems to be under the microscope.

Here's the link - https://sylvianvista.com/2018/11/09/small-metal-gods/

[silentwings]

I just posted a new blog article on 'Exit/Delete', the collaboration between Masakatsu Takagi and David Sylvian.

Recording this song unlocked new expression for both Masakatsu and David.

It's always great to have some direct input to the blog from musicians involved. This time Masakatsu looks back on the rehearsals in New Hampshire for the 'Fire in the Forest' tour, and reflects on the impact that working with David Sylvian and Steve Jansen had on him and his music.

As ever, thanks for reading.

Here is the link: https://sylvianvista.com/2018/11/30/exit-delete/