Manafon | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | 14 September 2009 | |||
Recorded | between 2004–2007 in Vienna, Tokyo, London | |||
Genre | Avant-garde | |||
Length | 49:48 | |||
Label | Samadhi Sound | |||
Producer | David Sylvian | |||
David Sylvian chronology | ||||
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Aggregate scores | |
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Source | Rating |
Metacritic | 80/100 [1] |
Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [2] |
musicOMH | [3] |
Pitchfork | 7.4/10 [4] |
Slant Magazine | [5] |
Uncut | [6] |
Manafon is the seventh full-length studio album by David Sylvian, released on 14 September 2009 by the Samadhisound label. It is an avant-garde work combining elements of free improvisation, experimental rock and chamber music. It reached rank No. 6 in The Wire's list of best 2009 albums. [7]
Manafon was recorded over a three-year period in Vienna, Tokyo and London. Of the recording process, Sylvian said:
"There was nothing written when we went into the studio – this was very much free improvisation. So, the selection of the group of musicians for each improvisation was paramount. I recognized on the day which pieces could work for me. The process was that I took the material away and then wrote and recorded the vocal line over in a couple of hours. So I couldn't analyze my contribution and that in a way was my form of improvisation – and I enjoyed the rapidity of response." [8]
"I take the sessions and work on them at a later time. I attempt to 'improvise' lyrics and melodies as I go, writing and recording all in a matter of hours. The basic tracks themselves undergo little or no editing as such. The structure pretty much remains as given from the original sessions. I might add an introduction or overdub other elements onto the original take. Here's a couple of examples: "Senseless Violence": Recorded in Vienna with Rowe/Polwechsel/Fennesz. I added guitar parts then layered Tilbury's piano into the track then added the vocal and an introduction. "Greatest Living Englishman: Initial take" suggested acoustic guitar overdubs which I requested of Otomo and Tetuzi on the spot. I later cut and pasted some interesting turntable activity from an alternate take onto this track. I also added an introduction by cutting and pasting elements from an earlier take. Tilbury was added to the coda. Melody and vocal added. "Rabbit Skinner": no editing. added acoustic guitar myself then vocals." [9]
For the recording of Manafon, Sylvian was also inspired by the Welsh poet R. S. Thomas: lyrics often reflect the main themes written by the poet[ citation needed ] and the title of the album refers indeed to a Welsh namesake village (in north Powys) in which Thomas lived for a while.
"Manafon is indeed a village in Wales, a village in which Thomas lived for sometime and served as rector to the parish. In this small village, Thomas had trouble filling the pews of a Sunday but in a sense it was something of an idyllic spot in which to raise a child (a strict, taciturn and somewhat indifferent parent), master his profession and write his poetry. So, the physically real village became for me a metaphor for the poetic imagination." [8]
All tracks are written by David Sylvian
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Small Metal Gods" | 5:49 |
2. | "The Rabbit Skinner" | 4:41 |
3. | "Random Acts of Senseless Violence" | 7:06 |
4. | "The Greatest Living Englishman" | 10:55 |
5. | "125 Spheres" | 0:29 |
6. | "Snow White in Appalachia" | 6:35 |
7. | "Emily Dickinson" | 6:25 |
8. | "The Department of Dead Letters" | 2:25 |
9. | "Manafon" | 5:23 |
Total length: | 49:48 |
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
10. | "Random Acts of Senseless Violence" (Remixed by Dai Fujikura) | 6:24 |
Total length: | 56:12 |
A limited edition boxed set came with a DVD of the album in 5.1 Surround Sound, and a feature-length making-of documentary, Amplified Gesture.
Special thanks to: Richard Chadwick, Yuka Fujii, Adrian Molloy, Chris Bigg, Sarah Humphries, Steve Jansen, Noël Akchoté, Philipp Wachsmann and all the musicians who generously participated in this recording.
Christian Fennesz is a producer and guitarist active in electronic music since the 1990s, often credited simply by his last name. His work utilizes guitar and laptop computers to blend melody with treated samples and glitch production. He lives and works in Vienna, and currently records on the UK label Touch.
David Sylvian is an English musician, singer and songwriter who came to prominence in the late 1970s as frontman and principal songwriter of the band Japan. The band's androgynous look and increasingly electronic sound made them an important influence on the UK's early-1980s New Romantic scene.
Gone to Earth is the third solo studio album by English singer-songwriter David Sylvian, released on 1 September 1986 on Virgin Records. A double album, Gone to Earth is the follow-up to his debut record, Brilliant Trees, and peaked at No. 24 in the UK Albums Chart.
Secrets of the Beehive is the fourth studio album by English singer-songwriter David Sylvian. The album was released on 19 October 1987 in Europe and the United States. The album peaked at #37 in the UK album chart. The album was released in Japan on 21 November 1987.
Brilliant Trees is the debut solo studio album by the English musician David Sylvian, released on 25 June 1984 by Virgin Records. The album peaked at number 4 on the UK Albums Chart and has been certified Gold by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) for sales in excess of 100,000 copies.
The Good Son vs. The Only Daughter is a remix album by David Sylvian featuring his previous album Blemish. Despite the title, not all the pieces have been remixed; some songs have been re-recorded with new musicians.
Rain Tree Crow is the sole album released by English band Rain Tree Crow, a reunion project by the members of the new wave band Japan. Recorded in 1989 and 1990 and released in April 1991, it was the first time that members David Sylvian, Mick Karn, Steve Jansen and Richard Barbieri had collaborated as a four-piece since 1982. The album peaked at number 24 on the UK Albums Chart.
Blemish is the sixth studio album by British singer-songwriter David Sylvian, released in May 2003 on Sylvian's Samadhisound label.
Snow Borne Sorrow is an album by Nine Horses, released in October 2005. Nine Horses is a collaboration between David Sylvian, Steve Jansen and Burnt Friedman.
Plight & Premonition is the first of two collaborative albums by English musician David Sylvian and German musician Holger Czukay. It was released in March 1988.
Flux + Mutability is the second collaboration between David Sylvian and Holger Czukay. It was released in September 1989. The music consists of two instrumental tracks improvised by the participants.
Dead Bees on a Cake is the fifth studio album by British singer-songwriter David Sylvian, released in March 1999 on Virgin Records. It was his first solo album in 12 years since Secrets of the Beehive. The album peaked at no. 31 in the UK Albums Chart at release and contained his last UK Top 40 single to date in "I Surrender".
Avalon Sutra / As Long As I Can Hold My Breath is a double album by Harold Budd. The first disc is titled Avalon Sutra, and the second, a remix from Akira Rabelais, is titled As Long as I Can Hold My Breath. At the time of its release in 2005, it was reported to be his final musical work. However, both Music for 'Fragments from the Inside' and Mysterious Skin - Music from the Film, a collaboration with Robin Guthrie, were released a few months after this album. Further recordings were to follow with the last, "Another Flower" recorded in 2013 but only released a few days before his death in December 2020.
"Forbidden Colours" is a 1983 song by David Sylvian and Ryuichi Sakamoto. The song is the vocal version of the theme from the Nagisa Oshima film Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence. It appears on the film's soundtrack album and was released as a single on Virgin Records in 1983.
When Loud Weather Buffeted Naoshima is a limited edition CD by English musician David Sylvian that was commissioned as an installation piece by the Naoshima Fukutake Art Museum Foundation on the island of Naoshima, Japan, as part of the "NAOSHIMA STANDARD 2" exhibition which ran from October 2006 to April 2007. The album consists of one long ambient instrumental track. Writing in The Guardian, John L. Walters described it as "possibly the most avant-garde product made by a pop musician since Metal Machine Music".
World Citizen is an EP by Ryuichi Sakamoto and David Sylvian. It was originally released in 2003 in Japan before being released in the UK the following year on Sylvian's label Samadhi Sound; the two editions have different track lists and different covers. The EP was created as part of a project called Chain Music instigated by Ryuichi Sakamoto. A remix of "World Citizen " was later included on Sakamoto's 2004 solo album Chasm and Sylvian's 2010 compilation Sleepwalkers; the 2022 reissue of the latter additionally adds in "World Citizen".
There's a Light That Enters Houses with No Other House in Sight is the eighth studio album by David Sylvian, consisting of a single hour-length composition. It features spoken word by Pulitzer Prize winning poet Franz Wright, as well as contributions from electronic multi-instrumentalist Fennesz and pianist John Tilbury. The album was produced by Sylvian, and was released on his Samadhisound label.
Died in the Wool – Manafon Variations is a remix album by English singer and musician David Sylvian, released in May 2011 by Sylvian's independent label Samadhi Sound. The album features six songs from Sylvian's 2009 album Manafon, which have been remixed by Dai Fujikura. The new songs are heavily influenced by Fujikura, who conducted, arranged and composed the prevalent strings sections. "I Should Not Dare" and "A Certain Slant of Light" are poems by Emily Dickinson, set to music and sung by Sylvian.
Sleepwalkers is a compilation album by David Sylvian, released September 2010 by Samadhi Sound.
A Tribute to Ryuichi Sakamoto – To the Moon and Back is a tribute album to Japanese multi-genre composer Ryuichi Sakamoto, released November 30, 2022, by Milan Records, two days ahead of its original release date. The album features reworked versions of Sakamoto's songs, referred to as "remodels", by artists including Devonté Hynes, the Cinematic Orchestra, Hildur Guðnadóttir, Alva Noto, and David Sylvian.