Peter - admittedly that truly was dark and seamy and strangely smelled of an underbelly. Stranger still I couldn’t turn away.
Myself I stumbled upon a short Instagram post about Mark Hollis, with an abbreviated musical bit from his solo album... it was haunting. I Googled him, apparently he was in Talk Talk, a band from the 80’s. I didn’t listen to radio in the 80’s. Knew the name and my wife sang a couple of their tunes for me. But this snippet from his solo album has depth that exceeds anything possible from an 80’s radio band. I needed to know more.
Apparently Mark recently passed so off to YouTube I go seeking his 1998 self-titled solo release. Found a playlist of all 8 tracks, thought I would listen a bit to each. Ended up listening all the way through.
From Wikipedia:
Hollis has been credited with saying: "Before you play two notes, learn how to play one note. And don't play one note unless you've got a reason to play it."
He also commented: "The silence is above everything, and I would rather hear one note than I would two, and I would rather hear silence than I would one note."
The opening track starts with a profound 0:18 of silence. The whole album carries a delectable melancholy as well as an array of woodwinds that are used in a sparse yet appropriate manner.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=crkXA_aZvdk&list=PLCB1940DBB59F0812
