6th May

May 6, 2004

Replete with title (‘My Hotel Year’), 11 songs and new deals with One Little Indian and Mute Song, the solo album is now very near completion and awaiting an Autumn release.

As creatively complete and intense as the last two No-Man albums and ‘California, Norfolk’, the album differs from them in its very apparent sense of restlessness and its frequent and subtle, stylistic departures.

Where it compares favourably, for me at least, is in the fact that it seems to possess a level of emotional depth and commitment that I feel much of my work before ‘Returning Jesus’ lacked.

Featuring some inspiring work from Scandinavian sex king, Stephen Bennett, and ‘the man who wasn’t there’, David Picking, it’s the first time outside of my collaborations with Steven Wilson that I’ve felt totally confident about the durable quality of what I’ve done. Regardless of the reaction or the sales, I feel secure in the fact that it’s an album that will continue to mean something to me and ultimately, as selfish as it sounds, that’s what counts.

Contrary to the view expressed on the No-Man website, the album title has nothing to do with my recent travels to Europe or my collaborations over the past year. In many ways it’s more about the fact that ‘Returning Jesus’, ‘Together We’re Stranger’ and ‘California, Norfolk’ represented the end of a certain line of investigation and that the current time feels like one of exciting and excited transience and searching (hopefully, loaded with new beginnings).

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Tomorrow is the day of the third annual Burning Shed event, featuring myself and the caviar-sniffing, Brian Blessed doppelganger Lord Chilvers, along with Roger Eno, Hugh Hopper and saxophone colossus, Theo Travis.

Sold out a week before the performance, this has already been the most successful of the three events so far.

Damn, there might even be some expectations of a quality performance!

watching:

Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind (Charlie Kaufman, God-like again)

listening:

Minnie Riperton – Les Fleurs
Richard And Linda Thompson – I Want To See The Bright Lights Tonight (reissue)
Scott Walker – Tilt