Talk Talk - "Spirit of Eden" Vinyl, LP, Album, Reissue, 1988/2012

My favorite music these days are the ones that I missed when they were initially released. Talk Talk is such a band that I ignored for decades, even though I did see them at the Reseda Country Club in the early 1980s when their first big hit "Talk Talk" (not to be confused with the band's name) hit the KROQ airwaves. They had no lasting impression on me whatsoever. Still, as the years go on, people have told me that this band is excellent. "Spirit of Eden" is a unique album and a perfect one at that.

It's natural to compare something you haven't heard, with other artists. Listening to "Spirit of Eden," it reminds me a bit of early David Sylvian, with a touch of classic "John Barleycorn Must Die" Traffic, and then a presence of Miles Davis "Silent Way." Of course, that is just the entrance to the world of Talk Talk. For a band that started with a very 80s production style, ends with all acoustic or un-machine-like instrumentation, such as Double Bass (the great Danny Thompson), Guitarrón, Oboe, violin (Nigel Kennedy), and various horns. Mark Hollis is the figurehead and is very much in the style of a minimalist, who makes maximum music. One never knows what's around the corner, because something unusual and adventuresome comes out of nowhere. In that sense, there is the late Scott Walker approach to arrangements.

The sound is dense, murky, and then almost silence. For, however, many minutes this album is, it doesn't allow the listener to remove themselves from the speakers. "Inheritance" has a classical oboe and strings interlude that comes in like a wave hitting the beach. There are sonic surprises that are borderline ambient, but the mixing is brilliant. Not an album to categorize but to accept on its worth by the superb sounds and touches of melody that is haunting. The silence is just as important as the instrumentation. It should be its instrumental credit: silence — a beautiful piece of delicate work.