Tag: Lost In The Ghost Light

Interview With Tim Bowness by Progradar

After my review of Tim Bowness’ excellent latest release i got together with the man himself to ask him some probing, journalistic type questions…

1.    Your new album ‘Lost In The Ghost Light’ is due to be released 17th February, how would you say this differs from your three previous solo releases?

I think the main difference is that I was working towards fully realising the story, rather than making a Tim Bowness (or No-Man) album.

‘Abandoned Dancehall Dreams’ emerged out of demos I’d written and compiled for a follow-up to ‘Schoolyard Ghosts’.  Steven (Wilson) was too busy to commit to a No-Man album so he offered to mix what I came up with. I was forced to make a solo album (or my idea of what a No-Man album could sound like). The reaction to the album was very positive, so I embarked upon making an album that came out of ‘Abandoned Dancehall Dreams’, but accentuated the extremes and what it was I thought was ‘Tim Bowness’. I see ADD and Stupid Things as strongly linked, whereas my debut solo album (‘My Hotel Year’ from 2004) always felt like a patchwork compromise as it comprised offcuts from several separate projects I was working on.

‘Lost In The Ghost Light’ is as much a themed and coherent album as ADD and Stupid Things are, but it sprung entirely from the concept and the music was written to enhance the lyrical themes. In some ways, it’s my version of a Moonshot album!

Because the album deals with someone who made classic ‘Progressive’ music, it gave me an excuse to take the bits of that music that I still love and integrate them into my own music.

2.    The album was mixed and mastered by Steven Wilson, how involved were you in the process and who makes the final call on when the album is considered finished?

I make the final call. Basically, I give Steven the material and some instructions and he weaves his audio magic. All creative decisions regarding arrangements and how the album should sound and flow are mine though. Steven’s great to work with in that he’s very quick, very good and knows what I like / want.

3.    We have both agreed that there is a definitive ‘Tim Bowness’ sound, would you say this has been there from the start or developed over the  years and the different releases?

I think that my ‘signature’ vocal approach and sound has been there since the early days of No-Man. It’s a blessing and a curse in that it’s an instant identifier, but one that’s strong in a way that people either love or hate.

I would say that vocally and lyrically I’ve subtly developed over the years, while the contexts I sing over have often frequently changed.

4.    Where did the ideas for the album come from and how do you go about writing the songs?

As I say in the Album Notes for the album, I’ve always been fascinated by the iron grip holds over fans and musicians alike, and how supposedly adolescent obsession can become a lifetime’s prison sentence for some of us.

It‘s a requiem for a type of music, a type of musician and a particular form of music production (the album).

I was interested to know how the fact that people don’t financially or culturally value music as much as they did in earlier eras impacts on musicians who grew out of the 1960s revolution (where music was vitally important on so many levels and in so many sectors of society). Also, I’m interested to know how playing to an older audience just wanting ‘the hits’ affects a musician who once believed they could change the world with their music. Of course, some of my own fears are wrapped up in the story.

5.    Do you have a personal favourite track on the album (mine is ‘Worlds of Yesterday’) or is that like asking a parent which of their children is the favourite?

In this case, it’s more difficult than most, because I think it works as a whole album as much as anything else. I suppose my favourites would be Worlds Of Yesterday because of the solos by Bruce Soord and Kit Watkins, and You Wanted To Be Seen because of its unpredictable shift. I also really like Bruce’s solo at the end of You’ll Be The Silence and Ian Anderson’s stunning contribution to Distant Summers.

6.    When you finish an album is it consigned to the past as you move on to the next project or are they more than just musical compositions to you?

They are more in that I’m completely obsessive and immersed in my albums when making them and some of those albums remain very close to me. That said, I do tend to immerse myself in a project, and once it’s out listen to the official release all the way through on headphones and then move on to the next obsession/album.

7.    Do you prefer the process of making a solo album to collaborations like No-Man?

I enjoy both. I really like seeing where I can take my music as a solo artist, but I also like the collaborative aspects of No-Man, Memories Of Machines, Bowness/Chilvers and other projects. Alternating between both works because it means there’s a sense of constant movement, rather being stuck in the same groove.

8.    How did you come to sign with InsideOut for your solo releases?

I was really lucky that a few labels liked the album and wanted to release it. I went with Inside Out because the core people at the company were so enthusiastic. Kscope were very positive about the album, but admitted they wouldn’t do much with it in terms of promotion and that they’d just market it as a No-Man offshoot. By comparison, Inside Out (who have a slightly different audience from Kscope) said they’d put it out, do their best and see what happens. In other words, it was less predetermined. They’re really easy to work with as well as being proactive, so I don’t regret the decision.

9.    Your career started in the 1990’s, did you always want to be a musician, how did you get started and who were your early influences?

I was obsessed with music from my early teens onward. Along with books and films, it was a great escape from a pretty miserable adolescence.

I started singing at 18 with a band of friends and by 19 I’d moved on to a band of older musicians in Manchester and was making music of a more ambitious nature.

One of the most influential albums for me when I stated out was Peter Hammill’s Over. It gave me the belief that an audience could get something out of the music I wanted to make. For a couple of years, the Peter Hammill influence was strong, particularly on my singing style.

Outside of that I loved Kate Bush, Gabriel/Genesis, Pink Floyd, King Crimson, David Bowie, The Beatles, Roy Harper,10cc, The Who, Led Zeppelin, Gentle Giant, Yes, Al Stewart and some of the more fashionable bands of my youth such as Associates and Joy Division.

10. What’s different about being an artist now compared to then? Is it harder to get started in the music business nowadays?

Much, much harder (and it was never easy). When I started I could walk up to major DJs (Mark Radcliffe being one) and get my demos played on the likes of Piccadilly Radio. It did take a few years to get a decent deal and a foothold in the industry though.

11. What one piece of advice would you give to up and coming musicians?

Truthfully, I wouldn’t know where to begin as the industry has changed so much over the last two decades.

12. Which other musicians do you listen to now?

Too many to mention. I’m still an avid music listener and purchaser, so over the last few months even, I’d have listened to music old and new from George Gershwin to Arvo Part, Michael Chapman to Leonard Cohen, Opeth to Big Big Train, Elbow to Mark Eitzel, The Strawbs to Labi Siffre and so on.

13. The advent of the internet, streaming downloads etc. Do you think this is a good or a bad thing and why?

It’s both. I still buy physical items and love the intricacy and possibilities of album artwork, but I also use streams to discover music that I may want to buy.

I don’t feel streams encourage detailed listening or an engagement with music / ’the album’ as an art form. On a personal level, the move towards streams (and ‘single’ streams at that) pushes me even more towards making detailed artwork and sonically rich ‘album experiences’.

14. Your specialist online label/store Burning Shed that you run with Pete Morgan is considered a success story, how did you come to set it up?

It developed out of two things, No-Man’s Mail Order company (we sold exclusive releases to a mailing list and it operated from Steven’s and then my house), and an idea I had for a label (to make cost-effective, idealistic side project albums). It evolved into hosting No-Man’s and Porcupine Tree’s online stores and grew via word of mouth from there.

15. Is there one artist you would love to have on your label?

Lots! Elbow, Sigur Ros, Brian Eno, Lindsey Buckingham, Peter Gabriel, Kate Bush, Mark Eitzel, Arvo Part, Camel and dozens of others.

16. Will there be a tour to support the new album?

So far, I have a support slot to Marillion at the UK Marillion Weekend, but nothing else planned . As it worked so well in 2016, I might do some more co-headlines with iamthemorning. Outside of that, it would be great to do a full theatrical production of ‘Lost In The Ghost Light’ if there was interest in it.

17. Which do you prefer, making records or playing those records live?

I enjoy both experiences, but probably prefer the control of the studio environment and the thrill of coming up with something unexpected that inspires me.

18. Finally, what lies ahead for Tim Bowness?

There’s going to be a second Bowness/Chilvers album, which is a continuation of ‘California, Norfolk’ (from 2002) and quite different from ‘Lost In The Ghost Light’. There’ll also be an album with pre-No-Man band Plenty; an arty Electro Pop confection!

I’ve also written material with Kit Watkins and would very much like to follow on from ‘Lost In The Ghost Light’ on a solo level and see if I can take some of the sounds and ideas on the album further.

You can order ‘Lost In The Ghost Light’ here

 

Review – Tim Bowness – Lost In The Ghost Light – by Progradar

“Look around you. Everything changes. Everything on this earth is in a continuous state of evolving, refining, improving, adapting, enhancing…changing. You were not put on this earth to remain stagnant.”
― Steve Maraboli, Life, the Truth, and Being Free

Yes, everything changes but, in music, sometimes that change either takes what seems like a lifetime or never happens at all. Some of the more established acts could be said to have congealed into their final selves. To be fair, they can often still produce great music but you always know what to expect and that means no more surprises and I for one like a few surprises in my musical journeys.

Tim Bowness has admitted to me himself that he does have a signature sound and it is one that can be heard as the foundation on his previous three solo releases ‘My Hotel Year’ (2004), ‘Abandoned Dancehall Dreams’ (2014) and  2015’s ‘Stupid Things That Mean The World’. 2017 sees him return with a new album, ‘Lost In The Ghost Light’, and a new approach.

Here’s Tim’s thoughts:

“This new album, in some ways, it is quite a departure. There are lots of flutes on it and due to the nature of ‘the concept’, it’s definitely the most traditionally Progressive album I’ve made. It was very much a labour of love and like you say, it ‘felt’like a Tim Bowness album while taking the music into some uncharted places (for me).”

‘Lost In The Ghost Light’ is a concept album revolving around the onstage and backstage reflections of a fictional ‘classic’ Rock musician in the twilight of his career. It is a grand statement about a grand era of music making and an undoubted highlight of Bowness’s career.

Lyrically, the album addresses how the era of streaming and ageing audiences affects creativity, how a life devoted to music impacts on real / family life, and how idealistic beginnings can become compromised by complacency and the fear of being replaced by younger, more vital artists.

Though firmly focused on Bowness’s distinctive voice and musical approach, the album also draws inspiration from the period the concept covers and contains a notable 1970s Symphonic/Progressive Rock influence.

Mixed and mastered by Bowness’s No-Man partner Steven Wilson, ‘Lost In The Ghost Light’ uses a core band comprising Stephen Bennett, Colin Edwin (Porcupine Tree), Bruce Soord (The Pineapple Thief), Hux Nettermalm (Paatos) and Andrew Booker (Sanguine Hum), as well as guests including Kit Watkins (Happy The Man/Camel), Steve Bingham (No-Man) and the legendary Ian Anderson (Jethro Tull). Andrew Keeling (Robert Fripp/Hilliard Ensemble/Evelyn Glennie) arranges for string quartet and flute on three of the album’s
songs.

Jarrod Gosling (I Monster / Cobalt Chapel) provides the fantastically detailed artwork, which includes a visual history of the career of the concept’s subject. Mixed and mastered by Steven Wilson, the special cd/dvd edition also features a 5.1 mix by Bruce Soord.

Tim certainly knows how to start things off with a bang. Opener Worlds Of Yesterday is hypnotic, immersive and mesmerising from the first note, a song that draws you into its soporific embrace to deliver its undoubted charms. The gentle background music has a plaintive guitar note overlaid before Tim’s distinctive vocals begin. His voice is calming and spell-binding at the same time and the beautiful strings that back the chorus work in perfect harmony. The music is full of refined grace and yet the probing guitar that you can hear throughout gives it a questing edge as well. The sedate, ambling keyboards are a delight and the flute just adds another layer of undoubted class, You just have to listen to the run out of this elegant track, it is a brilliant way to close out a song. One for late nights, lights turned down low and something full bodied and red to drink…

Moonshot Manchild opens with a laconic feel, typical Tim Bowness, all laid back vocals and subdued music that gets under your skin in an addictive fashion. There’s a subtle incisiveness running underneath though as the mellow and unhurried music washer over you. Classic 70’s keyboards give a real feeling of wistful nostalgia and a melancholy undertone to the ongoing tale. Tim’s voice has never sounded so good and he really has one of the most serenely relaxed vocal deliveries around. There’s a great keyboard interlude in the middle of the track, pensive and thoughtful asking you to reflect for a moment before the song blossoms out again with a wonderfully carefree and composed instrumental section. Once again we are treated to another impressive lead out, something that seems to be coming stock in trade for this great musician, it ebbs and flows brilliantly, demanding you follow it right to the end of the musical journey.

Wow! The next track is a real departure for Tim. All full of angst and pent up rage, Kill The Pain That’s Killing You opens with frantic drum beat and a caustic guitar riff. There’s a real nervous energy about this song, a pleading uneasiness that has a real catchy note to it. Tim’s vocal seems more direct and urgent and that acerbic guitar note really does make you sit up and take notice. The staccato chorus only adds to the offbeat tone, this is something very different and enjoyably so and, coming in at under four minutes, this frenetic song never outstays its welcome.

After that unexpected but thoroughly enjoyable onslaught, Nowhere Good To Go sees us return to the refined, simple grace of the first two tracks but there is definitely something evolved about Tim’s sound on this album. Soothing and tranquil, the music seems to lull you into a becalmed state and then open up into something just a little different with the dulcet tones of a Hammond organ combining with the strings to add subtle sophistication to what is already quite an imposing sound. Again the vocals are delivered with silken finesse and the ethereal flute adds a winsome feeling to this lissome song.

There is one of the best openings to any recent progressive song on You’ll Be The Silence. All pastoral with a lovely piano sound and the delicate heavenly flute, it really did impress me on first listen and left me transfixed with its rarefied quality. Tim’s voice has a little catch to it, an almost sentimental regret at the heart of it and it gives the song a dreamlike atmosphere when combined with the simple charms of the wistful music. The longest track on the album at nine minutes long, you are enraptured throughout this unapologetically sentimental and yet slightly rueful piece of music. You have to take the time to listen to this song (and, indeed, the whole album) with a decent pair of headphones on and just become immersed in its spellbinding orchestral reverence. Music as good as this can take you to a place of calm reflection, where the world cannot harm you and everyone needs that now and again, an utterly captivating song that ends every bit as brilliantly as it begins, the guitar and flute leading you on a seductive voyage home…

Lost In The Ghost Light is quite a dark interlude with a menacing undertone. Tim delivers his vocal in a spoken word fashion and that adds even more suspense and uncertainty. The music is atmospheric and bleeds tension directly into your system.

That slight feeling of doubt can be felt at the start of You Wanted To Be Seen and adds to a cautionary tone to deliver a deliberately pensive and sombre tone to the song. Tim’s vocal is thoughtful and sad and the music has a plaintive and pensive edge to it. The violin that can be heard in the background is a fine touch and adds a longing, surreal edge to the track before things change tack with a restless and skittish air that adds tension and a disquieting unease. Another great song that has an imposing end with some great guitar playing.

Onto the final track of the album, Distant Summers, a mournful violin opens this mellow and cultured song and imbues it with a really plaintive plea for days gone by, Sepia tinged nostalgia drips from every wistful note and the exquisite flute playing is tempered by a trite ennui. The vocals have a touch of anguish at the core of them and the whole song has a fragile dignity deep at its core, one that is made up of beauty and remorse in equal quantities. Despite the forlorn mood that runs throughout the song, I still feel that there is hope emanating from Tim’s expressive voice and that is the overriding feeling that I will take away with me.

I’ve always been a fan of Tim Bowness and this new album has only exacerbated that. He has added something different and distinct to his music to evolve and progress it to something that, while recognisable as his work, has seen him mature into one of the best and most involving progressive artists that we have. There are added layers and nuances that just lift this album above similar fare on offer at the moment and I can see this being on my playlist for a long time to come.

Released 17th February 2017

Order ‘Lost In The Ghost Light’ from Burning Shed

 

 

Tim Bowness Releases Lyric Video For ‘You Wanted To Be Seen’ – Pre-order Links For New Album.

Tim Bowness has released a lyric video for You Wanted To Be Seen, the first single to be taken from his superb new album ‘Lost In The Ghost Light’, due to be released on February 17th via InsideOut Music.

‘Lost In The Ghost Light’ is a concept album revolving around the onstage and backstage reflections of a fictional classic rock musician in the twilight of his career. Ranging from the hypnotic opener Worlds Of Yesterday to the wistful climax of Distant Summers, via the thrilling rage of Kill The Pain That’s Killing You and the orchestral expanse of You’ll Be The Silence, the album features some stunning solos and harmonically rich compositions that represent Bowness’s most musically ambitious work to date.

Bowness utilises a core band comprising Stephen Bennett (Henry Fool), Colin Edwin (Porcupine Tree), Bruce Soord (The Pineapple Thief), Hux Nettermalm (Paatos) and Andrew Booker (Sanguine Hum), and is also joined by guests including Kit Watkins (Happy The Man/Camel), Steve Bingham (No-Man) and the legendary Ian Anderson (Jethro Tull). Andrew Keeling (Robert Fripp/Hilliard Ensemble/Evelyn Glennie) arranges for string quartet and flute on three of the album’s songs.

‘Lost In The Ghost Light’ can be pre-ordered at the following links:

Burning Shed: CD/DVD, limited gold LP+CD, black LP+CD: https://www.burningshed.com/store/noman/
Amazon: http://smarturl.it/TBownessLITGLAma

Pre-order the digital album and immediately get the single ‘You Wanted To Be Seen’:
iTunes: http://smarturl.it/TBownessLITGLiTunes
AmazonMP3: http://smarturl.it/TBownessLITGLAmaMP3

Tim Bowness To Release New album, Lost In The Ghost Light, In February

tim-bowness-lost-in-the-ghost-light

Tim Bowness will release his fourth solo album, ‘Lost In The Ghost Light’, through InsideOut on February 17.

A concept album revolving around the onstage and backstage reflections of a fictional classic rock musician in the twilight of his career. Ranging from the hypnotic opener Worlds Of Yesterday to the wistful climax of Distant Summers, via the thrilling rage of Kill The Pain That’s Killing You and the orchestral expanse of You’ll Be The Silence, the album features some stunning solos and harmonically rich compositions that represent Bowness’s most musically ambitious work to date.

Bowness utilises a core band comprising Stephen Bennett (Henry Fool), Colin Edwin (Porcupine Tree), Bruce Soord (The Pineapple Thief), Hux Nettermalm (Paatos) and Andrew Booker (Sanguine Hum), and is also joined by guests including Kit Watkins (Happy The Man/Camel), Steve Bingham (No-Man) and the legendary Ian Anderson (Jethro Tull). Andrew Keeling (Robert Fripp/Hilliard Ensemble/Evelyn Glennie) arranges for string quartet and flute on three of the album’s songs.

When I spoke to Tim about the new album a month or so ago,  he said,

“The new album’s just been finished. We’re looking at a mid-February release. In some ways, it is quite a departure. There are lots of flutes on it and due to the nature of ‘the concept’, it’s definitely the most traditionally Progressive album I’ve made. That said, it still sounds a lot like me.”

The album is now available to pre-order from Burning Shed, including an exclusive hand numbered gold vinyl LP + CD limited to 400 copies. All orders will receive a signed artwork postcard.