Needle Time

  No-Man - Heaven Taste [PUU-43 FIN 2016 24-Bit 176.4kHz FLAC] No-Man were an arty ambient trip-hop ensemble assembled by multi-instrumentalist Steven Wilson and vocalist Tim Bowness, backed by former Japan members Mick Karn, Steve Jansen and Richard Barbieri, accompanied by violinist Ben Coleman. A twenty-one minute version of their dreamscape piece Heaven Taste first appeared on their Painting Paradise EP , released on One Little Indian Records back in 1993. In 2016, Wilson remixed and edited the track exclusively for unusually named Finnish label Puu Records, with an additional remix by Finnish composer Lassi Lehto using his Jimi Tenor alter-ego. For me, it is all about Karn's virtuoso fretless bass and Barbieri's unique style of electronic soundscapes, some of which from this track were to find their way onto Porcupine Tree's extensive floydian opus  The Sky Moves Sideways in 1994 . A1 Heaven Taste (Original Mix Edit By Steven Wilson) B1 Heaven Taste (Remix B...

  No-Man - Love You To Bits [CAROL 020LPS UK 2019 24-Bit FLAC] No-Man have been around for years, their first recordings were in 1986 when they hid behind the moniker, No Man Is An Island (Except The Isle Of Man) before a credible art-pop career on One Little Indian Records, culminating with a few albums of highly sentimental atmospheric rock. Now regarded these days as a Steven Wilson side project, releases are few and far between, however I for one cannot get enough of the Tim Bowness voice. Love You To Bits is quite remarkable, essentially two long works of ambient electronic disco fusion (the sleeve is the clue here), this album goes way beyond anything either member has gone before in their collective and solo releases. Rock heads need to check out the guitar break from around 5:55. There was also a three and a half minute digital-only single release with also featured a thirteen minute ambient work, Love You To Shreds which might well be hiding in the archive . A1 L...

No-Man - Days In The Trees [57 TP 12 UK 1991 24-Bit FLAC] One of most requested ESWA blogposts gets a very limited re-up for all those who missed it first time around. The Tim Bowness voice is just pure bliss on this dreamy trip-hop classic. No-Man did eventually steer toward art-rock after this release but managed to take most of their audience with them, and also onto Steven Wilson's subsequent projects, of which there were quite a few.. A1 Mahler A2 Ives B1 Bartok B2 Reich

No-Man - Colours [PP 27T UK 1990 24-Bit FLAC] Welcome to the phenomenon of Donovan... History will cause many to reflect differently on No-Man, especially given any misplaced idea that they are/were Steven Wilson's art-rock alternative to his more progressive & experimental rock work. Love him or hate him, if you take a more open mind and listen to No-Man as they were originally conceived back in the late eighties/early nineties, an arty trip-hop pop trio with equal shares, you may likely appreciate these early singles more. Tim Bowness has an amazing voice, Wilson is a very skilled multi-instrumentalist and Ben Coleman's violin is sublime. In the early No-Man live shows, the band was expanded to include messrs Jansen, Barbieri and Karn, former members of glam-pop band Japan. There is a huge back catelogue of No-Man to uncover but I will keep clear of them here as it may well attract undue attentions. The excellent Flowermouth cd is a worthwhile place to start f...