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Talk Talk Talk - All about the band from the 80's....

The story of an unusual musical group...

Biography and artwork of the band Talk Talk

Talk Talk is a British rock band whose leader and hitmaker is Mark Hollis. After his departure, most of the audience turned away from the band's work, because it had a completely new musical character. Now the new tribute album "Spirit of Talk Talk" has its own musical legacy.

"When Talk Talk is mentioned, people's reactions are mixed. Some people may sluggishly say: "What, that band from the 80s?", while others may declare with genuine enthusiasm: "Their albums are some of my favourites!".

Joan Wasser (singer):

"They really were a confusing group."

The confusing, mysterious and elusive (at least until recently) musical journey of Talk Talk, originating in synth-pop singles and culminating in the post-rock genre, has left a highly contradictory legacy. The constant change in their style over the course of a decade can be traced by comparing uplifting hit singles such as "Today", "Talk Talk Talk" and "Life's What You Make It" to the final albums Spirit of Eden and Laughing Stock. You can see with the naked eye that their path has gradually bogged down in some offshoots.

First-hand accounts of the band and their work

It took several decades for their music to become an asset to the music culture. Joan Wasser is one of the 30 musicians who contributed to Spirit of Talk Talk, a double album tribute. It was created by former Depeche Mode keyboardist Alan Wilder and Talk Talk fan, designer and entrepreneur Toby Benjamin. Popular musical figures such as Linton Kwesi Johnson, King Creosote, White Lies and Peter Broderick have also contributed, which can be appreciated by the variety of musical effects in dubstep, folk, industrial, electronica and jazz styles.

Talk Talk Group
Talk Talk Group

"Even though the album already represents every stage of the band's evolution - we wanted to show that with a subtle and sensitive arrangement, the catalogue justifies its serious impact," says Wilder.

"What I think has been unusual about Talk Talk's career is that they've experienced it in reverse. You can't help but notice the direct correlation between increased quality and decreased popularity. I hope that this work can revive the proper influence of the last two records of this band."

Just these two final works - Spirit of Eden and Laughing Stock, which the band managed to reveal to the world before disappearing into oblivion without a trace, are shrouded in mystery that has not been revealed to this day. The people involved in their recording have steadfastly refused to comment. Talk Talk founder and vocalist Mark Hollis himself left the music business in the early 2000s and is not in contact with the media, while his co-writer and producer Tim Free-Green has politely but firmly declined interviews with the lyrics:

"I don't want to talk about Talk Talk. It was a long time ago."

Ex-band members Harris and Webb have also observed a vow of silence.

Phil Brown is more outspoken. He designed Spirit of Eden and recalls:

"An infinitely darkened studio, an oil projector in the control room, strobe lighting and five 24-track tape recorders synchronised together. For eight months, 12 hours a day I spent in total darkness, listening to the same six songs day in and day out. It was a pretty intense period in my life."

When asked whether Hollis is a slightly weirdo genius or a regular person, Brown replies:

"He's stubborn but determined and he also has a good sense of humour. In some ways he really is a genius, but their work was cohesive and they were one big and talented team."

From left to right: Lee Harris, Paul Webb and Mark Hollis
From left to right: Lee Harris, Paul Webb and Mark Hollis

The result is an album of six improvised pieces whose unhurried rhythm takes you into a hazy space and time. The singles harmoniously combine pastoral jazz, modern classical, folk, prog-rock and languid blues. All this made the record non-commercial, which caused a veritable fit of frenzy with the record label. Electric & Music Industries director Nigel Reeve, currently the main point of contact for anything involving the Hollis name, said:

"This record was the apogee of nervousness and miscommunication. There was no hit single, which naturally affected sales."

The band subsequently broke with EMI to make the equally uncompromising Laughing Stock for Polydor. Both albums sold poorly and were largely overlooked. Slowly but surely they did find their audience afterwards.

The uncomplicated magic of Talk Talk

"What is it that makes this strange music so appealing? I think it's the uncompromising nature of it," says Fife's Dangerfield.

"On the one hand, it's slow and quite relaxed, but on the other hand, there's something abrasive about it. In their style in general, it's hard to grasp the connection with the outside world that we're used to.

Like a puzzle that no one can solve, late-period Talk Talk Talk stubbornly refuses to reveal secrets, and is therefore open to interpretation. Dangerfield sees English motifs in Talk Talk's music, and Wasser's music is filled with thoughts of New Orleans.

"Hollis's voice is extraordinary. You can't say it's wildly beautiful, but when you listen to it, it's strangely addictive. Hollis recreates a devastating and passionate tone," says White Lies backing vocalist Charles Cave.

Talk Talk Group
Talk Talk Group

The processing of these unusual amorphous songs presents a number of problems even to the experienced musician.

"You have to see atmosphere as just as much a part of the track as melody and lyrics taken together," says Dangerfield. - At the end of the day, it was about interpreting that feeling."

"King Creosote wanted to pick a song that I could somehow make sound true. Then Toby Benjamin ironically muttered that some fans regarded the idea of a cover album as 'sacrilege'."

The band's influence on modern music is palpable, but hard to measure.

"Judging by the feedback and the general level of interest from everyone who wanted to be involved, their impact is huge," says Wilder, who suggests that the artists are not so much attracted to the sound as to the sensibility itself. "They were cavalier in their playing and thus appealed to musicians who are passionate about their craft but find themselves distracted from their vision by outside influences, 'imposed canons' so to speak."

Hollis' aversion to image-building and further promotion worked against the band at the time, but now it has become an asset, fuelling the ideal myth of the artist who achieved everything he wanted and then walked away.

"Although Hollis decided not to play a part in the project - we got a message from him wishing us luck and admitting that he enjoyed the Matthias Vogt Trio's version of the 5th of April, but that was it," says Wilder. And states, "As I listen to each musical treatment, I try to think like Hollis to see if he would enjoy what I'm hearing now. I'm not particularly sure Mark takes the time to listen to the work, though. He usually listens for 30 seconds to see if he likes it or if he wants to switch it off."

Talk Talk Group
Talk Talk Group

After suing EMI for the unauthorised release of the 1991 remix album History Revisited, the relationship between Hollis and the label became warmer. They worked together on a reunion for the new album Talk Talk.

"Mark comes to our office every few months. We have a coffee and talk about football. He's a Spurs fan. The reason he left doesn't bother him now, it has nothing to do with his current reality. He's living a normal life, like he changed jobs. Nothing is going to make Mark record a new song, I guess. Always when we touch the subject, he says: I did it, I got where I wanted to go. Full stop. And then finally the rest of the world catches up...".

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