★★★★
It may surprise some that David Sylvian released any music after leaving Virgin, let alone enough over a decade on his own label for this lavish 10CD set. Having secured his freedom, however, Japan’s former singer frequently pursued the path least trodden, retreating from TOTP’s bright lights into the avant-garde.
Still, Sylvian understood what he was doing, and Blemish from 2003 was only released physically after online sales advocated wider availability. Sylvian’s distinctive voice remains velveteen on this cathartic document of his marriage breakup, but its dense melodies hover over amorphous soundscapes and trip over broken musical skeletons.