No-Man – Dry Cleaning Ray

Track List:
1. Dry Cleaning Ray (remix edit) (2.56)
2. Sweetside Silver Night (4.02)
3. Jack the Sax (4.17)
4. Diet Mothers (4.56)
5. Urban Disco (3.17)
6. Punished for being Born (2.18)
7. Kightlinger (2.44)
8. Evelyn (Song of Slurs) (4.04)
9. Sicknote (8.57)


About the Artists:
As No-Man is an Island, Tim Bowness (b. Warrington, England) vocals/lyrics, met multi-instrumentalist Steve Wilson, guitar/bass/keys programming/mixing etc., through an avid interest in all kinds of music. Cross breeding is a particular forte, for example, it is not uncommon to hear a dance beat, a violin and a sprawling guitar solo on the same track. Influences range from Arvo Part to Talk Talk. For a time the duo were complimented by violinist Ben Coleman. Although several minor releases came in the mid-late eighties, it's really in 1990 the no-man catalogue begins with a cover of Donovan's "Colours." Next was the "Days in the Trees," now long since deleted, this remains one of no-man's most memorable recordings. In 1992 the band found themselves playing live shows with ex-Japan maestros Steve Jansen, Richard Barbieri and Mick Karn, who also guest on much of no-man's output beginning with 1993 debut Loveblows and Lovecries. For their second album, 1994 masterpiece Flowermouth, help was also enlisted in the form of Robert Fripp, his old colleague Mel Collins and jazz musician Ian Carr. A remix edition entitled Flowermix was issued the following year, featuring a stunning ten minute re-working of "You Grow More Beautiful," re-titled "Faith in You." More experimental was their next outing Wild Opera (1996) with titles such as ep Housewives Hooked on Heroin, Infant Phenomenon (seemingly a cousin to David Sylvian and Fripp's Darshan). The band were obviously not concerned with the realm of commercial activity, however, the album did contain moments that were more 'radio friendly', notably standout track "My Revenge on Seattle." Wild Opera also spawned an off-shoot semi-album, Dry Cleaning Ray. At present, both members have persued their various side projects: Porcupine Tree/Bass Communion - Wilson, Darkroom - Bowness (he also recorded excellent album Flame, with Richard Barbieri and World of Bright Futures with Samuel Smiles). Wilson has recently been engaged in production activities with Fish and his former colleages Marrilion, but these projects all lend to clogging up the progress of no-man; apart from the 1999 ep Carolina Skeletons and the reissue of late 80s work Speak, their forthcoming album has been just that for 3 years. Nonetheless this duo is far from done yet and the new year should see more from the band, as yet unheard by many deserving ears. Housewives Hooked on Heroin followed in mid-2000; Returning Jesus appeared a year later. ~Kevin Hayes (AMG)


About the album:


An album-length semi-catchall of outtakes and remixes of Wild Opera tracks, Dry Cleaning Ray delivers value for money due to its classification as an EP, but the worth is more than simply financial. The title track itself is a new mix of the Wild Opera cut, its at once moody and inspirational feeling a fine demonstration of the Bowness/Wilson partnership, helped along further by the intriguing keyboard part Wilson adds to the proceedings. "Diet Mothers" is a more radical reconstruction, Wilson taking "Pretty Genius" and revamping it into a slow, slinky trip-hop crawl, Bowness' keening vocal deep in the mix behind dub echo guitars and a wailing melodica. The other remix of note comes from an unexpected source -- Bryn Jones, aka Muslimgauze, whose avant-garde combination of aggressive electronics, dub, and hip-hop had won a fan in Wilson. Created inadvertently when Wilson gave Jones a copy of Wild Opera's "Housewives Hooked on Heroin," "Punished for Being Born" highlights Jones' trademark brutal aural collage in a fascinating pulverization of the original. The remaining new tracks are an engaging bunch, continuing on from Wild Opera's general atmosphere with various side explorations as the EP goes. "Sweetside Silver Night" is another classic of No-Man mystery and romance, flute and jazzy guitar mixing with the crisp, low-key drive of the song as a whole, while the breakbeat rumble of "Urban Disco" calls to mind the brutal hip-hop punch of early No-Man cuts. The abbreviated blasts of electric guitar at points nicely contrast the sudden, calm keyboard parts. Quieter songs crop up: "Jack the Sax" relies mostly on acoustic guitar backed at points with extra feedback while Bowness' singing is treated with echo, while "Kightlinger" -- described in the liner notes as being recorded very late one night -- feels like a tribute to the Cocteau Twins' cascading, beautiful guitar wash. ~ Neg Raggett (AMG)