History Music / DavidSylvian

* EpicRocking: ''There's a Light That Enters Houses with No Other House in Sight'' consists of a single hour-long track.

* ProtestSong: Both "World Citizen -- I Won't Be Disappointed" and "World Citizen" are commentaries on the state of the world in 2004, with the former specifically focusing on pollution and the latter focusing on government corruption and societal apathy.

*** ''Gone to Earth'' shortens the intro to "Before the Bullfight" and adds in remixes of "River Man", the TitleTrack, and "Camp Fire: Coyote Country".

* ''Approaching Silence'' (1999; compilation of previously issued soundscapes for art shows)

* NewSoundAlbum: All of them, but the two that are particularly worth mentioning are the Japan album ''Quiet Life'', in which he shows off his deeper voice, ballad and Asian influences for the first time; his solo debut ''Brilliant Trees'', where he expressed his full sonic vision for the first time; and the solo album ''Blemish'', which began his current experimental career.

* ReCut: The 2022 reissue of the 2010 collaborations compilation ''Sleepwalkers'' drops "Ballad of a Deadman" and "Playground Martyrs" while adding "World Citizen", "Do You Know Me Now?", and "Modern Interior".

* CoverVersion: With Japan, he covered "Don't Rain on My Parade" by Music/BarbraStreisand, [[Music/TheVelvetUndergroundAndNico "All Tomorrow's Parties"]] by Music/TheVelvetUnderground, "I Second That Emotion" by Music/TheMiracles and "Ain't That Peculiar" by Music/MarvinGaye. Early on, the band often performed a cover of Music/TheRollingStones' "Doo Doo Doo Doo Doo (Heartbreaker)" live and recorded an unreleased studio demo of it, as well as recorded unreleased cover versions of Velvet Underground's "Venus in Furs," Music/BobMarley and the Wailers' "I Shot the Sheriff," Music/TheIsleyBrothers' "This Old Heart of Mine," and an unreleased Music/{{Chic}} cover believed to be "Le Freak."

* PopStarComposer: Sylvian spent a lot of time in the 1980s scoring art shows, films and dance pieces that he was also involved in.
* RearrangeTheSong: The single release of "Red Guitar" included an orchestral re-recording of the Music/RyuichiSakamoto collaboration [[Film/MerryChristmasMrLawrence "Forbidden Colours"]] as a B-side; it would later be featured on the original CD release of ''Secrets of the Beehive'' and on the GreatestHitsAlbum ''A Victim of Stars: 1982-2012''.

* TakeThat: When a then-career-spanning box set called ''Weatherbox'' was put out, Creator/VirginRecords demanded for a new hit single to go with it. He came up with "Pop Song," which consists of a unconventional mallet-on-piano-strings bass part, no drums, and a synthesizer set on flute that is flying across the keyboard with two open palms.

* CoverVersion: With Japan, he covered "Don't Rain on My Parade" by Music/BarbraStreisand, "All Tomorrow's Parties" by Music/VelvetUnderground, "I Second That Emotion" by Music/TheMiracles and "Ain't That Peculiar" by Music/MarvinGaye. Early on, the band often performed a cover of Music/TheRollingStones' "Doo Doo Doo Doo Doo (Heartbreaker)" live and recorded an unreleased studio demo of it, as well as recorded unreleased cover versions of Velvet Underground's "Venus in Furs," Music/BobMarley and the Wailers' "I Shot the Sheriff," Music/TheIsleyBrothers' "This Old Heart of Mine," and an unreleased Music/{{Chic}} cover believed to be "Le Freak."

* EarlyInstallmentWeirdness: The first two Japan albums, and to an extent ''Quiet Life'', feature David using a rather different vocal style to his later smoother work. Also, the first album ''Adolescent Sex'' is very guitar and synth heavy, with lyrics predominantly about dancing and comparing relationships to political events (something that was very popular in glam rock). Sylvian's appearance was rather different then, with long dyed blond hair and makeup (the other members of Japan had similar styles, because Sylvian wanted to make the group stand out.)

* RearrangeTheSong: The original CD release of ''Secrets of the Beehive'' included an orchestral re-recording of the Music/RyuichiSakamoto collaboration [[Film/MerryChristmasMrLawrence "Forbidden Colours"]]; it would later be featured on the GreatestHitsAlbum ''A Victim of Stars: 1982-2012''.

* VariantCover: Reissues of his early albums have had completely new covers due to the original artwork being lost.

* FollowTheLeader: Sylvian himself was heavily inspired by the Music/NewYorkDolls, Music/DavidBowie and Roxy Music. Asian and jazz influences influenced him more and more as he went on. His detractors constantly mention the Roxy Music influence. Music/DuranDuran were heavily inspired by Japan and are often considered to be their spiritual successors. The band were recording their self titled debut near where Japan were recording ''Gentlemen Take Polaroids'', and rumour has it that the Duran boys chose that studio just so they could meet Japan.

David Sylvian (born David Alan Batt, 23 February 1958) is an [[UsefulNotes/{{Britain}} English]] musician who may be best known for appearing in the NewRomantic / GlamRock band Music/{{Japan}} in the late '70s to the early '80s. After inner tensions between band members led to a falling out, Sylvian pursued a solo career, crafting music that was more mature and artsier than his previous work. He has since gained a respectable cult following. Sylvian has also dabbled in poetry, visual art and photography. He has been photographed by Creator/AntonCorbijn (who also produced some of his music videos), and has collaborated with [[Music/YellowMagicOrchestra Ryuichi Sakamoto]] (more closely in his solo material) and with Music/KingCrimson guitarist Robert Fripp (their efforts combined produced two albums in the early to mid '90s). Sylvian was married to Music/{{Prince}} protégé Music/IngridChavez from 1992 until 2003. Throughout his career, both in Japan and solo, he has relied on his brother Steve Jansen (né Stephen Batt) as a percussionist.

His solo works represent an artistic evolution, as Sylvian proceeded to dispose of the flamboyancy, get a hair cut, and adopt more [[BaroqueMusic Baroque]], Chamber and {{Jazz}} influences that slowly began to resemble the latter-day, sophisticated Art Pop works of artists like Music/PeterGabriel or Music/TalkTalk (with a little bit of Avalon-era Music/RoxyMusic thrown in for good measure.) This is particularly present in 1984's ''Brilliant Trees''; but he took an even more stripped-down approach in 1987's ''Secrets of the Beehive'', which extracted the electronics from that album and the soundscapey ''Alchemy'' and ''Gone to Earth'' and replaced them with lush string, violin and piano arrangements. After some experimental collaborations and a twelve year (!) wait, he made a solo comeback in 1999 in the form of ''Dead Bees on a Cake,'' which took a slightly darker, more {{Ambient}} and adult contemporary approach to his classic pop leanings. His sound palette would mutate again with 2003's ''Blemish'', which removed everything but his harmonized voice, avant garde guitar playing and glitching electronic drones; this new style would be mined and expanded on Sylvian's subsequent albums.

David Sylvian (born David Alan Batt, 23 February 1958) is an [[UsefulNotes/{{Britain}} English]] musician who may be best known for appearing in the NewRomantic / GlamRock band Music/{{Japan}} in the late '70s to the early '80s. After inner tensions between band members led to a falling out, Sylvian pursued a solo career, crafting music that was more mature and artsier than his previous work. He has since gained a respectable cult following. Sylvian has also dabbled in poetry, visual art and photography. He has been photographed by Creator/AntonCorbijn (who also produced some of his music videos), and has collaborated with [[Music/YellowMagicOrchestra Ryuichi Sakamoto]] (more closely in his solo material) and with Music/KingCrimson guitarist Robert Fripp (their efforts combined produced two albums in the early to mid '90s). Sylvian was married to Music/{{Prince}} protégé Music/IngridChavez from 1992 until 2003. Throughout his career, both in Japan and solo, he has relied on his brother Steve Jansen (née Stephen Batt) as a percussionist.

* BiTheWay: David mentioned in the '80s that he had slept with men as well as women, but he didn't have much interest in sex. Many thought he was gay when he would wear makeup in Japan's early days, so this doesn't come as much of a surprise.

David Sylvian (born David Alan Batt, 23 February 1958) is an [[UsefulNotes/{{Britain}} English]] musician who may be best known for appearing in the NewRomantic / GlamRock band Music/{{Japan}} in the late '70s to the early '80s. After a bit of a falling out with his band following some inner tension between members (some of which was reconciled with a reunion under a different name in 1991 in the form of ''Rain Tree Crow''), he pursued a solo career, crafting music that was more mature and artsier than his previous work, which has since gained a respectable cult following. Sylvian has also dabbled in poetry, visual art and photography. He has been photographed by Creator/AntonCorbijn (who also produced some of his music videos), and has collaborated with [[Music/YellowMagicOrchestra Ryuichi Sakamoto]] (more closely in his solo material) and with Music/KingCrimson guitarist Robert Fripp (their efforts combined produced two albums in the early to mid '90s). Sylvian was married to Music/{{Prince}} protégé Music/IngridChavez from 1992 until 2003.

His solo works represent an artistic "evolution" (if you will,) as Sylvian proceeded to dispose of the flamboyancy, get a hair cut, and adopt more [[BaroqueMusic Baroque]], Chamber and {{Jazz}} influences that slowly began to resemble the latter-day, sophisticated Art Pop works of artists like Music/PeterGabriel or Music/TalkTalk (with a little bit of Avalon-era Music/RoxyMusic thrown in for good measure.) This is particularly present in 1984's Brilliant Trees; but he took an even more stripped-down approach in 1987's ''Secrets of the Beehive'', which extracted the electronics from that album and the soundscapey "Gone to Earth," and replaced them with lush string, violin and piano arrangements. After some collaborations and a twelve year (!) wait, he made a solo comeback in 1999 in the form of ''Dead Bees on a Cake,'' which took a slightly darker, more {{Ambient}} approach to his classic pop leanings.

David takes a very serious, crafty approach to music, but it's always all-around artsy. He's also known for being a bit of... [[ReclusiveArtist a hermit]]. Don't expect him to come out of hiding unless it's for something important.

* ''Alchemy: An Index of Possibilities'' (1985)

* FollowTheLeader: Sylvian himself was heavily inspired by the Music/NewYorkDolls, Music/DavidBowie and Roxy Music. Asian and jazz influences influenced him more and more as he went on. His detractors constantly mention the Roxy Music influence. Music/DuranDuran were heavily inspired by Japan and are often considered to be their spiritual successors. The band were recording their self titled debut near where Japan were recording ''Gentlemen Take Polaroids'', and rumour has it that they chose that studio just so they could meet the band.
* ForeignCultureFetish: He went in for Japanese culture in a big way, appropriately enough for someone in a band named Music/{{Japan}}. He frequently collaborated with Music/RyuichiSakamoto and was in a relationship with a Japanese photographer named Yuka Fujii, who shot many of his cover photos.
* NewSoundAlbum: All of them, but the two that are particularly worth mentioning are the Japan album ''Quiet Life'', in which he shows off his deeper voice, ballad and Asian influences for the first time, and the solo album ''Blemish'', which began his current experimental career.

* TakeThat: When a then-career-spanning box set called ''Weatherbox'' was put out, Creator/VirginRecords demanded for a new hit single to go with it. He came up with "Pop Song," which consists of a unconventional mallet-on-piano-strings bass part, and a synthesizer set on flute that is flying across the keyboard with two open palms.

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/polaroids_sylvian_smash84_3023.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350: Suave.]]

* ForeignCultureFetish: He went in for Japanese culture in a big way, appropriately enough for someone in a band named Music/{{Japan}}. He frequently collaborated with [[Music/YellowMagicOrchestra Ryuichi Sakamoto]] and was in a relationship with a Japanese photographer named Yuka Fujii, who shot many of his cover photos.

* DistinctDoubleAlbum: The first disc of ''Gone to Earth'' is comprised of vocal pieces and the second is entirely instrumental.

David takes a very serious, crafty approach to music, but it's always all-around artsy. He's also known for being a bit of... a hermit. Don't expect him to come out of hiding unless it's for something important.

* ForeignCultureFetish: He went in for Japanese culture in a big way, appropriately enough for someone in a band named Music/{{Japan}}. He frequently collaborated with [[Music/MagicYellowOrchestra Ryuichi Sakamoto]] and was in a relationship with a Japanese photographer named Yuka Fujii, who shot many of his cover photos.