It was 2014 when the tireless musician/composer/producer Steven Wilson stated that he will quit Blackfield. He is after all the man you probably has less free time than the president of the USA. After all he composed music only for their two first records, leaving for the next two the co-founder Aviv Geffen as sole composer because he was focusing on his solo albums that made the prog community speechless.
Fortunately, his statement proved untrue, he came back and composed with Geffen and the result after almost 18 months of recording is the 5th album of Blackfield. The recordings took place in England and Israel, with the two musicians sharing guitar parts, vocals and most of the keyboards. Also, the London Sessions Orchestra contributed with string arrangements. The production is a work of Wilson and Geffen, while the legendary Alan Parsons also produced three tracks. The music is in the known style of the band. Soft, atmospheric and sometimes melancholic, makes the 45 minutes of its duration flow easily. After listening to it two or three times, the melodies will stick in your brain and you will find yourself singing the lyrics of wonderful songs such as “We’ll Never Be Apart”, “Life Is An Ocean”, “Undercover Heart”, “Lonely Soul” with the female vocals and the melancholic “From 44 to 48” that closes the album.
In the end, is “Blackfield V” better that the two previous albums? Sure it is, as Geffen didn’t make the best work as sole composer. Is it better than the two first? Probably not, but it is a very good album. It’s not strange that many people believe that the earth will stop spinning when Wilson releases a bad album.
