the group went into the studio in late 1992 to document the material they had written together.In July of 1993, Sylvian startled many of his long-term fans by teaming with Fripp on the album ''The First Day'', which married Sylvian's philosophical lyrics to funk workouts and hard-driving progressive rock songs very much in the mold of King Crimson. The group went back out on the road to promote the album in the fall of 93. Sylvian, Fripp and Gunn were joined by infinite guitarist Michael Brook and ex-Mister Mister drummer Pat Mastelotto for The Road To Graceland Tour. A subsequent live recording, titled ''Damage'' and released in 1994, was culled from the final show on the tour. Fripp, Gunn and Mastelotto went on to work in the reformed King Crimson that Fripp had originally wished for Sylvian to front.In an art space, called P3 (P3 Art and Environment), located in the basement of a modern Zen temple, called Tochoji, in Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo, Fripp and Sylvian collaborated on an exhibition called "David Sylvian and Robert Fripp: Redemption – Approaching Silence". The sound installation featured projected images and text in a dimly room, illuminated only by candles. The music was available as a cassette-only version. The exhibition ran from August 30, 1994 to September 18, 1994, P3, Tokyo, Japan. Music was composed by David Sylvian, with words by Robert Fripp.In the late summer of 1995, Sylvian undertook a one-man solo tour of which he named "Slow Fire - a personal retrospective". Performing alone on stage with an acoustic guitar or playing piano, Sylvian drew largely upon his first three solo albums for song selection. He also included a few rearrangements from the more recent excursions with Rain Tree Crow and Robert Fripp, as well as a few new pieces that were never to be recorded in the studio. The tour marked the end of a highly productive four years.
Everything And Nothing
A period of relative musical inactivity followed, during which time Sylvian and Chavez settled in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and later in New Hampshire. Prior, they lived for sometime in Sonoma, California to be close to their guru. They have two daughters, each with Sanskrit names. Chavez pursued her interest in photography and music. During this time, Sylvian and Chavez recorded material for a possible Chavez solo work that was never formally released. In 1999, Sylvian released ''Dead Bees on a Cake'', his first solo album since ''Beehive''. It showed the most eclectic influence of all his recordings, ranging from soul music to jazz fusion to Eastern spiritual chants, and most of the songs' lyrics reflected the now over-40 Sylvian's inner peace from his marriage, family and beliefs. Guest artists included longtime friend Ryuichi Sakamoto, as well as Talvin Singh, Marc Ribot, Kenny Wheeler and Bill Frisell.Following ''Dead Bees'', Sylvian released a few compilations through Virgin, the two disc retrospective ''Everything & Nothing'' and ''Camphor'', which was a collection of select instrumental tracks. An effort to promote "Everything and Nothing" found Sylvian touring the world with a band that included his brother back on drums, Tim Young on guitar, Keith Lowe on bass, and Matt Cooper on keyboards. The US leg was shortened due to poor ticket sales.Samadhi Sound
David Sylvian in performance with his brother Steve Jansen.]]Sylvian then parted ways with Virgin (for whom he had never exactly been a chart-topper) and launched his own independent label, Samadhi Sound. The first proposed project was a collaboration between he and his brother and work was begun with bassist Keith Lowe at the conclusion of the Everything And Nothing Tour in the fall of 2002.During a break in the proceedings, Sylvian experimented alone with his guitar and computer. The results were recorded during February of 2003. A few months later, he released the album ''blemish''. The disc was shockingly stark in its sound and content. The subject matter dealt primarily with the impending dissolution of Sylvian's marriage. With the collaborative effort now put on the backburner due to the strong reception for the new disc, Sylvian and Jansen headed out to promote blemish with Masakatsu Takagi for their A Fire In The Forest Tour in 2003 and 2004.Yuka Fujii and Sylvian collaborated again in 2004, participating in a group exhibition called Minus One, curated by Atsuhide Ito and Noriko Tanaka and in the atmospheric Aldwych Underground Station, Strand, London. In empty phone boxes Fujii provided digital photographs and Sylvian the accompanying texts. The exhibition took place 28 & 29 January 2004, 14:00–20:00, 30 January 2004, 14:00–18:00.''The Good Son vs. The Only Daughter'', an album of remixes of tracks from ''blemish'', came out in 2005.With the conclusion of A Fire In The Forest Tour, work had begun again in 2004 on the joint project between Sylvian and Jansen. Contributors included past collaborators Ryuichi Sakamoto and Robert Fripp. But the course of the album took on a completely new tone after Sylvian's decision to add keyboardist/vibraphonist/remixer Burnt Friedman to the proceedings and make him an equal partner in the collaboration. The band name of Nine Horses was taken and the cd, titled ''Snow Borne Sorrow'', was released in October of 2005. The sound was a return to more traditional avenues for Sylvian after the radical departure he took with ''blemish''. Elements of avant guarde jazz, pop, folk and electronica were all successfully blended together, creating a sound that seemed like a logical path for Sylvian to follow.
