Blackfield

Open Mind: The Best Of Blackfield

Steven Wilson and Aviv Geffen’s golden slumbers.

Bringing new juice to the old adage that a whole is often greater than the the sum of its parts, Steven Wilson and Aviv Geffen’s on-and-off musical partnership has now been going for more than 10 years. Wilson, a demigod in the prog world (and headed towards the mainstream, given the pop leanings of his latest album) and Geffen (who once swivelled around in his giant red chair in the Israeli version of The Voice) understand how a pop tune works and what someone like Brian Wilson might have done with current production values given the chance.

Little wonder, then, with such heady musical pedigrees gadding about, that this collection is a glistening, lush listen, drenched with melody, gloomy undertones and the kind of sparkle that almost makes you want to shade your eyes. Reflective and very pretty, it’s especially good in songs like Family Man, How Was Your Ride? and the ever darkening End Of The World.