ROBERT WYATT - Comicopera

Wyatt's ability to walk a very thin line between timeless pop and artful divergence is a masterful gift; one made more spectacular by his unassuming way with that gift. This music shrugs its shoulders and finds the quiet corner in the room. It takes a certain amount of initiative to even get a conversation going, and once you begin talking, things don't come easily either. As its title suggests, Comicopera balances in close proximity images of humour and touching commitment with plainly brutal isolation. You can't often truly call an album brave and beautiful, but that's a distinction this record earns.