Tilt

Performer: Scott Walker
Distributor: Fontana Distribution

Notes: Perhaps not even Scott Walker truly understands this record, which isn't to say that it it's not one of the most ambitious and ultimately rewarding musical experiences of the last few years; it's just that exactly what Walker was thinking when he made TILT remains a mystery to this day. Even Brian Eno, a huge Walker fan and no stranger to the avant-garde, apparently had to walk away from the sessions early on in the recording. Longtime Scott Walker fans shouldn't expect either the Brechtian song-stories of his solo material, or his Spector-influenced work with The Walker Brothers. TILT is the sound of a man swallowed whole by the music industry. Unidentifiable noises pop in and out of the mix as Walker's voice, a beautiful baritone almost unequaled in pop, floats ethereally around, at times seemingly diving deep into an undersea echo chamber. The lyrics are more haiku than iambic pentameter and those expecting a chorus (much less a verse), will be severely disappointed. Whatever TILT is, it's unlike anything you have ever heard.

Rolling Stone (10/16/97, p.111) - 3.5 Stars (out of 5) - "...obtuse, sepulchral music that...matches the ambient extremity of Aphex Twin and the queasy claustrophobia of Tricky....a chilling, often magnificent view into the abyss from a true iconoclast." Spin (10/97, pp.142-143) - 8 (out of 10) - "...An unprecedented mix of industrial noise, shambling tone poetry, and lilting orchestration, TILT...is a picaresque that turns on suggestive character studies of condemned crusaders and exiles....Walker's unearthly voice has never sounded so resourceful..." Vibe (10/97, p.162) - "...On most of TILT, Walker deliberately short circuits the awesome virtuosity of his voice...by singing in a cooler, more neutral style..." Mojo (Publisher) (p.50) - Ranked #31 in Mojo's "The 50 Most Out There Albums Of All Time" - "[A] journey into evil and despair."

Noel Scott Engel, better known as Scott Walker, was born in the US, but found fame in the UK as a member of the Walker Brothers, who became teen pop idols in England in the 1960s. After the group's demise, Walker's darker, artier side eventually came to the fore, and he began a quirky solo career that encompassed Jacques Brel covers, moody, saloon-singer crooning, and avant-garde tendencies. He became the quintessential cult figure, inscrutable and highly influential, though after the '70s his works were few and far between.

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