Mark Hollis: A Perfect Silence

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The book is available in two distinct editions, both featuring a cover design created by long-time Talk Talk collaborator James Marsh. During the years of Hollis’ withdrawal something significant happened: Talk Talk’s critical reputation was re-evaluated. Later on, legendary independent record label 4AD tried to convince Hollis into recording again, on his terms, but ultimately Hollis was in a world and time of his own.

After retirement Hollis lived quietly with his wife Felicity Costello (“Flick”) and their two sons in Wimbledon, declining all interviews, releasing no more records. Finance is provided by PayPal Credit (a trading name of PayPal UK Ltd, Whittaker House, Whittaker Avenue, Richmond-Upon-Thames, Surrey, United Kingdom, TW9 1EH).Uneasy with his fame and fiercely private, the post-rock pioneer left behind a musical legacy of extraordinary beauty. Talk Talk may be the visionary sound of one extraordinary mind, but it came about through collective effort – the sounds didn’t come from Hollis, and Hollis couldn’t create it alone. Tracing Mark Hollis's life from earliest beginnings through his formative years, author Ben Wardle offers genuine insight into the creative forces which helped shape the sound and songs recorded by Talk Talk. In the first in-depth biography of the Talk Talk leader, author and music industry insider Ben Wardle has interviewed scores of Mark Hollis’ friends, musicians, collaborators and record company executives.

The Green Transition Weekly analysis of the shift to a new economy from the New Statesman's Spotlight on Policy team. The transformation of this band over a relative few albums is unrivalled in terms of how much the sound and direction changed.Mark Hollis was always something of an enigmatic, reclusive figure right up to his untimely passing in 2019, but boy did he produce some great music once he hit his stride. Using only acoustic instrumentation and recorded with just two microphones, the album is an exercise in how low you can go without amplification, how subtle you can play and sing. An extremely good read though, and surely as close to the final word on this subject as we’re ever going to get. Talk Talk would push their methods to radical heights to achieve this sonic and spiritual ascension. Talking of Talk Talk, I notice that they have started to release the original singles onto digital / streaming / hi-res platforms – Mirror Man / Strike Up The Band came out in Feb and Talk Talk / ?

For the first time A Perfect Silence explains the realities and explodes the myths surrounding Hollis and Talk Talk's career, and in doing so reveals the working patterns, sense of humour and desire for privacy of the man himself.Today, beyond the records, beyond the music, the rest is silence – or at least that is how Mark Hollis would have wished it, and his wife and sons seem determined to honour his legacy by saying nothing and keeping the door to the walled garden firmly locked. To the mockery of his many detractors in the music press Hollis, in early interviews, likened Talk Talk to a jazz band in ambition and approach.