V for Vendetta - David J

"Warm & meandering, each track stamping its own identity on the mind, the music's structure is pared down to basics ... David J has secured an individual, if confusing talent." - MELODY MAKER

"Not actually a David J solo album but a fascinating collaborative effort ... the prose for the entire piece comes from past collaborator and longtime Bauhaus/David J supporter and friend Alan Moore. Known predominantly for his inventive, striking comic book work in such classics of the form as V for Vendetta and Watchmen, here he creates an extended, mysterious narrative, half rumination and half invocation ... a striking artistic achievement." - ALL MUSIC GUIDE

Bauhaus' David J teamed with V for Vendetta creator and fellow Northampton, UK hipster Alan Moore in 1983 to write a "soundtrack" to Moore's graphic novel V for Vendetta. At turns dark and atmospheric, then edgy and thrilling, this EP is the perfect sonic partner to Moore's futuristic tale. From David J's notes: "In 1983 my friend Alan Moore approached me with the intriguing idea of composing some music to go with a set of his lyrics which would comprise the entire text to an episode of his serialized graphic novel, V for Vendetta. The story was an Orwellian vision of a dystopian near future set in a tyrannized England - the hero V being a mysterious vigilante with a certain vaudevillian bent. When the lyrics dropped in my letterbox, I immediately opened them up, sat down at the piano and played the song through. It was a magical moment; the music came to me in a flow. The original demo is included here and was recorded a couple of days following the song's composition. Later on, I made a more fully realized recording incorporating strings expertly arranged by Bill Thorpe. This track, "V's Theme," and "Incidental" were released as a 12" EP on Glass Records in 1984. The "Overture" was realized by Ego Plum in 2005, the same year that he and I collaborated on "Song from the Kitty Kat Keller." Also included in this package are Alan Moore's original typed lyrics, with my notation, and his letter of instruction, as well as a letter from David Lloyd, the artist who drew the strip." ... (more) (less)

David J