Wilderness (Brett Anderson album)

Background

There is minimal use of instrumentation, with only a piano, strings, an occasional acoustic guitar and voice for each track on the record, which Anderson found really exciting, saying: "I wanted to write a beautiful suite of poignant songs. I literally went away to a studio and sat by a piano in an introspective and insular way. It's my most personal record in that it's made almost exclusively by me."

Anderson is keen to make the live shows of Wilderness symbolise an intimate affair. "The live shows will be very minimalist with just a myself and a cello player on stage."

Wilderness was recorded in only seven days, with most tracks recorded as live takes. Fans who bought tickets for Anderson's performance at London's Mermaid Theatre on 7 July received a copy of the album on USB stick format, though the album didn't receive a general release until September.

The cover photograph is by Allan Jenkins.

Reception

Critical reaction to the album was mixed, scoring 46/100 at aggregator website Metacritic. Sam Wolfson of The Guardian was unimpressed, saying that "Anderson had reached a creative menopause." Rick Martin of NME wrote: "Most depressing of all is that Brett Anderson, once one of Britain’s most beguiling indie-pop stars, has become this irrelevant." Andy Gill of The Independent was also negative, saying: "this slim suite of melancholy reveries should polish off what remains of Anderson's fanbase." He did, however have kind words for the single "Back to You", calling it a "half-decent song" and his pick of the album.

AllMusic were more favourable, awarding the album four out of five stars, writing: "For those who are still paying attention, it's actually quite nice to hear Anderson reconnecting to that initial spark while finding ways to experiment. It may not make him a star again, but Wilderness does find Brett Anderson creatively revitalized." Also awarding the album four stars from five, MusicOMH wrote: "Wilderness is a slow burner, a gentle and fragile album stripped of the raw emotion of earlier Anderson efforts but no worse for that."

Despite the mixed reviews, Anderson remains optimistic about the record, which is why he takes such pride in releasing Wilderness on his own label. Anderson has stressed this is for purely artistic reasons rather than commercial ambition.

Track listing

1. "A Different Place" – 4:12
2. "The Empress" – 3:39
3. "Clowns" – 3:03
4. "Chinese Whispers" – 3:21
5. "Blessed" – 4:41
6. "Funeral Mantra" – 2:57
7. "Back to You" Feat. Emmanuelle Seigner – 3:14
8. "Knife Edge" – 3:02
9. "P. Marius" – 4:37
10. "Symmetry" – 2:40 (iTunes Bonus Track)

Personnel

Credits adapted from Wilderness liner notes.