Blackfield
Live In NYC (dvd)

 "No way. Blackfield is about sadness and loneliness." This was the response of Aviv Geffen, an Israeli musician and singer-songwriter (as popular in his country as Vasco Rossi might be in ours) to an interviewer who asked if Blackfield would ever release a cheerful song. But let's take a step back, who are Blackfield? For those unfamiliar with the thoughts, words, works, and omissions of Steven Wilson, the tireless porcupine with the tentacles of an octopus, "Blackfield" is one of the numerous side projects led by the aforementioned leader of Porcupine Tree, shared precisely with Aviv Geffen, unknown (at least until his recruitment into the group) to the vast majority of the semi-cultured Western music universe. What strikes me is the determination and consistency with which he supports the artistic path undertaken with Wilson.

The conceptual scenario of Blackfield is sad, much like watching a slender tree surrender to the blows of the wind and lose its leaves in the middle of autumn, or like the image of a man who, during his slow and solitary walk on a cold winter afternoon, marks his steps by kicking a can with resignation. Most importantly, it is the product of constant reflection on the impossibility of redeeming oneself from the miseries to which the human being is daily destined from every point of view, be it political, social, or personal. To tell the truth, the lyrics are not particularly sophisticated, but perhaps it's precisely that touch of obviousness, that feeling of being able to identify with each song, of feeling our gray, desolate, and predictable stories shared in just over 3 minutes, that recreates a sort of indispensable, empathetic participation. And the music, which has little to do with the complex prog articulations to which Steven Wilson has accustomed us, is nothing but a velvet carpet on which lie very refined, yet disarming in their simplicity, pop suggestions, attributable to Wilson's melodic elegance and Geffen's intimate singer-songwriter style.

As proof of how seriously they take the project, in 2007 they recorded "Blackfield - Live In NYC", a DVD that synthesizes the brief (so far) career of the duo, and which, far from being a useless pseudo-greatest hits, deserves to be considered for the live rendition of many tracks that gain new vitality where in the studio they were sometimes penalized by a muffled, almost sterile production. The vocal harmonies, one of the strengths of the group's musical structure, benefit as well, and the overall interpretation is certainly more passionate compared to the record. Particularly winning in comparison with the albums are "Once", perhaps the most energetic of the lot, the gentle "1000 People", "Miss You", "Someday"  and "Open Mind". A cut above the rest are also the performances of "Blackfield", "The Hole In Me", "Epidemic", and an emotional piano and voice cover of "Thank You" (Alanis Morissette). There are really few flaws; to be truly critical, at some points Aviv Geffen's performances (certainly not a nightingale) are far from impeccable, yet he deserves credit for having written the majority of Blackfield's songs (contrary to what is believed about the relevance of Steven Wilson's contribution, many tracks were already present in Geffen's Hebrew albums).

Sometimes, there's no better medicine than music. A "placebo" to be exact, and Blackfield is what I currently use most often. When I feel a bit down, I listen to them, and I immediately feel better; probably the sadness remains, but at that moment, I am happy to feel sad.