Heartland

good point, Kai kind of looks like an anime girl

"Andrew is besotted with Kai"

Yeah, he definitely inspires him to recognize and improve parts long neglected. However, this had not been possible without Davey re-editing all the old Doktor's recipes, without Chris having other commitments in 2019 forcing Von to look beyond the well-worn trails of his outworn secluded environments and have Dylan join the band (nothing all so new considering Chris Sheehan was a New Zealander for example, but hell how long ago was that?) and even without Dylan getting lost last year and ... without Ben introducing these great musicians to the band and suggest Kai this time... ...

Beyond that, we all know how.long. Si, Chris and Ben and large parts of the fanbase have tried to open Von's eyes to new developments and the chances that have always been there to create some more great stuff. But hell, sometimes it takes more than a step and a day to break down walls ... fair enough though, The Sisters have always improved and refreshed their act from tour to tour in exciting, suprising and astonishing ways... ... With Kai now and Ben and Chris, they look so strong and with wide and fresh and extended horizons and deserts before them to explore, can't but wish them all well ... ...

Hope he can bring new tunes to the band.

It's about how they work as a mix. Diamond Black songs with Ben in charge aren't for me. Esprit d' air similar.

A bit of magic Von sprinkles then who knows...? Fingers crossed.

Being645 wrote: ↑13 Jun 2024, 13:21...forcing Von to look beyond the well-worn trails of his outworn secluded environments and have Dylan join the band (nothing all so new considering Chris Sheehan was a New Zealander for example, but hell how long ago was that?...

Wouldn't read too much into the nationalities of these fellas. They were both living locally to Von, one way or another, when invited to join. There have been quite a few indications over the years that the practicalities and logistics of joining the band are honestly one of the key determining factors for Eldritch

I think the guy just likes interesting people (ties into his oft-repeated quote that "everyone should want to be part of something bigger than themselves" imo), and people who make sense logistically (anyone else get the feeling Ben wasn't entirely kidding when he said that Dylan's owning a particular vehicle was one factor in Von's decision to hire him?).

I'm still no fan of any of Kai's other output, but the same is true of Ben, for me - and he and I share quite similar musical tastes. I thought it would be a bit weird having someone in the Sisters whose background was, not to put too fine a point on it, a bit more overtly "g*th", but all a Sister really ever needs to do is bring some sort of influence to bear on the band; the closest thing to a, ahem, m*****n statement or consistent theme across all iterations of the Sisters Of Mercy is that it changes its shape according to its membership. Kai opens up the options for quite a lot of songs, so has definitely achieved that... still not sure I want them to actually write any Sisters songs though.

ruffers wrote: ↑13 Jun 2024, 19:46 It's about how they work as a mix. Diamond Black songs with Ben in charge aren't for me. Esprit d' air similar.

A bit of magic Von sprinkles then who knows...? Fingers crossed.

the word that Brother Paul is looking for is 'Gestalt' -something being more than the sum of its constituent parts.
It's like good & bad sex - its down to the chemistry between ALL of the participants, not the 'skills' (snort) of any one individual... i assume it is any way. been that long ive forgotten what to do..

New Zealander here. Trust me, looking at his previous work with The Exponents or The Muttonbirds (both eminently mainstream rock), you would have never thought Chris Sheehan would be Sisters material. And Yet.