No-Man are a band that seem to lie outside of the traditional genre norms.
Each of the 7 full length albums seem to show off a different side of the partnership between singer/songwriter Tim Bowness and multi-instrumentalists Steven Wilson, dabbling into the realms of ambient pop, electronica, post-rock, trip-hop and art rock. No two album sounds the same, yet familiar threads in both lyrics and in composition unite every recording.
Producing a cinematic Art Rock music with diverse influences drawn from Dream Pop, Prog Rock, Post-Rock, Mimimalism, Electronica/Ambient, and Chamber Jazz, no-man is a British band formed out of the creative partnership of Tim Bowness and Steven Wilson, who met and began writing together in the Summer of 1987.
http://no-man.co.uk/biography/
Initially a trio featuring violinist Ben Coleman, the name no-man was first used on the self-released June 1990 single Colours (later reissued on cult Liverpool label Probe Plus), which was awarded Single Of The Week in Melody Maker, Sounds and Channel Four teletext, and led to the band being signed to publisher Hit And Run and One Little Indian Records.
Since 1990, on labels such as One Little Indian, Sony/Epic 440, Adasam and Kscope no-man has so far produced six studio albums, two live albums and a number of singles / outtakes collections, most notably 2006’s career retrospective, All The Blue Changes.
Over the years the band has worked with Robert Fripp, Ian Carr (Nucleus), Mel Collins, Pat Mastelotto, Bruce Kaphan (American Music Club), Colin Edwin, Gavin Harrison, Theo Travis, the trio of Jansen, Barbieri & Karn (ex Japan / Rain Tree Crow) and others.
The scope of this blog will include all of No-Man’s studio releases, information about the band as a touring entity and interviews with collaborators. No-Man related songs will also be covered.
I’ve always enjoyed a fertile artistic connection with Tim. We’ve been working together on and off now for most of our adult lives. There have never been any boundaries imposed on what we might enthusiastically attempt, ever since the first writing session in 1987. There is always a lot of joy when we wort together, perhaps in contrast to the predominantly serious and melancholic music that comes from our efforts. These are the collaborations I enjoy the most – when there’s nothing you can suggest to the other person that will make them look at you like you’ve lost your mind.
– Steven Wilson
All The Blue Changes 