David Sylvian: Brilliant Trees (Virgin)

ANY WHO expect David Sylvian's sheaf of essays to present wafery, neutral music must be confounded by the diversity and strength of Brilliant Trees. This pale young man is fascinating partly through his duplicit position – boychild for the poster popsheets, soulful guru for tenderfoot philosophers – but this crafting of sound is sophisticated and ambitious enough to close down most of this year's pop.