John Cale has always been a musician of the times, helping to usher in titanic shifts in sound and culture.

Co-founder of Velvet Underground and highly acclaimed pianist and composer in his own right. His willingness to experiment and constantly explore new styles ensures that his music remains vital.

The bleeding edge drones of his Sun Blindness Music opened the path to The Velvet Underground, while the frantic rock of Fear and Slow Dazzle – not to mention his production with Patti Smith and the Stooges – framed a half-century of punk, post-punk and art-rock. And his curiosity about the way electronics could be more than a gimmick in rock music served as an inspiration to an uncountable number of crucial scenes.

POPtical Illusion is Cale’s first solo album in seven years. An exploration of synthesisers and samples, organs and pianos, it journeys through the turmoil of the last few years, while – in Cale’s classic style – turning to the future.

“As POPtical Illusion proves... Cale still has a great deal to say”
4 rating
MOJO