Talk Talk Announce Mark Hollis Tribute Concert

Rob Verhorst/Redferns

Talk Talk Announce Mark Hollis Tribute Concert

Rob Verhorst/Redferns

Back in February, Mark Hollis, former frontman of the great UK trio Talk Talk, died after a battle with an as-yet-unrevealed illness. Hollis was 64, and he’d spent most of his later years out of the public eye, even as Talk Talk’s legend grew. The synthpop experimentalists had broken up in 1991, and they never reunited. But later this year, Hollis’ former bandmates will reunite for a tribute concert in London.

The tribute show, billed as “A Celebration Of Talk Talk And Mark Hollis,” is coming to London’s Royal Festival Hall 11/26. According to the venue’s website, it’ll feature “original members of the band.” Presumably, that means bassist Paul Webb and drummer Lee Harris, the only other official Talk Talk members. (Founding keyboardist Simon Brenner left Talk Talk in 1983, two years after their formation. Producer Tim Friese-Greene co-wrote songs with Hollis and played keyboards on later records, but he never officially joined the band.)

The show will also feature special guests, none of whom have been announced yet. It’s tough to imagine anyone hitting high notes in the ways that Mark Hollis could. But Hollis certainly had a great many admirers across the musical spectrum, and it’ll be interesting to see who shows up to salute Hollis and how they choose to do it. Talk Talk’s music was always adventurous, and some far-out interpretations certainly seems possible. All the official info on the show is here, and you can read Stereogum’s tribute to Hollis here.

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