Invention of Knowledge
Invention of Knowledge is a studio album by Anderson/Stolt, a musical collaboration formed by singer-songwriters and musicians Jon Anderson and Roine Stolt. It was released on 24 June 2016 by InsideOutMusic. The project originated in 2014 after Anderson had performed with Stolt on a progressive rock-themed cruise, and the two decided to record an album. The recording process involved Anderson recording ideas in demo form in California and sending them online to Stolt in Sweden, who would develop music based on them. Invention of Knowledge was recorded in Sweden by several musicians, including Tom Brislin, Daniel Gildenlöw, and members of Stolt's band The Flower Kings. Invention of Knowledge received some positive reviews from critics. It charted in several countries, and reached number 58 on the UK Albums Chart. Anderson and Stolt discussed the idea of performing the album live on tour, but no tour for the album was mounted. As of 2023, the collaboration between the two artists appears to have concluded and no further releases are planned. Background Anderson is an English singer-songwriter and musician, formerly of the progressive rock band Yes, and Stolt is a Swedish guitarist and songwriter of The Flower Kings and Transatlantic. Stolt's record company owner, Thomas Waber of InsideOutMusic, a German independent record label, suggested that he work with Anderson roughly "four or five years ago", but it did not materialise. Stolt was a fan of Yes music, and Anderson had been one of his long time favourite musicians. The two first met in February 2014 when Anderson performed at Progressive Nation at Sea, a progressive rock-themed cruise voyage, with Stolt and members of Transatlantic as Anderson's backing band performing several Yes songs. The following day, Waber talked to Stolt and felt it was the right time to collaborate with Anderson. Said Stolt, "So it just went from there." Around a month after the cruise, InsideOutMusic got in touch with Anderson with the proposal of a "progressive rock type of project" with Stolt and financed by the label. Both musicians then agreed to collaborate and record an album; Stolt recalled a formal contract was not ironed out until around "six or seven months" into the project when the two felt they had a substantial amount of good material. "After a couple of weeks, of months, you could see that this could actually be something", said Stolt, and signed, with Anderson, a two-album record deal. Writing and recording In the summer of 2014, Anderson and Stolt began writing and recording Invention of Knowledge on an "off and on" basis, a process that lasted for around eighteen months. Both would take time away to work on other projects, and resume work on the album fresh. Following their initial meeting on the cruise, Anderson only met Stolt once more in Los Angeles for a promotional photo shoot for the album. He added: "We spoke over the phone a bit, but we knew what we wanted without speaking about it". Anderson had a particular interest to produce "long-form