Fear Of A Blank Planet

Okay, I'm a huge Porcupine Tree fan, and I love everything that they've released but please don't let that fool you into thinking that this isn't something special. This release sees the band continue their heavier direction that first made an appearance in In-Absentia. It also sees the band return to a heavier emphasis on the atmospheres that made Signify so great and while its a far cry from the psychedelia of their earliest work, it carries a similar vibe. Of the many times I've listened to this album, I've come to realise that there are no wasted notes. Every single piece of this album is simply incredible and serves a purpose. The artwork hints at the content within, just as much as the lyrics carry the message... "Out at the train tracks I dream of escape But a song comes onto my iPod And I realize it's getting late I can't take the staring and the sympathy And I don't like the questions "How do you feel?" "How's it going in school?" ... "Do you wanna talk about it?..." The musicianship is really second to none yet the song writing is tasteful (no over-long guitar solos here!). Steven Wilson certainly knows the importance and value of good song structure and flow. While the album's centrepiece is 17 minutes in length, it feels perhaps a little under 10 minutes. Honestly, this track makes long car journeys fly by! I could go on and on, but suffice to say that I cant find anything to fault in this album. Alongside Deadwing, this is perhaps my favourite Porcupine Tree album but really, they are all fantastic. I know Porcupine Tree have been grouped within the Prog-Rock category, but their work is far more accessible than 90% of artists working within the genre and without sacrificing any talent or bowing to radio or media wishes. I believe anyone who is looking to find proof that good modern rock music still exists today will be more than satisfied with this album.

For such a widely praised band, Porcupine Tree and its presiding genius Steven Wilson are still something of a well-kept secret. Their music is so good, often stunning, that I just want to tell everyone I meet about them. I came very late to PT & SW, so I've had a lot of catching up to do, a task that's been all pleasure and no pain. After the glorious peak of In Absentia, I assumed anything else might be a bit of a letdown. Not at all. This themed album of just six songs - with none of them under five minutes long, the lengthiest being the 18-minute tour de force Anaesthetize, a tremendous track - is as powerful and as compelling as anything I've heard by the band. (I have the single-disc version, rather than the special edition, by the way.) What is so striking about all the PT/SW releases is their superb production, as well as Wilson's passionate vocals and the astounding drumming of Gavin Harrison, who is not afraid to bash his kit all over the shop like the virtuoso percussionist he obviously is, rather than simply keeping the beat like many rock drummers. He adds such a lot to their overall sound. The aforementioned Anaesthetize is a standout track but, like all PT albums, it's the cumulative effect that gets you in the end. There are a few moments of bathos, but most of the time this is vintage Tree, and I can't believe that Steven Wilson hasn't been given the keys to the kingdom by now. I love this band. They give 'prog rock' a very good name!

This was the first album I heard from this band or of any Steven Wilson project. Following up on a recommendation from my son shortly after the release of this album, I checked it out, and for me the rest is history in that I now have the bulk of PT music, all SW solo albums and some No-man music as well. Going back to this album the centre piece is the 17 minute “Anesthetise” A superb track where all band members play their part, the drumming is sublime and really gives this track a lot of substance, guitar at its emotional best, whilst the bass holds it all together and the sounds of the keyboards add to the whole. The album works well with varied and shifting dynamics from quiet song structures to crunching metal – yet always retaining melody.

The more I listen to this group, the better it gets! I am a late disciple but am quickly snapping up their work when the opportunity arises (their CDs are SO expensive). For me this might not as good as my other' In Absentia' or 'Deadwing' but it still purrs with intrigue and musical virtuosity with getting arty. Plus Steven Wilson manages to get Alex Lifeson AND Robert Fripp to record with the band! I don't want to single out individual tracks as I feel their music works best in the context of the album (now who's getting arty?!) but this is sublime, as are the aforementioned albums. It's a distillation of much that I admire in this genre and surpasses the inane pap that spews out from the radio or the formulaic tabloid darlings who can't play or sing but capture the look of the mass produced zeitgeist. Sorry - venting my spleen about the talentless no hopers again. More PT on the radio, please! Fantastic album covers too - where can I get the t-shirts?

I listened to this in the Car, not your Car, my Car (Actually it was my Dads but he knew i'd borrowed it). I thought it was a thoroughly nice album with lots of Guitars & Bass & a little light percussion to boot. It seems these Days that no one observes the protocols in Libraries - Bickering & arguing with their Mums on their Mobiles - Is that a Blank Planet & what i'm afriad of, I'd have to say...NO. Do all yourselves a favour & give this CD a listen. Porcupine Tree are a truly memorable, flexible & above all else stimulating experience and as always, don't take it too seriously. PS - A word to the wise - Never ever ever ever laugh out loud whilst writing an allegedly humorous review or the Blonde opposite will exercise both her perogotive & neurosis simultaneously.

El álbum, noveno en la discografía de estudio de Porcupine Tree, grabado en 2007 y ahora magníficamente reeditado en Formato Digipack en 2012, con libreto incluído, por el sello KSCOPE significó el retorno de la Banda a la senda del Rock Experimental, Progresivo si se nos antoja calificarlo como tal, sustancialmente. La temática del disco, obra conceptual compuesta por Wilson casi en su totalidad, aborda un tema que por desgracia es común entre los adolescentes en el siglo XXI, los problemas Neuroconductuales, tales como el Trastorno Bipolar y el Déficit de Atención, el abuso de psicofármacos y la alienación social, temas con los que Wilson establece un compromiso total ya desde el principio, bastando como muestra la mirada del adolescente de la portada para darnos cuenta de ello. La Formación para este trabajo está compuesta por el propio Wilson a la Voz, Guitarra, Piano y Teclados, Richard Barbieri a los Teclados y Sintetizadores, Colin Edwin al Bajo y Gavin Harrison a la Batería. Y como colaboradores Alex Lifeson a la Guitarra en el tema "Anesthetize" y Robert Fripp con sus Soundscapes en "Way Out of Here", aportando su genial e inconfundible sello, único. Además el disco cuenta con Arreglos de Cuerda llevados a cabo por la London Session Orchestra bajo la dirección de Dave Stewart. Y con ello encontramos quizás el mejor trabajo del Grupo, que se muestra contundente, cohesionado en su conjunto, ofreciendo pasajes sonoros a veces melódicos y otros contundentes, con tonalidades y atmósferas propias de las Grandes Bandas de los 70'S, y que por momentos nos recuerdan a los propios King Crimson ( Fripp está presente) u otras grandes Bandas, destacando igualmente la Voz de Wilson, más madura, nostágica, melancólica, y siempre muy a la altura de lo que demanda el concepto del disco, cuyas mezclas y grabación final es excelente. En resumen, es un álbum muy recomendable.

No problems just the time it too k to get to me!

As I stated in the review I made about PT's "Sky moves sideways", I have been a very loyal fan of this band since the mid nineties, due to what I understand is the revitalization of progressive-psychodelic sound in rock music drawing upon early and mid seventies Pink Floyd and "Krautrock" sound, as well as the contemporary electronic-ambient music, achieved by PT since their album "Signify" onwards. "Fear of a blank planet" restate in a contemporary progressive sound a subject that, although already treated in the past -youth alienation produced by their relationship with the media (even they did so indirectly in the album "Stupid Dream")- hits home with a fresh rendition by PT. The fact that Porcupine Tree gets the contribution of musicians of the stature of Rush's Alex Lifeson and Robert Fripp shows the respect that the band enjoys among the best of the progressive rock community. Steven Wilson and partners prove again their artistry with long, atmospheric and structured long songs, with a bit of structured improvisation and metal indulgences in the piece "Anesthetize", which runs for 17 minutes, although as a whole this is one of their shorter and more compact album, because it does not run for more than 51 minutes!!! And again they prove to masters of nuance, time changes, alternation between hard noise and soft ballad singing. As other reviewers have said, here we have a band in a perfect commmand of a complex and diverse vocabulary of music as well as a good deal of instrumental technique: great guitars and keyboards performances as well as excellent percussion, drumming and bass guitar support. Porcupine Tree in fact has done all the should be done to be credited as an excellent band. Having said that I must express a worry. Where will PT go from this stage on? Many of the PT's fans, me included, are not precisely "blank of a fear" that Porcupine Tree is very closed to the point in which it tends to repeat itself, because no substantive progress is perceived from the former album, "Deadwing", to "Fear of a blank planet". It is probably necessary for Porcupine Tree to just begin to "mess all this over", to drop their current comfort in what they are doing (and do very well) and begin to experiment again, because that sense of "experiment", of opening new fields of musical innovation, is lacking in their two last productions. I have the feeling of being very far away of the sense of wonder I experienced with "Signify" and "In Absentia". In spite of that, I give 5 points to this album, in the name of their excellence, of the perfect performance, and the mastery of their material and instruments. But I will be waiting for more next time.

Neues Output von von PT. Und, ist es diesmal haerter geworden? Nein. Und, ist es eher mit den neueren Alben vergleichbar? Oder mit den alten? Hm, ich wuerde sagen sowohl mit den neusten 2 OUtputs, als auch mit Sachen wie 'Stupid Dream' und 'Signify'. Nach 'In Absentia' wurden die Tracks immer laenger. 18 Minuten dauert hier das laengste Stueck. Toll wie Porcupine Tree nie stagnieren, sondern mit jedenm Output wieder Abweschlung hineinbringen. Auch hier entwickeln sie ihren Soundkosmos, wenn auch nicht betraechtlich, weiter. Gleich der Opener fetzt schon richtig. Spannend und treibend gehts los mit einer losgeloesten, solierenden Akkustigitarre, dessen Melodie von harten Riffs aufgegriffen wird, ehe Wilson mit schnellem Gesang einsetzt. Wie man es von PT gewohnt ist, entspannt sich das Stueck im weiteren Verlauf auch mal. Das Tempo wird gedrosselt, es wird einen Gang zurueckgeschaltet. 'My Ashes' ist eine gelungene, traurige, von Akkustikgitarre und Piano dominierte Ballade. Am Ende gibt es (Keyboard?-)Streicher zu hoeren. Dann kommt mit dem Longtrack 'Anesthetize' ein echtes Highlight. Keine schwebendes Intro mit Keyboards, sondern gleich gleich pulsierene Baesse und Gitarren, sowie polternde Drums. Der nach modernerem Rock klingende Gesang setzt ein. Spannung wird aufgebaut, und es kommt zwischendurch zu kleineren Ausbruechen. Bei Minute vier ist Solo vom Rush-Gitarristen Alex Lifeson zu hoeren. Es folgen Gitarrenriffs, die ab Minute sechs noch haerter werden. Schoen, wie dauernd der Stereoeffekt ausgenutzt wird. Toll auch der akzentuierte Bass. Die Keyboards beliben immer sehr verhalten im Hintergrund, erzeugen aber genau die passende Klangkulisse. Ab Minute sieben aendert sich der Gesang, der durch Effektgeraete gejagt wird. Es folgt so etwas wie ein Refrain. Die Riffs bleiben hart, der Bass spielt weiter seine akzentuierten Laeufe fortsetzt. Ab Minute neun werden die Riffs sehr melodisch, einfach toll diese abhackte Spielweise. Bei Minute zehn treten dann mal die Synthies in den Vordergrund, der Hoerer wird richtig in diesen Sog reingezogen, es folgen wieder die melodischen, abgehakten Riffs auf der E-Gitarre. Ab Minute elf Kracht es nur noch. Alles wummert. Der haerteste Part, den PT je gespielt haben. Danach setzt wieder der Refrain ein. Die letzten sechs Minuten sind sehr ruhig. Mystische, Signify-artige Keys setzen ein. Dazu elektronische Effekte, sowie eine unverzerrte E-Gitarre. 'Water so Warm' singt Wilson mit seiner schoenen, ruhigen Stimme. Seine Gesangsspuren werden dabei uebereinandergelegt. Zum SChluss gibt es natuerlich noch das obligatorische Gitarrensolo und wieder duestere Synthies. Insgesamt besteht der Song aus drei Parts. Dem spannenden, pulsierenden Anfang, den rifflastigen Refrain-Mittelteil, sowie dem ruhigem, psychedelischen Ende. Top Leistung! Diese wird vom folgenden 'Sentimental' sogar noch ueberboten! Eine wunderbare, schwer melancholische, pianolastige Ballade. Toll wie diese Gitarreneffekte ganze Walls auf Sounds erzeugen. Der Gesang ist ueberagend! Der Song uebertrifft das aehnliche 'Lazarus' vom Vorgaenger nochmal deutlich. Gehoert zum Besten was PT je gemacht haben. Leider klingt das Ende stark nach 'Trains'. Warum zur Hoelle kopieren sich Porcupine Tree an dieser Stelle nur selber??? Das anfangs ruhige, und sich spaeter entladende 'Way Out Out Of Here' ist ebenfalls stark gemacht. Wie der Wilson einen mit seinem Gesang wieder mitreissen kann...'Sleep Together' beginnt mit bedrohlichen Soundeffekten und etwas seltsamem, ruhigem Gesang, dann bricht das Stueck wieder im lauterem Refrain aus. Dazu treten Keyboardstreicher, anschliessend rueckt der Bass mehr in den Vordergrund, und die Keyboardstreicher mischen sich immer mehr ein. Gut nach der Haelfte dominieren wieder Soundeffekte und zusaetzlich noch E-Piano. Das Ende gehoert dann wieder den immer hymnischeren Keyboardstreichern. Einer der seltsamsten und ungewoenlichsten Tracks von PT. Dann ist es aber nach 50 Minuten schon vorbei. Schade eigentlich. Nach 'Up The Downstairs' ist 'Fear Of A Blank Planet' das kuerzeste regulaere Album der Band. Zehn Minuten laenger haetten sie eigentlich noch gekonnt. Unterm Schnitt wieder eine grosse Leistung. Ich bin mal gespannt, was wir in Zukunft von Porcupine Tree noch erwarten koennen...

Je ne veux pas parler uniquement de cet album mais de tout ce que Porcupine tree (groupe) ou S. Wilson "solo" a pu créer. Depuis que j'ai découvert SW, moins d'un an, j'ai acheté 10 albums. On découvre au fil des écoutes des influences multiples allant de Yes à Genesis en passant par K. Crimson, mais aussi Jethro Tull, Tangerine Dream et tant d'autres et plus les écoutes se multiplient, plus on reconnait une nouvelle influence qu'on avait pas encore décelée, ceci tout en restant à la fois inventif, créatif et original. Il n'y a rien à jeter, c'est gai et pétillant, métal ou mélodique, triste ou mélancolique, obsédant, tribal, c'est quoi qu'il en soit toujours surprenant et addictif. Saturé ou limpide et cristallin c'est toujours très construit et virtuose, une ambiance s'installe dans des morceaux qui font souvent de 5 à 10 mn voire plus. SW vous transporte vous envoûte, vous surprend, on se laisse emporter et on en redemande, les 10 albums se succèdent sur ma platine CD, bientôt un 11e. Ils laissent peu de place aux autres CD de ma discothèque pourtant très fournie. Il faudra bien que j'en sorte un jour pour réécouter les Zappa, les Camel, les Bruford, les Brand X, les Gong et autres Stanley Clark et Al di Meola, Mahavisnu... ... Vous avez sans doute compris que si vous ne connaissez pas SW + Porcupine tree et que vous aimez les groupes ou musiciens que je viens de citer (entre tant d'autres) dans ce petit texte, allez y, ne vous privez pas, vous ne pouvez pas être déçus, moi je veux écouter, posséder tous ses albums car la musique de SW me fait dire, dans l'enthousiasme, parfois dans la douleur, qu'il y a sans doute quelque chose de bon dans l'homme, ce quelque chose doit être l'art. A découvrir et/ou écouter sans modération. L'album qui m'a mis le pied à l'étrier : Hand Cannot Erase...