Alternative Weekend: Porcupine Tree (Closure // Continuation) , and other things...
I noticed the new Porcupine Tree album (Closure // Continuation) has dropped to number 54 in the UK album charts after just one week at number 2.
It's hardly a surprise. All the fans who had been waiting for Closure // Continuation have likely bought it now (or ripped it off from somewhere).
Source
Some time ago I forwarded 'Time Flies' to @steddyman who told me he got bored. I think some are mentally attuned to the 4 minutes pop song and don't get something with a length of 11 or 12 minutes.
After listening to the new album repeatedly I can honestly say they are back again, and it’s up to the quality of their older stuff.
I found Closure // Continuation lacking filler tracks, which is something I can't say of the older albums.
What is perceived of the metal era, that is ‘In Absentia’, ‘Deadwing’, ‘Fear of a Blank Planet’ and ‘The Incident’ there are songs I skip on all.
Closure // Continuation is consistent. I like them all even if none are killer tracks.
While browsing around YouTube this morning I found the band had gotten around to releasing the FULL version of 'Time Flies', all 11 minutes including the building, brooding, dark section that starts around 4 minutes in and contains a guitar solo that always makes me reach for the air guitar.
Why did I never learn to play this instrument? As well as hurting your fingers I barely got past basic chords.
I have noticed a whole load of these reaction videos uploaded to YouTube. It's where someone shows their reaction to music, presumably on the first listen.
I don't believe for a second it's really their first listen. If I were doing this, I would be harnessing a blank expression as I rarely get it on first listen.
I am quite disappointed that the band has not yet released the full version of 'Fear of a Blank Planet. The live version is full but lacks the intensity of the studio version.
I have heard this song far too many times now, but can't ignore the power it wields. Those heavy riffs, poignant lyrics, and that dominant keyboard from halfway through the song are what make it.
As for the new album, I did ask Steven personally when I met him in April 2022 if they were going to hold any gigs outside London.
The answer was negative and he asked me to visit the capital to see Porcupine Tree. The tickets may well be sold out by now, but I am not discounting it.
Dignity stands out as one of the better and more accessible songs on Closure // Continuation, if not one of the heaviest, and is suitably long at over 8 minutes.
I mentioned to @steevc that the extra songs are fantastic and it’s a crime to have left them off the standard version of the album.
I guess the Japanese version will include them, doesn’t it always happen?
Why leave off 'Population Three'? Could it be that due to it being an instrumental it did not make the cut?
There's a section in the song around 5:10 that contains some crazy screeching guitar that rocks my boat. I am sure @detlev would approve.
When it comes to progressive thoughtful tracks, possibly Chimera's Wreck. It boasts of great possibilities with that brooding start, has lots of potential but falls slightly short of epic-ness. I love the new album but a killer track would have made it a classic.
...and for all the smart-arses out there... yes, I know it's not weekend and this is 'Alternative Weekend' but as it's my community I can write when I like....
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I’m sometimes a little slow on the uptake, just searched on Pandora and found that they have a Porcupine Tree station.
You guys are lucky. The are touring to all your cities and yet London is the only gig here. I could hardly tell him off!
Pandora, I had never heard of it, and likely will never see it either.
Stupid copyright laws and music licensing. Pandora was the first music streaming service I used, and I liked the way I could curate music on a station I made, and it would discover new obscure things I might like over time.
Haha I have friends who are fans of this band. It seems anyone who likes them are progressive listeners. Either you like them or have not heard them.
Good pick old friend!
Airdrop! ;)
Good to hear from you again, and even better that you actually know people who have heard of the band. Besides @steevc I know nobody personally who does.
Is that a bad thing? Possibly not, I wouldn't want them to turn into another Biffy Clyro.
I will have to see if it is available on Spotify and check it out. I have listened to some of their other stuff after you talked about it. I can't really remember which ones. I think there were a few songs that I enjoyed. Thanks for sharing this. Wow! A rare photo of you!
LOL, that's the quota for this year. I don't think I'm going to Amsterdam, so none there. Too bloody expensive.
Sorry to hear that. I guess I don't feel as bad that I am not going to make it.
I'm still getting into it, but I have some of the songs going around in my head. Reading his autobiography where he says some interesting stuff about how PT ended.
Always a good sign, I remember listening to 'Hail to the Thief - Radiohead' years ago.., and have that happen to me. An incredibly tough album to crack (for me!).
Make me want to read, I like multi-tasking these days, and reading isn't that. Listening in the car is.
I listened to the first linked song, and while I tend to prefer something leaning more toward classical or metal for that length, it does sound like a well-constructed piece of music with distinct movements and themes, good songwriting, and probably a damn good live gig if you can catch one.
The London gig may be the last ever chance I get to see them. I have seen Steven Wilson twice perform solo. The band are a different breed and have been split for the last 12 years.
look at you getting down with the kids 😂
That's what I look like climbing through windows 😄
Steven Wilson is 54 years old and defies age. That's is what you get for being a veggie, not smoking and marrying very late in life.
🤣 boy he is one rock monster!!!!!