Steven Wilson - great musician or old man yelling at cloud

[Axver]

Bumping the Porcupine Tree thread gives the false impression there's actually news about the band, so let's have a separate thread for Steven Wilson's solo stuff - especially since solo career definitely seems to be his main path now. This interview contains a comment that's depressing for those of us who want more Porcupine Tree: Steven Wilson: Hiding in Plain Sight Review | Under the Radar - Music Magazine

But it is frustrating sometimes that I have to explain to them, four albums into my solo career, that if Porcupine Tree was to get back together—and, by the way, I have never ruled that out—it will be a side project. There should be no question in anyone's mind that this is now my main musical path, my solo work.

Also read the link to see how fucking grumpy he is about social media and that people don't interact in the ways he thinks they should. But basically everything he recorded up to 2009 is brilliant, so I guess I can forgive him yelling at a few clouds.

He's released a new EP this month called 4.5, a sort of stopgap of outtakes before his fifth solo album. It's not bad, though the live version of PT's Don't Hate Me at the end is the most sterile live recording I've ever heard. They might as well have done it in a recording studio.

 

[Danny Boy]

I had forgotten about 4 ½ coming out. I just ordered the Blu-ray from Amazon.

I did the same thing with Hand. Cannot. Erase. and the 24/96 rip sounds fantastic. The Blu-ray comes with a bonus track to boot.

I'm happy that Wilson is consistently supporting high-res digital formats, especially when it's half the price of the vinyl.

 

[Mack_Again]

I sometimes can't tell artists are just becoming artistically challenging or just flat out self-absorbing

 

[GirlsAloudFan]

Old man yelling at cloud.

 

[Mack_Again]

see? this is why I hate prog or technical music or whatever. and instrumentals.

 

[Joey788]

I've only heard 4.5 once but I agree that it's an alright release of outtakes. I like the Neil Young style guitar that opens the record though.

Seeing him at the Beacon Theatre in March. Apparently, in addition to the entirety of Hand Cannot Erase, he's playing more PT material? That'd be excellent, given that I got into the band after they started their hiatus.

 

[Joey788]

New Blackfield album coming out next January. Apparently, it's a return to the full partnership between Aviv and Wilson, like their first two Blackfield records. Maybe this one will actually be worth buying then, unlike Welcome to my DNA and especially IV.

https://www.facebook.com/blackfieldhq/videos/1180083748728652/

Also, yes, this one is titled Blackfield V.

 

[Axver]

Yes, definitely interested in that Blackfield album. SW's playing a gig in Melbourne later this month and I'll head down to see what he does but my expectations are low.

 

[Mack_Again]

Again, Guthrie Govan is a genius

 

[Axver]

So, SW last night. A bit weird for me. During Porcupine Tree's two tours of Australia, my love for the band was in full bloom and I was front row at all six shows. Incredible nights, all of them. They were very much defining events of my early twenties. I still count PT as one of my all time favourite bands. But last night felt very different. My indifference to SW's solo material, and my knowledge that VIP ticketholders would be let in early and already fill up the front, meant I didn't even bother heading down to the venue until about 20 minutes before he was due to start (there was no opening act). The crowd is clearly an older one now, with much more grey hair and no moshing. And the evening certainly lacked the definitive qualities of my experiences in 2008 and 2010.

But it was still a pretty good show and it ran for three hours. I managed to get myself about three people back from the stage with a good vantage point to watch SW, and Hand Cannot Erase is one of his better solo efforts so I was not bored by him playing it in full (Grace for Drowning or Raven would have been interminable). The presentation of the album with accompanying videos was very effective. The rest of the show had some good PT selections - I had heard most of them before, but the one I had not, "Don't Hate Me", was a definite improvement on the studio version (no awful sax solo, for one). I rate "Sleep Together" as one of PT's very worst songs so it continues to surprise me how good it is live, but I felt they added a bit of unnecessary prog wank to "Dark Matter". And easily his best solo song, "Harmony Korine", was in the set.

SW was much more chatty than I recall him being on PT tours, talking at some length before a few songs. A couple of these were in the "old man yelling at cloud" mould, including a ramble about the slow rate of album releases by bands "these days", and it's disappointing to learn that he thinks "The Raven That Refused to Sing" is the best song he's ever written. But other chat was humorous, especially his dry wit when the band fucked up "Hand Cannot Erase", or heartfelt when he discussed the passing of Bowie and Prince or the importance of music in working through emotion.

So I'm glad I went, even if the ticket price was insane and it meant that I missed out on The Soft Moon's show a few blocks over at the Curtin (though SW finished early enough that I could have just about made it!).

 

[Kieran McConville]

I'm moved to ask if 'old man yelling at cloud' is your shorthand for 'guy who doesn't slavishly fall in line with every new thing'. If it did, I'm guilty as charged.

 

[Axver]

Kieran, do keep up with my Simpsons references.

 

[Kieran McConville]

If I was Grandpa Simpson, I'd do that thing right now where he comes into the house, hangs his hat on the stand, turns right around, takes the hat and heads back out the door.

 

[Serena Vox]

Spot on about Steven Wilson being WAY more chatty than PT tours, Ax. I haven't seen him much solo, but there was a three year gap for me since he avoided the South like the plague after 2013 and I'd fallen well off the wagon to consider traveling to see him, I had other bands I wanted to see. But I did finally go see him again back in November. It was a pretty good live show, but tons of old people, zero moshing of any kind (which, I really don't care if you mosh or not.) and the ticket price was stupid for sure.

Good to know he had been using the same banter since Oz though, ha!

Really though, I had a lot of fun at the show I went to, but I've been far less impressed with his solo material than I was with Porcupine Tree. I enjoyed Insurgentes immensely as a collection of experimental stuff he was doing and I feel that Grace For Drowning is easily his best proper solo album, though I did gain a new love for HCE after watching it in full, live. I struggled so hard with that album since it was released up until that point. I enjoyed 4.5 a lot more, strangely enough, especially Happiness III.

The most annoying aspect though? The way they drew out EVERY. SINGLE. SONG. into some epic 10 minute self-indulgent and mind-numbing solo.

 

[Joey788]

Steven Wilson's fifth solo album, To The Bone, is out on August 18. Apparently, it's influenced by acts like Peter Gabriel, Kate Bush and Tears for Fears.

Steven Wilson announces new album 'To The Bone', releases single 'Pariah' - Steven Wilson

The first single is called "Pariah." It's pretty good, though not outstanding. Ninet Tayeb continues to prove that she's an absolute powerhouse vocalist.



But Steven Wilson really, really needs to stop his complaints about technology and social media. He must've written more than half a dozen songs on this topic by now. Otherwise, I liked it just fine.

 

[purpleblackeye]

This song has to grow on me....it veers dangerously close to cheesy ballad territory. Ninet is awesome though. When I saw Steven Wilson in NY last year I think he lost his voice and Ninet took over vocal duties for a lot of the songs. It was an incredible show.

 

[Axver]

I don't really like Tayeb on this song. Some of her lines are really scratchy, especially the start of each verse.

And it's a bit odd having an SW solo track where the most prominent vocalist is not SW!

But Steven Wilson really, really needs to stop his complaints about technology and social media. He must've written more than half a dozen songs on this topic by now. Otherwise, I liked it just fine.

There's half a dozen on Fear of a Blank Planet alone! Over the past decade he's seemed almost incapable of writing about anything else.

 

[Joey788]

Two more songs out. I like "The Same Asylum As Before" the best out of all the tracks he's released for this new album so far. It's got a pretty great riff and Wilson singing mostly in falsetto is nice touch.



This other track, "Song of I," has a cool, foreboding electronic vibe, but goes absolutely nowhere after like the first minute.

 

[Joey788]

Sooooo, this is.....different. I like it, but it's pretty jarring to hear such a....happy song for Steven Wilson.

 

[Axver]

His best happy song remains The Rest Will Flow.

 

[Axver]

So, folks, thoughts on the album?

I'm just relieved that I don't actively dislike this or Hand Cannot Erase the way that I do the two solo albums before them. More focus on songcraft than on extended proggy instrumental tangents.

 

[Joey788]

After one listen, I really like it. The stronger focus on songwriting really helped, making this a natural follow-up to Hand Cannot Erase. I really enjoy the percussion work, vocal harmonies and overall melodies, while still keeping many tracks tinged with tension or darkness.

My early favorites are the title track. The Same Asylum As Before, Permanating, People Who Eat Darkness and Detonation. Like all his releases, I'll need to give it a few more spins for it to settle in.

 

[Serena Vox]

After a few listens, I've come to the conclusion that I don't much care for about half of the album. Refuge is easily the best track on there. Following Hand.Cannot.Erase. I reckon this was probably the direction he was about to go in. I do actively skip tracks when I spin this one.

I did enjoy Song Of I quite a bit and Permanating after a dozen tries to get past the first 30 seconds and wondering what the hell I was hearing. Perhaps I'll have more coherent thoughts once I digest this one a little more.

 

[Axver]

I've not gone back to listen after my first couple of spins, but on the same token I haven't avoided giving it another spin like how Grace for Drowning and Raven actively repulsed me. There was more to why I didn't listen to Hand Cannot Erase than an antipathy towards current SW, but I'd rather not go into that on a public forum.

It's strange how he's finally getting some mainstream media attention. Like, how the fuck did this not happen around Trains and Lazarus? No PT/SW song strikes me as a "should've been a massive hit" more than Lazarus.