Steven Wilson catch-all thread (Porcupine Tree, No-Man, Blackfield, Bass Communion)

[seasonsinthesky]

Blackfield V now available for pre-order

god the thumb looks even more fucked up when they angle the cover like that

[onthewall2983]

[Maurish]

Exciting!
Has Steven hinted at the crew he's recording with this time? I'd assume that old timers like Nick and Adam will be there with Craig on drums. Not so sure about the guitar.

[telee.kom]

Man since Hand.Cannot.Erase I just can't get into this sound of his. It just sounds so bland to me I don't know. And I love Raven to death, PT obviously. But this isn't doing anything for me

[eversonpoe]

Man since Hand.Cannot.Erase I just can't get into this sound of his. It just sounds so bland to me I don't know. And I love Raven to death, PT obviously. But this isn't doing anything for me

i really enjoyed hand.cannot.erase as a whole, but there are songs on it i can't listen to on their own because, out of the context of the album, they're far less compelling (and a bit boring).

i might end up liking this song as part of the whole new album, but at the moment, i'm not very excited about it.

[onthewall2983]

Not so sure about the guitar.

I hope Steven does it all himself. He's expressed more interest in playing leads again, and if he's going in the direction I think he is with this one, the songs don't need a whole lot of shredding. Not that is what Guthrie Govan and Dave Kilminster have done, but they definitely play on a level above Steven's ability, which is quite good on it's own. But maybe that feel will be more at home on this.

[onthewall2983]

i really enjoyed hand.cannot.erase as a whole, but there are songs on it i can't listen to on their own because, out of the context of the album, they're far less compelling (and a bit boring)

Which songs if you don't mind me asking? I'll grant that the first three (or two if you bought the MP3 version) aren't really as compelling on their own as the rest of it, but I think it overall is one of his more solid efforts yet.

It's interesting to me that he's now in a phase that's possibly like the one he was in with Porcupine Tree years ago, when they went from a more open-ended psychedelic-jam type band to something more song-oriented. It feels like that's possibly happening again with this record, and had it's roots in HCE.

[seasonsinthesky]

Which songs if you don't mind me asking? I'll grant that the first three (or two if you bought the MP3 version) aren't really as compelling on their own as the rest of it, but I think it overall is one of his more solid efforts yet.

It's interesting to me that he's now in a phase that's possibly like the one he was in with Porcupine Tree years ago, when they went from a more open-ended psychedelic-jam type band to something more song-oriented. It feels like that's possibly happening again with this record, and had it's roots in HCE.

I thought he was talking about "Home Invasion" and "Regret#9." Or that was my immediate choice of songs that don't work. Hell, they don't work on the record, imo; SW was better off finishing "My Book of Regrets" for that spot. Guitar solo be damned! The song is better. And HI/R#9 mean basically nothing to the story.

[eversonpoe]

Which songs if you don't mind me asking? I'll grant that the first three (or two if you bought the MP3 version) aren't really as compelling on their own as the rest of it, but I think it overall is one of his more solid efforts yet.

It's interesting to me that he's now in a phase that's possibly like the one he was in with Porcupine Tree years ago, when they went from a more open-ended psychedelic-jam type band to something more song-oriented. It feels like that's possibly happening again with this record, and had it's roots in HCE.

I thought he was talking about "Home Invasion" and "Regret#9." Or that was my immediate choice of songs that don't work. Hell, they don't work on the record, imo; SW was better off finishing "My Book of Regrets" for that spot. Guitar solo be damned! The song is better. And HI/R#9 mean basically nothing to the story.

home invasion and regret #9 are my favorite tracks on the album (just put them as a pair on a mix for my friend)

i was talking about happy returns/ascendant here on... in particular (pretty weak way to end such a strong album), but also the second half of perfect life (love the first half with the spoken word telling the story). transience also feels kind of unnecessary/boring, but it's fine within the context of the album.

[seasonsinthesky]

nooooooooooooooo

[onthewall2983]

So between the three of us the album sucks except "Routine"

[onthewall2983]

Oh and "Ancestral", but I am not crazy about the 2nd half of that.

[henryeatscereal]

Wow, when i clicked on this thread i didn't think i'll find you guys bashing "Hand. Cannot. Erase."
Funny thing is that i listened to the whole thing recently and i fell in love with it again.
It's true that the album doesn't allow "individual songs" and it's a complete listen from top to bottom, but i honestly think it's one of his best works.

Or maybe i have lost all my "objectivity" with this man, but i'm sure i love the album...

[Piko]

I don't think HCE is a bad album by any means. But compared the the last three (not counting PT), it's kind of bland. It has some great moments. And I can't fathom how someone can dislike Regret 9/Home Invasion. Easily, a highlight of the album.

[onthewall2983]

He's been hitting his stride as a solo artist from the word go, and for me, each album has it's own greatness. And HCE is no different in my opinion. For me just personally, it's also a very heavily emotional work as it's release is tied to a rather unfortunate time in my life. I said earlier that I thought it was his Wish You Were Here, and as that's my all-time favorite album I don't say that easily. It's his own comment on absence, through the specter of this real-life story, as WYWH was about Syd Barrett's decline from Roger Waters' perspective.

[seasonsinthesky]

Wow, when i clicked on this thread i didn't think i'll find you guys bashing "Hand. Cannot. Erase."
Funny thing is that i listened to the whole thing recently and i fell in love with it again.
It's true that the album doesn't allow "individual songs" and it's a complete listen from top to bottom, but i honestly think it's one of his best works.

Or maybe i have lost all my "objectivity" with this man, but i'm sure i love the album...

Eh, I know very few SW fanboys (i.e. what we are) who dislike anything he did so much that they won't listen to it. If I feel like putting on the non-mutated HCE that has none of my changes, I will still thoroughly enjoy it, including the HI/R#9 moment I lamented earlier. It's in degrees – I like less Raven, more Grace, so I rarely listen to all of Raven... but I also rarely have the wherewithal to commit to a Grace listen too.

I think my point is that anyone can be critical of anything they enjoy. Yeah. That.

[Piko]

I'm more on the raven bandwagon than I am for Grace. And I love both. HCE doesn't hit me like the other three did.

[eversonpoe]

Eh, I know very few SW fanboys (i.e. what we are) who dislike anything he did so much that they won't listen to it. If I feel like putting on the non-mutated HCE that has none of my changes, I will still thoroughly enjoy it, including the HI/R#9 moment I lamented earlier. It's in degrees – I like less Raven, more Grace, so I rarely listen to all of Raven... but I also rarely have the wherewithal to commit to a Grace listen too.

I think my point is that anyone can be critical of anything they enjoy. Yeah. That.

mutated? what changes did you make?

[joplinpicasso]

I am a PT fan since 2006, and I dug Insurgentes, loved Grace For Drowning, and then loved Raven to a point where I was listening to it non-stop. I was so underwhelmed by the concept and sound of HCE that I think I didn't even finish it all the way, and then my opinion stayed the same when I did. HOWEVER, I was back to liking 4 1/2 and thought bits of it were quite PT-ish! I'll be excited for whatever he puts out next.

On a side note, once I saw SW open for Opeth in upstate New York. He played "Raider II". Glorious.

[seasonsinthesky]

mutated? what changes did you make?

Prepare to disagree!

1. First Regret
2. 3 Years Older
3. Hand Cannot Erase
4. My Book of Regrets
5. Perfect Life (Grand Union mix)
6. Routine
7. Transience (single version)
8. Ancestral
9. Last Regret
10. Happy Returns
11. Ascendant Here On...

[eversonpoe]

Prepare to disagree!

1. First Regret
2. 3 Years Older
3. Hand Cannot Erase
4. My Book of Regrets
5. Perfect Life (Grand Union mix)
6. Routine
7. Transience (single version)
8. Ancestral
9. Last Regret
10. Happy Returns
11. Ascendant Here On...

what is the grand union mix and where can one hear it?

also, in case you guys were thinking i really don't like the album, i think first regret / 3 years older are a PERFECT album opener.

[ViN]

I fucking loved "Home Invasion" since it has a kinda metal sound in the start, reminds me of classic 2000s era Porcupine Tree. "Regret #9" reminded me of Shine On You Crazy Diamond more than anything else, and I'd call "Routine" the worst song there.

But yeah, I have to agree that Steven Wilson's newer stuff just isn't as good as that Porcupine Tree run from The Sky Moves Sideways to Fear of a Blank Planet, and my favorite solo records of his are definitely the first two. Hand Cannot Erase mostly bored me. The Raven that Refused to Sing was even more boring though IMO.

[onthewall2983]

what is the grand union mix and where can one hear it?

It's on the Blu-ray edition, but also comes with the special edition on iTunes/Apple

[eversonpoe]

It's on the Blu-ray edition, but also comes with the special edition on iTunes/Apple

guess i need to pop the blu-ray back in. i think i only listened to the main album on there, and it wasn't part of the bonus tracks on the extra CD so i must have just overlooked it.

ok, so @ViN doesn't like routine, so between us all, the album sucks hahaha

[henryeatscereal]

He's been hitting his stride as a solo artist from the word go, and for me, each album has it's own greatness. And HCE is no different in my opinion. For me just personally, it's also a very heavily emotional work as it's release is tied to a rather unfortunate time in my life. I said earlier that I thought it was his Wish You Were Here, and as that's my all-time favorite album I don't say that easily. It's his own comment on absence, through the specter of this real-life story, as WYWH was about Syd Barrett's decline from Roger Waters' perspective.

Funny: the same thing happens to me with "The Incident" (by Porcupine Tree obviously); i like the album, but i can't listen to it.
Not only 2009 was my worst year ever, most of the songs affect me in various ways, the sad thing is that i want to listen to it again, but i always end up listening something else...

[onthewall2983]

Said in a recent interview that he's playing much more guitar on this, expect a more song-based record, and hopes for it to be out by September.

[onthewall2983]

[onthewall2983]

[onthewall2983]

[Maurish]