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"Twelve years after "The Incident", Porcupine Tree releases the album that everybody hoped for but nobody expected."
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4/5
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At the end of 2010, Porcupine Tree takes a break at the end of the tour of "The Incident", to the great surprise of its public. Each member then devotes himself to new projects and Steven Wilson, leader and composer of the band, takes off with his solo career. For more than a decade, the frontman blows hot and cold when the future of Porcupine Tree is evoked. Evasive at first, he denied any possibility of the band's reformation in the last few years, which definitely buried the last hopes of the most optimistic fans.
So when the single 'Harridan' comes out on November 2nd, 2021 and the British combo announces the release of the album "Closure/Continuation" in June 2022, the web is on fire. This return to the forefront will nevertheless be without the smiling and emblematic bassist Colin Edwin, without any official information about him.
Of course, this kind of comeback has to be questioned by the band's fanbase. Is it a commercial opportunity or a deep will to revive this project that was put on pause? Steven Wilson, speaking to Music Waves, quickly answered: if this album had nothing new to add to Porcupine Tree's repertoire, it would never have been released. This is surely why this album is good!
Better still, despite these twelve long years of fallow, the ex-quartet has lost nothing of its singularity and its identity is apparent from the intro of 'Harridan' and its bass with odd rhythmic signatures on which Gavin Harrison's surgical drums and Richard Barbieri's so characteristic ambient keyboards are placed.
Although historically Steven Wilson has always denied belonging to the progressive movement, this new record has all the elements of this musical movement, from the unconventional structures to the long tracks ('Chimera's Wreck'), through the complex metrics and convoluted structures ('Herd Culling'). The new opus mixes marvelously the ambiences as Porcupine Tree always did, with powerful titles drawing from the side of the progressive metal like the detonating 'Rats Return', but also delicate ballads like the excellent 'Of The New Day' or 'Dignity'.
The end of the album takes on more experimental sounds as the band likes them, with an enigmatic 'Walk The Plank' (and without any guitar!) and a mysterious and melancholic 'Chimera's Wreck'. The three bonus tracks are really worth it and would have even deserved to be on the "standard" version of the album, be it the instrumental 'Population Three', the pop/rock 'Never Have' or the magnificent 'Love In The Past Tense'.
Without offering a transcendent album, Porcupine Tree assures the essential with ten new tracks at the height of its usual standards, borrowed of a nostalgic perfume which will delight the fan base of the band. The question remains: will "Closure/Continuation" sign a real unexpected comeback or the farewell of our three musicians? It is certainly too early to know, because even the name of this album plays with this ambivalence and this uncertainty. Let's just enjoy the fact that we can see this emblematic band again on a few rare dates and enjoy a collection of great new songs. - Official website
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TRACK LISTING:
01. Harridan
02. Of The New Day
03. Rats Return
04. Dignity
05. Herd Culling
06. Walk The Plank
07. Chimera’s Wreck
LINEUP:
Gavin Harrison: Batterie
Richard Barbieri: Claviers
Steven Wilson: Chant / Guitares / Claviers
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(0) MIND(S) FROM OUR READERS
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Top of the page
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(9) COMMENT(S)
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READERS
4.1/5 (12 view(s))
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STAFF:
3.4/5 (10 view(s))
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IN RELATION WITH PORCUPINE TREE
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LAST INTERVIEW
PORCUPINE TREE (MAY 2022)
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Fans dreamed of it, Porcupine Tree did it! The return of the English progressive rock giants has been confirmed with the release of "Closure/Continuation", their first album in twelve years, which Steven Wilson and Richard Barbieri came to present.
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OTHER REVIEWS
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OTHER(S) REVIEWS ABOUT PORCUPINE TREE
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