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Porcupine Tree
Deadwing

Well now, it’s starting to get a bit serious. There was certainly a clear gap in my mind between this and Get Behind Me, Satan.

Porcupine Tree discovered me in America (or was it the other way round?), despite being from Bristol. I heard a track from their 2003 album In Absentia on Michigan college radio, which I rushed out and bought straight away. This follow up came out a week after I got back to the UK. In case you don’t know, Porcupine Tree are very much a progressive rock band in the Amplifier/Oceansize/Cave In/Mars Volta type mould. Rock, sure, but with a bit more to discover than the usual 3 minute wonders. Having said that, this is a much more commercial effort than In Absentia. Initially I preferred the 2003 album, but actually I think the fact that this is a bit more accessible and streamlined makes it the better release. More emphasis here on the ‘rock’ than the ‘prog’, this is Porcupine Tree’s bid for commercial glory. Sadly, despite being way better than much of the competition, it seems to have been largely ignored aside from by their existing fan base.

The crunching riff of the title track, the should’ve-sold-a-truckload floaty lighter in the air fest of ‘Lazarus’ and the bonkers mix of metal and piano ballad that is ‘Open Car’ are just some of the treats on offer here. Not a bad track, lots to find, but never too ‘prog’ for its own good, this is sterling stuff.