Porcupine Tree: Fear Of A Blank Planet 2007 + Nil Recurring EP 2007

 

A U.K. band widely credited with bringing progressive rock back into vogue during the 1990s,

Porcupine Tree embraced and explored those inspirations filtered through the lenses of sounds ranging from post-punk and metal to indie rock and electronic music.
      

They were formed by musician Steven Wilson in 1987. During an initial career spanning more than

twenty years, they earned critical acclaim from critics and fellow musicians, developed a cult following, and became an influence for new artists. The group carved out a career at a certain distance away from mainstream music, being described by publications such as Classic Rock and PopMatters as "the most important band you'd never heard of".
              

Led by guitarist/vocalist/composer and producer Steven Wilson, he initially used the name as a pseudonym for his solo projects (except for No-Man with Tim Bowness). Porcupine Tree's first few offerings reflected that M.O. They became a band when bassist Colin Edwin, drummer Chris Maitland,

and keyboardist Richard Barbieri gelled during the sessions for 1995's The Sky Moves Sideways and expanded into new sonic terrains with 1996's Signify. Maitland was replaced by Gavin Harrison for the globally acclaimed In Absentia. 2007's Fear of a Blank Planet was conceptual in nature, while 2009's The Incident was composed of a long suite and a handful of shorter compositions. They returned in 2022 with Closure/Continuation, their first studio outing in 13 years.
               

FEAR OF A BLANK PLANET

                  

Fear of a Blank Planet was followed later the same year by release of the Nil Recurring extended play. Steven Wilson has mentioned that the album's title is a direct reference to the 1990 Public Enemy

album Fear of a Black Planet; while the former tackled race issues, the latter is about the fear of losing the current generation of youth to various common threats to their mental and social wellbeing, including broken homes, excessive "screen time", and narcotic overuse (prescribed and otherwise) to the point of mental and spiritual "blankness".
            

The concept of the album was heavily influenced by Bret Easton Ellis' novel Lunar Park. The novel is told from the perspective of a father, who bears the name of the novel's author himself,

whereas the album is mostly from his son's perspective, an eleven-year-old kid named Robby. Many of the lyrics for Fear of a Blank Planet are lifted directly from the novel; this is particularly evident in "My Ashes", which is a homage to the last chapter, in which the ashes of Bret's father are scattered and cover the memories of his life.
           

The lyrics deal with two typical neurobehavioural developmental disorders affecting teenagers in the 21st century: bipolar disorder and attention deficit disorder. It also deals with other common behaviour tendencies of youth like escapism through prescription drugs, social alienation caused

by technology, and a feeling of vacuity—a product of information overload by the mass media. In an interview with Revolver magazine, Wilson described the main character of the story as "...this kind of terminally bored kid, anywhere between 10 and 15 years old, who spends all his daylight hours in his bedroom with the curtains closed, playing on his PlayStation, listening to his iPod, texting his friends on his cell phone, looking at hardcore pornography on the Internet, downloading music, films, news, violence..."
               

Porcupine Tree makes a triumphant return to experimental, non-linear style with 2007's Fear of a Blank Planet. Maybe Steve Wilson was afraid that the comparatively poppy Deadwing and In Absentia were

edging too close to the mainstream, because he seems far less concerned with overtly accessible songwriting on Blank Planet. Even still, the cerebral, atmospheric sound on this album remains enormously compelling from almost the first moment. While there is no "radio single" on the disc -- certainly nothing with a conventional pop arc like Lightbulb Sun or "Trains" -- most songs transcend their complex structure and feel as provocative as any traditional rock tune.
                  

The aptly named "Sentimental," in particular, features Wilson's trademark lush arrangement with layers

of vocals, piano, ambient synths, electric guitar, acoustic guitar, live drums and sampled drums -- but cutting through its tightly contained mosaic is an expertly constructed chord progression that evokes a desperate sense of tension and longing, developing incredible emotional momentum as the track progresses.
              

Blank Planet sounds like Wilson spent about half of his studio time on the guitar; it's full of buzzy, meticulously distorted solos that you can easily picture him folding into the prototypical Porcupine Tree amalgamation of drum machine, organ, and synthesizers during many long hours in front of the sound

board. The quiet, English restraint with which Wilson croons seems to have saved his voice from the decay that so many male singers experience over a twenty year career, and lucky for us (and for him), the style still works perfectly with Porcupine Tree's sound. As a vocalist, he has an amazing capacity for juxtaposing cold, haunting moments against evisceratingly passionate ones, mostly thanks to the control he exerts over his instrument.
               

Wilson's clear, boy's choir timbre sounds like a torrent of frenzy and hunger when he breaks free of it

and explores the limits of his vox on tracks like "Sleep Together." His sleepy, melodic approach also has the benefit of ensuring that his poetic lyrics, which run the gamut from acerbic social criticisms to wrenching personal narratives, are always perfectly discernible. Though it's only six tracks long, each of the songs on Blank Planet is exquisitely crafted, even the 17-minute long "Anesthetize."
            

Wilson has a great sense of flow, leading mournful, ambient ballads into graceful crescendos, and over

long interludes that sway blissfully throughout rises and falls, only occasionally losing themselves to moments of plodding or meandering. At roughly 51 minutes, Fear of a Blank Planet is short by Porcupine Tree standards, but by measure of quality rather than quantity, it's one of the most substantial prog albums to come out in years.

                

Porcupine Tree – Fear Of A Blank Planet
Label: Roadrunner Records – RR 8011-2
Format: CD, Album
Country: Europe
Released: Apr 16, 2007
Genre: Rock
Style: Prog Rock

TRACKS

                      

01. Fear Of A Blank Planet    7:28
02. My Ashes    5:07
03. Anesthetize (Guest, Soloist [Guitar Solo] – Alex Lifeson)   17:42
04. Sentimental    5:26
05. Way Out Of Here  (Guest, Sounds [Soundscapes] – Robert Fripp)   7:37
06. Sleep Together    7:28

LINE - UP

                

Drums – Gavin Harrison
Engineer [Guitars] – Mark Prator
Engineer [Strings] – Steve Price
Strings [Strings Performed By] – The London Session Orchestra
Vocals, Guitar [Guitars], Piano, Keyboards – Steven Wilson
Keyboards, Synthesizer – Richard Barbieri
Leader [Strings] – Gavyn Wright
Backing Vocals – John Wesley
Bass Guitar [Bass Guitars] – Colin Edwin
Lyrics By – Steven Wilson

ANESTHETIZE LYRICS
  

A good impression of myself
Not much to conceal
I'm saying nothing
But I'm saying nothing with feel

I simply am not here
No way, I
Shut up, be happy
Stop whining, please

And because of who we are
We react in mock surprise
The curse of "there must be more"
So don't breathe here
Don't leave your bags

I simply am not here
No way, I
Shut up, be happy
Stop whining, please

 

The dust in my soul makes me feel the weight in my legs
My head in the clouds and I'm zoning out
I'm watching TV, but I find it hard to stay conscious
I'm totally bored, but I can't switch off
                 
Only apathy from the pills in me
It's all in me, all in you
Electricity from the pills in me
It's all in me, all in you
Only MTV, cod philosophy

We're lost in the mall, shuffling through the stores like zombies
Well, what is the point? What can money buy?
My hand's on a gun and I find the range, God tempts me
Well, what did you say? Think I'm passing out

                

 

Only apathy from the pills in me
It's all in me, all in you
Electricity from the pills in me
It's all in me, all in you
Only MTV, cod philosophy

Only apathy from the pills in me
It's all in me, all in you
Electricity from the pills in me
It's all in me, all in you
Only MTV, cod philosophy

           

Water so warm that day (water so)
Water so warm that day (warm that day)
I counted out the waves (I counted)
I counted out the waves (out the waves)
As they broke into surf (as they broke)
As they broke (into surf)
I smiled into the Sun (into surf)

The water, so warm that day
I was counting out the waves
And I followed their short life
As they broke on the shoreline
I could see you
But I couldn't hear you

You were holding your hat in the breeze
Turning away from me
In this moment
You were stolen
And there's black across the Sun

                   

Water so warm that day (water so)
Water so warm that day (warm that day)
I counted out the waves (I counted)
I counted out the waves (out the waves)
As they broke into surf (as they broke)
As they broke (into surf)
I smiled into the Sun (into surf)

Flac Size: 704 MB

PORCUPINE TREE - NIL RECCURRING EP 2007

               

Nil Recurring (also Transmission 5.1) is an EP by British progressive rock band Porcupine Tree, released on 17 September 2007 through the band's online store. The standard version of the mini-album is composed of four tracks written during the Fear of a Blank Planet recording sessions and was completed over the summer of 2007. The EP's title, which stems from the opening instrumental track on

the EP, was actually derived from an unreleased demo written during the Fear of a Blank Planet recording sessions, called "Always Recurring". Although the band never formally released the song, lyrical and melodic elements of the track were reused in the closing piece of the EP, "What Happens Now?".
Nil Recurring entered the UK Top 30 Independent Label Albums at #8 and is the #2 EP of 2007 on Rate Your Music.
               

 

Porcupine Tree – Nil Recurring
Label: Transmission Recordings – Transmission 5.1
Format:    CD, EP, Limited Edition, Digipak
Country: UK
Released: Sep 2007
Genre: Rock
Style: Prog Rock

TRACKS

                       

        
01. Nil Recurring   6:08
Guest, Lead Guitar – Robert Fripp
Guitar [Tapped] – Gavin Harrison
Written-By – Porcupine Tree
02. Normal   7:07
Written-By – Steven Wilson
03. Cheating The Polygraph   7:06
Written-By – Gavin Harrison, Steven Wilson
04. What Happens Now?   8:23
Guest, Electric Violin – Ben Coleman
Written-By – Porcupine Tree

LINE - UP

          

Bass Guitar – Colin Edwin
Drums, Percussion – Gavin Harrison
Engineer [SW Guitars] – Mark Prator (tracks: 1, 3)
Keyboards, Synthesizer – Richard Barbieri
Vocals, Guitar, Keyboards, Mixed By, Mastered By – Steven Wilson

Flac (24/44) Size: 327 MB

Porcupine Tree on Urban Aspirines HERE