Steven Wilson v. To. The. Bone.

[KevShmev]

I don't get calling this another Permanating or whatever.  Sure, it's poppy and he sings in a falsetto, but the songs otherwise are nothing alike.

Now...after a couple listens, I am not sure what I think.  There are parts I like, and then other parts seem a bit head-scratching.  Considering this is nearly 1/4 of the album (given the times of the tracks we now have), my enthusiasm for it isn't quite as high as it was a day ago, but time will tell.  I am sure many of the other songs will be major instant grabbers (crossing my fingers...).

Regardless of my personal opinion, it's great to once again to see SW throwing a curveball at us and doing what he wants, rather than giving the fans what they want.

[nobloodyname]

https://store.thefuturebites.com/cart/product.php?id=61825
Well, as a “personal buyer” I woul like to pay a reasonable price for 3CD+BD version of it(around 20£?). The demos on cassete...
By the way, good song as always Steven does, but I like better his pop/prog side.

Anybody else see the irony (or perhaps the hypocrisy) of the lyrics being a sarcastic commentary on the buying culture of today, with him selling a limited edition box set for £75? Nevermind all the vinyl reissues he's put out of older releases.

Buy the box set and the kind of stuff
You've bought before a million times
Buy in green, buy in blue
Buy in patterns cos I tell you to
Sell it on then buy it back
Buy the shit you never knew you lacked

Indeed.

He's poking fun at everyone. Most of all, himself.

[Zantera]

I've had the chorus stuck in my head all morning despite only listening to it twice yesterday, and I also think parts of the song are really nice. What drags it down for me is the length (it doesn't have to be this long) and Elton John just feels utilized poorly. With that said, hearing it in the context of the album will make a difference (for better or worse).

[Nekov]

Yeah, the chorus is catchy as hell. And regarding Sir Elton John, maybe he sings in other songs, just not this one. And even then, he has an amazing voice even when he is not singing.

[The Curious Orange]

People had similar complaints when James Hetfield or others got sober.

Man, I'm still pissed Stevie Nicks got off the cocaine. She's not written a decent song since... 

[Peter Mc]

I like it, it sounds like Steven Wilson, not sure what the fuss is about. He does sad songs, he does pop songs, he does ethereal atmospheric songs, he does prog songs.  This is a Steven Wilson pop song, it  doesn’t sound like some huge departure to me, it sounds like trademark Steven Wilson.

[ReaperKK]

https://store.thefuturebites.com/cart/product.php?id=61825
Well, as a “personal buyer” I woul like to pay a reasonable price for 3CD+BD version of it(around 20£?). The demos on cassete...
By the way, good song as always Steven does, but I like better his pop/prog side.

Anybody else see the irony (or perhaps the hypocrisy) of the lyrics being a sarcastic commentary on the buying culture of today, with him selling a limited edition box set for £75? Nevermind all the vinyl reissues he's put out of older releases.

Buy the box set and the kind of stuff
You've bought before a million times
Buy in green, buy in blue
Buy in patterns cos I tell you to
Sell it on then buy it back
Buy the shit you never knew you lacked

Indeed.

This is what I thought too. I mean it seems like he re-released a super premium ultra deluxe double rare track version of in absentia every year.

[ErHaO]

I like it, it sounds like Steven Wilson, not sure what the fuss is about. He does sad songs, he does pop songs, he does ethereal atmospheric songs, he does prog songs.  This is a Steven Wilson pop song, it  doesn’t sound like some huge departure to me, it sounds like trademark Steven Wilson.

I agree to some extent. I enjoyed his beat focused/pop songs on recent albums, but this time around the release of this single meant that 1/4th of his new album is just a solid pop song that does not explore anything new, nor does it utilize the elements I personally enjoy the most in his music. And we just got No-Man, which honestly kind of filled my SW synth-pop/dance music appetite. I can't hate on the song, because it does wat it does very well, but I would be lying if I said I was not dissapointed.

Now off course we don't know the other 30 minutes and all, but this is just how I feel right now.

[Peter Mc]

Yeah, I will admit that 40 min is a little disappointing by his own standards and this is a big chunk out of it. I don’t listen to no-man so can’t comment on that side of things.

[KevShmev]

He's poking fun at everyone. Most of all, himself.

Plus, SW has made it clear that he doesn't think buying music is a bad thing.  In fact, he wishes more people would still buy music, and I am sure it breaks his heart a little to see people spending so much money on wireless airpods and the latest Apple watch, while refusing to spend a dime on recorded music.  So there really isn't any irony or hypocrisy in his message.

[goo-goo]

My disappointment in this single is that he wears his sleeves (musical influences) a little bit too much. And it happens like in every other album:

Insurgentes - music felt very original but it was just a blend of PT and his IEM/Bass Communion thing..but it was very well done
Grace and Raven - at this time, he was mixing a lot of the Jethro Tull and King Crimson catalogue. Grace felt a little more original and Raven just a like a copy of what he was working on at that time.
HCE - Very original although this could have easily been a Porcupine Tree album
To The Bone - He was working a lot on the XTC and Tears for Fears catalogue (remixing them) and you can hear the influences loud and clear. I loved the title track though.
Futue Bites - so far the single is on the synth pop side, which I like when it's done properly. However, he did the synth pop album with Noman which is perfectly executed. The single falls very short on that in my opinion. Hopefully this single is not indicative of the full album (sucks that this single is 25% of the album)..You can hear the Everything Everything influence loud and clear (hell, the drummer is the one from EE).

Anyways, I pre-ordered the box set (lol  ) and will see how it goes. He still puts out great material, but he has a great ear in the mixing department and I still love the fact that he focuses on the album experience. So we will see what the rest of the album sounds like.

[KevShmev]

While what is influencing him at the time is occasionally more than obvious, I think Wilson usually does a really good job of working those influences into his own sound. And let's face it, even though he does a lot of different stuff, he does kind of have an identifiable sound.

Going back to my first point, look at To the Bone, for instance.  Yeah, he was working on the remixes for XTC and Tears for Fears at the time and had that 80's thing going in his head, but it still very much sounded like a SW record overall; it didn't come off like a retro-80's record by any means.  On the flip side, even though I love it to pieces, if someone wants to say that The Raven sounds like retro-70's record, I wouldn't really dispute it, although I think that is more of an individual song then, where Luminol and The Watchmaker are very 70's sounding and the others really aren't (in relative terms).

[dparrott]

SW DROPPIN A DANCE FLOOR BANGER!!!!!    Love it.  Noel Gallagher has been doing the same style of music lately. 

[Fritzinger]

Quite a few outputs by Steven have been playing here the last few days, mainly the ones I haven't paid that much attention to until now.

Bass Communion - I
I always loved the opening of no-man's Together We're Stranger: the way the chords appear out of nothing is just beautiful. This album is basically an extended edition of that intro and I could listen to it all day. Which is basically what I am doing. The limited clear vinyl of Bass Communion - II is also on its way to my house!

Storm Corrosion - Storm Corrosion
When this came out it did absolutely nothing for me. No drums? Sign me out. But now that I have gotten a lot more into ambient music - I would consider myself a Tangerine Dream "fan" by now - I learned to appreciate this kind of music a lot more. It flows, it's dark, melancholic and it sounds like red wine and old horror flicks. Which is what this album inspired Plus, I have possibly never heard an album which deserved the description "hauntingly beautiful" more.

Steven Wilson - Insurgentes
His first real solo album never clicked for me and by now I am asking myself: why tf not? He incorporated many drone and ambient influences and I love it. Yes, it's not as easily accessible as f.e. HCE. But I loved Grace For Drowning on first listen. Why not this one? Twilight in the Court is a fantastic King Crimson/Red/THRAK homage (Tony Levin & Gavin Harrison as rhythm section, just wow), Veneno para las hadas and the title track are beautiful (I know, I have used that word in all three short reviews, but what can I do). And the sound is amazing! Yes we're talking about Steven Wilson, so what else.

[Sacul]

Storm Corrosion finally clicked with me some months ago, damn what a gorgeous record. Hope they make another one someday.

[gazinwales]

January 2021 is a long way off now...

[Fritzinger]

Just read it. This sucks. Especially since he had to postpone it because of all the stuff around the release (marketing, videos etc) which I actually don't care about at all. I just want the music. But I understand it, because Steven is an artist who heavily features the audiovisual component of his music...


For everyone who has no social media:

As with many of my albums, The Future Bites is not just about the music, it's a high concept project which involves design, artwork, video and a tour production, all on a grander scale than anything I've attempted before. However, due to the pandemic, there are unprecedented challenges, ranging from manufacturing issues (particularly in relation to the elaborate deluxe edition) and the uncertainty facing record stores as the coronavirus forces them to close their doors, to being unable to shoot most of the video material I planned. It's therefore with a very heavy heart that I reluctantly need to postpone the release of The Future Bites until such time everything can happen as intended. This will now be January next year, with new music and video starting to be issued again around October. In the meantime the pre-order page for the various editions of the album will remain online, although I plan to take the deluxe edition off the site some time before it completely sells out, in order to give fans simply not in a position to purchase at the moment a chance to get it nearer the time. Meanwhile, myself, management, agent and promoters are monitoring the situation regarding the live shows scheduled for this autumn. Should events change we will let everyone know as soon as we do.
I understand that this may be disappointing news, and to no one more that myself, believe me. I worked on the music and background of this project for the last two years and was thrilled to finally be able to launch it. The response to the Personal Shopper track released last month has been phenomenal, and I was looking forward to unveiling more over the next few months in the build up to the release of the album. But alas due to the current circumstances it was not to be.
I sincerely send everyone reading this a message of good health, and I hope that one day in the not too distant future we can once again focus on things like music, which even if it isn't strictly essential seems to somehow make life more worthwhile.
SW x

[RoeDent]

The future bites, but the present has bitten harder. Music is music, it has nothing to do with visuals or promotional material. If the album is already done, just release it digitally.

That said, heck maybe there's more time to add more material to the album to at least bump its running time up beyond 45 minutes.

[Zantera]

The future bites, but the present has bitten harder. Music is music, it has nothing to do with visuals or promotional material. If the album is already done, just release it digitally.

That said, heck maybe there's more time to add more material to the album to at least bump its running time up beyond 45 minutes.

"Just release it digitally" might apply to almost any other artist/band than Steven Wilson. I mean I know he has loosened his strong beliefs on streaming and digital music but I think if you told him he could release it digital only (for now) or delete it entirely he might opt for the latter. 

I think also the odds of him adding anything to the album at this point is about the same as Pink Floyd reuniting with both Waters and Gilmour for a new album/tour. He might use this downtime to work on some new music (maybe an EP or side projects) but he's an artist who is very proud of the stuff he puts out so I can't imagine he would backtrack and change an album that by all signs was a finished one.

[KevShmev]

Not surprised he is doing this, but it is somewhat disappointing.  With all that is going on in the world right now, music is a godsend, especially new music from a favorite artist, and now fans have to wait more than six months to hear the new album. But given all of the work he has been putting into its release and everything that is going along with it, I get wanting to not release until he can go full tilt as planned with all of the promo and whatnot. I am sure this was a very tough call for him. 

The future bites, but the present has bitten harder. Music is music, it has nothing to do with visuals or promotional material. If the album is already done, just release it digitally.

That said, heck maybe there's more time to add more material to the album to at least bump its running time up beyond 45 minutes.

April Fool's Day was earlier this month.

[Buddyhunter1]

The response to the Personal Shopper track released last month has been phenomenal

...has it though?

[KevShmev]

The response to the Personal Shopper track released last month has been phenomenal

...has it though?

Maybe he meant from a volume standpoint.

[Zantera]

The response to the Personal Shopper track released last month has been phenomenal

...has it though?

On youtube it currently has a ratio of almost 12k likes to 1k dislikes and while youtube isn't necessarily entirely accurate i'd say that's still a fairly great positive ratio (though i wouldn't say phenomenal). But it's quite interesting to read comments on both youtube and facebook because there's currently a battle between the 'I like many music styles but in reality i only like prog' guys who loathe the track and anything that isn't progressive rock, and the other camp which is the 'i love everything he puts out and even his worst stuff is better than anything else out there'.

I saw some comments from people legit wanting him to scrap the whole album and make a "real" album again (hint they mean prog album) and it just makes me roll my eyes. I feel it's getting harder these days to find level headed people for nuanced discussions that go beyond something either being the worst abomination ever OR the best thing ever made.

[ReaperKK]

The future bites, but the present has bitten harder. Music is music, it has nothing to do with visuals or promotional material. If the album is already done, just release it digitally.

That said, heck maybe there's more time to add more material to the album to at least bump its running time up beyond 45 minutes.

"Just release it digitally" might apply to almost any other artist/band than Steven Wilson. I mean I know he has loosened his strong beliefs on streaming and digital music but I think if you told him he could release it digital only (for now) or delete it entirely he might opt for the latter. 

I think also the odds of him adding anything to the album at this point is about the same as Pink Floyd reuniting with both Waters and Gilmour for a new album/tour. He might use this downtime to work on some new music (maybe an EP or side projects) but he's an artist who is very proud of the stuff he puts out so I can't imagine he would backtrack and change an album that by all signs was a finished one.

I wouldn't be surprised if he is working on a new deluxe ultra 2020 corona virus reissue of In Absentia

[Nekov]

The response to the Personal Shopper track released last month has been phenomenal

...has it though?

On youtube it currently has a ratio of almost 12k likes to 1k dislikes and while youtube isn't necessarily entirely accurate i'd say that's still a fairly great positive ratio (though i wouldn't say phenomenal). But it's quite interesting to read comments on both youtube and facebook because there's currently a battle between the 'I like many music styles but in reality i only like prog' guys who loathe the track and anything that isn't progressive rock, and the other camp which is the 'i love everything he puts out and even his worst stuff is better than anything else out there'.

I saw some comments from people legit wanting him to scrap the whole album and make a "real" album again (hint they mean prog album) and it just makes me roll my eyes. I feel it's getting harder these days to find level headed people for nuanced discussions that go beyond something either being the worst abomination ever OR the best thing ever made.

I think this is possibly the worst comment you have ever written. Why don't you just delete it and write a new one, maybe praising prog a little bit more. Not that I don't like other musical styles, I enjoy jazz, rap, pop... if they have the right amount of prog in them of course.
Anyways, I think you used to be a lot cooler back in the day, you sold out.

[MoraWintersoul]

I feel it's getting harder these days to find level headed people for nuanced discussions that go beyond something either being the worst abomination ever OR the best thing ever made.

It's hard to find people for nuanced discussions period. If the band I want to discuss has no fanbase on DTF I'm basically screwed. I miss forums so much. You can't talk to people on most bands' Facebook pages and it gets tricky to balance when you want to write something critical, knowing it might hurt the band members' feelings needlessly. Spaces like these are the best.

[KevShmev]

The response to the Personal Shopper track released last month has been phenomenal

...has it though?

On youtube it currently has a ratio of almost 12k likes to 1k dislikes and while youtube isn't necessarily entirely accurate i'd say that's still a fairly great positive ratio (though i wouldn't say phenomenal). But it's quite interesting to read comments on both youtube and facebook because there's currently a battle between the 'I like many music styles but in reality i only like prog' guys who loathe the track and anything that isn't progressive rock, and the other camp which is the 'i love everything he puts out and even his worst stuff is better than anything else out there'.

I saw some comments from people legit wanting him to scrap the whole album and make a "real" album again (hint they mean prog album) and it just makes me roll my eyes. I feel it's getting harder these days to find level headed people for nuanced discussions that go beyond something either being the worst abomination ever OR the best thing ever made.

I think this is possibly the worst comment you have ever written. Why don't you just delete it and write a new one, maybe praising prog a little bit more. Not that I don't like other musical styles, I enjoy jazz, rap, pop... if they have the right amount of prog in them of course.
Anyways, I think you used to be a lot cooler back in the day, you sold out.

 

Well played. *golf clap*

[Buddyhunter1]

I feel it's getting harder these days to find level headed people for nuanced discussions that go beyond something either being the worst abomination ever OR the best thing ever made.

It's hard to find people for nuanced discussions period. If the band I want to discuss has no fanbase on DTF I'm basically screwed. I miss forums so much. You can't talk to people on most bands' Facebook pages and it gets tricky to balance when you want to write something critical, knowing it might hurt the band members' feelings needlessly. Spaces like these are the best.

+1
The "comments section" of any type of website or post is pretty much the worst environment for conversations in existence.

[goo-goo]

The thing is, if he wanted to go the synth pop route..I don't mind it if it's done properly. I actually have been listening to a lot of synth pop lately. Daniel Tompkin's Castles and Nik Mystery (Periphery singer) and some Tears for Fears...they are done way better than what SW put out.

[Fritzinger]

The thing is, if he wanted to go the synth pop route..I don't mind it if it's done properly. I actually have been listening to a lot of synth pop lately. Daniel Tompkin's Castles and Nik Mystery (Periphery singer) and some Tears for Fears...they are done way better than what SW put out.

Admit it, it's just not enough prog for you. You're living in the past. People like you make me sick.

[goo-goo]

The thing is, if he wanted to go the synth pop route..I don't mind it if it's done properly. I actually have been listening to a lot of synth pop lately. Daniel Tompkin's Castles and Nik Mystery (Periphery singer) and some Tears for Fears...they are done way better than what SW put out.

Admit it, it's just not enough prog for you. You're living in the past. People like you make me sick.

 

[Buddyhunter1]

This just means we've got the AOTY for 2021 instead of 2020! Steven Wilson can do no wrong! #MELLOTRONGANGFORLIFE #RIDETHETRAINORDIE

[Zantera]

I feel it's getting harder these days to find level headed people for nuanced discussions that go beyond something either being the worst abomination ever OR the best thing ever made.

It's hard to find people for nuanced discussions period. If the band I want to discuss has no fanbase on DTF I'm basically screwed. I miss forums so much. You can't talk to people on most bands' Facebook pages and it gets tricky to balance when you want to write something critical, knowing it might hurt the band members' feelings needlessly. Spaces like these are the best.

This is why I still love forums. I browse sites like Reddit, Facebook and Youtube frequently but the problem with comments is if you have a controversial opinion for example - it doesn't matter how you present it because you get downvoted or hammered with dislikes and the top comments are usually the most popular opinion and/or the typical troll/flame/bait stuff.

Whether you agree or disagree with someone, I will always love to have nuanced discussions where you get to the main core of something which for me is WHY someone has an opinion. It's always interesting to hear what parts about an album or a song that hooked someone else because sometimes getting that perspective can also give you a newfound appreciation for something.

[Sacul]

Yeah it's sad that forums have gone out of fashion, they're one of the few places in which having nuanced discussions is possible - just look at how we spent dozens of posts about getting used to growls on Indi's roulette, plenty of interesting points of view among mostly shitposts. The long format and the persistence of threads encourage this sort of discussions I think - other platforms put too much emphasis on throwaway comments and posts.

[?]

#RIDETHETRAINORDIE