The Official Porcupine Tree Thread - In Absentia Deluxe Ed. due Feb. 21, 2020

[Samsara]

I did a search on the General Music Discussion section, and couldn't believe there wasn't a thread devoted to Porcupine Tree. I am sure there is one about Steven Wilson, but I think PT should have its own thread. Even Wilson himself said PT morphed into a band, which meant compromises between the members, and that's one of the reasons he went forward with his solo career.

So here's a thread for all things PT.

The deluxe edition for In Absentia is due on Feb. 21! Trailer is here:

https://youtu.be/A-QWi1UfrU0

Can't wait. I bought the big LP version a couple years back (and of course I had it on CD originally). I looked on Amazon, which is my retailer of choice just for delivery speed, and it was a whopping 90 bucks!!! I hope that comes down. I can order from KScope or even Amazon.co.uk, and get it cheaper. However, in previous purchases, it took a bit longer (a week or two) to get stuff, as opposed to Amazon, which I usually got the same day as release.  Hoping the Amazon pre-order price comes down a touch.

The book that comes with the deluxe set and the documentary are what I really can't wait to get my hands on.

I got hooked on PT when In Absentia came out, just like many folks that had no idea who they were until they got on a well distributed label. I much prefer the IA-The Incident era of the band, but I would also throw Stupid Dream in there, as Even less is my favorite PT song, and that whole album is incredible as well.

I'm not as big on Steven's solo stuff. I've tried. I like some of it, but in general, I really thing PT, and the compromises SW said he made musically with the band, really is what made the music special to my ears.

[faizoff]

I pre-ordered it back when they announced it. I can't wait for it, for me it's the favorite produced and mixed album of PT. Ranking wise I think Fear of Blank Planet is still my number one album.

[Samsara]

I pre-ordered it back when they announced it. I can't wait for it, for me it's the favorite produced and mixed album of PT. Ranking wise I think Fear of Blank Planet is still my number one album.

I really enjoy FoaBP a lot. I'm partial to Deadwing, I think, as my favorite PT record. Such a great band. I get why SW basically ended it, but it is such a shame. They had something special together. I only got to see them once. A one-off show with Karnivool supporting them in San Francisco. It was at the end of The Incident dates. I think it and an LA show were warmup dates for PT doing something in Japan or something. It was one hell of a show.

I had tickets to both the Deadwing and another tour, but I got ridiculously ill both times and couldn't make it. So glad I was able to make it happen before they called it a day.

[ProfessorPeart]

I REALLY want this set, but the price is really turning me off. Burning Shed isn't much better than Amazon. I don't understand the price at all.

[Samsara]

I REALLY want this set, but the price is really turning me off. Burning Shed isn't much better than Amazon. I don't understand the price at all.

Burning Shed is what, 55 Euro (or is it GBP)? It comes out a little cheaper with shipping. But if you're in the U.S., you have to wait. Amazon.co.uk has it cheaper too, but you're going to wait at least two weeks to get it after it is released. I don't get why. My only thought is that the hardbound book really drove up the price. I'm going to pay it regardless, as I want the set, but I agree, the price is a huge turn-off for an album I've bought twice already (CD and double-LP). Crossing my fingers the price comes down closer to release date. Thankfully, Amazon has their lowest price policy, so if it drops, I'll get the lowest price, despite pre-ordering at 90 bucks.

[The Letter M]

https://www.dreamtheaterforums.org/boards/index.php?topic=31351.0

Here's the thread, began in March 2012. last post in September 2019.

-Marc.

[Samsara]

https://www.dreamtheaterforums.org/boards/index.php?topic=31351.0

Here's the thread, began in March 2012. last post in September 2019.

-Marc.

Honest to God, it didn't come up in the General Music Discussion search I did. Weird. Sorry mods! If you could close this and move the posts, I'd appreciate it.

[RoeDent]

This forum software's search function is far from perfect. I've often not been able to find stuff.

[ChuckSteak]

I will download it when it comes out to check it out, but I really don't care much for demos. Every few years PT albums (including vinyls) get reissued with something additional. If they already had this material.. why didn't they release it earlier? Better wait so the fans buy all different versions so they can get more money. In that respect Wilson suffers from the same plague from Robert Fripp. It is neurotic to keep reissuing and adding a few new stuff every couple of years. Funny enough that happens with almost every band that Wilson is involved in remixing. Jethro Tull, XTC. Bluray, Special, Deluxe, Bonus, Super, Vinyl, Anniversary jerk-me-off Edition. "Here are some farts recorded during the In Absentia sessions. Bonus CD. Please, go buy that".

And yea, I know nobody is forcing me to buy anything. Just expressing incredulity at the rate they keep re-releasing this stuff.

[Revenge319]

I think I want to try out Porcupine Tree, considering the immense amount of praise the band gets. What would be a good album to start with?

I'd prefer to start with something that'll be most likely to leave an impression; to me, I prefer to be impressed on the first go than hope that an album eventually clicks me over several listens. A good example of the latter is Colors from the band Between the Buried and Me; it's widely considered the band's best album, but the first time I heard it, I thought it was boring and it took me a few listens to really start enjoying it. I think my safest bet would be to listen to something like Dream Theater's Images & Words, Octavarium, or Distance Over Time in the sense that it's easy to get into and showcases all aspects of the band.

[Zantera]

In Absentia was my first exposure of Porcupine Tree and was an instant click. I'd say it's probably the best introduction as it bridges late 90's PT (some prog some catchier tunes) with the sound they evolved into for the last few albums which had a bit of a metal edge to it as well (some heavier riffs).

[The Letter M]

https://www.dreamtheaterforums.org/boards/index.php?topic=31351.0

Here's the thread, began in March 2012. last post in September 2019.

-Marc.

Honest to God, it didn't come up in the General Music Discussion search I did. Weird. Sorry mods! If you could close this and move the posts, I'd appreciate it.

I only remembered that the thread title once had "Glarung is a lightbulb" and just searched for "lightbulb" and sure enough, there it was. 

-Marc.

[Samsara]

I think I want to try out Porcupine Tree, considering the immense amount of praise the band gets. What would be a good album to start with?

In Absentia. That's what hooked me, and I agree with Zantera. It's a good bridge album of their sound. If you dig IA, you'll probably dig what comes after, and probably a bit of what came before.

[Fritzinger]

I think I want to try out Porcupine Tree, considering the immense amount of praise the band gets. What would be a good album to start with?

Yeah, start with In Absentia.

If you like the heavier stuff on it, move forward to Deadwing and Fear Of A Blank Planet.
If you like the mellow, melodic stuff on it, go back to Lighbulb Sun and Stupid Dream.

[Revenge319]

I decided to give a few songs a shot that a friend recommended to me; two from In Absentia, and two from Deadwing. Out of those two albums, I think I'd like Deadwing a lot more.
The two songs from In Absentia I heard were alright. Trains, which from what I can tell is widely considered one of their best songs, was just alright. I remember there was a part in the middle I really liked, but aside from that, it was just OK. The other song I heard was Blackest Eyes, which I liked better than Trains, but some of the lyrics were... weird. But aside from that, I did enjoy it quite a bit more.
The songs from Deadwing I heard were Arriving Somewhere But Not Here and the title track. Arriving... was really, really good. I don't think I've heard something like that since... If I had to guess, my first time listening to Octavarium. I definitely see myself coming back to this song time and time again. As for Deadwing, it's also really good. I like that there's some energy to it, something I feel Trains lacked.
I'll definitely make In Absentia the second album I listen to. It's not like there's anything across the two songs I heard from IA that I disliked, but I think I'd enjoy Deadwing a lot more.

[dparrott]

Blackest Eyes is my favorite PT song, with Futile high on the list.  Loving this.

[Ben_Jamin]

I decided to give a few songs a shot that a friend recommended to me; two from In Absentia, and two from Deadwing. Out of those two albums, I think I'd like Deadwing a lot more.
The two songs from In Absentia I heard were alright. Trains, which from what I can tell is widely considered one of their best songs, was just alright. I remember there was a part in the middle I really liked, but aside from that, it was just OK. The other song I heard was Blackest Eyes, which I liked better than Trains, but some of the lyrics were... weird. But aside from that, I did enjoy it quite a bit more.
The songs from Deadwing I heard were Arriving Somewhere But Not Here and the title track. Arriving... was really, really good. I don't think I've heard something like that since... If I had to guess, my first time listening to Octavarium. I definitely see myself coming back to this song time and time again. As for Deadwing, it's also really good. I like that there's some energy to it, something I feel Trains lacked.
I'll definitely make In Absentia the second album I listen to. It's not like there's anything across the two songs I heard from IA that I disliked, but I think I'd enjoy Deadwing a lot more.

Deadwing was actually my first PT album I bought, after hearing The Start of Something Beautiful.

[Samsara]

I decided to give a few songs a shot that a friend recommended to me; two from In Absentia, and two from Deadwing. Out of those two albums, I think I'd like Deadwing a lot more.
The two songs from In Absentia I heard were alright. Trains, which from what I can tell is widely considered one of their best songs, was just alright. I remember there was a part in the middle I really liked, but aside from that, it was just OK. The other song I heard was Blackest Eyes, which I liked better than Trains, but some of the lyrics were... weird. But aside from that, I did enjoy it quite a bit more.
The songs from Deadwing I heard were Arriving Somewhere But Not Here and the title track. Arriving... was really, really good. I don't think I've heard something like that since... If I had to guess, my first time listening to Octavarium. I definitely see myself coming back to this song time and time again. As for Deadwing, it's also really good. I like that there's some energy to it, something I feel Trains lacked.
I'll definitely make In Absentia the second album I listen to. It's not like there's anything across the two songs I heard from IA that I disliked, but I think I'd enjoy Deadwing a lot more.

Nice! You can't go wrong with Deadwing. It is my favorite PT album because of the heavier direction, and "Arriving Somewhere But Not Here" is just jaw-droppingly good. I have a heavier taste, and the PT albums I most listen to are (in chronological order): Stupid Dream, In Absentia, Deadwing, and Fear of a Blank Planet.

[Evermind]

I'm a big fan of In Absentia, and even had it in my first Top 50, but I think Deadwing has overshadowed it for me since. Just an outstanding record and definitely my favourite PT record now.

[Buddyhunter1]

My top 3 would definitely be FOABP, Deadwing, then In Absentia. In Absentia's probably the most beginner-friendly out of the three, so I usually recommend people start off with that one, but if you like one of the others more then kudos to you!

[Revenge319]

So after a few nights of saying I'm going to listen to Deadwing and not ending up doing that, I've finally listened to the album Deadwing.

Wow. I love it. I can't say it's one of the best things I've ever heard, but I imagine after a few more listens, it probably will be one of the best albums I've ever heard.
I love the atmosphere, I love how mellow and melodic it is. I can't find many faults with this album, except that sometimes the lyrics are a bit awkward. But considering the vocals sound great, that's not much of a setback. There are quite a few parts of this album where I can just really embrace how pleasant it all sounds.
Here's my rankings after hearing each song for the first time (well, technically I've heard two of these songs before, but eh, semantics):

1. Arriving Somewhere But Not Here
2. Glass Arm Shattering
3. Deadwing
4. The Start of Something Beautiful
5. Lazarus
6. Halo
7. Mellotron Scratch
8. Open Car
9. Shallow

What a beautiful album. I'm definitely getting a CD for this one. Every song (except perhaps my bottom 2) is brilliant in in at least some way; Arriving Somewhere But Not Here in particular is an experience I haven't had in quite some time.

[Buddyhunter1]

It's an amazing album, for sure.

1: The Start Of Something Beautiful
2: Lazarus
3: Arriving Somewhere But Not Here
4: Mellotron Scratch
5: Glass Arm Shattering
6: Deadwing
7: Shallow
8: Open Car
9: Halo

[Ben_Jamin]

The first Porcupine Tree album I bought and no other PT album has this vibe.

1. The Start of Something Beautiful
2. Arriving Somewhere But Not Here
3. Deadwing
4. Glass Arm Shattering
5. Open Car
6. Lazarus
7. Mellotron Scratch
8. Halo
9. Shallow

[jammindude]

Trains was a grower for me.  I honestly thought it was boring for about the first six months that I had the album.  But I liked the rest of the album enough that I kept spinning the album.   When Trains did finally click, it shot to my #1 song on the whole CD. 

[Evermind]

Glad you liked Deadwing! It's ranking time:

1. Lazarus
2. Arriving Somewhere But Not Here

3. Open Car
4. Shallow
5. The Start of Something Beautiful

6. Glass Arm Shattering
7. Mellotron Scratch
8. Deadwing
9. Halo

[Revenge319]

Trains was a grower for me.  I honestly thought it was boring for about the first six months that I had the album.  But I liked the rest of the album enough that I kept spinning the album.   When Trains did finally click, it shot to my #1 song on the whole CD.

A grower, huh? Well, the last time I let an album grow on me, it had a really good payoff, so I'll have to see how Trains holds up after listening to it for a while.

[Revenge319]

Well, I decided to give In Absentia a shot tonight. I was right in my prediction that I'd enjoy Deadwing a lot more, but In Absentia is still a pretty good album.

Admittedly, I started to get a little bit worried that I'd find the album underwhelming, but after a couple songs or so, it did start to get good. I never got bored with the album, but there were a lot of points early on where I just zoned out. Although to be fair, that is an issue I have when listening to any music for the first time nowadays, but at the same time, there were a couple songs that just couldn't keep my attention. That being said, though, there wasn't a single bad track on the album. Like with Deadwing, the only real issue I have is that some of the lyrics are weird. I really am sorry to all the fans of Blackest Eyes, but the line "It's so erotic when your makeup runs" made me cringe a little bit.

So like with Deadwing, here are my song rankings:

1. .3
2. Wedding Nails
3. The Creator Has A Mastertape
4. Prodigal
5. Collapse the Light Into Earth
6. Heartattack in a Layby
7. Gravity Eyelids
8. Strip the Soul
9. The Sound of Muzak
10. Blackest Eyes
11. Trains
12. Lips of Ashes

Good album overall; I know I've been talking about how some songs weren't all that great, but my Top 3 are all really good. I definitely want to check out more of Porcupine Tree's music, but I'm not sure which album to check out next, to be honest.

[Buddyhunter1]

1. .3
2. Wedding Nails
3. The Creator Has A Mastertape
4. Prodigal
5. Collapse the Light Into Earth
6. Heartattack in a Layby
7. Gravity Eyelids
8. Strip the Soul
9. The Sound of Muzak
10. Blackest Eyes
11. Trains
12. Lips of Ashes

bruh



1: Trains
2: Collapse The Light Into Earth
3: Blackest Eyes
4: Heartattack In A Layby
5: Strip The Soul
6: Prodigal
7: .3
8: The Sound Of Muzak
9: Gravity Eyelids
10: The Creator Has A Mastertape
11: Lips Of Ashes
12: Wedding Nails

I really love the top five songs and I think they're some of the best the band ever wrote. The bottom four on the other hand don't do much for me. It's not their most consistent record, and compared to some of their other albums it feels less wholistic and more like a collection of songs, but it's still a pretty fantastic collection of songs.

[jammindude]

Actually, I have several #1's from this CD.   

But seriously.   Trains was my #1 from the CD for awhile....until another "grower" shot past it.   Heartattack in a Layby.   That was one of those where I didn't really understand what was happening in the song at first.    But one day I was actually processing the lyrics and started to understand what was happening in the song...and my jaw hit the floor.   Now that's my #1. 

[Buddyhunter1]

Strip The Soul was definitely the song I slept on the most. I found it totally unremarkable for the longest time and then something clicked and now it's one of my favorites on the album.

[Revenge319]

Actually, I have several #1's from this CD.   

But seriously.   Trains was my #1 from the CD for awhile....until another "grower" shot past it.   Heartattack in a Layby.   That was one of those where I didn't really understand what was happening in the song at first.    But one day I was actually processing the lyrics and started to understand what was happening in the song...and my jaw hit the floor.   Now that's my #1.

Speaking of that song, I remember prior to listening to Porcupine Tree for the first time, I read (at least part of) a list of someone's Top 75 Porcupine Tree songs, and he wrote a 10-and-a-half page review on why Heartattack in a Layby was his second-favorite PT song. That guy has really inspired me to make my own reviews of music, even if I'm nowhere near as good a writer as he is.

[Sacul]

1. .3
2. Wedding Nails
3. The Creator Has A Mastertape
4. Prodigal
5. Collapse the Light Into Earth
6. Heartattack in a Layby
7. Gravity Eyelids
8. Strip the Soul
9. The Sound of Muzak
10. Blackest Eyes
11. Trains
12. Lips of Ashes

bruh



1: Trains
2: Collapse The Light Into Earth
3: Blackest Eyes
4: Heartattack In A Layby
5: Strip The Soul
6: Prodigal
7: .3
8: The Sound Of Muzak
9: Gravity Eyelids
10: The Creator Has A Mastertape
11: Lips Of Ashes
12: Wedding Nails

I really love the top five songs and I think they're some of the best the band ever wrote. The bottom four on the other hand don't do much for me. It's not their most consistent record, and compared to some of their other albums it feels less wholistic and more like a collection of songs, but it's still a pretty fantastic collection of songs.

BRUH

Damn I love this album so much it's hard to rank, but I guess my ranking would be:

1. Drown With Me (bonus track)
2. Trains
3. Collapse the Light Into Earth
4. The Sound of Muzak
5. Strip The Soul
6. Heartattack in a Layby
7. Blackest Eyes
8. The Creator Has a Mastertape
9. Gravity Eyelids
10. Lips of Ashes
11. Wedding Nails
12. Prodigal
13. .3

[Buddyhunter1]

BRUH

Prodigal and .3 at the very bottom is a steaming hot take but otherwise your ranking's pretty good.

[jammindude]

I get where you're coming from with Strip the Soul.    I like the first half of the song just fine, but that slowed down and repetitive ending just drags the song out for no reason at all. 

I actually prefer the live version from Anesthetize where they morph into .3 right at the spot where I would normally stop the song anyway. 

[Sacul]

BRUH

Prodigal and .3 at the very bottom is a steaming hot take but otherwise your ranking's pretty good.

I love Prodigal quite a lot like most songs above it, it's just with .3 that while an excellent track, I can't place it in any other place. This album is in my top 3 of all time, I love it to death anyways

Folks, what are your favorite b-sides / outtakes from IA? Mine are:

1. Drown With Me
2. Vapour Trail Lullaby
3. Collapse
4. Chloroform

5. Futile
6. Orchidia
7. Meantime