Mr. Not Posted March 7, 2015 Share Posted March 7, 2015 (edited) Solo-wise, the first disc is his worst yet, and the second disc is possibly his best yet Edited March 7, 2015 by Mr. Not Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Not Posted March 7, 2015 Share Posted March 7, 2015 Interesting interview where SW discusses many things such as the Rush like vibe in 3 Years Older. Interviewer: There are some elements that sound like Rush for example in 3 Years Older or Regret #9. Do you agree that there are some elements of Rush?SW: Here's what I'll say, you're not the first person to say that. I'm not consciously aware of it. And actually one of the things that people think sounds like Rush is Pete Townsend and actually it makes sense because Alex Lifeson was very influence by Pete Townsend. So, in fact when I was working on that song 3 Years Older my working title was "The Who". That's for me is pure Townsend. But people said to me "That's Rush!" Well no, but I can see why they say that because Alex took a lot from the kind of Townsend thing. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ozuCWbZScoI Interviewer: I noticed that this is a progressive rock record. Do you like Rush? They're progressive rock. Would you say you owe credit to Rush since they made progressive rock music before you did? When I listen to Three Years Older or Regret #9, all that is on my mind is "Rush!"SW: Regret #9? Do you honestly think the keyboards in that song are repetitive enough to be considered comparable to Geddy's banal playing? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KenJennings Posted March 7, 2015 Share Posted March 7, 2015 Enough of this already! I need my dose of Porcupine Tree!! Am I the only one who doesn't like his solo stuff? Nope, you're not. Add another to the list. IMO, PT produced a far superior product as a group. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
treeduck Posted March 7, 2015 Share Posted March 7, 2015 Enough of this already! I need my dose of Porcupine Tree!! Am I the only one who doesn't like his solo stuff? Nope, you're not. Add another to the list. IMO, PT produced a far superior product as a group.http://www.jimjambo.com/WellBye.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RUSHHEAD666 Posted March 7, 2015 Share Posted March 7, 2015 Enough of this already! I need my dose of Porcupine Tree!! Am I the only one who doesn't like his solo stuff? Nope, you're not. Add another to the list. IMO, PT produced a far superior product as a group. I totally agree. I like the SW stuff but I will always love PT. "Stars Die" will be played at my funeral. Funeral? An anagram for that word is "REAL FUN!" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Digital Dad Posted March 7, 2015 Share Posted March 7, 2015 I like em both, this new one is pretty good. Those keys on Regret #9 I think. wow. and of course Guthrie Govan is incredible. His playing really lifts the album imo. And Marco. Really, this guy can cut the damn chops, is there anything he can't play? Check out Mike Keneally Evidence of Humanity. the groove they set up around the 5 min mark of this video...words escape me. sorry to go on a tangent here...yeah Wilson has an amazing ear and can pick some damn good musicians to play his music. I love PT, and Wilson is great too on his own. The Raven? If you don't have it by now don't call yourself a prog fan! ;) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Digital Dad Posted March 7, 2015 Share Posted March 7, 2015 Also is that a f***ing banjo at the end of "Regret #9"? Yup. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Not Posted March 7, 2015 Share Posted March 7, 2015 The last half of the album is probably some of the best material he's ever written. The first half was a little shaky, didn't care much for Perfect Life or Routine (this may grow on me). But very much worth the purchase. I like Routine, but why the generic female vocals? :( (I know, the concept...) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Digital Dad Posted March 7, 2015 Share Posted March 7, 2015 The last half of the album is probably some of the best material he's ever written. The first half was a little shaky, didn't care much for Perfect Life or Routine (this may grow on me). But very much worth the purchase. Very much this. They do sort of serve to push the narrative along, but other tracks do that quite nicely as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Not Posted March 7, 2015 Share Posted March 7, 2015 (edited) The music should always come before the concept, being subtle is encouraged. If the music is good it will be hard for the story not to be satiable enough for the listener. When you do something like add two minutes of character narration over an uninteresting rhythmic section in a song, you're harming the concept album's listen-ability and flow more than you are strengthening the story. Edited March 7, 2015 by Mr. Not 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony R Posted March 7, 2015 Share Posted March 7, 2015 The last half of the album is probably some of the best material he's ever written. The first half was a little shaky, didn't care much for Perfect Life or Routine (this may grow on me). But very much worth the purchase. I like Routine, but why the generic female vocals? :( (I know, the concept...)Hardly generic, Wilson auditioned several singers for the piece. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HemispheresserehpsimeH Posted March 7, 2015 Share Posted March 7, 2015 The music should always come before the concept, being subtle is encouraged. If the music is good it will be hard for the story not to be satiable enough for the listener. When you do something like add two minutes of character narration over an uninteresting rhythmic section in a song, you're harming the concept album's listen-ability and flow more than you are strengthening the story.I disagree. The music and concept are intertwined. Of course, you don't want an album to be bogged down by literal reading of a narrative, but if it's a sprinkle of narrative here and there, it's not really intrusive if the music is still well done. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pip65 Posted March 7, 2015 Share Posted March 7, 2015 I've now had a week to immerse myself in this and to say I'm impressed would be an understatement. The musicianship is out of this world and the production/engineering/mixing has ensured that every note can be heard. I really love the Raven That Refused to Sing and was worried that this would not be able to live upto my expectations, but it has exceeded them despite being very different.If I had to give a least favourite track it would be Perfect Life. Favourite - can't decide between 3 Years Older, Home Invasion, Ancestral and Happy Returns. I can't wait to hear how this sounds live. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PolarizeMe Posted March 7, 2015 Share Posted March 7, 2015 Solo-wise, the first disc is his worst yet, and the second disc is possibly his best yetYou mean Insurgentes being his worst and Grace For Drowning being his best? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PolarizeMe Posted March 7, 2015 Share Posted March 7, 2015 Interesting interview where SW discusses many things such as the Rush like vibe in 3 Years Older. Interviewer: There are some elements that sound like Rush for example in 3 Years Older or Regret #9. Do you agree that there are some elements of Rush?SW: Here's what I'll say, you're not the first person to say that. I'm not consciously aware of it. And actually one of the things that people think sounds like Rush is Pete Townsend and actually it makes sense because Alex Lifeson was very influence by Pete Townsend. So, in fact when I was working on that song 3 Years Older my working title was "The Who". That's for me is pure Townsend. But people said to me "That's Rush!" Well no, but I can see why they say that because Alex took a lot from the kind of Townsend thing. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ozuCWbZScoI Interviewer: I noticed that this is a progressive rock record. Do you like Rush? They're progressive rock. Would you say you owe credit to Rush since they made progressive rock music before you did? When I listen to Three Years Older or Regret #9, all that is on my mind is "Rush!"SW: Regret #9? Do you honestly think the keyboards in that song are repetitive enough to be considered comparable to Geddy's banal playing?The interviewer's voice is to quote one comment in an older SW interview video is probably one of the most unbearable I've ever heard. Sounds like Kermit being pitch shifted down a few semi-tones and then going through some modulations and given a German accent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Not Posted March 7, 2015 Share Posted March 7, 2015 Solo-wise, the first disc is his worst yet, and the second disc is possibly his best yetYou mean Insurgentes being his worst and Grace For Drowning being his best? No, A/B of HCE being the worst and C/D of HCE possibly his best. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PolarizeMe Posted March 7, 2015 Share Posted March 7, 2015 Solo-wise, the first disc is his worst yet, and the second disc is possibly his best yetYou mean Insurgentes being his worst and Grace For Drowning being his best? No, A/B of HCE being the worst and C/D of HCE possibly his best.Oh you meant album (vinyl) sides. That I can agree with to an extent. Second half is consistently amazing but the first half has my favorite track off the album (Routine). 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Not Posted March 8, 2015 Share Posted March 8, 2015 Adapted to the female vocals in Routine, although I still think it'd be better without her as a lead and instead keep her doing those atmospheric haunting backing vocals. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Not Posted March 8, 2015 Share Posted March 8, 2015 Solo-wise, the first disc is his worst yet, and the second disc is possibly his best yetYou mean Insurgentes being his worst and Grace For Drowning being his best? No, A/B of HCE being the worst and C/D of HCE possibly his best.Oh you meant album (vinyl) sides. That I can agree with to an extent. Second half is consistently amazing but the first half has my favorite track off the album (Routine). Yes, but... Harmony + Significant Other > RoutineDeform + Remainder + Index + Track One + Raider > RoutineLuminol + Drive Home + Watchmaker + Raven > Routine 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PolarizeMe Posted March 8, 2015 Share Posted March 8, 2015 (edited) Solo-wise, the first disc is his worst yet, and the second disc is possibly his best yetYou mean Insurgentes being his worst and Grace For Drowning being his best? No, A/B of HCE being the worst and C/D of HCE possibly his best.Oh you meant album (vinyl) sides. That I can agree with to an extent. Second half is consistently amazing but the first half has my favorite track off the album (Routine). Yes, but... Harmony + Significant Other > RoutineDeform + Remainder + Index + Track One + Raider > RoutineLuminol + Drive Home + Watchmaker + Raven > RoutineYes but I'm only taking HCE into consideration. Otherwise most of the last three albums is as good if not better than most of HCE...actually well IMO his first three albums are definitely better than the first half of HCE. Edited March 8, 2015 by PolarizeMe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Union 5-3992 Posted March 8, 2015 Author Share Posted March 8, 2015 I thought side 1 was rather good still. I liked the title track and 3 years later. Though it doesn't come close to the last two sides Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cygnify Posted March 8, 2015 Share Posted March 8, 2015 I've now had a week to immerse myself in this and to say I'm impressed would be an understatement. The musicianship is out of this world and the production/engineering/mixing has ensured that every note can be heard.I really love the Raven That Refused to Sing and was worried that this would not be able to live upto my expectations, but it has exceeded them despite being very different.If I had to give a least favourite track it would be Perfect Life. Favourite - can't decide between 3 Years Older, Home Invasion, Ancestral and Happy Returns. I can't wait to hear how this sounds live. I was thinking the same thing. As much of a PT fan that I am, for me, Raven was the first solo disc that surpassed even my favorite PT discs. While HCE is still very fresh, I suspect that it will also be in that top echelon after some time. Different than Raven, but equally great. I understand the opinions regarding the album finishing strong (it most certainly does) but "3 Years Older" and "Routine" are stellar tracks. The title track is infectiously pop-infused, but reminds me of moments like that in SW history (Lazarus, for example.) It is a well-crafted pop tune and I like it (It's great to hear Marco kill it on the pop tune like that!) Perfect Life is quite different, but again reminds me a little of the approach of something like "Index." I actually really like the monologue - in particular, the line "The water has no memory." I would agree that the first half of the disc doesn't flow as well as the second half as the songs don't all fit nicely together. But they each serve a function. I find the experience of listening to the 5.1 mix significantly different than the stereo mix; I listen to a fair amount of 5.1 and understand the typical variations - widened sound stage, gimmicky channel play, etc. but HCE 5.1 is a completely different experience. Some of the guitar solo moments (in Ancestral, for example) really pop out in stereo get a bit muted in surround (as the solo is often retained in the center channel.) I guess I prefer each format for different reasons. The studio documentary on the disc has different edits and some additional material from what was posted online. There is a little more of the version of Ancestral with Ninet on vocals. I hope this version gets released. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cygnify Posted March 8, 2015 Share Posted March 8, 2015 (edited) The Ninet version of Routine is on the BluRay http://youtu.be/4DxqQ5_fOsM Edited March 8, 2015 by cygnify 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cygnify Posted March 8, 2015 Share Posted March 8, 2015 Along the lines of wondering where HCE fits in to what I like in SW's catalog (at least those that I know and love); My current, pre-HCE, rankings: SW: Raven>Grace>Insurgentes PT: FoaBP>In Absentia>Deadwing>Nil Recurring>Signify>Stupid Dream>Recordings>The Incident>Lightbulb Sun>The Sky Moves Sideways Combined: Raven>FoaBP>In Absentia>Deadwing>Nil Recurring>Grace>Signify>Stupid Dream>Recordings>Insurgentes>The Incident>Lightbulb Sun>The Sky Moves SidewaysI also love Storm Corrosion - but it is so damn hard to rank compared to these because it is so different. I suppose I like it more than Grace and Nil but less than Deadwing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pip65 Posted March 8, 2015 Share Posted March 8, 2015 The Ninet version of Routine is on the BluRay http://youtu.be/4DxqQ5_fOsMCr*p. This has been banned due to copyright in my country. Unfortunately I went with the Cd/DVD rather than the bluray. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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