With quite a few of my friends venturing out to London to catch Steven Wilson’s two shows at the Royal Albert Hall, it got me realizing that I hadn’t checked out the new music he’s released in the recent weeks for his forthcoming album. I haven’t talked about Wilson much on this blog, but I’ve been following his solo career since 2011, when we saw Blackfield in L.A. Here’s a couple of crappy 2011-era phone pics I took from the front row.
I took home a guitar pick from Wilson and lots of great memories that I retain today. I’ve seen every US solo tour since then, and my thoughts on his music and other projects vary. I wasn’t lucky enough to see Porcupine Tree in their heyday in the 2000s, let alone in the 90s, but I do consider those albums, as well as the first two Blackfield albums to be his strongest music. After that is where it gets complicated for me. To be honest, the last Wilson solo record I truly enjoyed start to finish was 2015’s Hand.Cannot.Erase. Everything after that has been full of hits and misses, and in the recent years, there have regrettably been more misses than hits for me, particularly on his last two solo albums. I played them start to finish, and haven’t felt compelled to revisit them. Even Porcupine Tree’s comeback album in 2022 didn’t knock my socks off.
In spite of this, I haven’t fallen off the Wilson bandwagon completely. I’m still interested when he puts out new material, but it doesn’t excite me as much as it does some of my friends. Which is why I’m several weeks late in listening to his two new songs, “On Chapel Slope,” and “Requiem for a Village.” I thought the second song was the strongest. I liked the musicality and arrangement of it, and certain heavy guitar parts gave me Porcupine Tree vibes, which helped shape my opinion. The first song, I’m sorry to say, wasn’t very memorable at all. I watched an interview where the interviewer asked about touring plans for this new album, and Wilson actually said that he may not tour it, due to being concerned that the songs would be difficult to replicate live, and I was surprised to hear that. I haven’t heard a musician or band express that kind of concern before about their songs or albums, and I’m not sure what to make of it. Is that a good thing? A bad thing? It may not be either, but for me the live experience is what truly brings an album to life. He did also mention wanting to spend more time with his family, which is completely valid and understandable.
So, what did you think of the new songs?
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