VARIATIONS ON A DREAM

I am writing this review with a heavy heart, not just because I get to disagree (a rare event, I assure you) with my colleague sinkadotentree whose opinions and taste are uncontestable but also because I adore the previous Pineapple Thief albums as well as Bruce Soord's work with Vulgar Unicorn (which remain my favorites) but this album just doesn't ring my bell. I have tried repeatedly but the trigger still will not discharge the pleasure bullet. Yet, all the trappings are there, sublime artwork (exactly down my alley: blue, dreamy and vivid), gigantic helpings of "The Great White Tron", succulent bass guitar and prolific percussive drums, as well as Soord's unique guitar style that never disappoints. Being an incurable romantic, the more melancholia the better; damn, I even think I enjoy pain sometimes (Sonia, will you put down the whip now, please). The songs, it's got to be the songs. I do not know Radiohead, Smashing Pumpkins or Coldplay (outside of what I may have accidentally heard "en sourdine") but I have all the Porcupine Trees (more like a forest, by now) and I can dig a sad tune even more than the lover's leapers but I need some aching melody to yank my chain and there are few on this record. Some songs occasionally manage to shock the monkey, like "We Subside", with its mournful trembling and soporific vocal, a vastly evocative lament that expresses pain well, chopping guitar stabs and walls of keyboards masses. It's not only the songs but the vocals that leave me unconvinced; I guess I am not a fan of that type of Billy Corgan yelling-vocal style. One of the high points, "Vapour Trails" is spacey but the vocals again do not impress, even though the restraint is there. Lots of varied guitar and keyboard orchestrations and sonic effects make this a PTree distant cousin but Wilson's voice is so much more lavish. I prefer Like Wendy's Bert Heinen's voice, less droning and more poignant, in my opinion. "Run Me Through" is depressive and repetitive with a monotonous vocal exaltation that leaves me giggling more than anything but is saved by a vacillating guitar sortie that adds a little fiber to the pineapple. "The Bitter Pill" starts off with glittering piano, quickly evolving into a sorrowful ballad that has little melody but loads of sadness, guilt and regret. I realize now that his vocal style will never turn me on but "c'est la vie". Out of the blue, the excellent "Resident Alien" is a clever melody, with an almost sound trackish appeal, like some score for a Jason Bourne sequel and since there are no vocals, this will be my preferred track here, by far. "Sooner or Later" plunges back into the opiate hysteria of an overwrought voice seeking to express the rage of separation. Sorry, but I just can't. "Part Zero" says the right words "I'm doing all I can, But all I get is a suicide plan", smashingly angry guitars, jagged -edged melody, wisps of mellotron, Bruce's vocals a tad more linear, really swerving into the ultra-sad Blackfield territory, probably the second real fine track here, topped off with a researched and extended guitar excursion that has plenty of feeling and sizzle, as if under a temporary Manzanera spell. Now you're talking! "Keep Dreaming" tips back to the yawning dullness of overblown emotion, saved only by torrents of string and trumpet mellotron that truly ignites the embers and ends nicely. "Remember Me" is the 16 minute + finale, an extended, truly progressive musical adventure that , finally, extends beyond the contemporary platitudes and delivers some riveting moments , acoustic guitar expressions mixed with keyboard colorations and very brief vocal passages, all giving way to some surprising lead solos. That being said, it does veer into some experimental zones which is kind of odd because it has nothing in common structurally with the preceding 9 tracks, almost as if an in-studio jam ensued. This is no Pink Floyd epic and it does plod on without too much soloing, just lots of backing vocal panting and wailing that has little impact on the overall feel. A volcanic guitar blast certainly spices up the proceedings but too little, too late. 3 noriegas