Porcupine Tree/Robert Fripp

Town Hall, NYC

Saturday, October 1, 2005

I only got into PT in the past couple of months.  I had heard Lightbulb Sun about a year ago, and didn’t like it.  So when a good friend strongly suggested that I listen to Deadwing, I put it off, but eventually gave in.  And boy, am I glad I did.  In the past three months, I went out and got everything I could find, including Warsawa, Signify and In Absentia, and I have become a seriously confirmed PT fan.  So it was with great excitement that I bought my ticket for this concert.

The show opened with a 45-minute set of marvelous Frippertronics from the godfather of prog himself, Robert Fripp.  As usual, he sat on a rotating stool, working a wide variety of pedals, two delay units, and his ever-present Les Paul guitar.  He seemed quite laid back, even happy, and the three tonal compositions he created were all interesting, even compelling.  During his set, a rotating set of slides was projected onto a screen behind him, showing him at various stages in his career, from his days with Giles Giles & Fripp to the various incarnations of King Crimson, to his work with Eno, his marriage to Toyah and beyond.  It was a perfect backdrop for the sonic sensibilities of his layered compositions.

Porcupine Tree then took the stage and opened with a solid version of “Open Car” from Deadwing.  Their set then took them through equally brilliantly, and often excitingly,  executed versions of Blackest Eyes, Lazarus, Deadwing, Don’t Hate Me, So-Called Friend, Arriving Somewhere (But Not Here), Heart Attack in a Layby, The Start of Something Beautiful and Halo.  They then did encores of Radioactive Toy and Trains.  They also did one song I did not recognize, as well as an instrumental jam which someone familiar with them told me must have been brand new.  It reminded me somewhat of Zep's Immigration Song, but was quite creative.

The sound mix was excellent, particularly the drums, though the vocals were a little bit lost on the upper level.  The band used very minimal lighting effects, apparently wanting to let the music speak for itself: and it certainly did.

One of the things I find most interesting about PT is the amazing variety of influences in their music.  In addition to the obvious Floydian influence, there were passages (both lengthy and brief) that brought to mind King Crimson, Dream Theater, Led Zeppelin, Genesis, even Jethro Tull and Gentle Giant.  It seems that little historical prog in the symphonic, psychedelic, space, folk and metal veins has escaped them.  But what matters most is that, in most cases, they have an uncanny way of incorporating those influences so that it sounds less like “imitation” and more like creative channeling.

It is hard to describe how “perfect” the show was, in terms of musicianship and execution.  The band was as tight as any I have heard, and Steve Wilson led them masterfully through each song, moving around the stage almost absent-mindedly, and offering very funny quips and bon mots in between songs.  I was particularly impressed with their ability to recreate some of the most interesting sonic effects from their albums.  In this regard, Richard Barbieri worked his keyboard magic quite well, and both Wilson and guitar colleague John Wesley used a wide variety of pedals to create the necessary effects, with both guitarists offering occasional solos, all of which were tasteful, with some approaching greatness.

And yet…something about the very “clinical perfection” of the show left me a bit cold – though not nearly cold enough to stifle my enjoyment and excitement.  It was not so much that it seemed like they were “going through the motions”; Wilson is far too good a band leader and expresses too much emotion for that, and it was clear that everyone in the band was having lots of fun.  Rather, there was a “sameness” to the execution of each song – perhaps “perfection” has its price?

In any event, it was an excellent and highly enjoyable show by a band that is arguably among the top three or four regularly performing neo-prog bands out there (along with Mars Volta, Dream Theater and Marillion).  I highly recommend it to anyone who has a chance to see it.

Incredible,that was the indefinable "something" that I came away with when I saw them earlier in the year.

Occasionally,just like Rush,they can be too obsessed with the "performance".

Absolutely terrific band though and I'm surprised Maani didnt mention the extraordinary (and I use that word advisedly) performance of Gavin Harrison on drums. Wow!!!

James:

Strangely, I don't hear that "clinical" quality on their studio work; it was something I only felt in the live performance.  Still, as noted, they do play a fantastic show!

Peace.

Tony:

Although I felt that Harrison's playing was, indeed, excellent, he is no better or worse than so many excellent drummers, prog and other.  But I'm not sure his playing rose to the level of "extraordinary" - though you did use the word "advisedly," so I apologize if I'm "picking nits" here.

Peace.

I would have thought that the instrumental jam would have been 'Wedding Nails' seeing as it does actually sound more like the Immigrant Song then Mother & Child.

I could be wrong though!

Gonna see these guys in December in Manchester [UK] and can't wait, will share the setlist they play with you all.

Cool, I like both songs just as much anyway, can't wait to see DEADWING performed live though!

I saw them in Madrid and it was amazing!!, the supporting band was ANATHEMA WHO PLAYED A VERSION OF FLOYD´S "COMFORTABLY NUMB" which was breathtaking!!.

Porcupine Tree´s show was a perfect as always, the last song was "trains", one of my favourites, and it was brilliant. They didn´t play Mother and Child, by the way, it is not in the Lazarus single, in that single the two extra tracks were So Called Friend and Half-Light.

Now I can´t remember in which CD is Mother and Child!!, I don´t have it and I have all PT cd´s!!!