THE SKY MOVES SIDEWAYS

The Sky Moves Sideways was the last Porcupine Tree studio album I acquired, and like In Absentia (the first I acquired), it is an absolute masterpiece. There are few albums I like more than this one.

The album starts with "The Sky Moves Sideways Phase 1". This epic songs starts out with a very dreamlike intro. Then, the song settles down and becomes more serious. The third part of the song really picks up, a very spacey and high tempo part. A beautiful flute eventually comes in toward the end of the third part. After the third part of the song, the fourth part becomes very quiet. The outro of the song is absolutely beautiful, it almost sounds sad. Overall, Phase 1 is an epic masterpiece, and one of the best songs I have ever heard. The next song, "Dislocated Day", is the hardest song on the album, but it is an excellent song. The guitar in this song is great. "The Moon Touches Your Shoulder" is a soft, beautiful song, starting out with a soft guitar pick up the pace by the end of the song. "Prepare Yourself" is a segue into "The Sky Moves Sideways Phase 2", and is aptly named. It is an all guitar song if I'm not mistaken. "The Sky Moves Sideways Phase 2" is not right away a continuation of Phase 1. Unlike Phase 1, it is completely instrumental (well, there's some singing, but no lyrics). Phase 2 starts with a very soft and spacey intro. It builds up toward the end of the intro until the guitars come alive. Around the 10 minute mark, it slows down into another spacey section. At the 12 minute mark, the song picks up from Phase 1. The songs builds on the part from the refrain (minus the singing). Finally, Phase 2 slows down and ends to the sound of flowing water. Phase 2 complements Phase 1 perfectly, and together they are a masterpiece. Since I got the 2004 version, I'll add a little bit about the second disc. The highlight here is probably "Stars Die", a beautiful song originally left off of the album. The alternate version of "The Sky Moves Sideways" is also very good, with some different sections and lyrics from the original two part song, definitely worth listening to. "Moonloop" is a very spacey improvisation, and "Moonloop (Coda)" is a great end to the song.

Overall, The Sky Moves Sideways is a flawless album, and it is a must-have album. Highly recommended to everyone!