THE INCIDENT

This album takes a couple of listens to get into... but once you are in the zone it makes for very rewarding repeat listens. As with all Porcupine Tree albums you have excellent production and writing and great playing.... The lyrics are a little more obscure here than on past albums and the concept..... well, I'm still trying to figure it out .... answers on a postcard..... I'm hoping seeing them live in a couple of weeks with the films etc should make things a little clearer

The epic title track is really several shorter tracks which work really well seguing together like a really well-sequenced album, i.e. apart from a few recurrent reference points there seems to be fairly little overt musical thematic continuity throughout the track .... also this title 'track' takes a while to get going having to wait for substantial/memorable material which comes around 10 minutes in - this might bore a newcomer listening to the band for the first time..... but the stand out sections are very satisfying - 'Drawing the Line', 'The Incident', 'Time Flies' (a real classic), 'Octane Twisted' and a closing slow-y 'I Drive the Hearse' - all wonderful....

And on the second disc I especially like the dark 'Bonnie the Cat', which I think is very innovative ... and 'Remember Me Lover' is, to this listener's ears, a classic PT track....

The band don't do themselves any favours given that everything they do (and more or less everything that Steven Wilson is involved in) is so universally excellent. They really set their standards and fans expectations high. Having lived with this album for the last couple of weeks I am not sure how anyone could find this new release anything less than completely excellent.