FEAR OF A BLANK PLANET

Over the years the band have floated away from their electronic roots to a more evenly blended guitar and keyboards sound offering superb musicianship on all levels coupled with Steven Wilson's ever growing excellent vocal ability. With the previous 2 albums In Absentia and Deadwing PT had adopted a much heavier sound and to me reached their finest moments with Deadwing as well as the live album Warszawa. With Fear of a Blank Planet PT clearly reverted back to an electronic focus, but with a darker heavier sound.

I'm not against the band changing styles, it's what makes them unique and fresh. Indeed, the following album The Incident which again is largely electronic and softer is a superb return to form. But Fear of a Blank Planet was an average album at best, and a poor PT album.

Why? Simply put, every song sounds like the last from beginning to end. There is little variation and often droning boring rhythms for minutes on end. The only real standout song seems to be Anesthetize. The rest of the album really holds little interest.

For collectors it's clearly a must have, and isn't so dreadful that it's not worth a listen. Compared to the likes of Stupid Dream, Lightbulb Sun, Deadwing, Warszawa, and all of PT's other masterpieces, this is a collection of B sides at best.

People new to the band, don't be discouraged. Grab a copy of Warszawa for a great overview of PT's finest moments, or In Absentia or Deadwing if your comfortable with heavy music, or even the bands latest album The Incident.

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