IN ABSENTIA

heavier edge to their sound. This is one my most favorite albums, ever.

I don't want to spoil the story of this album for you too much, so I'll

try not to reveal what the concept is. Here we go.

Blackest Eyes - Amazing opening song. The blend of heavy and light

sections is just perfect, wonderful vocal parts and some awesome

lyrics...though the whole album is amazing lyrically. Porcupine Tree

seemed to have found a good balance between Prog and Pop, yet still

retain an amazing sound overall. 5/5

Trains - Beautiful. That's the only word you can use here, this track

is just completely amazing. Fantastic vocal performance by Steven on

this one. The opening acoustic guitar part is very catchy, and this

song will very easily be stuck in your head...it's almost impossible to

forget any moment of it. 5/5

Lips of Ashes - A very sad and dark track. Again, stunning vocal

performance and some good unison lines between the guitar and vocals.

The guitar solo is also quite nice and adds to the song. Again, the

lyrics are a piece of art in their own right and should be listened to

as carefully as anything else. Great. 4/5

Sound of Muzak - Wonderful track. The opening guitar riff is great, I

believe it is in a 7\4 time signature and it's very proggy sounding.

The lyrics are also completely awesome, as they describe the current

state of music and the music business. I think all of us progheads can

relate to them to some extent. The vocal harmonies are great, and as

usual Steven delivers a very tasteful solo. Cool song. 5/5

Gravity Eyelids - A melancholic track, this one. Very nice ambient

keyboard work and again, great lyrics that really paint pictures of the

story in your mind. I like the piano that comes in before the chorus as

well. The vocal harmonies during the chorus are brilliant as well. The

drumming on this track is conservative, but for some reason it's still

really great. Maybe it's just me. Anyways, another good track. 4/5

Wedding Nails - A great instrumental by PT. It has a fantastic main

riff that develops throughout and every instrument is played extremely

well...you can really hear how in tune the band is with each other one

this one. Steven plays a really interesting and creative solo...it's

hard to describe it...it sounds almost diseased or sick. Awesome

drumming from Gavin and a nice ambient breakdown section that features

some good keyboard work. Of course we can't forget Colin's amazing bass

playing and you can really appreciate the synchronicity between him and

Gavin. Awesome track. 5/5

Prodigal - I like the slide guitar on this one.....A very moody and

features yet more amazing lyrics. The keys are also very cool on this

one. I like the way the track builds up and the heavier guitars enter.

Steven also has another melodic solo on this song and it's very nice.

4/5

.3 - A cool intro by the keyboards and guitar. I like the spacey

ambient sound to this one....yet it still manages to sound full. I like

the orchestration. The guitar effects are great, heavily chorused

electric guitar and layered with acoustic guitars. Another good vocal

performance from Steven, lots of good harmonies. 4.5/5

The Creator Has a Mastertape - A creepy track to be sure, both

lyrically and musically. Everything about this track is heavy, but with

breaks here and there. The vocals and guitar again join together for

harmonies, but this time it's sounds very disturbing...but in a good

way. The drumming is also very, very, good on this one. Lots of energy

behind Gavin's performance. A good track. 4/5

Heartattack in a Layby - I like this one. Nice piano and guitar one in

this song. Of course, the lyrics are good...but again, they are rather

sad. The vocal performance is good and John's harmonies with Steven are

perfect. Very nice. 4/5

Strip The Soul - Cool bass playing on this song for sure. The lyrics

are again, quite disturbing and they definitely get the point across.

The song is well orchestrated and the breaks are well placed. The

chorus is very good, and you'll find it sticks with you. There are some

very interesting guitar lines on this track, so listen for those. 4.5/5

Collapse the Light into Earth - A beautiful track. I think it's a great

ending to the album, even though it is a little on the lengthy side.

It's very simple, but it proves you can do something great with a song

that isn't particularly complex. 5/5

This is one of PT's finest albums in my opinion. Fantastic production,

amazing music...just great all around. I hope you listen to it and

enjoy it as much as I have!

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