The official Prog Archives Porcupine Tree Thread!

Now I'm having trouble converting it to MP3 format so I can have it on my Ipod :(

OK, I have it now! Good song! 

For the record, the NYC premiere of "Insurgentes" went very well, and the film is good.  Those who preordered the DVD will not be sorry.

Unfortunately, though the Q & A was supposed to include both Steven Wilson and Lasse Hoile, for some reason Lasse did not make it, so we had to make do with Steven by himself.  No one seemed crushed by the news.  ;-)  The evening was a bit surreal for me, though, in that my older sister (who had very similar taste in music and film, and introduced me to many of my favorite artists) died on September 12th following a long illness, and the 21st - the premiere - was her birthday.  It made for a bit of a strange evening all the way around, but she would have liked the film, and I know that she would have been happy I was there, knowing how hooked on SW I am.  Ironically, I preordered a second copy of the film DVD for her birthday.

I don't want to blow the film for anyone, but be warned from here out there may be spoilers . . . the film is very informative about SW, his early influences and his creative process, and is both poignant and very funny at times, with a hilarious sequence in which Lasse filmed SW at Disneyworld in Orlando, and a shorter but even funnier scene when Mikael Akerfelt was describing his frustration with one of the Opeth photo shoots - at one point Mikael's description completely cracks up SW, which is my favorite part of the film.  As in his interviews, both written and filmed, SW remains one of the most unflinchingly honest musicians to my knowledge regarding what he considers his own strengths and weaknesses, and he readily shows his vulnerability, something many people, musicians or otherwise, are unwilling or unable to do. 

In arguably the most moving scene of the film, SW discusses the Mexican fixation with death, the Victorian practice of photographing the dead, his use of some of the photographs for the Bass Communion album "Loss," and his own reticence about having children.  There were some interesting and amusing scenes with his parents, and one of him experimenting with sounds on his guitar during which John Wesley looks a bit sheepish as he puts his fingers in his ears.  Short clips of other scenes have been shown in the previews, such as the island of forgotten dolls and the place with the discarded caskets by the side of the road, both of which are made much more interesting with the narrative.  Marek's only real criticism of the film was the overuse of the bird head people, with which I agreed, which he likened to a send up of Donnie Darko's rabbit visions.  Overall, though it is certainly as self-indulgent a film as SW readily admits, it is also a fascinating look into the creative process of an obviously shy and somewhat reclusive (at least while working) musician and composer, and although Lasse Hoile's treatment of the film will probably limit its appeal to SW fans and aspiring musicians of all stripes, it is a very worthwhile film. 

Between my insistence on arriving early and Marek's sheer size and luck, we managed seats near the center in the front row, and Steven did call on me to ask a question.  I was actually quite surprised by how few people were asking questions.  As usual, SW was very generous with his insights and time for the fans, and was charming and gracious while signing autographs afterward.  There was a funny moment, when I presented him with an old copy of "Fun with Mushrooms" to sign when he said "I don't think I appear on that."  I reminded him that he compiled the CD at No Man's Land - it was a special project for Freak Beat Magazine, around the time that "Up the Downstair" came out - and he said,"Oh well, I'll sign anything," and did so  I seriously doubt that he really needed me to remind him, but it was funny.  Then, as Marek and I were photographing one another standing with him, I thanked him for inspiring me to start making music again, and he said "That's very nice to hear."

So, once more for the record, I have now officially forgiven Marek for making me miss the 4 Oct 2007 in-house performance at Park Avenue CDs, and the wait to meet Steven Wilson was worth it.  As expected, he is a very nice, humble and charming man.

Tomorrow night is the Radio City Music Hall performance by Porcupine Tree.  I can't wait.  ;-)

Keyspoet wrote: For the record, the NYC premiere of "Insurgentes" went very well, and the film is good.  Those who preordered the DVD will not be sorry. Unfortunately, though the Q & A was supposed to include both Steven Wilson and Lasse Hoile, for some reason Lasse did not make it, so we had to make do with Steven by himself.  No one seemed crushed by the news.  ;-)  The evening was a bit surreal for me, though, in that my older sister (who had very similar taste in music and film, and introduced me to many of my favorite artists) died on September 12th following a long illness, and the 21st - the premiere - was her birthday.  It made for a bit of a strange evening all the way around, but she would have liked the film, and I know that she would have been happy I was there, knowing how hooked on SW I am.  Ironically, I preordered a second copy of the film DVD for her birthday. I don't want to blow the film for anyone, but be warned from here out there may be spoilers . . . the film is very informative about SW, his early influences and his creative process, and is both poignant and very funny at times, with a hilarious sequence in which Lasse filmed SW at Disneyworld in Orlando, and a shorter but even funnier scene when Mikael Akerfelt was describing his frustration with one of the Opeth photo shoots - at one point Mikael's description completely cracks up SW, which is my favorite part of the film.  As in his interviews, both written and filmed, SW remains one of the most unflinchingly honest musicians to my knowledge regarding what he considers his own strengths and weaknesses, and he readily shows his vulnerability, something many people, musicians or otherwise, are unwilling or unable to do.  In arguably the most moving scene of the film, SW discusses the Mexican fixation with death, the Victorian practice of photographing the dead, his use of some of the photographs for the Bass Communion album "Loss," and his own reticence about having children.  There were some interesting and amusing scenes with his parents, and one of him experimenting with sounds on his guitar during which John Wesley looks a bit sheepish as he puts his fingers in his ears.  Short clips of other scenes have been shown in the previews, such as the island of forgotten dolls and the place with the discarded caskets by the side of the road, both of which are made much more interesting with the narrative.  Marek's only real criticism of the film was the overuse of the bird head people, with which I agreed, which he likened to a send up of Donnie Darko's rabbit visions.  Overall, though it is certainly as self-indulgent a film as SW readily admits, it is also a fascinating look into the creative process of an obviously shy and somewhat reclusive (at least while working) musician and composer, and although Lasse Hoile's treatment of the film will probably limit its appeal to SW fans and aspiring musicians of all stripes, it is a very worthwhile film.  Between my insistence on arriving early and Marek's sheer size and luck, we managed seats near the center in the front row, and Steven did call on me to ask a question.  I was actually quite surprised by how few people were asking questions.  As usual, SW was very generous with his insights and time for the fans, and was charming and gracious while signing autographs afterward.  There was a funny moment, when I presented him with an old copy of "Fun with Mushrooms" to sign when he said "I don't think I appear on that."  I reminded him that he compiled the CD at No Man's Land - it was a special project for Freak Beat Magazine, around the time that "Up the Downstair" came out - and he said,"Oh well, I'll sign anything," and did so  I seriously doubt that he really needed me to remind him, but it was funny.  Then, as Marek and I were photographing one another standing with him, I thanked him for inspiring me to start making music again, and he said "That's very nice to hear." So, once more for the record, I have now officially forgiven Marek for making me miss the 4 Oct 2007 in-house performance at Park Avenue CDs, and the wait to meet Steven Wilson was worth it.  As expected, he is a very nice, humble and charming man. Tomorrow night is the Radio City Music Hall performance by Porcupine Tree.  I can't wait.  ;-)

You're welcome! 

That's an awesome set list! As an SW fanboy I am very jealous of your past few days It's SO exciting to hear they're playing The Sky Moves Sideways Pt 1. and Dislocated Day live again! Man that sounds like a special show. It's really awesome to hear they played Stranger By The Minute too, one of my favourites from that era.
Sounds like an absolutely insane show!

I would love to see that setlist as a DVD release. It'd be amazing.

<progkidjoel

That's an awesome set list! As an SW fanboy I am very jealous of your past few days  It's SO exciting to hear they're playing The Sky Moves Sideways Pt 1. and Dislocated Day live again!  Man that sounds like a special show. It's really awesome to hear they played Stranger By The Minute too, one of my favourites from that era.
Sounds like an absolutely insane show! >


It was indeed.  It was great to hear so many of their old songs that I had never before heard them perform live.

This had me in stitches!!! ">


I am always pleasantly surprised by how funny Steven Wilson is onstage.  He is a quiet guy, and not exactly cracking jokes all the time, but his wry sense of humor definitely makes itself known.  ;-)


<ptkc123

I would love to see that setlist as a DVD release. It'd be amazing. >


It would be incredible, I agree.  The only thing I would add would be a complete performance of "The Incident," since I really believe it is worthy of being preserved in its entirety.

That said, I was VERY happy when they played the long version of Time Flies - that, the long version of Even Less and Arriving Somewhere were the highlights of the concert for me, though it was all outstanding.


<Finnforest

Keyspoet, very sorry to hear about your sister, that is just awful.

If you don't mind expanding, what does Wilson say about having kids?  Does he plan to take a break to start a family? >


Thanks for your thoughts about my sister.  It did make for a really weird couple of weeks, as you can imagine, especially since I had been talking to her about the concert for months, and about Steven Wilson, Porcupine Tree and his many other projects for at least three years.

Okay, spoiler time, anyone who doesn't want to know Steven Wilson's thoughts on having children please stop reading now.  ;-)

In the discussion of the Victorian death photographs, Wilson commented that there was a sentiment at the time that by photographing the dead, something could be preserved of their souls.  So many of the photographs were so carefully and beautifully done that it at first appears that the children, especially the babies, are in repose or sleeping, but underneath you can tell that there is something wrong.  He went on the say that it is for this reason that he has always been afraid to have children, for the fear of losing them in childhood, and of how hard it would be to come back after dealing with such a terrible loss, concluding that perhaps it is simply easier not to have children in the first place.  As I mentioned before, at least for Marek and me, it was the single most poignant and moving moment in the film, and Lasse's close-in filming while he is speaking underscores the feeling of intimacy.

One of the things that made the moment and the film so special is the obvious friendship and trust that Wilson shares with Lasse Hoile.  The question I asked him on Tuesday was whether, during the filming of "Insurgentes," he found Lasse's style of filmmaking influencing his songwriting.  Although he never directly answered in the affirmative, he did so indirectly, stating that during the writing process of his upcoming solo album, the only two people with whom he is sharing the tracks for their input are his manager, Andy Neff, and Lasse Hoile. 

He reiterated what he said in an earlier interview, that Lasse Hoile is the only person with whom he shares such a huge range of musical and film references that when he is describing what he is thinking of in terms of visuals for his songs, Lasse immediately knows the reference and what he is after, which is something he does not share with the other members of the band.  As he has said, a bond of that depth is something only rarely found, and he clearly treasures the understanding they share.  He and Lasse also share a darkly twisted sense of humor, which comes through often in the film, lifting it from its otherwise often sombre tone.

Lest I give the wrong impression, there is a lot of humor in the film, as during the scenes when Wilson visited his old grammar school in Hemel Hempstead.  Commenting that he was good at music, not at sports, and that he had never known anyone to be good at both, he said that as a child he was a big fan of football, and his parents sent him to a school that played rugby.  Upon going outside to see the sporting grounds, he said "This is where I got my *ss kicked, every day of the week, because I was tiny."  In another scene, while walking past the gym, he said, "I've never been in that room," which got a big laugh.

They also visited the auditorium where he gave his first concert with his very first band, at the age of twelve or thirteen, and he was so terrified that he couldn't stand, because his legs were shaking so badly, and so he sat on the edge of the stage and played his guitar and sang, all the while looking at his shoes.  He said he also spent the first several years performing with Porcupine Tree while staring at his shoes, and they included a film clip from around 1995 of him doing so.  Although he said it has gotten easier for him over the years, his innate shyness has still not left him, as Marek pointed out; as Wilson was shading his eyes to look for people in the audience whom he knew, his hand was shaking.

I am very glad that he overcame his shyness enough to produce so much wonderful music over the years.

 ^ Yeah, Futile is great on Arriving Somewhere...

It'd make a good ROABP CD, although that's a little too hopeful I think