Porcupine Tree Toronto, May 28
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Topic: Porcupine Tree Toronto, May 28
Posted By: Heptade
Subject: Porcupine Tree Toronto, May 28
Date Posted: May 29 2007 at 10:53
OK, I know everyone's getting in on this review-the-Porcupine-Tree tour thing, but I may as well have a go.
The venue was the Danforth Music Hall in Toronto, a very nice restored, seated theatre, which gave the crowd some problems. They sat through the whole thing, until Wilson exhorted them to stand in the last song. I prefer to sit myself, so it wasn't a problem.
Anyway, the opener was a dude from a prog-metal band called 3 (I think), playing solo. A good guitar player, although portions of the crowd were going nuts like he was Holdsworth or something. A decent singer with some nice melodies, although I did feel at times like I was watching a prog metal Dave Matthews. I'd be curious to hear his band, anyway.
P-Tree came on to a rapturous response from the sold out crowd, which, I have to say, was the weirdest mixture of people I've ever seen at a show. There were sixty-ish classic rockers, gothy looking people, and even a group of teenagers in front of me who brought their own beach ball to throw around (I thought that was really funny). Also a group of guys behind me who kept talking through the whole show about how tight the band was and oohhing at their skills. Fellas, how about listening to the music, not just how well it was played?
Anyway, enough griping. The first half was the FOBP album. Very well played, and there are some very nice segments, but I do have to say that it is very depressing, especially with the nonstop background visuals showing pasty English kids popping pills and wandering around urban wastelands, which lasted about fifty minutes. The songs are all very depressing on the album, and mostly mid tempo. I did enjoy it, even though I felt more melancholy than rocked up!
After a brief interval, the old stuff started. The set was all right, although it did rely again on a lot of slower songs, mainly a mix of Deadwing and In Absentia material. Non album track Drown With Me is a very pretty song, and I was pleased to hear Lightbulb Sun. Blackest Eyes was another highlight.
The sound started off really muddy but did improve.
As for the band itself, their behaviour is well known. Colin Edwin is a statue, as is Barbieri, except for some head bopping. John Wesley looks a little self conscious, while Steve Wilson does his consummate dramatic frontman thing. He does it rather well, I think- not overbearing at all. He really should put on some shoes.
Wesley is to me the unsung hero of the band live- he sings like an angel, doing those Brian Wilsony high parts really well, and plays a mean solo to boot. He and Wilson make for a deadly guitar combo. Harrison is of course one of the finest rock drummers around today.
Overall, a very enjoyable, professional show. I won't be holding my breath waiting for SW to write any sunshine pop though!
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The world keeps spinning, people keep sinning
And all the rest is just bullsh*t
-Steve Kilbey
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Posted By: macpurity1
Date Posted: May 29 2007 at 13:22
It was a similar show at the Ram's Head in Baltimore on May 22nd, except that the band chose to break up the FOBP album with interspersed oldies. We too heard Lightbulb Sun, Gravity Eyelids, Halo, Blackest Eyes and a nice long encore that included Even Less.
The crowd was a similar mix, but well mannered, all in all. The Rams Head is a standing mostly venue and I was on the second level one person in from the rails. The folks down front probably got into the show best due to their proximity and the fact that Wilson and Wesley prompted and teased them some. The sound in Balto was fine except when Steve would crowd the mike a bit and get slightly distorted. The group, as a whole was in top form, from statues to front men. Gavin was simply amazing. He dropped a stick at one point and caught it teetering on the edge of a drum head, and didn't lose a beat.
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MacP
900+ CDs and counting.
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