Deadwing

Artist: Porcupine Tree

Date Released: March 28, 2005

Label: Lava

Produced By: Steven Wilson, Elliot Scheiner

Tracklisting:
 * 1) Deadwing (9:46)
 * 2) Shallow (4:17)
 * 3) Lazarus (4:18)
 * 4) Halo (4:38)
 * 5) Arriving Somewhere But Not Here (12:02)
 * 6) Mellotron Scratch (6:57)
 * 7) Open Car (3:46)
 * 8) The Start Of Something Beautiful (7:39)
 * 9) Glass Arm Shattering (6:12)

Review: Who could have imagined back in the mid 1990s, when Porcupine Tree was thought of as an underground prog rock act that they'd eventually end up on a major label and end up being rather popular? Deadwing was their second major label effort, and this time around, making more accessible material than In Absentia. The tone of this album is also less dark. Although there's still the time they sneak in an ambient or experimental passage that harkens back to their early days. The opening title track is lengthier than anything on their previous album, but it goes by so fast that you forget it's over 9 minutes! There's some nice creative passages to go with it. The heavy metal influences are about the same as their previous effort, this time around, Mikael Åkerfeldt of the Swedish doom metal group Opeth guests on a couple of cuts, and even Adrian Belew (King Crimson, Zappa, Talking Heads, etc.) guests on a cut. "Shallow" might get one fooled for nu-metal, but there's some mellow passages as well. I really can live without "Lazarus", too lightweight and poppy, especially coming from Porcupine Tree, I guess I like their darker stuff the best (little wonder why Signify is my favorite Porcupine Tree album). "Mellotron Scratch" does features its share of Mellotron, and is the only song, other than the Moody Blues' "One Step Into the Light" off the 1978 album Octave (Mike Pinder's final composition for the band before leaving for good), that actually mentions the word "Mellotron" in its lyrics. It's a nice, pleasant piece, with great use of vocal harmonies, and you might think Porcupine Tree should imitate the Moody Blues because the song is called "Mellotron Scratch", they don't. At the end, are Gentle Giant-like vocal harmonies.

Steven Wilson was getting sick of Porcupine Tree being pigenholed, so there's no mistaking on Deadwing that it's really hard to pigeonhole. I hear elements of prog, alternative rock, heavy metal and pop, and the occasional glimpse of the old Porcupine Tree.

Honestly it took me less to warm up to Deadwing than of  In Absentia, so this is probably the major label PT CD you should try. By the way, it also has a video that you can play on your computer where you get to see Steven Wilson and company in the studio as they're in the process of recording variouc cuts for this CD.