We have to bow and thank Adam Holzman, he has been with Steven on Keyboards from PT till his latest solo album. The man played with Miles Davis and he gives us the gift of hearing him play on all SW albums on keys. Steven loves him and so do I, the man is a musical genius, pure musician, you have to love all he's brought to the SW world. The songs we love wouldn't be same with out him!
absolutely agree! Following Adams career right from the old days i put him into the first league of worldclass keyboarders and also believe, he should get much more recognition like some of the others.
it's like a brilliant homage to Jethro Tull, ELP, King Crimson and all the great masters of prog music. SW is one of the greatest contemporary musicians.
Steven vous remontez le niveau mondial de la musique moderne ! C'est beau en plus ! Pas d'effets "gratuits", Le son du groupe est magnifique, avec certains sons "vintage" mais tout ça actualisé...formidable et grand respect pour vous !
You people crack me up.....I'm so sick of people saying this or that is better than this or that. It's DIFFERENT, and still EXCELLENT musicianship. There are some of the top musicians in the world on these tracks and stuff from the 60's and 70's. Give me a break and open your ears and eyes and just enjoy it......
According to Wilson, "The Holy Drinker" concerns "a guy who’s very pious, very religious, preachy and self-righteous. I’m thinking of TV evangelist-types - guys who are prepared to tell people that they’re living their lives wrong and that they’re missing something because they don’t believe in God or whatever it is." The man, who, despite criticising other people's lifestyles, is himself an alcoholic, unwittingly challenges the Devil to a drinking competition, with disastrous consequences: "Of course, you can’t beat the Devil at a drinking competition - you can’t beat the Devil at anything - and so he loses. ... He gets dragged to Hell."
Thanks for the heads up on the meaning, Martijn. It's one of those tunes where you sort of 'get' the gist, and when it's explained it all makes so much sense. Steve certainly captures the tone of scorn and pity and hopelessness of the Holy Drinker's life and demise!
Well, Cleric level 18 could handle a drinking contests against 4 beholders each can be as fearsome as the devil itself. This happened in dungeons and dragons online. yes I am a NERD and a Steven Wilson fan
My personnel favorite song from this Progressive Classic of an album called: 'The Raven That Refused To Sing' by "Steven Wilson" released in 2013! Amazing, Awesome, Great & Outstanding playing by each, and every musician in this band!
I'm one of the 'original' proggers from the early 70's and I'm just so fucking glad that someone is still doing this kind of stuff today. This is just too damn brilliant to want to waste any time on nit-picking.
K. Coleman Sounds cool! Can you let me know the name of one of IQ's albums or songs that I can check out please? If I search on IQ I'll have to wade thru lots of wrong links. Cheers!
Steven Wilson, Guthrie Govan and Marco Minneman on the same stage... I picture them levitating inside the flash of a dying star, just too awesome for us mere mortals to see it..! It's like the Messi, Neymar, Suarez trio of music...or whatever... :p
Not "all the legends together" come on. Where is Al DiMeola? Neil Peart? Just to name a couple amongst hundreds. Not to say this isn't good it's VERY good, but come on. You will rue the day you said this when all the real legends are in fact together. : )
Can't say enough about this. SW and his immensely talented band rise above everything else that purports to be music nowadays. He's genius, and amazingly fun to hear and see. God love 'em, not sure what I'd be listening to without him.
Steven Wilson, Guthrie Govan, Marco Minnemann, with Theo Travis, Nick Beggs, Adam Holzman.... simply FUCKING AWESOME LINE-UP, MAGNIFIQUE, THE EPITOME OF GENIUS AND VIRTUOUS
An epic piece that I just love - there is a mischievous edge to this otherwise disturbing tale. I am a huge PT fan and this line up shows a special synergy between Steve and some incredibly gifted musicians.
Very cool. I'm so amazed they can pull off all of those nuanced sound textures that you hear in the studio version. Some serious players with some series equipment. Keys are, of course, huge for this and they don't disappoint.
+Daniel Verberne Can't snub Minnemann. As a fusion drummer myself, while I concede that his solo output has shown a fairly commonplace musical identity and sound, his technical mastery, nearly perfect time and--as far as I've seen--unrivaled limb independence make him one of the only elite-tier drummers in the world capable of keeping the hilariously labyrinthine time structures in marriage with the tone. Although Gavin Harrison is widely considered to have one of the best feels for groove, his technical repertoire is a bit more limited and noticeably less virtuosic in execution. While he may feel it a slight to be christened modern music's most gifted 'hired gun' drummer, it really isn't intended that way. Sure, SW's musical creativity and thematic bent are almost too forward-thinking and subtle for almost any music fan, and he's (in)arguably the most gifted composer in the history of modern music, his technical ability with the instruments he plays--while very high--are not of an elite tier like the others. But together, their strengths offset their individuals weaknesses and allow Steven's conceptions to truly come into existence.
I think SW's "yelling" vocals are one of the most badass things I've heard him do and he only does them live! :/. They're so feral. I honestly prefer it to most screams I've heard. I think it'd be great to hear him use them on an album.
I am primarily a stringed instrument player, though I play (poorly) many things. I will say this...Marco is mesmerizing live. I was absorbed in his drumming and energy. It was truly insane to be there and 10 meters from the band taking it all in.
+Jamie Clarke Fair enough, the fact is I dont pay too much atention on guitarrists (except John Petrucci)... but Guthrie kicks ass indeed and I respect him a lot!
Saw them on this Raven tour(minus Marco Minnemann) and it was incredible. Total prog heaven and the beautiful part was that every night of their tour was unique in the sense that every musician's parts varied night after night. They had the template to just play their asses off and it created a unique experience for their concert goers. Probably my all time favorite show.
Phat Poodles He did the second half of the Raven tour as a live drummer and it appears he played on two studio tracks as well, Happy Returns from Hand Cannot Erase and Sunday Rain Sets In From the mini-album 4 1/2. I didn't know he was on Hand Cannot Erase, thought that was all Minnemann.
It pisses me off immensely that I cannot reply to the comments beneath me. What makes SW special is not complexity(try playing a PT riff next to a Dream Theater riff and youll see what I mean). What makes SW special is taste,contrast, texture, consistency and yes even the high tech elements are important. He is a producer and soundscaper foremost. You proggers frustrate me sometimes.
This is quite refreshing. He incorporates classic prog elements from Genesis, Yes, Rush, Jethro Tull, into his music rather than the Metallica/Slayer based tripe Dream Theater uses. I prefer more groove oriented prog over the 200 mph typewriter playing. The music actually breaths rather than suffocates. DT has been making the same record for 15 years. They're tapped out. One thing that still annoys me is the silly pretentious lyrics in prog. I'd prefer if they just played and forget the singing.
IntermediateJesus my brother is a drummer whose roots were metal, mosty. he likes dt and pt as well. he also loves rush. im a pink floyd fan from long ago. i like all of them.
***** oh no! if they left out the lyrics id be lost! we all listen with a different set of ears. to me, the lyrics make me think, they create a mood. if they dont, what is the point? im a writer though, so maybe thats why. but i dont find the lyrics of pt either silly or pretentious. a little odd in some songs, but thats all. i love them mostly.
BASS fans please take note that Nick Beggs is on a 12 string Chapman stick, the black belt of all bass instruments! SW starts. the song on 4 string bass. Two serious bass lines on the song
Agreed! His ‘homage’ to Jaco, playing ‘Portrait of Tracy’ (found on his own YT channel / Cherry Red Records) ably and clearly demonstrates his mastery. I have ‘Stick Insect’ on CD. Took a LOT of finding!
I am a 61 year old So Cal woman who has loved Steven for many years. With Porcupine Tree, Blackfield and his solo projects. The drummer on this tune Chad Wackerman is a family friend from my home town, Long Beach, Ca. I am from the time of Yes, King Crimson, ELP, Floyd etc. and grateful. I found PT about 13 yrs ago and have stayed listening ever since.
+Patti Maluzenko That's Marco Minneman on drums. Chad filled in some US dates while Marco toured with Joe Satriani and his own band, the Aristocrats (with Guthrie Govan, who also appears in this video on guitar).
This and Watchmaker are a masterpiece. I think my favorite SW sound would be the Raven album. A bit retro at times, but i prefer the long drawn out prog songs. This is true for PT as well .
