HOME INVASION : IN CONCERT AT THE ROYAL ALBERT HALL

Review # 96. On November 2nd 2018, Grammy-nominated artist Steven Wilson released his latest work, Home Invasion: In Concert at the Royal Albert Hall. For those who still don't know him, I should say that he was the founder and leader of Porcupine Tree, among other bands and/or projects, such as No-Man and Blackfield to name a few. Since his early days with Porcupine Tree, he is considered as a very talented composer and skillful musician, but now that he follows a solo career, he is able to do whatever he really likes. And as it seems, what he really likes is to surprise his audience (pleasantly or not) with every new release.

So, after the release of the album To the Bone, that caught many people by surprise with its musical turn, this year returned with the magnificent Home Invasion; a double live CD, supported by DVD or Blue-Ray. (Or it's the other way round?). For the vinyl lovers, a special limited edition is going to be released on March 2019.

Home Invasion was filmed and recorded during the last of his 3 sold out performances at the iconic Royal Albert Hall during 2017. The production is flawless and the sound excellent. As for the tracklist, well? Steven Wilson decided to make a dive into his long career and chose songs from his Porcupine Tree days, up to his latest album. The concert lasted for more than 2.5 hours, and it was a stunning one! (A couple of my friends who live in London were lucky enough to see him during those performances and they were amazed!)

The collection of songs that are included here is very good, and despite each person's favorites, the truth is that, Wilson covered a very big part of his career in this album. Personally speaking, I would like to see a few more songs from his Porcupine Tree days, but the ones he chose to play are excellent, so no complains actually. Let's not forget that Porcupine Tree, like it or not, belongs to the past. Very important in my opinion is the participation of Ninet Tayeb, which was a pleasant surprise to me, cause I wasn't expecting her to participate in the live shows.

Some of the best moments here are the songs: Pariah, Ancestral, Arriving Somewhere but not Here, Even Less and The Sound of Muzak. But that's just my personal opinion.

Overall, this Home Invasion: In Concert at the Royal Albert Hall collection is recommended for all fans of Steven Wilson. The British musician takes his fans and listeners on a musical journey through time, as he showcases his eclectic musical work, as well as his talent and charisma. The sound and video quality are fantastic, where one feels like they are experiencing it from the front row of the historic Royal Albert Hall. A solid 5.0 stars from me! Congratulations Mr. Wilson!

Steven hesitated to record a live concert with his last albums because of he had the feeling that his shows are meant to be seen live and that today everybody can see for free plenty of YouTube concerts. But when Eagle Rock approach him for the Bone tour, he finally accepts. He has chosen the legendary Royal Albert Hall in London to record this show of more than 2 hours and a half. He wanted to create more than your usual concert showing musicians playing on stage. He wanted to add a lot of animations to gives us the best visual experience. As the show goes on, the visuals aspect became more present to keep your attention until the end. For the audio, do I need to say that it's excellent? The new album is played completely, who can blame an artist to promote his album. By playing some proggy songs from Hands Cannot Erase album, I was able to compare the two albums, As good as is the new album, I prefer the previous album because the songs have a little more depth. The band played songs from the Porcupine Tree catalog to satisfy all his fans. The extras have some very professional recorded songs during rehearsals, and a 10 minutes interview with Steven. I gave 5 stars to the previous Steven DVD, so I can't go less than 5 stars again, because it's visually at least better.