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Direct Link To This Post Topic: Steven Wilson live Copenhagen
    Posted: May 05 2012 at 15:21
So yes, I was actually in the midst of writing this "review" of the concert as a mail to my good friend John(Mellotron Storm), when I suddenly thought to myself: Why not share an experience with all the folks around here?

Last weekend I flew across the country, and whilst Denmark is an incredibly small nation and it only takes some 40 minutes to fly, -it still felt great to get away from work and all these terrifyingly adult things, that I now have to deal with because of my ageDead Anyways, after a weekend of sunshine, beer, LOTS of music and the occasional bird sighting(Denmark is home to a lot of beautiful women) - I went to the Steven Wilson concert with a couple of my friends on Monday.

The gig was held at a place called Amager Bio, which is an old rebuilt cinema that perhaps sports the best sound quality in Copenhagen. It is not a huge place by any stretch of the imagination, but intimate, warm, voluptuous and curvy - always taking care of the music in a way that is vibrant and earthy. While Steven usually plays in a place called VEGA, whenever he visits Denmark with Porcupine Tree, I am actually pretty glad that he played in Amager Bio.

As with the other performances on this tour, no - there are no Porcupine Tree tracks to be heard. The focus is entirely on Steven's two solo albums, and that rather adds a wonderful dimension to the proceedings here. I thought I would be hearing all kinds of PT requests from drunk Danish men who happen to think they deserve something special, because they indeed are special, but the overall feel of the gig was one of deep and careful listening, devoting oneself entirely to the music. I heard no irreverence, low-blows nor foul mouth jerk-off speaker sessions from the crowd, which in turn made me all warm and fuzzy inside. It was like attending one of those old school shows from the start of the 70s, where people shut up to the very end of the tunes - just to catch those last bass breaths and guitar glissandi. People then proceeded to applaud - like in real clap clapping. I know that sounds wild and adventurous, but boy does the sound of a couple of hundred hands clapping sound absolutely beautiful at times. In short: This felt like a show where people really knew what was going down. It was all about the music and the men dishing it out. 

As for the music itself, it was just like the last time I went to see PT live. Even if the music is rather different in scope and feel, you could definitely feel just how long these guys had been playing together on tour. When I saw The Incident live last year - I felt somewhat similar, because somehow this mess of an album suddenly was brought to life, it felt vibrant and real. Now I happen to like Grace for Drowning in the first place, but encountering the different tunes in a live dressing was absolutely brilliant! As with most other musicians playing live for long periods of time I gather, these guys were really hitting it off. Secular sections prolonged, an extra rumbling round on the drums, more rope to the guitar solos and whatnot. Everything I really love about music played live. It's open for mistakes and different roads taken - and this gig was certainly a clear cut example of just how magical such an event can be. A track like Index, which I really adore, was ten times more beautiful and captivating because of the dynamics happening between Marco Minneman and Steven's guitar. It got wild and rambunctious inside a time frame of a few seconds, but then the track just took off and pelted its way through the airwaves. Great stuff! 

I was extremely impressed with all of the musicians at Steven's side. When I wasn't looking at the fabulous bassist, that on occasion hammered on a Chapman stick(Hell Yeah!!), I was looking at the drummer, or the incredible lead guitarist, piano/synth/organist guy or the ninjaing reeds man standing in the back. You can really feel how laid-back and fruitful this kind of setting is to the man up front. Personally I think this tour, as well as the album, has been " a need" of Steven's - something he had to do to progress as a musician - something to keep him revitalised about music and maybe ultimately learn how he can change and evolve within the rock sphere. 

This laid-back nature of things also shun through at the gig. To tell you the truth, I've never heard Steven talk so much to the audience before, and it wasn't like it felt forced or anything like that. Friendly humoristic banter between tracks, and the ending introduction of the band - everything felt warm and genuine. Like had he invited a few hundred people over to his flat for a good jam night. So intimate and real.

Ending the show off with the long piece Raider ll, I truly felt like I was sitting on cloud 9 with a cold beer in my hand overlooking some fantastic musicians doing what they do best, surrounded by people of all ages, shapes and sizes. Hell, we even had some pretty birds attending the show as well. Yep, I think it's safe to say, that the Steven Wilson tour is a real humdinger, and if the rest of the shows is just half as good as the one I just experienced in Copenhagen - then you should be looking forward to it like a small child does to Christmas.




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Direct Link To This Post Posted: May 05 2012 at 15:38
Sounds like they performed well......I am not suprised. At the Seattle show I attended and posted a review for also, it was a brilliant show. It really sounded like they had been playing for years together......and not less than a year after the album was released.
Steven Wilson is riding a huge wave right now!
 
And to think Storm Corrosion is coming up next!
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: May 05 2012 at 16:08
He already has material for his next album written, and has preformed an epic (forgot the name) at concerts.

Such an inspiration. 
Crushed like a rose in the riverflow.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: May 05 2012 at 16:27
Yes the epic is called Luminal, I noted it in my review for the Seattle show.......20min of sheer SW excellence....My wifes fav song of that night.
Its pretty damn sweet.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: May 05 2012 at 16:38
Yeah, got a taste of Luminal as well. Pretty cool stuff, and should be evident that this crazy man isn't exactly slowing down....
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: May 05 2012 at 17:05
In a recent interview Steven emphasized it was spelled 'Luminol' (look it up on Wikipedia) :-)
You can find it on starsdie.com I guess.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: May 05 2012 at 20:21
Wowie Zowie!

Great review David, and sounds like a great show. I feel like I was there with you drinking Carlsbergs ("Probably the best beer in the world").  I think Grace is a majorly great work, and I have no doubt he can make it even better live.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: May 05 2012 at 21:03
Originally posted by nicoot nicoot wrote:

In a recent interview Steven emphasized it was spelled 'Luminol' (look it up on Wikipedia) :-)
You can find it on starsdie.com I guess.
 
Potatoe, potato......its a great song.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: May 05 2012 at 22:38
Hey thanks David for this and i agree with you that seeing them do these songs live made me appreciate the album even more. I mentioned this somewhere else that seeing Theo playing sax and flute was a treat on it's own. And pretty birds is just the icing on the cake.Big smile
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: May 05 2012 at 22:41
Nice one David!Clap

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Direct Link To This Post Posted: May 06 2012 at 00:00
I agree.....I was not a fan of GFD when it came out, made me very sleepy upon listening. Seeing it performed live gave me a much better appreciation and I actually bought the vinyl at the show....which sounds much better than the CD for sure.
SW is an analog nut, which makes me happy!
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: May 06 2012 at 00:59
Thumbs Up
I was there - and i had excatly the same night, the place, the music, everything was perfect.
Prog is whatevey you want it to be. So dont diss other peoples prog, and they wont diss yours
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: May 22 2012 at 11:50
Hi,
 
Do we know who the Stick player was?
 
Thx
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: May 22 2012 at 14:39
Originally posted by moshkito moshkito wrote:

Hi,
 
Do we know who the Stick player was?
 
Thx
 
For the show I saw in Seattle......it was Nick Beggs.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: May 23 2012 at 12:45
Nick Beggs also in Copenhagen
Prog is whatevey you want it to be. So dont diss other peoples prog, and they wont diss yours
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: May 23 2012 at 19:26
Originally posted by Catcher10 Catcher10 wrote:

Sounds like they performed well......I am not suprised. At the Seattle show I attended and posted a review for also, it was a brilliant show. It really sounded like they had been playing for years together......and not less than a year after the album was released.
Steven Wilson is riding a huge wave right now!

 

And to think Storm Corrosion is coming up next!


Are there any news yet about the possibility of Storm Corrosion being toured? That would be really great, and perhaps I could get over missing Steven Wilson this year. I still have to get the Storm Corrosion album, but heard it once in internet and really have to get it. It would be great a show with Wilson and Akerfeldt playing songs from Storm Corrosion, Heritage, and Grace for Drowning. Keep hoping.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: May 26 2012 at 16:50
Originally posted by Dellinger Dellinger wrote:

Originally posted by Catcher10 Catcher10 wrote:

Sounds like they performed well......I am not suprised. At the Seattle show I attended and posted a review for also, it was a brilliant show. It really sounded like they had been playing for years together......and not less than a year after the album was released.
Steven Wilson is riding a huge wave right now!

 

And to think Storm Corrosion is coming up next!


Are there any news yet about the possibility of Storm Corrosion being toured? That would be really great, and perhaps I could get over missing Steven Wilson this year. I still have to get the Storm Corrosion album, but heard it once in internet and really have to get it. It would be great a show with Wilson and Akerfeldt playing songs from Storm Corrosion, Heritage, and Grace for Drowning. Keep hoping.
 
This is from the Steven`s Facebook
 
And home again...... Firstly, thanks for all the positive feedback regarding the Storm Corrosion album which was finally released during the last 2 weeks while I was away on tour, and in the wake of the news of label Roadrunner's demise. I ...expected at best a 50/50 split within the two fanbases on what is after all a pretty uncompromising and un-rock album, but the reaction once again tells me that music fans are much more open minded than the mainstream music industry gives them credit for (-: It's also charted respectably well in the US, UK and Germany so far, and the reviews have been great (5/5 in UK tabloid The Sun?? You have just entered the Twilight Zone...) But just to clarify, because I've been asked this a lot during the recent tour, there won't be any Storm Corrosion live performances.

 
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: May 28 2012 at 19:23
Oh... too bad. If only they were to change their mind... but I guess that is extremely unlikely.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: September 07 2012 at 19:14
All I know is Steven Wilson has RE-invented the 1st two ELP records in his spectacular 5.1 DVD-Audio mix.
This dude plays in a band also???   Pretty cool...  Clap   Clap    Clap































































yeah, yeah, I am only kiddin.  I own all PT records & DVDs and I have seen PT in concert twice.Wink
The guy is unstoppable.... 

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Direct Link To This Post Posted: September 12 2012 at 06:09
Great review... I wish I could have been there. SW did not bring the GfD tour down to my neck of the woods, unfortunately. I've seen him live with PT though, they were indeed phenomenal. I look forward to the live Steven Wilson DVD coming out soon. From the previews I've seen on Youtube, it looks to be a fantastic live show. 
Hello, mirror. So glad to see you, my friend. It's been a while...
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