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Steven Wilson - The Future Bites CD (album) cover

THE FUTURE BITES

Steven Wilson

 

Crossover Prog

3.01 | 381 ratings

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Glubluk
5 stars "The Future Bites" is a brilliant album, one of the highlights of Steven Wilson's huge discography.

I'll discuss the pop/sell-out discussion only briefly. Yes, it's pop and no, it's not a sell-out and I don't care either way. Musically, the album is first and foremost a reflection of Wilson's life-long appreciation of pop music but he has released albums that are much more pop-oriented (earliest and latest no-man, Blackfield, even some Porcupine Tree songs). In general, the album is not as huge a departure from "To the Bone" as you might think. Most importantly, though, it's a great piece of work on many many levels.

What makes an album great are the songs, as in ? tunes. Here, every song has something that makes it stand out and many of those elements are precisely the ones I see criticized in reviews. Examples: the ABBA-like vocals in "Eminent Sleaze", the falsetto vocalizations in "King Ghost", the drum machine-based arrangements. Also, the strength of "12 Things I Forgot", although it is indeed the most PT-like song on the album, lies in its poppy melody and smooth arrangement, not in its similarity to PT. It's a brilliant radio-friendly pop song.

Easily the best song on the album is "Personal Shopper", just listen to the 'Consumer of life?' section: the intelligent and funny ironic lyrics, Wilson's The Lonely Island-like delivery, the hook ? such things are a rarity in music and disregarding this kind of brilliance because you expect "Raven"-style prog workouts equals to being intentionally blind to quality music. But even if you miss some PT, the section narrated by Elton John (whose spoken voice is really rich and pleasant) is pure atmospheric Wilson of old. Where the song excels, though, is in how the music and the lyrics ('buy for England' and 'sell it on then buy it back' crack me up every time!) form a cohesive piece with a distinct tone and message, delivered in a manner that manages to criticize and glorify consumerism at the same time. If ever there was a work of art, "Personal Shopper" is it.

The falsetto vocals in "King Ghost" are another moment of brilliance. The song begins with a sparse unmelodic verse only to expand into a hugely atmospheric chorus based on the vocals and a beautiful synth line. The song is also a great study in minimalism as all the few musical elements that it has are absolutely essential for it to work.

There is no weak track on the album. Each of them is unique, after 2-3 listens you feel you have known them forever, and they get better with each listen.

As for the lyrical content, it's extremely well-written and intelligent in the quintessentially British way, which means it's critique and praise at the same time. What SW says here is basically 'yes, we are a consumer society, and it's often totally ridiculous, but it's also enjoyable, so why deny it?' I much prefer it to virtue signalling.

Overall, "The Future Bites" is one of Wilson's best albums to date. I see no reason neither to expect nor to wish for another Porcupine Tree record at this moment as Steven's revolving door policy concerning his collaborators has led to a really diverse and interesting body of work. "TFB" is also progressive in the true sense of the word. An excellent record.

(The numerous b-sides from the "TFB" sessions are also worth checking out, especially the brilliant cover of Lonely Robot's "In Floral Green".)

Glubluk | 5/5 |

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