DEADWING

Despite the high remarks I gave the band's previous album In Absentia, Deadwing is my personal favorite. Overall, the album isn't too much sonically different than its predecessor. It still has plenty of eclecticism, and the songs are structurally diverse and complex, yet retain a nice melodic and atmospheric feel.

The album kicks off with the title track. Most of it is straight up rocking with a constant, powerful drum groove, except for a short atmospheric interlude midway through. 'Shallow' is another highly riff based song, which is simply upbeat and heavy throughout. 'Lazarus' perfectly contrasts the previous song with its rather gentle atmosphere. It is also probably one of the band's more well-known songs, as it does have a rather pop inflection and is pretty simple. But the piano melodies are so beautiful and the atmosphere flows so well that this is a moot point.

The song is short-lived though, and the Metal returns with 'Halo,' though much of the first half is alternative-sounding based on a deep bass line and drum groove. 'Arriving Somewhere, But Not Here' is one of the highlights of the album. There are twists and turns with constant tempo, time signature, mood, and dynamic sound changes throughout its 12-minute duration.

'Mellotron Scratch' is another beautiful track. The gentle vocals and melodies just sort of glide past you to create an ethereal, almost nostalgic atmosphere. 'Open Car' is another riff-based Metal track, that is as enjoyable as the others. 'Start of Something Beautiful' is exactly as its name implies. This song has an absolutely perfect buildup. It starts off with a rather Floydian atmosphere before adding a nice drum groove, some piano work, and guitar over a constantly changing background atmosphere, all while being played in 9/8 time.

'Glass Arm Shattering' is not a terrible song, but I believe it should have ended with the previous track. This one is literally screaming Pink Floyd through much of its duration, and is very reminiscent of The Sky Moves Sideways.

In my humble opinion, I believe Deadwing is the album that best represents the Porcupine Tree sound. It's a consistent listen from beginning to end, and is easily one of the best albums of the modern prog period.

9/10