THE SKY MOVES SIDEWAYS

While many people might have first noticed PORCUPINE TREE through the release of "In Absentia" because that CD was released on some division of Atlantic Records (not sure, as I hadn't got that one yet), I was aware of these guys since 1996, when they were recording for Delirium. I bought "The Sky Moves Sideways", not on the Delirium label, but the American version on the C&S label. I remembered this CD being described as a mellower OZRIC TENTACLES. More like PINK FLOYD (you'll notice some similarities to "Dark Side of the Moon" and "The Wall" here), but it's when they move in to more "techno-like" territory is when they start reminding me of the OZRICS. And unlike PINK FLOYD, they often explore more spacy ambient territory that's very unlike what FLOYD was known to do (after all, you'll never hear them do somthing like "Moonloop"). "I Find That I'm Not Here" is a prime example of the PINK FLOYD comparison, especially the guitar work. "Wire the Drum" is that OZRIC-style techno-like experiment I mentioned. "Spiral Circus" finds them going in to spacy ambient territory. "Stars Die" is a mainly acoustic piece that segues in to "Moonloop". "The Moon Touches Your Shoulder" is by far the most stunning acoustic piece on this album. "Is...Not" and "Off the Map" is mostly instrumental, with some themes from other parts of the album that repeats here.

PORCUPINE TREE might be Steven WILSON, but by this time, he had assembled a full band to tour, and making recording in the studio an easier task. The music here is more exporatory than the stuff they did on Snapper Music or Atlantic, and I wish for a more powerful production, but still, this is one of the better albums from the '90s I've heard.