Late Sunday night, October 21st, the Cleveland Indians officially lost the chance to be in the 2007 World Series. Less than twenty-four hours later, all of the sorrow was washed away by a special event. One of our favorite bands put on another amazing show at one of our favorite venues. Porcupine Tree returned to the House of Blues for the second time this year simply because Cleveland rocks! We haven’t missed a PT show since they came in with Opeth in the summer of 2003. Our twelve year old daughter has attended the last three shows with us – another avid fan of this excellent band.
Officially, Monday’s show was part of the second leg of the Fear of a Blank Planet Tour to support the album of the same name. PT has also released a mini-EP called ‘Nil Recurring’ that closely follows the musical style on ‘Fear.’ All but one of the four tracks on the EP were played, and roughly half of ‘Fear.’ The Cleveland show featured a good mix of tracks from the last few albums and some older tunes that went over very well with the crowd. We were treated to classics like ‘Dark Matter’, and a condensed/combined version of both phases of ‘The Sky Moves Sideways.’ One of my personal favorites, ‘Even Less,’ made its return this time around during the encore (which replaced a huge fan favorite – ‘Trains’).
Anyone that listens to or knows about Porcupine Tree should notice one thing straight away – the quality of the sound. PT is a band that really needs to be heard live to fully appreciate. Beginning with our first show in 2003, I’ve been immediately drawn to listen to the tunes played live long after the concert. Even though we’ve had ‘Nil Recurring’ for a few weeks, I hadn’t played it too often. Now that I’ve heard the tracks live, I can’t stop playing them in the car, at work, and at home. I find myself remembering how they sounded at the concert. Their presentation is professional and their musicianship is exceptional.
Many of their songs have a certain power and energy played live that simply can’t be experienced from the original recording. One of them in particular is ‘Sleep Together’. The backdrop of Richard Barbieri’s keyboard sound is so dark and foreboding; it simply overwhelms me with emotion, especially during the final few measures, at the climax of the performance. The epic, 17-minute masterpiece from the current album called ‘Anesthetize’ seems to have become a crowd favorite, and when played live, it’s easy to see why. They ended the show with another crowd pleaser called ‘Halo’, complete with over-the-top keyboard and vocal effects that give it a distinct edginess. It’s also one of my live favorites.
Porcupine Tree is: Steven Wilson – lead vocals, guitar; Gavin Harrison – drums; Colin Edwin – bass; Richard Barbieri – keyboards. During U.S tours, the excellent John Wesley also adds his vocal and guitar talent to the shows.
The set list was as follows:
What Happens Now?
Fear of a Blank Planet
The Sound of Muzak
Lazarus
Nil Recurring
Dark Matter
Anesthetize
Cheating the Polygraph
Open Car
A Smart Kid
Way Out of Here
Sleep Together
Encore:
The Sky Moves Sideways
Even Less
Halo
If you were at the Cleveland show, or any show for that matter, drop us a comment to share your experience with this awesome band!
