An Evening with Steven Wilson

“I’m sure many of you think I’m a miserable sod. The thing is appearances can be very misleading. Well, you all know my music is umm, miserable and what I like to call the poetry of melancholy. So that gives people the impression that the person who wrote this, is also melancholic. If you think about it the opposite is true. As an artist, you have the ability to channel that side of your personality into your art and then give it your fans, letting them have the burden. You’re welcome.”
-Steven Wilson

No better place to have the “Intermediate Jesus” perform at, than the European Capital of Culture, Linz. The third largest city in Austria, situated in the north, has been a hub for the music and art scene for a long time now. An Evening with Steven Wilson was part of Steven Wilson’s Europe tour of his recent album Hand.Cannot.Erase. The venue for the concert, Posthof Zeitkultur am Hafen, has been a popular spot and hosted artists like Johnny Winter, Elvis Costello, Behemoth, Asking Alexandria and Alter Bridge over the past years.

The audience was relatively small of about 600-700 people, but the venue looked completely packed. This meant, less people to scurry with, to get to the front. Dream Theater, King Crimson songs played in the background while the stage setup was completed and at 8 pm on point, the big screen on the stage started playing the video for First Regret. As the recorded track was playing, the  band made a grand entrance onto the stage. Wasting no time with introductions, they smoothly transitioned into 3 Years Older, followed by the title track, Hand Cannot Erase. As the song ended, Steven gave a brief impression about the album and talked about his experiences at the concert in Vienna, half an hour prior to which he had learned of Prince’s passing and the NY gig, during which he lost his voice. He then went on to reveal the setlist for the evening- the first set with the complete Hand.Cannot.Erase. album and the second with songs from his previous collaborations.

Popular Israeli singer, Ninet Tayeb, who provided vocals for Routine and Ancestral was unable to join the band for the tour. Ninet’s recorded voice and Nick Beggs’s backing vocals, made up for her absence.Routine,similar to The Raven, was the centrepiece of this album, with its sorrowing piano chords perfectly bundled with ominously contrasting harmonies of Ninet and Steven. The extensive use of various instruments on the track Ancestral and with its intense transition into a heavier prog bassline, made it undoubtedly the most enthralling performance of the evening.

The set ends with Happy Returns and Ascendant Here On, which lead the album to conclude on a cheerier note.

The choice of Steven Wilson to avoid labelling the album by genre, makes every consequent piece a cerebral ride, contributing to the story arc of the album. Steven is known for incorporating various videos, sound effects, and props into his set, magnifying the cinematic nature of his concept based music with additional elements giving the concert, a truly theatrical quality.

After a short interval, the band returned to play their second set featuring Porcupine Tree classics Dark Matter, Don’t Hate Me and Lazarus (played as a tribute to David Bowie).

Additionally, Wilson also featured tracks off his latest album 4 ½ – My Book of Regrets, a relatively longer and heavier track and Vermillioncore, for which a curtain was dropped in front of the stage to project stunning visual and light effects .Finally Steven Wilson introduced the band and ended the show with Sleep Together from PT’s album Anesthetize.

Just when the crowd was about to leave, much to our surprise, the band walked back on stage for a surprise encore set. They opened this set with a cover of Sign of the Times, as a tribute to Prince, albeit never fond of accolades, Steven has frequently cited him as an inspiration and an artist whose music defined his teenage years.

This was followed by Sound of Muzak (Porcupine Tree), with a masterfully improvised solo by Wilson. With the final song, The Raven that refused to Sing, every soul in the hall fell silent.Nevermore

Personally, The Raven, has always had special significance, with Steven’s voice carrying an inexplicable eeriness that silently creeps up to you throughout the song. Nevermore

The Band

Steven Wilson-lead vocals, piano, rhythm guitar

Dave Kilminster-lead guitar

Nick Beggs- bass, backing vocals

Adam Holzman – synthesizer, piano

Craig Blundell-drums

Setlist

Set 1:  Hand. Cannot. Erase

First Regret

3 Years Older

Hand Cannot Erase

Perfect Life

Routine

Home Invasion

Regret #9

Transience

Ancestral

Happy Returns

Ascendant Here On

Set 2:

Dark Matter (Porcupine Tree-Signify)

Harmony Korine (Insurgentes)

My Book of Regrets (4 ½)

Index (Grace for Drowning)

Lazarus (Porcupine Tree-Deadwing)

Don’t Hate Me (Porcupine Tree-Stupid Dream)

Vermillioncore (4 ½)

Sleep Together (Porcupine Tree-Anesthetize)

Encore

Sign “☮” the Times (Prince Cover)

The Sound of Muzak (Porcupine Tree-In Absentia)

The Raven That Refused to Sing (The Raven That Refused to Sing and other stories)

 

About the album

Hand. Cannot. Erase. is the fourth solo studio album by English musician Steven Wilson. Released in February 2015, it introduced rudiments of electronic music, jazz, pop incorporated into progressive-oriented tracks, which was a new direction compared to Steven’s previous solo works . It is a concept album written from a female perspective, with the story inspired by the case of Joyce Vincent, a woman living in a large city who died in her apartment and no one missed her for over three years, despite her having family and friends.

About the artist

Steven Wilson is a British musician and record producer, who became popular as the founder, lead guitarist, singer and songwriter of the band Porcupine Tree. Currently a solo artist, he is credited to being a part of  several successful projects like Blackfield,Storm Corrosion and IEM.Throughout his extensive musical career spanning 28 years, he has collaborated with several artists like Opeth,Yes,King Crimson and Jethro Tull, in varying roles.

For more about Steven Wilson and his projects check out http://stevenwilsonhq.com/

Some anecdotes and witticisms dropped by the big man, through the show:

• Steven grew up listening to Donna Summer and Pink Floyd records during his childhood years.
• Contrary to the fan opinions, Steven Wilson is pretty sure Mikael (Akerfedlt) would disagree with the fact that Opeth is a metal band.
• Steven hates Apple products, evident from his interviews and documentaries (refer: iPod destruction tutorials for his Insurgentes album).He points out the irony for his use of Apple’s technology to mix Ninet Tayeb’s recorded vocals for the show.
• Towards the end of the show, Steven Wilson’s sound guy handed him a glass of White Russian (Yes, he makes a “Dude” reference at that point).
• Steven has always been inspired by musical legends like Frank Zappa, Miles Davis, David Bowie and Prince because they dared to experiment with their sounds instead of following a “standard formula” for making music.