Live Review: Steven Wilson

Ten minutes or so of visuals on a large screen with what sounds like Steven Wilson's early work in Bass Communion playing quietly amp up anticipation for the long-awaited return of the master of melancholic progressive rock. The 12-minute epic First Regret/3 Years Older opens the show and flirts with classic rock, bending acoustic country melodies and electronic backing tracks. Slotted within it all are solos from all five band members onstage and this really sets the scene for the rest of the night.

Wilson welcomes everyone quickly and begins his latest album's title track Hand Cannot Erase - well, attempts to. Dave Kilminster, a favoured guitarist of Roger Waters, joins Wilson on this tour and as he begins the intricate opening, he hilariously stuffs it up. Wilson stops him and asks, "What on earth are you doing?" The room erupts in laughter as Wilson then mentions that Kilminster played in front of millions of people at Coachella, flawlessly, and now he produces this. They begin again and it is the final misstep throughout the entire show.

A swift guitar change and the guys seamlessly slip from one powerful single into another, Perfect Life. A quieter drone echoes through the room as spoken-word poetry lies perfectly over a thick beat from Craig Blundell, who sits atop drum risers. Wilson notes that some may think he's a miserable bastard and informs us that this isn't the case. As an artist he is simply able to channel the melancholy and tell stories through sound that can so powerfully evoke emotion. "This is one of the most miserable songs I've ever bloody written, though." Routine begins and the devastating film clip to this song plays on the large screen behind these marvellous musicians. It is such a moving song; you don't simply hear it, you genuinely feel it. The vocal levels feel a touch loud for this one, but the devastating keys solo actually leave mouths hanging open across the whole room. A guitar solo in this song's second half sounds like it could lift us off the ground. People simply don't know where to look. Wilson now grabs the four-string from Nick Beggs, as Beggs picks up some form of electric 12-string. Home Invasion/Regret #9 is next and it's basically the definition of prog.

Another long epic that has the openings of a crushing metal banger but bounces into about 1,500 gorgeous solos from all onstage and just confusion: discordant fury, sliding and tapping. But before anyone realises what's happening, Wilson slips into Transience - a short sombre number, reminiscent of his older work. Before beginning another 13-minute onslaught, Wilson takes the time to introduce the band. Continuing with Ancestral, the performance is heavy on the backing track with violins, and with no violins in sight this takes away from the song. But once again mountainous and captivating guitar solos take centrestage and blow everyone's minds. The song rises like the sun in the sky with huge orchestral sections, smashes you with world-class heavy metal and then falls again peacefully like a still winter night. Happy Returns/Ascendant Here On... concludes the first half of this three-hour show with the masses singing in unison under an amber glow that's thrown out from the stage.

After an intermission, the band return to the stage under a blue wash with water rippling on screen behind them. The second half of the show consists of older work, including songs from Wilson's extremely successful band Porcupine Tree. The opening song Dark Matter very slowly builds with an eerie whir, organs and subtle beat. The stage wash slowly shifts to red and the water image now looks more like the flowing red slime from Ghostbusters II. The tranquillity is twisted into something from a horror movie as Index plays through, complete with strange film clip on screen. Talk of Tool taking 50 years to release an album and a love of Neil Young lead us into an infectiously catchy My Book Of Regrets. The levels are so perfect and you can hear each instrument together with the singing voices of the assembled hundreds of people. Wilson mentions before continuing that the next song, Deadwing, was written for a movie that was never completed. The crowd participation is set to 11 when the opening notes of Lazarus (arguably one of Porcupine Tree's most popular songs) hit everyone's ears. The grim black-and-white video by Lasse Hoile now flickers behind Wilson and co for Harmony Korine. A confusing piece of film referencing characters and styles of filmmaking from over 70 years ago, these visuals beautifully complement the brooding nature of this song. Don't Hate Me continues the melancholic display, a crushingly sad song that is only broken by an awkwardly loud organ solo. The organ piece is a new addition to this song, replacing the haunting panpipes of the original. A large transparent scrim drops between band and audience and images are projected onto it, while different images flicker behind them; a gorgeous display while the band unleash Vermillioncore and Sleep Together.  

An encore sees a magnificent rendition of Prince classic Sign O' The Times. Then The Sound Of Muzak and The Raven That Refused To Sing, both massive songs in Wilson's career, follow. This three-hour-long epic is something so special and incorporates an incredible array of different styles from jazz through to heavy metal. Capturing sadness and strength in one fell swoop, it's all executed with intricate proficiency.