The British Wilson (born 1967) has so far been best known as the frontman of progressive rock group Porcupine Tree but has composed and performed outstanding music also in several other groups / projects, such as Blackfield (with acclaimed israeli musician Aviv Geffen), No-Man (with British singer Tim Bowness), Bass Communion, and most recently Storm Corrosion (with Swedish heavy metal cult favourite Mikael Åkerfeldt).
Nearly all of Wilson's projects have succeeded in producing unforgettable music. I will add a list of recommendations to the end of this story. But his most amazing masterwork is now to be released as a part of his solo career, which began as late as 2008, and apparently gathered speed following the crash landing of Porcupine Tree's The Incident (2009) - one of the weakest, silliest albums of the group's entire career.
Porcupine Tree has not made any recordings since. Wilson has implied that, while he thought The Incident was a satisfactory album (I couldn't disagree more), he felt he no longer knew what direction to take next with that group. This resulted in a hiatus that has been going on ever since. Wilson has concentrated on his solo career and even though Blackfield released a new album in 2011, it felt like Geffen using the name but doing the majority of work himself.
Wilson's first solo album Insurgentes (2008) was already a way better than average prog album. It contained many outstanding tracks and at least one instant classic called Get All You Deserve which I have always felt would already be hailed as a prog masterpiece had it been recorded in the 1970's and released by King Crimson.
Strange as it may sound, Wilson's best solo work before this year's masterpiece was released a year later as a B side of a single. The opening track of Insurgentes called Harmony Korine - a perfectly fine prog rock song in itself - was then coupled with a hard rock prog masterpiece called The 78 which had already been made previously available as an untitled last track of the second disc of Insurgentes' de luxe version. Strangely hidden, this brilliant rock song presented a high point of Wilson's output for myself at the time. Check out the video below.
Wilson's second solo album Grace for Drowning (2011) did contain some high points yet always felt slightly disappointing. There were really no standout tracks, and it is very fitting that the album's long centerpiece Raider II (23 mins. 21 secs.) is considerably less interesting than its genuinely atmospheric prelude (2 mins. 23 secs.). The album felt so hermetically sealed that it probably wasn't too accessible to anyone else but its maker.
Which brings us to The Raven That Refused to Sing (And Other Stories). The album's official release date is still more than two weeks away, and yet I have already heard four of its six tracks. They are joined together by their supernatural theme, yet sound wildly varied in terms of musical style. Of the first three tracks, the opening Luminol as well as the third one The Holy Drinker sound very experimental, the latter even displaying jazz influences.
The second track Drive Home sounds most like what Wilson has been doing before: it would fit perfectly in Insurgentes and is considerably more melody driven than the other two. But the real standout is the closing track number 6: The Raven That Refused to Sing, which I believe is one of the most perfect pieces of music composed and performed during the last 100 years. To make the experience even more memorable, it was released two days ago as a breathtakingly stunning music video which you can see and hear below.
First, I watched the video twice, in awe. The first time, I was doing some work on my other computer at the same time, so I didn't fully concentrate yet felt that what I had heard was an undeniable masterpiece. The second time, I was fully concentrated. The third time, which was earlier today, I didn't watch the video at all but only listened to the music. And the unexpected happened: during the last two minutes of the song, I started to cry. I couldn't help it: the music was just so beautiful and perfect.
This is not something that happens to me often. In fact, it hardly ever happens. While I appreciate exceptional musicianship, I have a heart of stone and don't usually get this moved by music. To me, this means that Wilson has created something well and truly exceptional that I can really, really connect to. To ascertain this, I listened to the song for the fifth time prior to starting writing this, and you know what, the same thing happened again.
The Raven That Refused to Sing is an exceptionally beautiful piece of music; shortly put, a masterpiece. The video above should be recognized as the best short animation in next year's Oscars. And yes, I think that, in spite of Steven Wilson's awesome track record, it is the best thing he has ever accomplished.
Sing to me, raven
I miss her so much
Sing to me, Lily
I miss you so much
Other Steven Wilson recommendations:
No-Man: Soft Shoulders (Flowermouth, 1994)
Porcupine Tree: The Sky Moves Sideways, Phase 1 (The Sky Moves Sideways, 1995)
Porcupine Tree: A Smart Kid (Stupid Dream, 1999)
Porcupine Tree: Stop Swimming (Stupid Dream, 1999)
Porcupine Tree: Gravity Eyelids (In Absentia, 2002)
Porcupine Tree: Heart Attack in a Lay By (In Absentia, 2002)
Porcupine Tree: Collapse the Light into Earth (In Absentia, 2002)
No-Man: All the Blue Changes (Together We're Stranger, 2003)
No-Man: Photographs in Black and White (Together We're Stranger, 2003)
Blackfield: Pain (Blackfield, 2004)
Blackfield: Perfect World (Blackfield, 2004)
Blackfield: Where is My Love? (Blackfield, 2004)
Porcupine Tree: Deadwing (Deadwing, 2005)
Blackfield: Once (Blackfield II, 2007)
Blackfield: 1000 People (Blackfield II, 2007)
Porcupine Tree: Fear of a Blank Planet (Fear of a Blank Planet, 2007)
No-Man: All Sweet Things (Schoolyard Ghosts, 2008)
No-Man: Truenorth (Schoolyard Ghosts, 2008)
Steven Wilson: Significant Other (Insurgentes, 2008)
Steven Wilson: Get All You Deserve (Insurgentes, 2008)
Steven Wilson: The 78 (Insurgentes De Luxe Edition, 2009)
Blackfield: Dissolving With the Night (Welcome to My DNA, 2011)
Storm Corrosion: Drag Ropes (Storm Corrosion, 2012)
