Porcupine Tree
Metanoia

Despite all the success achieved by "Porcupine Tree" in recent years thanks to more "commercial" tracks and catchier songs, they still wished not to lose their large group of longtime fans… those who have followed them from the very beginning and who reluctantly accepted the band's latest (musical) directional changes.

Well, in 2001, Steven Wilson, the longstanding leader of Porcupine Tree, released "Metanoia"… an album based on never-before-released jams and material cut from recording sessions of 1995-1996… a period when the band was working on what would become "Signify" (released in 1996, in fact).

These are jams heavily inspired by the space rock played by the "Pink Floyd" and evident, for example, in "Ummagumma" (1969)… a type of music that Wilson's original fans know well and have long delighted in, hailing it as miraculous.

Virtually no catchy melodies in Metanoia, just about an hour of Floydian experimentation featuring laudable guitar solos and keyboards with a pronounced electronic sound.

Steven Wilson can be considered as one of the most underrated modern guitarists ever. Here, his psychedelic experiments pay tribute to the great David Gilmour and Steve Hillage, yet the result is excellent nonetheless. Three of the album's eight tracks exceed 13 minutes, allowing for a fusion of numerous and varied sounds… all without the band getting lost in a mere exercise of technical potential. Even when Wilson ventures into unknown and rugged territories, there is always a sense of completeness and order in what is happening; which makes this work different from those of other bands that delve into the genre… different in a positive sense, of course.

Surely, Metanoia is not an album to recommend to everyone. Porcupine Tree has garnered legions of fans with their recent works, and the contract signed with a "famous" major record label has certainly contributed to that; thus, this album may seem a bit too risky and adventurous for most. However, those who loved Wilson's works prior to "Signify" cannot afford to miss this Metanoia.