Every Home is Weird

A good Bank Holiday, spent with family. It's only one day, but it makes a huge difference.

The Danny Baker Podcast (#4.7) was a short 'hang on in there' message, which was a bit silly. Either do it or don't. My guess is that he hasn't got the time or energy to do this and his BBC London show. My iTunes will remain tied to the updates for now, but this is a bit poor. (OK, he owes me nothing, I know).

The Mark Kermode podcast to start things off this morning, then a re-appraisal of the Porcupine Tree CD 'Fear of a Blank Planet':

I still rate this very highly, although my mild dislike of the '30-odd year-old man singing from the perspective of a tenager' remains. Take the best bits from Deadwing's 'Arriving Somewhere...' and stretch them out over 50 minutes with a concept to pin them on, and you have a pretty good idea of what this album's about.

The first song is a good opener, if unrepresentative of the album as a whole. Crunchy guitars, and distorted vocals. It might be a bit long, but it does keep re-inventing itself with new riffs and changes of soundscape.

'My Ashes' is a co-composition between SW and Richard Barbieri, and it shows. It still reminds me of 'Wake As Gun'. A pleasant vibe, but the orchestra probably detracts from it, for me.

The magnum opus: Anesthetize - Good start with some great drumming, joined by a good bass part. A muted guitar solo, presumable Alex Lifeson, from the liner notes, although I'm not sure. At 5 minutes in, it reminds me very much of a bit in 'Welcome to the PleasureDome' or 'Two Tribes' by Frankie Goes To Hollywood, and it's used for a very similar reason - a bridge before a change in mood. Very very similar. I am getting to like this track more and more as time passes, and the ending is definitely growing on me.

Sentimental: 'Never want to be old, and I don't want dependants...' Dependants???! Nice chorus, if one doesn't mind the preachy lyrics. Not preachy, more patronising. I don't know. Just a bit annoying. Good music, though, with a nice acoustic guitar bit with piano.

Way Out of Here: A group composition, and some really nice bass/drum parts. Hangs together really well, I think. A great guitar solo, too. This reminds me a lot of earlier PT work, particularly around 'Signify'.

'Sleep Together' rounds the album of in a great way, as is usually the case with PT albums. Beautiful, hypnotic, with a crunching vocal part on the chorus. Very effective. Sounds a bit like 'Kashmir' in parts, perhaps.

8.5/10 all in all. Buy it.