Back catalogue: Rock (All)

Review: Steven Wilson, Richard Barbieri and Gavin Harrison are better known as the hugely influential and ever innovative British rock outfit Porcupine Tree. Wilson formed the band as an outlet for his experimental side outside the work he did with his other band N-Man, who had a more synth pop styled sound. Porcupine Tree evolved into a live act and expanded their sound to go from psychedelic rock and ambient soundscapes to experimental pop and then a big, powerful metal sound. All of those different niches came together on their later records making the band real cult favourites.

Review: 12 years. Twelve years. T-WELVE YEARS! It's been a decade plus two since Porcupine Tree bowed out with a spectacular One Last Job at London's Royal Albert Hall. There are few venues as fitting as that statesman of a concert hall for a band that sound like this. The English troupe have always been about these huge sounds, chords soaring above your head, riffs blazing, while tracks always threatening - and often following through - to veer off the straight and narrow into more experimental prog moods.

Now they're back with a much-anticipated, and long-delayed, comeback record. The question is, then, does it live up to expectations? The answer, thankfully, is yes, and then some. Closure/Continuation brings the crew's sound bang up to date, without forgetting who they are and always have been. It's a thing of beauty, but also thunderous power when it wants to unleash it.

Review: Porcupine Tree's Fear Of A Blank Planet gets an expansive reissue via Transmission, offering the most comprehensive edition of the iconic 2007 album to date. This deluxe edition is packaged in a 112-page hardback book featuring rare photographs by Lasse Hoile & Carl Glover, and an in-depth exploration of the album's creation by Stephen Humphries. The five-CD set includes newly remastered versions of Fear Of A Blank Planet and the Nil Recurring EP, alongside over 55 minutes of previously unreleased demos. Fans will also find live performances from The Garage in Saarbrucken in 2006, a BBC session, and an unplugged instore performance from 2007. The inclusion of these early live recordings offers fascinating insights into the evolution of the album's material. The Blu-ray disc includes remastered stereo and 5.1 surround sound mixes, a 2024 documentary, and live footage from The Palladium in Koln. With contributions from prog legends Robert Fripp and Alex Lifeson, Fear Of A Blank Planet stands as one of the band's most celebrated works. This reissue provides a deep dive into the creation of an album that remains a cornerstone of progressive rock.