Porcupine Tree – Fear Of A Blank Planet

By 2007 Porcupine Tree was already a successful and revered prog powerhouse, and several of their albums were counted among the genre’s finest.

However, up to that point I only truly enjoyed scattered songs by them, bits and pieces here and there of the already large body of work Steven Wilson had been creating under the PT banner.

“Fear Of A Blank Planet” was received with unanimous praise, so I gave the band another go. At first I thought the same as I did about the previous albums: there was undeniable quality in there, but it just didn’t move me the same as other prog acts did. And yet something made me keep trying.

Weeks later, one evening by the time “Sleep Together” finished, I found myself staring at the stereo, trying to define what I had just heard. Since then I've been a fan, and I guess you can say “FOABP” remains my favourite PT album.

The album feels like the natural evolution of everything the band had been doing up to that point, with the title song opening with a blast in the “Deadwing” or “Blackest Eyes” fashion, ruled by almost metal riffing at some point but never forgetting to slow down at crucial moments. “My Ashes”, drenched in sweeping strings and keys, is the first hit in the feels as you feel drifting like the ashes in the title. Together with “Sentimental” and “Way Out Of Here”, they cut through your heart as razors as they unfold a gloomy view on the younger generations, numbed by technology, drugs and mental health problems with devastating lyrics like:

"I never wanna be old
And I don't want dependents
It's no fun to be told
That you can't blame your parents anymore"

And then there’s “Anesthetize”: one of those crowning songwriting achievements that Steven Wilson creates from time to time, and maybe my favourite PT song. The way it ebbs and flows is just unreal, how the harmonies and different parts engage like clockwork as they march through the harsh and the delicate while creating beauty out of the bleakest, darkest views on society, the jewel of the crown in an album that deservedly sits among the best prog records of the 21st century.

By 2007 Porcupine Tree was already a successful and revered prog powerhouse, and several of their albums were counted among the genre’s finest.

However, up to that point I only truly enjoyed scattered songs by them, bits and pieces here and there of the already large body of work Steven Wilson had been creating under the PT banner.

“Fear Of A Blank Planet” was received with unanimous praise, so I gave the band another go. At first I thought the same as I did about the previous albums: there was undeniable quality in there, but it just didn’t move me the same as other prog acts did. And yet something made me keep trying.

Weeks later, one evening by the time “Sleep Together” finished, I found myself staring at the stereo, trying to define what I had just heard. Since then I've been a fan, and I guess you can say “FOABP” remains my favourite PT album.

The album feels like the natural evolution of everything the band had been doing up to that point, with the title song opening with a blast in the “Deadwing” or “Blackest Eyes” fashion, ruled by almost metal riffing at some point but never forgetting to slow down at crucial moments. “My Ashes”, drenched in sweeping strings and keys, is the first hit in the feels as you feel drifting like the ashes in the title. Together with “Sentimental” and “Way Out Of Here”, they cut through your heart as razors as they unfold a gloomy view on the younger generations, numbed by technology, drugs and mental health problems with devastating lyrics like:

"I never wanna be old
And I don't want dependents
It's no fun to be told
That you can't blame your parents anymore"

And then there’s “Anesthetize”: one of those crowning songwriting achievements that Steven Wilson creates from time to time, and maybe my favourite PT song. The way it ebbs and flows is just unreal, how the harmonies and different parts engage like clockwork as they march through the harsh and the delicate while creating beauty out of the bleakest, darkest views on society, the jewel of the crown in an album that deservedly sits among the best prog records of the 21st century.

I compared this to the Tonefloat first pressing (https://www.discogs.com/release/1097739-Porcupine-Tree-Fear-Of-A-Blank-Planet ) and the sound improved a lot here! The Tonfloat pressing really wasn't good sounding, quite shrill, with harsh highs, not much dynamics and also with quite a lot of surface noise.

This one has much less surface noise and a much better mastering: more dynamics, more mid range, a better balance in the high frequencies and more punch. It still isn't perfect though in my opinion, there's still too much compression going on, the soundstage isn't very wide or open and it sounds a bit sterile overall. As this is the only vinyl cut this album got after the Tonfloat pressings, this is the best we have for now though. So I recommend getting any pressing from 2016 or later when looking for the best sounding vinyl version of this album, I also compared the most recent 2023 pressing on "curacao" blue vinyl and they basically sound identical.

Yeah this isn't a good pressing. Not sure what happened with the mastering here, it has no depth, lacks mid range and punch and sounds shrill, especially the higher frequencies are really harsh. My copy also has noticeable surface noise throughout.

There's no doubt the presentation is great here, with the slipcase, the gatefold and the inner sleeves made of quality matte cardstock. My copy that I bought from Tonefloat back then also came with an oversized Tonefloat postcard with the artwork of the poster on the front.

I wish they'd put similar care into the sound, which seems like an afterthought here... This is only worth the money if you want this as a collector's piece, if you care about the sound I recommend getting a remastered version (any pressing from 2016 or later), which isn't perfect either, but still much better.

Thanks to “The Catcher in the Rye for the MTV generation" ...

After I re-read "Lunar Park" by Bret Easton Ellis, the album "Fear of a Blank Planet" by Porcupin Tree (which was inspired by it) became (even) deeper... more coherent...

As usual from this band / & Wilson - top sound quality and the combination of image (lyrics) and frame (music) excellent!

(I've just listened to the CD again [but I don't have bad memories of the vinyl release either]! I was interested in the overall concept of the content - not in the specific evaluation of a sound carrier.)

Lovely pressing. And yet, in my listening experience, the CD sounds better, with slightly more punch and a touch more clarity/detail.

Excellent deluxe edition. However my only gripe is with these additions I wish they were lay flat pages. Can be awkward to remove the discs.
Definitely worth the money for any PT fan

Has anyone heard if there are plans of later releasing a single (or double) CD of just the 2024 remaster?

The 2024 5.1 mix (DTS HD MA) on the BD sounds like a beast, love it!

Bought the pink vinyl recently and it's a beautiful vibrant color as it is no longer sealed. This album comes in a slipcase with a 16 page booklet just like the blue/black marbled version from 2007. I like this 2007 Tonefloat version better for sound quality a little bit more than the recently reissued Kscope version. I also like having the EP Nil Recurring on this record unlike the Kscope.