Gig Review: Yiannis (John) Stefanis

Photos by Talya Jacoby (www.talyajacoby.com)

Steven Wilson is perhaps the only high-profile Rock personality whose name is almost constantly featured in music mags and internet sites these last few years and with good reason. When not providing the ‘5.1 treatment’ in classics such as “Aqualung” (Jethro Tull) and “The Court Of The Crimson King” (King Crimson) you will find him creating music either as part of the well-established outfit Porcupine Tree or as a solo musician.

It was less than a month ago that his third solo effort “The Raven That Refused To Sing (And Other Stories)” was released by Kscope and it was that album’s phenomenal success and the creator’s ever-growing popularity that enabled him to book the amazing Royal Festival Hall for a two and a half hour performance on the night of the 4th of March 2013 – a performance that I, and presumably many amongst you readers, was really looking forward to attend.

The decision to not include an opening act in tonight’s show was a wise one in my humble opinion as it enabled the roadies to work towards achieving a top quality sound for the show – preparations still under way when the doors of this impressive venue opened at 19:30. Half an hour was enough for punters to take the occasional group photo, the suit and tie guy to finish reading his copy of the Economist and lads with Porcupine Tree t-shirts to carefully transport their beers to their allocated seats without spilling any.

Then, at exactly 20:00, the lights of the venue were gradually dimmed and a large roar followed Marco Minnemann’s entry onto the stage. Once the much skilled drummer found his way behind the drum kit, the rest of the band consisting of Nick Beggs (Bass), Guthrie Govan (guitar), Adam Holzman (keys), Theo Travis (flutes/saxophone) and, of course, Steven Wilson followed suit, further increasing the levels of noise caused by the crowd’s intense shouting and clapping of hands.

Barefooted and sporting a Vinyl Pirates t-shirt, Wilson suddenly raised his hand as if conducting an orchestra and, like magic, Nick Beggs’ bass began producing the most harmonic of sounds, thereby introducing “Luminol” – the opening track of his new album. Twelve and a half minutes, and hundreds of notes later, I find myself struggling to get myself together, enchanted by the sheer musicianship displayed by this well-jelled troupe and looking forward to another two hours of sheer musical joy: and I would not be disappointed.

Clearly relieved and satisfied by the results of the band’s performance thus far, Wilson thanked us for attending the show and announced that “The Raven That Refused To Sing (And Other Stories)” was to be performed in its entirety. Thereafter, he sat down in a chair, grabbed his acoustic guitar and with the help of Nick Beggs performed a killer vocal rendition of “Drive Home”, assisted by Theo Travis’ Floydian flute melodies.

The night’s show, however, was not only about Wilson and thus provided ample opportunities for all remaining band members to shine. It was Marco Minnemann’s drumming that made “Pin Drop” such a powerful proposition; a Crimson-inspired piece of numerous rhythmical changes that led Wilson to say “I am very happy to have that behind me” after the last few notes were finally performed.

“Postcard”, the first non-“Raven…” song of the evening enabled Adam Holzman to flex his keyboard muscles and the follow up “Holy Drinker” found Wilson picking up Beggs’ bass and providing a funky slap intro. Minutes later, Beggs grabbed his Chapman Stick and what followed was a barrage of head banging riffs, followed by a sensational piano solo by Holzman.

“Deform To Form A Star” is a 70s-sounding Hammond-led piece which offers some solace to our over-stimulated ears, following which a large curtain fell and covered the whole of the stage and all those beautiful video projections which, up to that point, were offering a support role to the music suddenly became the focal point of the show, first supporting the Intro and then the main body of “The Watchmaker” – one of the highlights of the show. The curtain remained in place for one more powerful song, namely “Index”, and following its removal a seated Wilson found his way to his mini Hammond and performed “Insurgents” and “Harmony Korine” with both passion and finesse.

A much needed break was found during a protracted conversation between Wilson and the crowd during which we were informed that Wilson prefers to read negative rather than positive reviews when the latter mention his love towards Tolkien-related lyrical themes, his mother-induced fascination towards…serial killers and ends with a sweet acknowledgement of her support over the years – one gracefully received by the very same woman sitting in the royal box.

Having really enjoyed Guthrie Govan’s protracted solos and the band’s jazz experimentations, I was totally mesmerized by the emotional soundscapes of “The Raven That Refused To Sing” – a really heartfelt piece following which the band members, one after the other, put down their instruments and left the stage.

One would assume that two hours of music would be enough to satisfy most crowds but no one, myself included, was willing to leave London’s Royal Festival Hall without an encore, and it was soon after leaving the stage that Wilson and Co returned, much to our satisfaction.

Looking both pleased and relieved, as suggested by his comment “Home town shows – always the hardest”, Wilson explained his problems with choosing a fitting encore for the night’s show and then proceeded with a killer rendition of Porcupine Tree’s classic “Radioactive Toy” – one that found the band on the receiving end of a protracted and well-deserved standing ovation after the last few notes had been performed.

So what is it that makes a Steven Wilson show such a special experience? Well, apart from the quality of the music on offer, which nowadays borders the sublime, what you get is perhaps the only ‘environment’ where audio and video elements are presented in an artful and well-balanced way, offering what can only be described as an all-encompassing and all-consuming concert experience.

It has been a long time since the world understood and acknowledged Wilson’s importance in Rock music – if you are yet to be converted, all you have to do is attend one of his shows and only then will you realise what the ‘fuss’ is all about. This, without a shadow of a doubt, was one of the most impressive and soul-engaging performances I have ever seen in my life!

Steven Wilson Set List:

1. “Luminol”
2. “Drive Home”
3. “Pin Drop”
4. “Postcard”
5. “Holy Drinker”
6. “Deform To Form A Star”
7. “Watchmaker Intro”
8. “The Watchmaker”
9. “Index”
10. “Insurgents”
11. “Harmony Korine”
12. “No Part Of Me”
13. “Raider II”
14. “The Raven That Refused To Sing”

Encore

15. “Radioactive Toy” (Porcupine Tree from “On The Sunday Of Life” album)

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Power Plays w/c 15 April 2024

ENMY The Ledge (FiXT)
KAROBELA Get Hard (indie)
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THE BEE TELLERS River Poem (Black Sand Records)
LAUREN FREEBIRD Like A Bomb (indie)

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09:00-12:00 The Best of 2003-2023
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003-2023
14:00-16:00 KATARINA PEJAK – Pearls On A String (Ruf Records)

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