Review Summary: Misguided.
Watching the Steven Wilson shitshow over the past year or two has been nothing short of hilarious. From Wilson’s bold proclamations of not enjoying “guitar music” (what a vague descriptor) anymore, to criticizing several past Porcupine Tree releases, to making a cover of a Taylor Swift song, all the talk of fanbase alienation and entitled prog snobs has made for pretty entertaining discourse. Let’s face it: no matter what Wilson was going to release next, he was going to be closely scrutinized and attacked accordingly. If he made another
To the Bone, people would accuse him of treading water artistically. If he made another
Raven Who Refused to Sing, a bunch of fans would say “stop worshipping the 70s so much” just like a lot of them did the first time. If he reformed Porcupine Tree, a lot of people would criticize him for trying to recapture past glories. And now with
The Future Bites, he’s being reprimanded for “abandoning his prog fans.”
So honestly, I don’t mind the fact that he’s sticking to his guns when it comes to this new album. He’s chosen a new direction, and he’s been pretty damn firm on committing to it. After all, much of Wilson’s career has been built on reinventing his sound and image, whether that be the psych>alternative>metal progression heard on Porcupine Tree or the decade-hopping he’s done with his solo material. Despite the length of the lead-off single “Personal Shopper,” it was pretty clear with that song that his next move was to lean into that pop persona he’d been gradually morphing into. But throughout the entire runtime of the song, I couldn’t help but feel as though Wilson was getting
way too close to self-parody; both with the lyrics and the pointless spoken-word Elton John feature. The track serves as a general thesis statement of the album and its promotional material, in that it criticizes several facets of consumerism and bandwagoning and yet it’s set to music that’s largely meant for more mass appeal than his previous efforts (again, song length aside).
And believe me, this problem never goes away for the rest of the record. Wilson has constantly been pushing the point that he wants to follow his own muse and not care what the fans think, and yet he’s constantly promoting this album with critic scores and TikTok videos as if it’s the next big pop culture event. It’s causing a large disconnect between his intentions and the quality of the music itself, despite the fact that there's a number of decent tracks here. The bluesy laid-back “Eminent Sleaze” recalls the best vibes of “Have a Cigar” by Pink Floyd, and “Man of the People” has beautifully melancholic guitar chords and an almost No-Man inspired dreamlike first half; however even these songs are never allowed to build to anything interesting because of Wilson’s firm commitment to keeping things more concise and compact. Just imagine if the sleek, icy atmosphere in “Man of the People” built up to something akin to post-rock, as if the whole thing was crescendoing into a wider and more lush soundscape. Instead, we get an uninspired second half driven by a cheap-sounding drum beat and boring chord progressions.
I have to clarify here that I don’t mind if Wilson makes a pop record. Plenty of his past albums, such as
Stupid Dream and the first two Blackfield albums, were great examples of retaining pop sensibilities while maintaining a clear focus and identity. But this is the first album of his that I can actually consider a bit... confused. A lot of people try and pin part of the blame on the previous record
To the Bone and its poppier sensibilities, but I beg to differ. The majority of that album’s songs at least went to some interesting places by the time they were done, especially the poppier ones. “Pariah” is basically what “Man of the People” should have been, as it eventually exploded into a beautifully vibrant climax guided by Ninet’s voice. “Permanating,” on the other hand, was a much-needed dose of levity to lift up the listener’s spirit.
The Future Bites, unfortunately, lacks these moments in spades. “King Ghost” just lumbers along aimlessly over the same dull drum track and annoying falsetto wails with no interesting climax, and “12 Things I Forgot” is just a boring MOR alt-rock piece that doesn’t do anything special other than to be a nondescript cross between Coldplay and the newer (see: worst) moments of Blackfield. As a pop record, this album really could have used something as light-hearted as a “Permanating.” Even “Follower” and “Self,” with the former’s harder edge and the latter’s enjoyable female vocals, still don’t compare.
The Future Bites isn’t terrible or anything, but it’s painfully average and represents a huge step down from Wilson’s previous studio records. It takes itself too seriously to be a fun joyous pop record - especially with the forced and hypocritical commentary it incorporates - and it’s too boring and aimless to be a worthwhile artistic statement. I don’t think Wilson necessarily “abandoned his fans” here musically, but I do think he abandoned several of the principles that made him so appealing to begin with. Yes, he’s always had shallow social commentary on past albums; as much as I love
Fear of a Blank Planet, that was always my biggest problem with it. But it’s never been as misguided or self-defeating as it is here, and it just makes for a more dour experience than it could have been. Let’s just hope that Wilson’s direction - both musically and lyrically - is more focused and more sound next time… and that it doesn’t take another 3-4 years to put that album out.
