Porcupine Tree: still one of modern prog’s finest bands.

Steven Wilson: bring on those long songs!

TAYLOR NETTNIN Gavin Harrison, he’s a master of creative rhythms.

Late last year, progressive behemoths Porcupine Tree announced their big comeback. After being apart for more than a decade, they’re finally back on the road, on their first tour in 12 long years, promoting the acclaimed Closure/Continuation. The energy in Chicago’s beautiful Auditorium Theatre is palpable as they take the stage. Porcupine Tree receive the sort of welcome that’s usually reserved for the gods. Opener Blackest Eyes, from 2002’s In Absentia, sets the tone for what’s to come: fans rise from their seats and don’t sit back down for the entirety of the two-set performance. Frontman and guitarist Steven Wilson says he hopes they’re ready for a long night of music and we all rowdily approve, much to his satisfaction.

Although Wilson confesses that he and his bandmates are unwell on this rainy September evening – something he jokes always seems to happen by the time they reach Chicago – the live quintet are utmost professionals and push through, feeding off the auditorium’s energy and rising to every occasion.

“Porcupine Tree may be getting older, but they’re still at their peak.”

The setlist features Closure/Continuation almost in its entirety, with lead single Harridan one of the standouts. The song has a decisive John Wetton-era King Crimson bass line carried out tonight by new boy Nate Navarro and a vocal melody by Wilson. The first set is crammed with more standout tracks from the current record, including Rats Return, which packs a punch and features mean tritone riffs from Wilson and new live guitarist/backup vocalist Randy McStine (McStine & Minnemann), and notable creative rhythms from drummer Gavin Harrison (King Crimson, The Pineapple Thief). Harrison remains workmanlike throughout the show and his hard-hitting technical prowess and creativity retain the audience’s full attention.

As fantastic as the music sounds, Porcupine Tree’s visuals are just as astounding and immersive. New track Herd Culling, which has all the makings of an instant classic, is enhanced by a first-person video of someone running away from a red-eyed, bloodthirsty wolf. The longserving Richard Barbieri provides a multitude of layered synth sounds that really add to the song’s (and video’s) haunting quality. Wilson paints a creepy picture with his lyrics, ‘Son, go fetch the rifle now, I think there’s something in the yard’ and it finishes with a furious guitar solo that sounds like it could have been on Pink Floyd’s Animals.

Wilson wears his guitar strap low and roams around barefoot, giving off something of a grunge vibe. Although Porcupine Tree are progressive in every sense, the raw spirit of Kurt Cobain lingers too; their sound fluctuates from pristine to livewire, and it’s those ebbs and flows that make the fans hoot and holler throughout the show. Wilson mentions there are some notes he isn’t destined to reach this evening and jokes about an unnamed but notable musician who blames an off-note vocal “on the AC, the alcohol and cocaine”. The punchline receives an eruption of laughter, yet despite his current illness, Wilson’s performance is of a high calibre and remains so as the show progresses.

The highlight of the night comes towards the end of the second set when Wilson asks the crowd if they “want something long?” Porcupine Tree then break into Anesthetize from the 2007 album Fear Of A Blank Planet. The near-18-minute epic with multiple passages starts by putting the audience in a trance with a slow, Tool-like build before it moving into a headbanging section and then back to a soothing build-down as Wilson’s melody is backed by a steady groove from Harrison. It takes the crowd on a journey into dystopia. ‘We’re lost in the mall, shuffling through the stores like zombies,’ sings Wilson to an audience that hangs on his every word.