Steven Wilson - Nsrgnts Rmxs (Kscope Music) By: Ken McGrath

[7/10] The mastermind behind Porcupine Tree has his musical fingers in many musical pies and sometimes seems to give even Justin Broderick (Godflesh, Jesu, Final, Greymachine, et al) in terms of output. An accompaniment to last year’s solo effort Insurgentes, you can expect it to be overshadowed by the recent enough release of PT’s new full-length The Incident although fans will no doubt seek it out.

More of an EP than a full album at six songs long, it’s a suitable companion piece to the full-length that spawned it. Stripped down to almost Portishead-ish beats, it’s mainly a minimal, hypnotic swirl. You won’t find many of the trademarked Porcupine Tree big rocking moments in here, but it’s got that atmosphere and his gentle voice cloudily floating in it. “Get What You Deserve,” tackled by dálek is an especially good example of this beginning with a lull

Elsewhere, former touring mates Engineers get a look in on “Abandoner” while David A. Sitek of TV On The Radio creates a cocoon of sound around “Harmony Korine.” These new versions borrow heavily from the originals but it’s nice to see another perspective, especially as the consistent flow is low key and subtle, gentle beats and 3am chill out sounds rather than bombast and flame. The Pat Mastelotto take on “Abandoner” swims in and around itself, string slides curling at the edges before dropping into a buzzing solo over throbbing bass thump, eventually lifting upwards with an Eastern lilt tinting the sides. Fantastic stuff.

If you liked the solo album and aren’t adverse to remix records, then you’ll find this to warm you up nicely. PT fans that have yet to be convinced of the charms of the remix album may be more cynical and won’t be as wooed. You’ll still need to come to this, expecting bits of songs pulled into new shapes, that may or may not resemble their parent parts. Thankfully the ‘unce, unce, unce’ beat doesn’t come into play as these takes are more aimed at the ambient mood setting than filling the dance floor and all remix duties have been handled with love and respect for the source material.

Many of the takes have the feel of the quieter moments from Porcupine Tree’s Fear Of A Blank Planet and Deadwing albums and would be a fine entry point for fans of Jesu, dálek and even Bjórk who have yet to take a trip into the wonderful world of Wilson. Overall, it makes a lovely interlude.

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