Metal Underground.com

Sometimes everything just falls perfectly into place. Such an example of this would be Porcupine Tree's 2005 full-length album "Deadwing." Everything is done to absolute perfection, from the songwriting and production, to the artwork and layout of the songs. "Deadwing" personifies true art in music. "Deadwing," while being a progressive rock album in its nature, also dips into the waters of metal, electronica, and pop to create a compelling hour's worth of unique music.

Opening with the title track, Porcupine Tree bombards the listener with music that portrays a simplistic frame, yet maintains a distinct level of complexity. For a song as long as it is, nearly ten minutes in length, "Deadwing" provides a breathtaking journey through expert musicianship that leaves a sudden and lasting impact. It has been widely recognized in the progressive music scene that Porcupine Tree singer, songwriter, and guitarist Steven Wilson is a musical genius and this track exemplifies it in every way. It’s the little things that truly matter most and when the catchy main riff is paired with the trippy electronic patches, occasional heaviness, and Wilson's charming vocal lines, it creates one of the best album openers possible.

The momentum never falters with "Deadwing" and even the softest ballad tracks are incredible. "Lazarus," being the album's most pop-friendly composition, features a beautiful piano section and simple acoustics. Once the subtle string section kicks in, "Lazarus" takes full flight and becomes not only one of the album's best songs but a cornerstone in the Porcupine Tree discography. Although it will surely make most die-hard metal-heads cringe and writhe in disgust.

The centerpiece of the record comes in the form of "Arriving Somewhere But Not Here," a twelve minute epic that transcends genres and merges multiple sounds together into one seamless work of art, like a great painting. One of Porcupine Tree's heaviest riffs used to date is also featured in the track and provides a startling twist to the song's main progressive atmosphere. Just when things couldn't get any better, Opeth's Mikael Akerfeldt jumps in to provide a gorgeous clean blues guitar solo before the song makes its final round.

Very few albums have the distinction of being a modern masterpiece, even more so when held in comparison to progressive rock's glory days in the late 70's and early 80's. Porcupine Tree has not only managed to eclipse some of the genre's greatest works, but has also proved that the band is the leading progressive rock authority going today. It’s hard to create something so close to perfection, but Porcupine Tree has done just that with "Deadwing."