"Closure/ Continuation" : new (and maybe last) Porcupine Tree's album

Ambitious yet tuneful (likely) final album from art-prog rockers.

Never say never. After years of speculation and rumours, Steven Wilson has reunited with his former Porcupine Tree bandmates Richard Barbieri and Gavin Harrison for one of the most unexpected musical reformations. It’s often said that all good things come to those who wait, but surely nobody was expecting a new Porcupine Tree album. When they released a brand-new song, Harridan, last November (their first new music in well over a decade), prog-friendly corners of internet came close to having a shared emotional meltdown.

Misunderstood or overlooked for nigh on four decades (while accruing a devoted hardcore fanbase), Porcupine Tree have reassembled after a dozen years apart for what is probably their last record; singer/leader Steven Wilson's solo work and career as classic album remixer now occupying most of his time. 

Closure/ Continuation reinforces their idiosyncratic character: opener Harridan sounds like Moving Pictures-era Rush filtered through Kid A. Drummer Gavin Harrison powers the trio through hairpin polyrhythmic bends, Richard Barbieri's synth contours pleasingly recall his former band Japan, while Wilson spotlights a reflective side in aching acoustic ballad Of The New Day and at the start of the slow-building nine minutes of Chimera's Wreck. 

With their often-lengthy running times and perma- restless arrangements, Porcupine Tree remain an acquired taste. But if this is indeed closure rather than continuation, it's a fine way to go out.