The Raven That Refused To Sing (And Other Stories)
by Steven Wilson

From IlMala 01/23/2022 21:32 | #279937

One of the best album of the XXI century by far, and even do not like Porcupine Tree! Really suggested.

Very pleasant. Not Wilson's finest work, but a worthy part of his discography. Not usually a fan of 12 minute songs, and they are a bit hit-and-miss on this album. I do like Luminol (especially the second half) but The Watchmaker and The Holy Drinker are a bit of a drag for me. The title track, which concludes the album, is a beautiful song (which is also great played live) and the strongest on the album. Drive Home is nice too, unmistakably a Steven Wilson song. Overall verdict - okay, definitely gets better on multiple listens.

A great homage to prog rock, that has some wonderful instrumental solos that really stick with you. The guitar solos are fantastic and really help to flesh out some of the weaker tracks. The lyrics are a lot of fun to explore with each song being it's own story. My favourite tracks are the title track and Drive Home as they feel the most complete and really compact musically. However, the record can feel a little bit slow at times and also a bit empty. I struggle to really get into the longer cuts and on most prog rock albums they are usually my favourite ones. Overall, it does provide a lot of nostalgia but falls short of the quality of 70's prog rock.

100/100

Steven Wilson enter my list of the 10 best bands/artists of the 2010s decade, each album have a different taste and i love it, just an amazing musician

The Average Of the songs is 85!!!!!!! other albums are ranked among the best of all time with less than 85

From Cargusbralem 07/15/2018 04:11 | #218269

A phenomenal homage to 70s prog rock with exceptional attention to detail.

Each song based on a ghost story.
Is it good? Yes, very.
Is it scary? No, not in the slightest!!

For anyone who follows my comments, you know I am a huge Steven Wilson fan. However, I just cannot get into this album. I love the title track and Drive Home and Luminol is fine, but the other 3 tracks...

From nitomano 03/01/2017 01:18 | #186563

Favoritas: The Raven That Refused to Sing, Drive Home, Luminol

From M42K0 03/19/2016 19:28 | #162215

Hahah, this album is literally on par with the greatest prog albums ever made and sounds so 70s I'm stunned. What an album!

I only started listening to Steven Wilson's music (Porcupine Tree's & Blackfield) 4 months ago after attending a King Crimson concert and seeing Gavin Harrison played which led me to discovering SW's music. I was immediately hooked on his work with The Porcupine Tree and picked up this record without knowing anything about it.

At first glance the concept seems pretty cool! I love Victorian style ghost stories! That concept I gave 4 stars alone.

At first listen, there's not a single bad song in this album. It's tight! I loved it right away. It almost sound like a King Crimson/Genesis album. The guitar solo in Drive Home is simply euphoric. My husband who doesn't know anything about SW's music said that's probably the top 3 guitar solo he's heard.

'The Watchmaker' reminded me of Genesis' 'Cinema Show' in terms of the arrangement. It sound delightful. The title track 'The Raven that refused to sing' had some Godspeed You Black Emperor's moment which was haunting and impactful.

All in all its a great album but sound too much like a tribute album to King Crimson, Genesis and Jethro Tull. It's original but lack of originality if you know what I mean. If I hadn't heard 'Hand Cannot Erase', I would probably rate this 90 out of 100. However after listening to Hand Cannot Erase, I have to drop the score to 85/100.