Steven Wilson Steven Wilson - The Harmony Codex (2023)

[madship]

It looks like the new album the Wilson mentioned in his New Year's post will be called The Harmony Codex. The following is from a list in Limited Edition of One of his 10 favorite album from his own catalog.

It's also the title of a short story at the end of the book.

 

[rtbluray]

What's the top 5?

 

[madship]

You have to buy the book for that.

In Absentia
Fear of a Blank Planet
Closure/Continuation
Insurgentes
Hand. Cannot. Erase

 

[sjcorne]

A bit of info about the album from some of SW's recent interviews. Glad to hear Ninet is involved!

What can listeners expect from your forthcoming 2023 solo album, The Harmony Codex?

It's going to maintain a lot of the musical vocabulary from The Future Bites, but it's going back into a more conceptual world, which is less about concise pop songs and more about experimentation. So, in the most simplistic terms, it might be somewhere between Hand. Cannot. Erase. and The Future Bites, but not like either of those records.

I'm really excited about it. I say that every time I have a new batch of songs, but there's really something unique about these songs. I have a feeling it could be a great record. I think the new album feels almost like the next step from The Future Bites, which was very streamlined and had a very strong pop sensibility. So, I asked myself “What am I going to do next, given that? Okay, I’m going to take those elements but place them withing something more ambitious.” Of course, everything informs everything else. So, I have tracks that have spiritual jazz elements, electronics, moments of progressive rock, voice manipulation, and modern DSP processing.

I think people who like Porcupine Tree are going to love the direction of this new album. It’s much more epic and uncompromising. It’s more complex and unpredictable to a degree. After people experience the mercurial nature of this Porcupine Tree album, I think they’re going to look at the new solo album and think highly of it.

Do you have a sense of the collaborators that you’d like to work with on your next solo album, Harmony Codex?

There’s one track with Ninet [Tayeb] on it, which is fabulous. She kind of wrote it, and we both duetted on it. So, the usual gang people, people that you will probably mostly recognize from my solo career.

You mentioned there’s going to be a spiritual jazz piece on the album.

That track’s about 11 minutes long called “Invisible Tightrope.” It’s a kind of mixture of spiritual jazz, progressive rock, electronic music, and even a bit of glitchtronica. It’s a real mash up. It’s got a little bit vocal on it, but mostly instrumental. It’s going to be a very diverse record, all over the place, but very sort of couldn’t give a fuck what anyone expects. It’s not that any of my records don’t fit that description, but I think even more so, this record is very indulgent in a good way.

 

[jefe1]

It will also be priced at $62.
This record is very indulgent but in a good way.....

 

[wavelength]

It will also be priced at $62.

Ouch! I hate to but probably will pass at that price.

 

[sjcorne]

It will also be priced at $62.

Where did you read that?

 

[jefe1]

Nowhere just snarky speculation.......guess I'm cynical.

 

[madscot]

If it doesn’t have a standalone blu ray I wont be popping for it, I never liked the future bites and if it sounds anything like it it’s a no from me, by the way I love C/C even though it cost me £55 for the special edition

 

[sjcorne]

 

[humprof]

Sounds like a really interesting project. Conceived from the ground up with Atmos in mind! And released all at once--no bloody trickle of singles, governed by goofy interpretations of tide tables and zodiac charts.

 

[fripppp]

Nils Petter Molvær! Nice! I really REALLY love his album Stitches in Dolby Atmos, I highly recommend it to those who haven't heard it yet!

 

[J. PUPSTER]

a new toy (er... work gear) of an ARP 2600 in Spatial should be most interesting indeed. Really hoping for a good one here!

I would have loved to have one of these babies 30 years ago to play with

 

[perzon57]

Nils Petter Molvær! Nice! I really REALLY love his album Stitches in Dolby Atmos, I highly recommend it to those who haven't heard it yet!

This album, is it on disc or on streaming?

 

[beerking]

This album, is it on disc or on streaming?

Found this.

 

[fripppp]

This album, is it on disc or on streaming?

Only in streaming sadly AFAIK, but I would totally support a physical release if they ever do one.

 

[perzon57]

Found this.

Thank you!

 

[Blackwood]

I remember always reading about Wilson in places like Prog magazine, but wasn’t familiar with his solo work or PT. I eventually gave in (after reading all the gushing praise people were giving him) and bought The Raven... and was blown away.

He’s an artist where I’m almost disappointed if he doesn’t do something different with each album. I admire that he’s built a fanbase that pretty-much expects him not to constantly repeat himself.

So yeah... looking forward to the next album.

 

[madship]

Sounds like a really interesting project. Conceived from the ground up with Atmos in mind! And released all at once--no bloody trickle of singles, governed by goofy interpretations of tide tables and zodiac charts.

Don't forget phases of the moon.

 

[GOS]

Don't forget phases of the moon.

mood rings....