Closure/Continuation

After Porcupine Tree finished the touring cycle for their tenth album, The Incident (2009) in 2010, frontman Steven Wilson felt the need to focus on other musical projects. Wilson felt creatively constrained by the public expectation of what Porcupine Tree music should sound like, and privately resented by the rest of the band, who he felt were upset that Wilson was getting most of the credit for the band's accomplishments and musicianship. with drummer Gavin Harrison later estimating that recording would occur across 2012 and release 2013. Plans shortly changed though, with Wilson unexpectedly announcing that he would be focusing on recording, releasing, and touring in support of a third solo album, an effort that would keep him busy through the entirety of 2013. Wilson kept in regular contact with Harrison, so he remained unbothered, but other members became dismayed and resentful that they had been left behind by Wilson. while keyboardist Richard Barbieri privately became upset that Wilson publicly pushed aside the band. but also said there were no specific plans for a new album either. He also explained that his uncertainty of what direction the band should go musically also complicated moving forward, noting that he was tired of the metal musical direction the band prior few albums had taken, Midway through 2013, Wilson reiterated the band's status, stating that it's "not to say the band has broken up or anything like that. It's always conceivable that we could get back together in a year or five years, or 10 years. I really can't say – there are no plans at the moment." Edwin separately reiterated the same stance. Wilson proceeded with his solo career, including The Raven That Refused to Sing (And Other Stories) (2013) and Hand. Cannot. Erase. (2015). Publicly, Wilson's stance on the band varied, but generally soured over time. In 2015, he noted that if the band returned, it would just be a "side-project" to his solo career. In 2016, he noted that there was a "strong possibility" of Porcupine Tree reforming some day, but later in the year, on the same topic, responded "you'd be waiting for a long time, that band [Porcupine Tree] doesn't exist anymore." In 2017, Wilson reiterated his solo career being the priority, because "[his] solo project has taken off" and "fulfills the musical needs [he has] now." The following year, he went as far as to say that the odds of the band reforming were "zero" and "finished" because he was "not interested in moving backwards", instead preferring to explore new musical styles with various other musicians in his solo work. Years later, Wilson again reversed his stance, suggesting that it was possible and would happen when least expected. In November 2021, the band officially announced they were not only reforming, but a new album, revealed to be named Closure/Continuation, had already been completed in secrecy in September 2021. ==Writing and recording==

The album was entirely created in complete secrecy over the course of a decade. Harrison recounted that on one of those dates, Wilson happened to pick up a bass guitar lying around, and started playing it on a whim. Wilson and Harrison expressed their contentment with the making of the album, having written it with complete creative control, on their own time-table, without intervention from a record label, and not created out of a necessity for money or fame due to their separate projects having failed. ==Themes and composition==

While the album is not a concept album and has no overarching central theme, It refers to the uncertainty of the band as to whether the album is wrapping up their career as "closure", or if it is a new beginning and a "continuation" into further music together. He noted it was inspired by the depression felt by "having lived through Brexit, Trump, and Boris Johnson". Wilson also purposely lessened the heavy metal music influence seen in the band's prior four albums, as he had grown tired of the sound and style. The album features some heavier guitar riffs, but less than the prior four albums, and one track, "Walk the Plank", features no guitar at all. The song "Of the New Day" was noted to sound like the music from the band's Stupid Dream (1999) and Lightbulb Sun (2000) albums, and according to Wilson and Harrison, features 42 time signature changes across the course of the song. ==Promotion and release==

After a decade without any public developments by the band, activity started up in late 2021. After multiple days of cryptic teasers from band and band member social media accounts, the band announced their reformation, the name of the album they had been recording in secrecy, Closure/Continuation, and a supporting tour in late 2022. Wilson, Harrison and Barbieri were announced as the band's returning members, with long-time bassist Colin Edwin not returning. Wilson noted this was a combination of the band members losing contact with Edwin, and that Wilson himself had written and recorded the album's bass parts anyway. Previous touring guitarist John Wesley was not asked to return, with the band opting to recruit multi-instrumentalists whose versatility could help in using fewer backing tracks in the live performances. The Designers Republic's Ian Anderson provided the album's artwork. The first single, "Harridan", was released on 1 November 2021. Songs "Herd Culling" and "Rats Return" were also released ahead of the album in May and June respectively. ==Reception==

Prior to publication, Loudwire named the album one of their most anticipated rock and metal albums in 2022. Upon release, the album was generally well-received, getting an average rating of 71 out of 100 on Metacritic, based on nine reviews. ==Commercial performance==

At the mid-week mark, Closure/Continuation was on track to debut at the number one spot on the UK all-format album chart, potentially the band's first album to top the chart. The album ultimately debuted at number two in the official UK album charts, though it debuted at number one for both CD and vinyl sales. ==Track listing==

Personnel per album liner notes Porcupine Tree • Steven Wilson – vocals, guitars, bass, piano, mixing, design concept, production • Richard Barbieri – keyboards, synthesisers, production • Gavin Harrison – drums, percussion, drum mixing, production Additional personnel • Lisen Rylander Löve – voice sample (track 4) • Suzanne Barbieri – voice sample (track 4) • Inspector J – ambience field recording (track 4) • Klankbeeld – ambience field recording sample (track 7) Production • Ian Anderson of The Designers Republic – art direction, image editor, photography, graphic design, creative director • Paul Stacey – additional guitar recording • Ed Scull – additional guitar recording engineering • Penny Morgan, Peter Rudge, Pro Music Management – management ==Charts==

Weekly charts Year-end charts ==References==