Haunting in a very real sense.  Thank you for introducing me to Porcupine Tree, RP (years ago now, but the sentiment is still solid, as is my reaction to this piece.)

This is sometimes unbearably sad to listen to. What a horrible lonely way to go, in a car in a laybay. A very moving song thpugh. 9 from the tearful Nottingham jury.

 jgriffin56 wrote:
 
Jesus!

Iv'e been a Metal fan for all my life - Death metal, Grindcore, as brutal as it gets mind you - but that Roxy tune is one of the creepiest things I've ever heard...

Thanks!

 mrtuba9 wrote:
 
I wonder why too.  .3 is the perhaps the best or one of the best pieces of music on Porcupine Tree's best album.  

Wow, I've rated 5 songs on this album and only one below 7 (.3--Point 3 is the song)... I wonder why?

wow wow wow

I believe Wilson is a fan of Roxy Music.

Have a listen to Roxy Music's In Every Dream a Heartache  the phrasing is very similar. In Every Dream goes off on a wild tangent musically but there is certainly a strong relation here.

Always thought there was something familiar with this song, but never made the connection until I heard In Every Dream a Heartache on the radio the other day.  I came to Roxy Music a little later in their career, the Brian Eno era not being in my disc collection.

Anyway, thought I would share my thoughts on this.

 

 Deadwing wrote: 
Brilliant insights. Thanks!

new & outstandig 2 Me
like it .. want to hear it 1ce again....

 stevendejong wrote: 
Fantastic explanation of the song - I was probably going to move the rating from 9 to 10 anyway, but now I have no choice

 stevendejong wrote: 
Yes.  Awesome.  Thank you, Deadwing (and you, stevedejong).

 Deadwing wrote: 
I had to move this comment up. Thanks Deadwing.

 horstman wrote: 

You don't see hardly any negative comments on the PT boards.  I think the reason for this is that there just is not going to be any back-lash against an un-heralded band like this. 

I just last week did a year by year review of Village Voice's annual poll of polls of the critics' year-end lists and only one PT CD ever appeared at all (I stopped looking after about 200 or 300th place), and that one was not even in the top 100 for the year it appeared!!  These guys have really managed to fly under the radar.  I put them very high in one of my Amazon lists, so there is justice in the world!

 Xstar wrote: 
Couldn't disagree more.  It is about a genuine heart attack.  An unexpected one.  The person suddenly realises that they are never going to see the person they just argued with again.  It is all about that old adage about never leaving on an angry word.  Fine advice but hard to live by.

...or it could be just a song about love going bad, and the seemingly hopeless lonely car ride in the rain love sometimes is.  Really folks, get over the conspiracy theories about it being about a "heart attack" in the medical sense of the word!

Although there is a lot of stuff that RP plays that I have never heard, and sometimes do not like...its still the signature of RP to play eclectic things. So whether or not you like this-song.....get over it as I have had to. There is so much more wonderful songs and reasons to keep RP in your sights. With that said, haunting though this is, I like it.

genial   einfach genial gut 

 bobringer wrote: 
Absolutely.  

 Poacher wrote: 
Seconded, and your comment gives me the willies as well. That would be a truly sad, in the old sense of the word, way to go. This is a painful and poignant song which makes me feel terrible, and is all the better for that. 9 from the brimming Nottingham jury.

 Smoove_D wrote: 
More to the point, PT is a band that very, very few of us have heard other than this radio station. And I can say that about a lot of bands that I have been exposed to here. And with that said, it is also a band of such utter brilliance that you either get it or you don't. If you don't get it, no big loss, music wasn't invented to please all. That's what makes it special, especially to those that do get it.

The wonderfulness of PT (or any group of geniuses who express their brilliance through music or art) is the great journeys and experiences they lead us on in both their albums and their concerts. This band really is great to see live because for them, it is music as an experience, a journey, a performance that can be repeated, improved, impromtu.

These guys truly are artists. And artists rarely sacrifice their craft for anything. Not money, not fame, not ego. And that is what is special about this band.

This track gives me the chills. I spend a lot of time driving on motorways and often see lone cars with an ambulance attending and know many will be drivers taken ill while driving. . . I so don't want to end my days like that.

 

 fuace wrote: 
If you look carefully you should find either a switch or button that clearly states ''OFF' most electrical appliances have them these days.

Great song!  ... A clear 9 for me

 rabaak wrote: 
Me too, I am sorry to say.
 
2.

MAKE IT STOPPPPP!!!!

 Deadwing wrote: 
I'm getting a special "Evening With Porcupine Tree" at Radio City in NY in September.  Going to be interesting having a seat to see the Tree.

Like you said… as always… very excited.  This will be #5 or 6 for me and it's always an absolutely outstanding show. 

I absolutely love Porcupine Tree.  I know I'm wasting space with this post… but my god… these guys are just ridiculously good.

I have tickets to the May 1st show in Cincinnati    =>    Excited as always to see the guys!

It's very difficult for me to pick a favorite PT album, but "In Absentia" is probably it.

I'm so jazzed that they are coming here to Richmond for the first time. It'll be the fourth or fifth time I've seen them live but now I don't have a long drive home after the show!

I am starting to get good at recognizing PPT songs that i have never heard before after just a few notes.

Il m'a fallu interrompre ce que je faisais pour aller voir de qui peut bien emaner tant d'emotion, ce choc au creux des songes. A chaque fois que se produit ce choc pourtant la meme surprise, Porcupine Tree. I love this song to the point that I don't have words enough in English to express how much it moves me...

Steven Wilson is fekking brilliant, IMHO.

Well i think it could be a bit more open for interpretations.. Instead of a wife it could be a girlfriend or maybe someone he lost?
All the part about making up could be just in his head, maybe there's actually no one waiting for him and its all just some kind of hopeless dreams? Guess its a song about somebody's momentary private little hell.
A great song could be interpeted in many ways, including this one.

 cptbuz wrote: 
I'll second that, though I have been a PT fan ever since I heard their stuff on RP. A big thanks to those who've posted the lyrics to which, shamefully, I'd not paid sufficient attention before, despite having this album. It is a really sad song, and brings tears welling to my eyes. 7->8 from the Nottingham jury.

Nice

Steven Wilson says sad songs are the most beautiful...I have to agree, and this is one beautiful song.

 Deadwing wrote: 
Wow, I've heard this track probably literally 1000 times, and never really paid that much attention to it.  Very interesting, especially that "waaa eee waaa eeee waaa eee" ambulance sound you talk about.  Very cool.

Deadwing wrote:
Thanks for that-Now I get it. Great song!

I was hoping to hear this one in concert when they came to Asheville. They didn't play this one, but it was still a great show!

"Just put a tape on"... Tape? Tape?. That's going back a bit. Hey Steve, it's about time you bought yourself a shiny new stereo. You've earned it, mate.

Beautiful song. perfect for my mood right now.

Wow. This is bad. Although I give high marks for the lyrics.

Very touching piece- A man has had an argument with his wife and has driven off in a moment of anger. He starts to feel regretful and decides to pull in to a Layby ("Rest Area" for us Americans) and just sit for a few minutes to think about things and calm down. He slowly realizes that he feels bad physically too and should probably slow down in the future and try not to stress so much. He wants to drive home to make up with his wife but is so tired he thinks maybe he should just rest or sleep for a little while first. He is dying and doesn't realize it. I pull off the road East of Baldock and Ashford Feeling for my cell In the light from the dashboard Hissing from the road The smell of rain in the air con Maybe check the news Or just put a tape on Lighting up a smoke I've got this feeling inside me Don't feel too good If I close my eyes And fell asleep in this layby Would it all subside The fever pushing the day by Motor window wind I could do with some fresh air Can't breathe too well (She waits for me. Home waits for me.) I guess I should go now She's waiting to make up To tell me she's sorry And how much she missed me I guess I'm just burnt out I really should slow down I'm perfectly fine but I just need to lie down We'll grow old together We'll grow old together We'll grow old together.... And just listen to how the background vocal at the very end mimics the sound of an ambulance... These guys are the real deal

Smoove_D wrote: Smoove, you have just got to hear this music in the context of the entire album, not the single. They were recommended to me by someone who knew only that I was a Pink Floyd and prog rock fan... same deal, you really have to get it in context first, and then it still works on its own, afterward. It's kinda trite to call a song "haunting" but I'd allow that label for this one. For the presentation of the sad, inescapable inevitability in the story it tells (for all, not just the protagonist), and for the way it's told, I'd have to compare it to Floyd's Free Four. The Floyd were rather more literal in their take on the theme and absolutely off the wall with the melody; Porcupine Tree take a more subtle route. The music gives away the theme, to be sure, but the story develops at a wonderfully disturbing pace.

wow - nice

Best heard with head phones

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

PT is one of those bands that people on RP seem to love unconditionally. I guess I don't get that. They're not bad; I just don't think they're brilliant. I give this a 6. Yawn.

This is the first Porcupine Tree track I've ever liked. I usually can't stand their stuff.

One of the better cuts off an outstanding CD.

god how I LOVE THIS SONG!!! so rich, compelling, sorrowful. . .

My better half's all time favorite PT song (with Hate Song off the concert DVD a close second). It's just amazing how the song builds and the vocals at the end are just amazing. Steven Wilson is just a brilliant songwriter and I for one am thankful every day that he never lets pressure from his record label or the Press or even fans effect his songwriting- he always stays true to his vision and every song he writes is a gem

Leslie wrote: The DTS 5.1 is also awesome to hear on Deadwing and Fear of a Blank Planet. If you have a good surround system, pick these up.

No! Rock! Please?

Leslie wrote: So true, and the live version of this on the "Arriving Somewhere...." DVD is incredible as well!

qbee wrote: Yeah, I'll second that. Was this message and those before it really posted in Aug 2003, or has the forum software glitched?

I've never heard this song. Without knowing who it was, it grabbed me in about the first ten notes. These guys do that consistently for me. They are doing something right IMO.

I just got the DTS 5.1 audio disk of this album last night and it's AMAZING. There's so much going on that you don't hear in the regular CD. The end of this particular song is fantastic.

qbee wrote: Agree agree agree (hey do I have to mention you in my will?)

Yeah, big thanks to RP for introducing me to Porcupine Tree - that's the GREAT thing about having an alternative to mainstream! Yay! Truly new music!

So........ how was the concert?

I pull off the road East of Baldock and Ashford Feeling for my cell In the light from the dashboard Hissing from the road The smell of rain in the air con Maybe check the news Or just put a tape on Lighting up a smoke I've got this feeling inside me Don't feel too good If I close my eyes And fell asleep in this layby Would it all subside The fever pushing the day by Motor window wind I could do with some fresh air Can't breathe too well (She waits for me. Home waits for me.) I guess I should go now She's waiting to make up To tell me she's sorry And how much she missed me I guess I'm just burnt out I really should slow down I'm perfectly fine but I just need to lie down We'll grow old together We'll grow old together We'll grow old together.... Hope this helps

Heartattack in a Lay By I pull off the road East of Baldock and Ashford Feeling for my cell In the light from the dashboard Hissing from the road The smell of rain in the air con Maybe check the news Or just put a tape on Lighting up a smoke I've got this feeling inside me Don't feel too good If I close my eyes And fell asleep in this layby Would it all subside The fever pushing the day by Motor window wind I could do with some fresh air Can't breathe too well (She waits for me. Home waits for me.) I guess I should go now She's waiting to make up To tell me she's sorry And how much she missed me I guess I'm just burnt out I really should slow down I'm perfectly fine but I just need to lie down We'll grow old together We'll grow old together We'll grow old together....

Posted 21 years ago by KevinM    [ Reply ]

I have discovered PT thanks to RP, and I am so gratefull to find such an incredible band. They remind me of a cross between Floyd and Trevor Rabin - era Yes. Perfect mix for me! I am actually going to see these guys in Tampa tomorrow...can\'t wait!

Can\'t say that I have completely grasped the meaning of this less than cheerful little ditty. Near the end, \"the denouement\" plot wise, the lyric gets lost in the intricacy of the ensemble: \"she...(garbled something-or-other)\", over and over again. Up until that point I was refecting on how unusual it was to come across the theme of the impermanence of life. Wish I knew where they went with it.

Any chance of some wake up music, enough of this veggy music