To the Bone (Steven Wilson album)

Last updated

To the Bone
To The Bone album cover.jpg
Studio album by
Released18 August 2017 (2017-08-18)
RecordedDecember 2016 – April 2017
StudioStrangeways (London)
Angel Recording Studios (London)
Studio Du Flon (Lausanne)
Genre
Length59:46
Label Caroline International
Producer Steven Wilson, Paul Stacey
Steven Wilson chronology

(2016)
To the Bone
(2017)
Home Invasion: In Concert at the Royal Albert Hall
(2018)
Singles from To the Bone
  1. "Pariah"
    Released: 9 May 2017
  2. "The Same Asylum as Before"
    Released: 2 June 2017
  3. "Song of I"
    Released: 9 June 2017
  4. "Permanating"
    Released: 30 June 2017
  5. "Refuge"
    Released: 3 August 2017

To the Bone is the fifth studio album by British musician Steven Wilson, released on 18 August 2017 on Caroline International. It became Wilson's highest charting album ever, reaching number 3 on the UK Albums Chart and the US Billboard Independent Albums chart.

Contents

History

In late 2016, Wilson announced that he had returned to the studio to record his fifth album. [2] During the first months of 2017, Wilson released two work-in-progress studio clips to his YouTube channel. On 5 January, he released a clip of "Pariah" and on 12 February, he released a clip of "To the Bone", featuring harmonica player Mark Feltham. [3] [4] Wilson continued to tease various images and small album details until 8 May when he revealed the track listing on his Instagram account and released the single "Pariah". [5] [6] The following day on his Instagram, he announced the album and an upcoming 2018 European tour, and the following week, on 18 May, a music video was released for "Pariah". [7] [8] Four further singles were eventually released: "The Same Asylum As Before", "Song of I", "Permanating" and "Refuge". A video for "Permanating" featuring a Bollywood dance troupe was released online on 21 July. [9] A video for "Nowhere Now" was released on 19 September. A video for "The Same Asylum as Before" was released on 31 January 2019.

Concept and sound

According to Wilson, the album was inspired by the progressive pop records of his youth, such as Peter Gabriel's So , Kate Bush's Hounds of Love , Talk Talk's The Colour of Spring , and Tears for Fears' The Seeds of Love . [10]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic 77/100 [11]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [12]
Classic Rock Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg
Drowned in Sound 4/10 [13]
Mojo Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg[ citation needed ]
Planet Rock Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svg [14]
PopMatters Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [15]
Q Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg[ citation needed ]
The Quietus Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [16]
Sputnikmusic4.5/5 [1]

To The Bone received mostly positive reviews from critics. Metacritic, a review aggregator, gave the album a normalised rating of 77 out of 100, indicating "generally favorable reviews", based on reviews from 12 critics. [11]

Uncut magazine stated: "Wilson's fifth solo LP is a lush and ambitious piece of progressive pop music. Hitting on some heavy influences, including Peter Gabriel, Depeche Mode, Bends-era Radiohead, and Todd Rundgren's electronic ballads, this insistently melodic, 11-song set is an old-school, sum-of-its parts experience". [17] [ better source needed ] Planet Rock rated the album five stars, commenting that "Steven Wilson delivers his progressive masterpiece". [14] Jordan Blum of Rebel Noise magazine said: "To the Bone is both a great album in its own right and a perfectly appropriate addition to Wilson's vast body of work". [18] Sputnikmusic rated the album 4.5/5, stating: "Steven Wilson proves that an artist can venture into uncharted musical waters, even 30 years into their career, for ambitious and vibrant results like these". [1]

The Quietus ' Antonio Poscic criticised the album's "edgeless approach ... underlined by the warm, lush production that tries to recreate the fondly and wrongly remembered organic sound of old records. ... Ironically, the song that will surely be most controversial among his fans, 'Permanating', is a self-contained, resounding success ... To the Bone would have been a better album if it had completely embraced this sort of levity." [16] Drowned in Sound 's Benjamin Bland felt Wilson "focused more on the idea of writing a pop record than on actually delivering the goods. There are hooks here, but they are scattered and often attached to tracks that come worryingly close to mediocre exercises in MOR." [13] Rob Pociluk of Progressive Music Planet called it "a poorly written, poorly arranged, disjointed collection of substandard songs. It's not prog but that's not why I don't like it." [19]

Accolades

PopMatters elected it the best progressive rock and metal album of 2017. [20]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Steven Wilson, except "To the Bone" with lyrics by Andy Partridge

No.TitleLength
1."To the Bone"6:41
2."Nowhere Now"4:03
3."Pariah"4:46
4."The Same Asylum as Before"5:14
5."Refuge"6:43
6."Permanating"3:34
7."Blank Tapes"2:08
8."People Who Eat Darkness"6:02
9."Song of I"5:21
10."Detonation"9:19
11."Song of Unborn"5:55
Total length:59:46
Deluxe edition bonus disc (CD)
No.TitleLength
1."Ask Me Nicely (intro)"1:42
2."A Door Marked Summer"7:41
3."Pariah" (demo)4:58
4."People Who Eat Darkness" (demo)5:35
5."Refuge" (demo)4:59
6."The Same Asylum as Before" (demo)5:32
7."Ask Me Nicely"3:53
8."Northern Cyclonic"3:50
9."Detonation" (demo)10:18
10."Song of Unborn" (demo)6:56

Personnel

Additional personnel
Production

Charts

Chart (2017)Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA) [21] 30
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria) [22] 7
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders) [23] 14
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia) [24] 9
Canadian Albums (Billboard) [25] 28
Czech Albums (ČNS IFPI) [26] 34
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100) [27] 4
Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista) [28] 1
French Albums (SNEP) [29] 24
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100) [30] 2
Irish Albums (IRMA) [31] 43
Italian Albums (FIMI) [32] 14
New Zealand Heatseeker Albums (RMNZ) [33] 5
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista) [34] 15
Polish Albums (ZPAV) [35] 14
Scottish Albums (OCC) [36] 2
Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE) [37] 15
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan) [38] 26
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade) [39] 4
UK Albums (OCC) [40] 3
US Billboard 200 [41] 58
US Independent Albums (Billboard) [42] 3
US Top Rock Albums (Billboard) [43] 8

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Blackfield</span> International rock duo

Blackfield is a collaborative music project by the English musician and founder of Porcupine Tree, Steven Wilson, and Israeli rock singer Aviv Geffen. Together, six albums have been released under the moniker. The first two records, Blackfield and Blackfield II, saw Geffen and Wilson working together as equal partners, while the third and fourth, Welcome to my DNA and Blackfield IV, saw Geffen take on a leading role, writing all but one track across both albums and providing a significantly increased share of lead vocals. Despite initially announcing his intention to leave the project in 2014, Wilson instead worked again as an equal partner on a fifth album, Blackfield V, which was released on 10 February 2017. A sixth record, For the Music, was released on 4 December 2020, with Geffen again taking a leading role.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alice in Chains discography</span>

The discography of Alice in Chains, a Seattle-based rock band, consists of six studio albums, three extended plays (EP), three live albums, five compilations, two DVDs, 44 music videos, and 34 singles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Easton Corbin</span> American country music singer

Dan Easton Corbin is an American country music singer. He signed to Mercury Records Nashville in 2009 and released his self-titled debut album in March 2010, featuring the two number-one hits "A Little More Country Than That" and "Roll with It", as well as the number-14 hit "I Can't Love You Back". His second album, All Over the Road, was released in September 2012. Its first single, "Lovin' You Is Fun", was released in February 2012. The album's second single, "All Over the Road", was released in January 2013. As of 2021, he had sold over 500,000 albums and over 5 million singles. His song "Are You with Me" became an international hit in a remix version released by the Belgian DJ and record producer Lost Frequencies.

<i>Heritage</i> (Opeth album) 2011 studio album by Opeth

Heritage is the tenth studio album by Swedish progressive metal band Opeth. It was released on 13 September 2011 through Roadrunner Records. The album was recorded in early 2011 at Atlantis Studios in Stockholm and produced by Mikael Åkerfeldt, engineered by Janne Hansson, and mixed by Steven Wilson. It takes on more of a progressive rock sound, something the band had wanted to do for some time. It is a stark contrast to the progressive death metal sounds of their past albums.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Conor Maynard</span> English singer (born 1992)

Conor Paul Maynard is an English singer. Born and raised in Brighton, he signed a recording contract with Warner Music Group in 2011. Maynard rose to fame in 2012 when he was nominated for, and subsequently won, MTV's Brand New for 2012 award. His debut album, Contrast, was released in July 2012 which produced the successful single "Can't Say No". Maynard released his second and third albums, Covers and +11 Hours, in 2016 and 2023, respectively.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Magic!</span> Canadian reggae fusion band

Magic! is a Canadian reggae fusion band from Toronto. Based in Los Angeles, the band comprises lead vocalist, guitarist/producer Nasri Atweh, guitarist/keyboardist Mark "Pelli" Pellizzer, and bassist Ben Spivak. Active since 2012, the band is signed with Latium, Sony, and RCA Records, releasing their debut studio album Don't Kill the Magic in 2014, their second studio album Primary Colours in 2016, and their third studio album Expectations in 2018. They are best known for their hit single "Rude", which charted at No. 1 in several countries worldwide, including the US and UK.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zhu (musician)</span> American musician and producer (born 1989)

Steven Zhu, known mononymously as Zhu, is an American electronic music producer and singer who has been active since the beginning of 2014, signed to Mind of a Genius Records. Until mid-2014, Zhu remained anonymous, asking to be judged by his music alone. His debut album, Generationwhy, was released on July 29, 2016 and first premiered at Coachella during his closing set in the Sahara Tent. Zhu's Coachella performance was praised, with a writer for the New York Observer suggesting that he could be "the next Daft Punk".

<i>Hand. Cannot. Erase.</i> 2015 studio album by Steven Wilson

Hand. Cannot. Erase. is the fourth solo studio album by English musician Steven Wilson. The album was released on 27 February 2015 through Kscope.

<i>The Desired Effect</i> 2015 studio album by Brandon Flowers

The Desired Effect is the second studio album by American singer-songwriter and The Killers frontman Brandon Flowers. It was released on May 15, 2015, by Island Records. It was produced by Ariel Rechtshaid and Flowers and mixed by Alan Moulder. The album debuted at number one on the UK Albums Chart, becoming Flowers' second solo number-one album and sixth overall.

<i>No Place in Heaven</i> 2015 studio album by Mika

No Place in Heaven is the fourth studio album by British singer-songwriter Mika, released on 15 June 2015 via Republic Records (Casablanca).

<i>Silence in the Snow</i> 2015 studio album by Trivium

Silence in the Snow is the seventh studio album by American heavy metal band Trivium. It was released on October 2, 2015, through Roadrunner Records. It is the first and only album to feature third drummer Mat Madiro, who joined the band in May 2014 and before he had departed from the band in December 2015. It is the band's only album to date to not feature any harsh vocals. Michael "Elvis" Baskette was hired as the producer whom the band had met while recording In Waves album back in 2011.

<i>Royalty</i> (Chris Brown album) 2015 studio album by Chris Brown

Royalty is the seventh studio album by American singer Chris Brown. It was released on December 18, 2015, by CBE and RCA Records. The album was anticipated by the mixtape Before the Party, released as its prelude, and serves as the follow-up to his sixth album X (2014). The album is named after the singer's daughter, Royalty Brown, whom the album is dedicated to.

<i>The Stage</i> (album) 2016 studio album by Avenged Sevenfold

The Stage is the seventh studio album by American heavy metal band Avenged Sevenfold. It was released on October 28, 2016, through Capitol Records, their only release through the label. It is the first Avenged Sevenfold album to feature drummer Brooks Wackerman, who joined the band in late 2014 but was not revealed as Arin Ilejay's official replacement until Ilejay's departure in 2015, because the band wanted to "make sure that it was a correct fit".

<i>Pure Comedy</i> 2017 studio album by Father John Misty

Pure Comedy is the third studio album by American folk musician Josh Tillman under his pseudonym Father John Misty. Its release was announced on January 23, 2017. It was released on April 7, 2017 on Bella Union in the UK and Europe and on Sub Pop in the rest of the world. This is Tillman's third studio album since his departure from Fleet Foxes. It was produced by Josh Tillman in collaboration with Jonathan Wilson, sound engineer Trevor Spencer and composer/double-bassist Gavin Bryars.

<i>17</i> (XXXTentacion album) 2017 studio album by XXXTentacion

17 is the debut studio album by American rapper and singer XXXTentacion. It was released through Bad Vibes Forever and Empire Distribution on August 25, 2017. With a runtime of just under 22 minutes, 17 is a brief album and does not feature a song longer than three minutes. The album was supported by the lead single "Revenge", and is XXXTentacion's second commercial record, following the compilation mixtape of the same name (2017). 17 includes a sole guest appearance from Trippie Redd and samples by Shiloh Dynasty. Production was handled by XXXTentacion, among others.

<i>K–12</i> (album) 2019 album by Melanie Martinez

K–12 is the second studio album by American singer Melanie Martinez. It was released with an accompanying film of the same name on September 6, 2019, through Atlantic Records. Martinez played the main character, "Cry Baby," in this film that she wrote and directed.

<i>Mother</i> (In This Moment album) 2020 studio album by In This Moment

Mother is the seventh studio album by American rock band In This Moment, released on March 27, 2020, by Atlantic Records and Roadrunner Records. The album was produced by Kevin Churko and Kane Churko.

<i>The Future Bites</i> 2021 studio album by Steven Wilson

The Future Bites is the sixth studio album by British musician Steven Wilson. The album was initially set for release on 12 June 2020 through Caroline International, but later was pushed back to 29 January 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which affected the marketing and production related to the album. It was co-produced by Wilson and David Kosten and recorded in London.

<i>Good Intentions</i> (album) 2020 studio album by Nav

Good Intentions is the third studio album by Canadian rapper Nav. It was released on May 8, 2020, by XO Records and Republic Records. It follows his second studio album, Bad Habits, which was released in 2019. The album features guest appearances from Young Thug, Future, Gunna, Travis Scott, Lil Uzi Vert, Pop Smoke, Don Toliver, and Lil Durk. The re-release of the album, titled Brown Boy 2, the deluxe edition and a sequel to his 2019 unofficial Brown Boy EP, was released three days later, on May 11, 2020. It features additional guest appearances from Quavo and Lil Duke.

<i>Hall of Fame</i> (Polo G album) 2021 studio album by Polo G

Hall of Fame is the third studio album by American rapper Polo G. It was released on June 11, 2021. The album features guest appearances from the Kid Laroi, Lil Durk, Lil Wayne, Scorey, G Herbo, Rod Wave, DaBaby, Young Thug, Roddy Ricch, Nicki Minaj, the late Pop Smoke, and Fivio Foreign. Production was handled by Einer Bankz, Angelo Ferraro, D Mac, Karltin Bankz, Londn Blue, BKH, Synco, Tahj Money, Varohl, & WizardMCE, among others. The deluxe edition, Hall of Fame 2.0, was released on December 3, 2021, with fourteen bonus tracks. It features additional guest appearances from Lil Baby, Moneybagg Yo, Yungliv, NLE Choppa, and Lil Tjay.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Kuettel, Ben (10 August 2017). "Review: Steven Wilson – To the Bone". Sputnikmusic. Retrieved 11 August 2017.
  2. "Back in the studio..." 16 December 2016. Archived from the original on 24 December 2021. Retrieved 20 May 2017 via Instagram.
  3. "Steven Wilson - Pariah (Work in progress studio clip)". 5 January 2017. Retrieved 20 May 2017 via YouTube.
  4. "Steven Wilson - To The Bone (Work in progress studio clip)". 12 February 2017 via YouTube.
  5. "Track Listing Reveal". 8 May 2017. Archived from the original on 24 December 2021 via Instagram.
  6. "Pariah (Listening Video)". 8 May 2017. Retrieved 20 May 2017 via YouTube.
  7. "After many months of writing and recording, I'm pleased to finally announce details of my new album To The Bone, and a major European tour in early 2018..." 9 May 2017. Archived from the original on 24 December 2021. Retrieved 20 May 2017 via Instagram.
  8. "Steven Wilson - Pariah ft. Ninet Tayeb". 18 May 2017. Retrieved 20 May 2017 via YouTube.
  9. "Steven Wilson meets Bollywood in Permanating video". Prog. 21 July 2017. Retrieved 21 July 2017.
  10. "To the Bone - Steven Wilson". stevenwilsonhq . 9 May 2017. Retrieved 20 May 2017.
  11. 1 2 "To The Bone - Steven Wilson". Metacritic. Retrieved 16 August 2017.
  12. Jurek, Thom. "To the Bone - Steven Wilson". AllMusic . Retrieved 12 November 2017.
  13. 1 2 Bland, Benjamin (15 August 2017). "Steven Wilson | To the Bone". Drowned in Sound . Archived from the original on 15 August 2017. Retrieved 17 August 2017.
  14. 1 2 "The First Review for 'To the Bone' – "A Progressive Masterpiece"". StevenWilsonHQ.com. Retrieved 10 July 2017.
  15. Ezell, Brice (17 August 2017). "Steven Wilson | To the Bone". PopMatters . Archived from the original on 17 August 2017. Retrieved 17 August 2017.
  16. 1 2 Poscic, Antonio (29 August 2017). "To the Bone". The Quietus .
  17. "Uncut Magazine has a Steven Wilson feature! • r/stevenwilson". reddit. Retrieved 21 July 2017.
  18. "Steven Wilson - 'To the Bone'". www.rebelnoi.se. Retrieved 21 July 2017.
  19. Rob (31 July 2017). "Steven Wilson – "To the Bone"". Progressive Music Planet. Retrieved 14 November 2020.
  20. Blum, Jordan (30 November 2017). "The Best Progressive Rock and Metal of 2017". PopMatters . Retrieved 29 December 2017.
  21. "Australiancharts.com – Steven Wilson – To the Bone". Hung Medien. Retrieved 26 August 2017.
  22. "Austriancharts.at – Steven Wilson – To the Bone" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 30 August 2017.
  23. "Ultratop.be – Steven Wilson – To the Bone" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 25 August 2017.
  24. "Ultratop.be – Steven Wilson – To the Bone" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 25 August 2017.
  25. "Steven Wilson Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 28 August 2017.
  26. "Czech Albums – Top 100". ČNS IFPI. Note: On the chart page, select 34.Týden 2017 on the field besides the words "CZ – ALBUMS – TOP 100" to retrieve the correct chart. Retrieved 29 August 2017.
  27. "Dutchcharts.nl – Steven Wilson – To the Bone" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 25 August 2017.
  28. "Steven Wilson: To the Bone" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved 27 August 2017.
  29. "Lescharts.com – Steven Wilson – To the Bone". Hung Medien. Retrieved 29 August 2017.
  30. "Offiziellecharts.de – Steven Wilson – To the Bone" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 25 August 2017.
  31. "Irish-charts.com – Discography Steven Wilson". Hung Medien. Retrieved 26 August 2017.
  32. "Italiancharts.com – Steven Wilson – To the Bone". Hung Medien. Retrieved 28 August 2017.
  33. "NZ Heatseeker Albums Chart". Recorded Music NZ. 28 August 2017. Retrieved 25 August 2017.
  34. "Norwegiancharts.com – Steven Wilson – To the Bone". Hung Medien. Retrieved 26 August 2017.
  35. "Oficjalna lista sprzedaży :: OLiS - Official Retail Sales Chart". OLiS. Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 31 August 2017.
  36. "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 26 August 2017.
  37. "Spanishcharts.com – Steven Wilson – To the Bone". Hung Medien. Retrieved 30 August 2017.
  38. "Swedishcharts.com – Steven Wilson – To the Bone". Hung Medien. Retrieved 25 August 2017.
  39. "Swisscharts.com – Steven Wilson – To the Bone". Hung Medien. Retrieved 30 August 2017.
  40. "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 26 August 2017.
  41. "Steven Wilson Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 29 August 2017.
  42. "Steven Wilson Chart History (Independent Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 29 August 2017.
  43. "Steven Wilson Chart History (Top Rock Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 29 August 2017.