Steven John Wilson

From his early days working with experimental sounds on the guitar to his current collection of side projects, bands, and solo efforts it’s clear that Steven Wilson possesses and exceptional work ethic. The man loves to create and generate new beautiful sounds with his many instruments and computers. He’s proficient in all the parts of the music production process and he clearly enjoys them all too. He’s a musical genius and he loves working, working, working.
If you want to sample a little of the genius of Steven Wilson it should be easy to do so. Look him up online and stream samples or full albums. Check out the many side projects and see which style of music is most pleasing to your ears. Just imagine how much work goes into everything and how much he cares about entertaining you.

He’s in his mid 40s and he has several successful bands and solo projects on his resume but that hasn’t stopped Steven Wilson from seeking out new people to work with. It seems that every time he finds someone with similar tastes and passions he immediately wants to start a band. Storm Corrosion is yet another collaboration, this time with Mikael Akerfeldt, the front man of band Opeth.
The album was released in early 2012 was seen as a continuation of what the band members are calling a trilogy of each of their last releases and the Storm Corrosion release. To feel the true effects of the music you’ll have to listen to all three albums but you can appreciate it either way. Steven Wilson’s capacity for work and creation is truly amazing and he must get such satisfaction from constantly putting together new music and working with new sounds.

Some of the side projects of Steven Wilson are decided non-commercial with no interest in success and all interest in simply making new and interesting music. Blackfield might have started that way but this collaboration with Israeli rock musician Aviv Geffen has produced a number of hits, several tours, a live DVD, and a handful of albums. It’s probably been more successful than either of them imagined but they’re certainly not going to question that.
They call the music melodic and melancholic rock, something that will surprise no one that’s a fan of Steven Wilson. Listen to the music he’s produced through all his bands and solo projects and there’s a decidedly sad tone to it. It’s as if he wants to create this music to better allow him to get in touch with those feelings. He’s had another success with Blackfield.

By now you know that Steven Wilson has an incredible drive to make music and rather eclectic tastes in doing so. Instead of cramming his love of different genres into one band he seems to form side projects to do what he wants in whatever spare time he can find. Bass Communion is one of those side projects, this one a solo effort making music in the ambient and electronic genres.
It’s atmospheric music designed to put you into a zoned out, peaceful head space. He’s made quite a bit of music as Bass Communion, in part because it requires little more than instruments and a laptop. The project allows for wide and wonderful experimentation that Steven Wilson loves and you can pick up any number of albums and singles to check out how he’s making waves in new genres.

I.E.M, or Incredible Expanding Mindfuck is another side project of Steven Wilson’s, this one focusing on his love of experimental rock music and krautrock. This guy has a serious affection for music that is utterly non-commercial and that’s a beautiful thing. He hasn’t let the lack of big album sales derail his desire to create endlessly and I.E.M. has released three albums over the years and a 4 CD box set in 2010 that basically shut the door on the band.
He had originally intended for the band to be an anonymous project but his record label attributed one of the songs to him on a compilation they released so he took ownership and continues to make music for Incredible Expanding Mindfuck in his spare time. The albums were well-received and clearly doing them gave him satisfaction through exploration.

Around the time that Porcupine Tree started Steven Wilson had a side project going with a friend, singer/songwriter Tim Bowness. The music is largely experimental, working with beautiful sounds and lush orchestrations to create the kind of music that puts you in a headspace for relaxing or just tripping balls.
Their first true album was released in the early 1990s and they’ve continued to collaborate over the years. Porcupine Tree remains the primary outlet for musical works and the biggest success of Steven Wilson’s career but No-Man is an important element of his musical genius. It pleases him to make the kind of music that wouldn’t fit in with what the fans expect from Porcupine Tree and for that reason he values it. Plus, he enjoys working with his friend Tim Bowness.

The second Porcupine Tree album is considered by Steven Wilson to be their true first release since their work prior had been compiled from tapes made over several years. This album was a more concerted effort and as such was a greater work. It was hailed by a reviewer as a masterpiece in the psychedelic genre so if you’re interested in that sort of music you really should give it a try. The album is called Up the Downstair.
As Porcupine Tree and Steven Wilson moved forward they gained more fans, at one point being called the Pink Floyd of the ‘90s by adoring legions. They’ve never sold millions of records but they maintain a significant fanbase in the underground music scene and play sold out shows every year. Most impressive is the fact that they continue to release records and will likely do so as long as Steven Wilson wants to make psychedelic music.

The most popular band Steven Wilson has been involved in is unquestionably Porcupine Tree. They’ve been active for more than 20 years now and continue to release new records. Their sound would be classified as progressive rock, although Steven will often blend genres if the sound pleases him. The band started as a duo of Steven Wilson and his friend Malcolm Stocks. They began recording music at home until they had honed it to something marketable and from there they released it underground to build buzz.
On the Sunday of Life was the first official release from Porcupine Tree and contained songs taken from the underground tapes they had put together. In a bold and decidedly non-commercial move Steven Wilson released a single called Voyage 34, a 30 minute song of mostly psychedelic sounds. His goal was to release the longest single ever and he achieved it along with building a decent little fan base for his boldness and for the chill nature of the sounds.

Steven Wilson credits the music of Pink Floyd for sparking his interest in experimental and psychedelic music, which is precisely what he’s best known for as the founder of Porcupine Tree, a progressive rock band that regularly experimented with new sounds. He was also strongly influenced by a Donna Summer album his parents listened to when he was just a boy.
When he was a child he took guitar lessons but he never really enjoyed the typical teaching style. It wasn’t until a few years after he had quit them that he fell in love with the guitar. As you might expect it was an atypical approach though. He loved making weird sounds by using different objects across the strings and attempting to do things with the guitar he hadn’t heard before. His unique style is amazing and comes largely from the early music he listened to and his own experiments.