The Pineapple Thief – ‘Far And Wide’ reviewed: prog rock built for the stage
The British band's new album is their first on InsideOut: laut.de gives it 4/5 and praises the live feel, Heavy Music HQ awards 3.5/5.
Photo: Steffen 962 / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0 (cropped and resized)
Single video: YouTube · The Pineapple Thief · youtube.com
Single: New World Order
The Pineapple Thief released ‘Far And Wide’ on 9 October – their first album on their new label InsideOut Music. The band led by singer and guitarist Bruce Soord, who founded it in 1999, also features Jon Sykes (bass), Steve Kitch (keyboards) and Gavin Harrison (drums). The songs were written with the stage in mind; according to Blabbermouth, Harrison said: “You do start to imagine what a song would look like on a stage.” The video for the single ‘New World Order’ was directed by George Laycock.
laut.de (4/5) praises the stripped-back, live-sounding mix in which bass and keyboards stand out, and Harrison's top-level playing – albeit more restrained than with Porcupine Tree or King Crimson. The first half is more accessible, the second more demanding; the ballad ‘Through The Noise’ is a highlight. The quartet does not, however, set off a firework of new ideas.
Heavy Music HQ (3.5/5) finds the band's creativity undiminished: shorter songs such as ‘Hold The Ashes’ and ‘God Knows’ are melodic and catchy, while longer ones like ‘Still Living’ and the seven-minute closer ‘No Exceptions’ give the prog side room. VISIONS describes the album as clearer and more direct than earlier work.