# Your favorite Porcupine Tree album? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 29, 2010, 5:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-porcupine-tree-album/555448 "2010-09-29T05:45:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![fuzzypickles](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/9d8465/32.png) [@fuzzypickles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fuzzypickles)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2010, 5:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-porcupine-tree-album/555448/1 "2010-09-29T05:45:39Z")
C’mon…there’s gotta be some Steven Wilson fans out there. ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Ashtar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ea924/32.png) [@Lord\_Ashtar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Ashtar)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2010, 5:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-porcupine-tree-album/555448/2 "2010-09-29T05:53:59Z")
It was the first album of theirs I heard and I’m probably biased because of it, but In Absentia is just amazing. ---
**Author:** ![Art\_Rock](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/art_rock/32/525_2.png) [@Art\_Rock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Art_Rock)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2010, 6:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-porcupine-tree-album/555448/3 "2010-09-29T06:36:02Z")
My all-time favourite band. A clear preference for _Fear of a blank planet_, one of my top 5 albums. Depressingly, I totally cannot get into _the Incident_. ---
**Author:** ![Lobot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ce7236/32.png) [@Lobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobot)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2010, 7:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-porcupine-tree-album/555448/4 "2010-09-29T07:23:28Z")
I’ve been listening to them since _Deadwing_, but my favourite was\* The Sky Moves Sideways\*–that’s what made me a fan. Then _The Incident_ came out. It’s their best album yet, IMHO. It combines the best elements of _In Absentia_ with some of the spacey, Floydian moments from Wilson’s earlier work. The result encapsulates the band in one listen. ---
**Author:** ![Lobot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ce7236/32.png) [@Lobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobot)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2010, 7:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-porcupine-tree-album/555448/5 "2010-09-29T07:32:08Z")
> [@Art\_Rock](#): > > My all-time favourite band. A clear preference for _Fear of a blank planet_, one of my top 5 albums. Depressingly, I totally cannot get into _the Incident_. Funnily enough, I loved _Fear of a Blank Planet_ when it was released, but I’ve grown to really dislike it. It doesn’t withstand long-term listening for me. Seeing it live was the nail in the coffin. I’m dragging my heels on buying the new DVD for this reason. OTOH, _The Incident_ went from “meh” to “outstanding” over the course of a few months. Seeing it live was the capper. ---
**Author:** ![GESancMan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gesancman/32/2923_2.png) [@GESancMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GESancMan)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2010, 8:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-porcupine-tree-album/555448/6 "2010-09-29T08:35:47Z")
I first got into PT when _The Sky Moves Sideways_ came out, and it remains my favorite of theirs. Problem is, due to not having much money to spend on music for the past several years, I’ve not heard anything more recent than _Lightbulb Sun_. Once I do finally have a good cash flow going again, PT is one of the bands at the top of my list to get caught up on. ---
**Author:** ![NineToTheSky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/b5a626/32.png) [@NineToTheSky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NineToTheSky)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2010, 8:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-porcupine-tree-album/555448/7 "2010-09-29T08:40:20Z")
The album that introduced me to Porcupine Tree was the compilation _Stars Die: The Delirium Years_ (wonderful title too), which really is a best of. Apart from that, I’d have to go with _The Sky Moves Sideways_. Their worst album is _Metanoia_: a completely empty dirge. ---
**Author:** ![NineToTheSky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/b5a626/32.png) [@NineToTheSky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NineToTheSky)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2010, 8:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-porcupine-tree-album/555448/8 "2010-09-29T08:44:47Z")
> [@GESancMan](#): > > I first got into PT when _The Sky Moves Sideways_ came out, and it remains my favorite of theirs. Problem is, due to not having much money to spend on music for the past several years, I’ve not heard anything more recent than _Lightbulb Sun_. Once I do finally have a good cash flow going again, PT is one of the bands at the top of my list to get caught up on. Can I recommend Spotify or last.fm or something like them? A great way to catch up on music without paying anything. ---
**Author:** ![Yaxche](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/8dc957/32.png) [@Yaxche](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yaxche)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2010, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-porcupine-tree-album/555448/9 "2010-09-29T18:33:58Z")
Voted Deadwing (In Absentia, close second), primarily because I feel “Arriving Somewhere But Not Here” is their finest moment. Not loving “The Incident”, I felt Wilson’s recent solo effort “Insurgentes” was vastly superior. ---
**Author:** ![fuzzypickles](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/9d8465/32.png) [@fuzzypickles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fuzzypickles)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2010, 1:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-porcupine-tree-album/555448/10 "2010-10-04T13:16:36Z")
> [@GESancMan](#): > > Problem is, due to not having much money to spend on music for the past several years, I’ve not heard anything more recent than _Lightbulb Sun_. Once I do finally have a good cash flow going again, PT is one of the bands at the top of my list to get caught up on. You do know there’s videos on YouTube and other places, right? Just to hear what you are missing out on… ---
**Author:** ![Blaster\_Master](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/cab0a1/32.png) [@Blaster\_Master](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blaster_Master)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2010, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-porcupine-tree-album/555448/11 "2010-10-04T18:34:33Z")
Sad, I guess it doesn’t count as a real album, but I love **Recordings**. Truly, _Buying New Soul_ is just about a perfect song, and I’m pretty fond of the rest of the album too. But, since that’s not an option, I’ll have to go with **In Absentia**.