Posts tagged the sky moves sideways

Click Here for Part One!

“Stars Die”

In every appearance except the compilation bearing its name, “Stars Die” has been conjoined with “Moonloop,” perhaps because the two were both born from the same 1994 studio jam session. Still, “Stars Die” was famously “not appearing on” The Sky Moves Sideways from its first appearance on the Moonloop EP, a decision SW later thought poor: even the US edition of the full album, released in 1995 on C&S Records, includes the track. I can hardly blame him, as this is a clear standout in the pantheon of PT ballads in my opinion; its subtle approach and thick atmosphere set it apart, the dreamy lyrics and intimate feel providing a full band counterpoint to the track that (seemingly always) follows.

“Moonloop”

Growing slowly out of the cadence of “Stars Die,” “Moonloop” is a study in band dynamic, its atmosphere staying the same throughout the improvisation with a bed made of a hovering sort of synthesizer pad. There are about three distinct sections inside the 40-minute jam released on Transmission IV, not counting the coda, driven by different basslines. The various edits of the track featured on the original TSMS albums (UK and US), its expanded remaster, and the Moonloop EP all focus on the first section, its smooth bassline sliding around the added percussion (played by Rick Edwards, who joined them for the original jam) and Maitland’s steady cymbal counting. The only major difference between each of the “Moonloop” improvisation edits is when this jam section ends and the coda begins: on the Moonloop EP and UK TSMS, the improv ends at about 12 minutes in, when Edwin’s bassline repeats a variance of the original and ends up at the tonic again. The US TSMS edition fades out the band long before, after about 4 minutes, and the expanded remaster includes the entirety of this jam section plus more atmospheric improvisation afterward, which then bridges into the coda (accounting for the extra 4 minutes). I must say I prefer the original edit of the track, as I end up feeling like the 16-minute edit includes a bit too long a bridge to the coda; I think the entirety of the piece works better when that transition is more succinct. “Moonloop” (Coda) was structured in overdubbing afterward, as the Transmission IV recording establishes, and quite well. Its melodic structure carried by the keyboards returns to the “Dislocated Day” Eastern-esque scales, another aspect giving the album overall a very different melodic feel than the rest of the PT catalogue — and its intensity is clearly differentiated from much of the material on OTSOL and UTD.

Conclusion

The Sky Moves Sideways is a truly progressive beast, taking equal cues from SW’s “Radioactive Toy” approach and the full band’s collective improvisation and songwriting, a marriage that would come to full fruition in 1996 on Signify. In some ways, the two albums are sister releases, both approaching the majestic-songwriting-vs.-space-jamming sonic dichotomy with the same interest and meticulousness. Sadly (in my opinion!), the release of Coma Divine in 1997 and Metanoia in 1998 essentially ended the ‘jammier’ version of Porcupine Tree, a side I still miss in the continued excellence the band has offered since.