Porcupine Tree began in 1987 as a solo project for Steven Wilson writing and recording music in his bedroom, but became a four piece band when Steven was joined by Richard Barbieri, Colin Edwin, and Chris Maitland (later replaced by Gavin Harrison). Their first live gig was in a pub in High Wycombe, England in 1993 but by 2010 the band had toured Europe and America extensively and ended up playing to thousands of fans at a sold-out Royal Albert Hall in London. The band was nominated for two Grammy awards, and their last album ‘The Incident’ charted in the top 30 in both the UK and the US. Although often labelled as a progressive rock band, Porcupine Tree constantly innovated, and changed style. Beginning playing psychedelic music, Porcupine Tree experimented with space rock, dance, trance, melodic pop as well as prog rock. In their last few albums, the band created a new hybrid of progressive metal riffs, melodic strength and rich vocal harmonies, with strong lyrics and powerful concepts. This aspect of the band has provided their most enduring legacy. This books analyses Porcupine Tree’s ten studio albums and two EPs in forensic detail, illuminating them for existing and potential new fans alike. AUTHOR: Nick Holmes has been passionate about music ever since he joined his local church choir at the age of six. He has an English Degree from Oxford University and now works for BBC Radio making programmes for Radio 3 and 4, mostly about music. He was a semi-professional classical baritone for some years, and has also played guitar in various rock bands with his brother. The first live concert he went to was Tangerine Dream at the Palace Theatre in Manchester, and he is lucky enough to have seen Pink Floyd, David Bowie and Prince live. He blogs at nick-holmes-music.com. He lives in Stockport, UK.