Steven Wilson - The Overview - guest review
Steven Wilson - The Overview - guest review
Tracklist
Disc I [The Overview]01. Objects Outlive Us
1 - No Monkey's Paw
2 - The Buddha Of The Modern Age
3 - Objects: Meanwhile
4 - The Cicerones
5 - Ark
6 - Cosmic Sons Of Toil
7 - No Ghost On The Moor
8 - Heat Death Of The Universe
02. The Overview
1 - Perspective
2 - A Beautiful Infinity I
3 - Borrowed Atoms
4 - A Beautiful Infinity II
5 - Infinity Measured In Moments
6 - Permanence
Disc II [The Alterview] [Deluxe Edition Bonus]
01. Orchestral Objects
02. Beautiful Infinity [early version]
03. Unused Objects
04. No Ghost On The Moor [alternate version]
05. Permanence [extended version]
Guest review by
Mehdi Taba April 22, 2025
I have always admired Steven Wilson: his musical versatility, his meticulous ear, his ideas, his voice, and so much more. I’m always excited about anything he does. This time, Steven attempts to send us on an existential journey through space.
The Overview (TH5 OV5R95W) consists of two long-form tracks.
“Objects Outlive Us” is undoubtedly the standout track on this album (7.8). It features some fantastic prog moments that will blow your mind—I absolutely love them. There are heavy prog sections, a progressive metal riff, and many beautiful passages reminiscent of 1970s folk progressive rock. The lyrics are mostly abstract but thought-provoking. Russell Holzman’s drumming is unique here, and both Randy McStine and Steven Wilson worked hard to create fresh, distinctive guitar parts and sounds, which they succeeded at brilliantly.
“The Overview”, the second track (7.2), is enjoyable overall, though some sections are less effective. I love Rotem Wilson’s voice and enjoyed her narration on “The Harmony Codex” from Steven’s previous album, but here I feel her contribution was underutilised and didn’t add much to the track; in fact, it detracted from it. Reciting so many figures over an electronic piece just isn’t that compelling. On this track, we have Craig Blundell on drums, who is a fantastic drummer.
It’s important to be careful when rating albums like this. With only two long songs, judging the whole album can be tricky—you really need to break down each track. This way, you realise that the parts you didn’t enjoy are just a small fraction of the album.
On this album, Steven Wilson touches on themes like atheism and veganism, which I really appreciate. I wish he explored these important topics even more.
We should be fair when judging music and focus on quality rather than genre or style. A great pop song is a great pop song; a great prog song is a great prog song. People should stop rating music solely based on their personal preferences or favourite genres.
The recent negative reaction from fans towards Steven Wilson’s exploration of electronic and pop genres is, in my view, a reason why this album isn’t as strong as it could be. Steven’s mind and feelings aren’t fully aligned with prog, yet fans keep demanding it. We should be more open-minded—we’re prog fans, after all!
Ultimately, this is definitely an album every music lover should hear. It defies categorisation. The styles present include progressive rock, space rock, ambient, electronica, acoustic neofolk, psychedelic rock, modern alternative rock, spiritual jazz, progressive metal, and atmospheric soft rock.
It’s a musical journey that stays with you for a long time.
Rating breakdown
| Performance: | 9 |
| Songwriting: | 7 |
| Originality: | 8 |
| Production: | 9 |
Written by Mehdi Taba | April 22, 2025
Guest review disclaimer:
This is a guest review, which means it does not necessarily represent the point of view of the MS Staff.
This is a guest review, which means it does not necessarily represent the point of view of the MS Staff.
Rating:
N/A
N/A
|
Rating:
N/A |
A return to longer form songwriting for Steven Wilson. Read more ›› |
Rating:
6.0
6.0
|
Rating:
6.0 |
An overview of The Overview. Read more ›› |
Comments
Comments:
5
Visited by
32 users
|
Posts: 1176  |
Posts: 1176
This album now has more reviews than songs. Is this really necessary? It sounds more like an opinion piece to not judge this album out of context than any real review of the album itself.
---- 2026 Favorites
Loading...
|
 Posts: 1534 |
Posts: 1534
For a first review, it is not bad. It's also sufficiently different from the other two reviews in both the writing and the rating. I think most of us write our first few reviews on albums or artists that we know inside-and-out and in an age when fewer and fewer people bother to write reviews or read written reviews at all, I don't think we should discourage anyone who takes the time to craft a review.
---- My one-man project's Bandcamp with free downloads: https://dreadrealm.bandcamp.com/
Loading...
|
|
Posts: 1176 |
Posts: 1176 Written by Metren on 22.04.2025 at 19:57 I didn’t see that it was his first review and I am not trying to be discouraging. Mehdi, my criticism still stands but I do hope to read more of your reviews and hope you’ll write some on albums that lack one. If I ever write my own review you can be extra harsh with me 
---- 2026 Favorites
Loading...
|
 Posts: 447 |
Posts: 447 Written by Metren on 22.04.2025 at 19:57 ThAnX for your time and understanding. I just wanted to share my thoughts about the album and I know that it's not a great "professional" review. I wanted to encourage more fairness towards the rating attitudes and genre biases, and give my thoughts on songs along the ratings. But it's OK if someone dislikes it. Hope you the best, have fun!
---- Stop seeing things and people in a binary way. Everything has its own spectrum and complexity. Be patient and learn about the world.
Loading...
|
| Posts: 447 |
Posts: 447 Written by Mehdi Taba on 23.04.2025 at 08:17 That's totally OK. No worries. LOL I just shared my thoughts in a concise review. Looking forward to your reviews.
---- Stop seeing things and people in a binary way. Everything has its own spectrum and complexity. Be patient and learn about the world.
Loading...
|
Hits total: 887 | This month: 52