ALBUM REVIEW: PORCUPINE TREE – VOYAGE 34: THE COMPLETE TRIP (2000)

Last month, I reviewed the album To The Bone by UK musician Steven Wilson. I mentioned that he was well known for being in the rock band Porcupine Tree, which produced psychedelic rock music in the early 90s then poppier, more radio-friendly rock at the turn of the century, before evolving into a progressive metal band in the 2000s. Porcupine Tree comprised only of Steven Wilson during the psychedelic years, and under the PT name, he released two studio albums: On The Sunday of Life (1992) and Up The Downstair (1993). However, Wilson also released two trippy, unique, and usually long singles known as “Voyage 34 (Phase 1)” and “Voyage 34 (Phase 2)” under the PT name in 1992. The next year, he released two remixes of these tracks, “Voyage 34 (Phase III)” and “Voyage 34 (Phase IV)”. Then, in 2000, all four tracks were compiled together and released as “Voyage 34: The Complete Trip”.

“The Complete Trip” is a 70-minute musical journey mixing psychedelic rock, progressive rock, space rock, ambient music, and trance music. Conceptually, this album is about the mind-altering drug LSD, as evident by the spoken words and sounds heard on this album. According to Wilson, he came up with the narrative of “Voyage 34” after someone gave him an anti-LSD propaganda album. In addition, Wilson wanted to take several 1960s and 70s psychedelic, progressive, and space rock influences and combine them with what was happening in the “ambient-dub” genre during the early 90s.

Phase I introduces us to a man named Brian going on his 34th LSD trip after ingesting a sugar cube containing the drug. He goes on a trip for 12 hours, and the spoken word heard throughout the track describes what Brian is doing and how he feels during the trip. Musically, the track starts off with a slow, ambient sequence before a guitar riff reminiscent to the one famously heard on Pink Floyd’s “Another Brick in the Wall, Part I” begins to play. This indicates that Brian’s trip has begun and is going smoothly. After the sequence containing this riff ends, we begin to hear a space rock jam coming into formation as Brian’s trip continues but gets more intense. As soon as we are told Brian’s trip goes from joyous to horrific, we suddenly get a David Gilmour-esque guitar solo and more aggressive drums in the jam. The track concludes with another ambient sequence with spoken words claiming Brian’s 34^th trip traumatized him.

Phase II is a track that has Pink Floyd written all over it. It starts off with a creepy and slow ambient sequence with guitar effects that may remind one of Pink Floyd’s “A Saucerful of Secrets” and “Echoes” before a guitar riff, similar to the one used on Phase I, takes over. The song eventually transcends into another rock jam consisting of more Gilmour-inspired guitar work and solos accompanied with keyboards and drums. Phase II consists of several spoken words that view LSD in a positive light. For example, one woman compares her LSD trip to a massage and speaks about seeing various paintings dripping and melting from a wall onto a floor during the trip. Another example is of a different woman saying: “psychedelics are stimulators of ideas and feelings, but generally these ideas and feelings would express themselves constructively rather than violently”. However, the track slowly fades out as a voice repeating “Is this trip really necessary?” is heard.

Phase III is a trance, remix track performed by the British electronic group Astralasia. The track contains a repetitive electronic beat; backing up this beat are additional synth and electronic beats and samples of the guitar sounds heard on Phase I and II. The track also includes samples of the previous tracks’ spoken words added with echo effects. This track is more of a relaxing, 19-minute listen that won’t suit well for the impatient.

Concluding the album is Phase IV, a 20-minute, ambient soundscape made by Steven Wilson and Richard Barbieri, who would later become Porcupine Tree’s main keyboardist. It is a very unsettling track containing creepy synth sounds, a low-pounding bass drum, barely audible electric guitar, etc. The heavy-wind like sounds heard on the beginning and the end of the track made me feel paranoid about my surroundings despite the fact no one was home and I took no substances while listening to this album. Just like the previous tracks, it comes with spoken words; but two in particular stick out; one encourages the use of LSD while the other condemns using it. Here are samples of the two spoken words:

“…the college students who are using LSD and marijuana today do not comprise a criminal class, they are not drug addicts seeking to escape, they are your best educated, your best creative, and your most courageous young people. And like it or not, they will build you a new civilization”

“They may be severely depressed with suicidal tendencies, or may be very serious suicide attempts, they may be confused, wandering about, not knowing where they are… they may be hallucinating, that is hearing voices or seeing things, or they may be extremely anxious to the point of panic…”

Even though this is not a review of a new album, this is an older album that many do not know about, yet it’s one that fascinates me and took me on a musical journey. What I admire about this record is not only its creative, atmospheric, and trippy sound, but that Porcupine Tree is looking at LSD from a neutral point of view; in other words, PT isn’t promoting or condemning LSD use, but rather presenting both sides of the argument to make you decide whether LSD should be taken recreationally.

Finally, like I said before, I did not take LSD or any illegal substances while listening to Voyage 34, so I cannot tell you what it was like listening to the record while under the influence. I don’t plan on experimenting with drugs while listening to this or any other record any time soon. Whether you decide to take this journey by sitting down sober in a dark room or by using substances to enhance your experience, enjoy the ultimate trip!

Sources:

FaceCulture. “Porcupine Tree 2008 Interview - Steven Wilson (Part 1)”. YouTube, 29 Aug. 2012. <www.youtube.com/watch?v=HaktuoaX0wM>

Menon, Tushar. “Backstage with Steven Wilson”. Rolling Stone India, 24 June 2012.    <rollingstoneindia.com/backstage-with-steven-wilson/>

“Voyage 34: The Complete Trip.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 4 July 2017. <en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voyage_34:_The_Complete_Trip#cite_note-4>