Music / Reviews
Review: The Pineapple Thief/Randy McStine, SWX
Unassuming New Yorker Randy McStine is in Bristol for the first time on the second date of his first ever UK solo tour, supporting old chums The Pineapple Thief. He tells us that he went for a walk in the city and stopped for lunch at local institution Eat a Pitta, where he was astonished to find that the person serving him knew exactly who he was. In the UK, he’s best known as the touring guitarist with the current iteration of Porcupine Tree (“Yes, I’m that guy,” the tells the 2.1% of tonight’s audience who don’t already know this).
He begins his short but sweet set by looping vocals and guitar through his box of tricks to build up layers of sound, adding old-school sequencer, and soloing on top of it in a manner that’s uncannily reminiscent of what Edgar Froese used to do in mid-70s Tangerine Dream. But just as the groove is getting going, it’s all over. McStine also plays acoustic versions of two songs from his collaborations with Marco Minnemann – Activate and the nautically flavoured Big Wave – each of which showcase his strong and beautifully clear vocals. It’s easy to understand why Steven Wilson recruited him. Like his predecessor in Porcupine Tree, John Wesley, McStine is clearly a man of many talents, who operates skilfully in the orbit of the prog genre’s biggest names.
is needed now More than ever
Last time The Pineapple Thief played this venue, they were beset by technical problems. There are no such issues tonight, as the packed crowd is treated to a glorious, stunningly mixed sound showcasing SWX’s impressive PA at its best. Following the now mandatory yet still very welcome announcement asking everyone not to film the performance (“Nobody wants to watch the show through your phone”), Bruce Soord and chums kick off this latest near-hometown gig (“Let’s hear it for Yeovil!” says Bruce, to a smattering of polite applause) with The Frost – the first of eight songs played tonight from new album It Leads to This (i.e the whole bloody thing), which we’ve barely had time to digest.
Superstar drummer Gavin Harrison gets a co-writing credit with Bruce on all of these and his influence on the band’s sound is, once again, immediately apparent. He’s not a flashy, show-offy musician (no solos here), but does tend to play his vast kit like a lead instrument, with a sense of timing that is, naturally, impeccable, in lockstep with bassist Jon Sykes (ear protectors firmly in place as, usual – are they glued to his head?).
The live Pineapple Thief experience is quite different from those lush recordings and Bruce’s exquisite Dolby Atmos mixes, being more dynamic and – dare one suggest? – hard rockin’. That’s thanks in part to the presence on stage of Beren Matthews, who takes many of the lead guitar lines and contributes to spot-on three-part harmonies. His actual status in the band is unclear, as he doesn’t seem to be a permanent member but contributed to the new album. Keyboard player Steve Kitch, meanwhile, is perched atop his own podium at the back of the stage, as usual.
This is only the second date of the tour, but cheery Bruce is already on top vocal form. On a superficial reading, much of the Pineapple Thief oeuvre seems to be dominated by melancholic relationship songs, but these often prove to have a deeper resonance, the title track from Versions of the Truth being a case in point at a time when reality itself seems under attack from many quarters.
The arrival of Gavin Harrison in the ranks has also spurred ‘rewired’ reworkings of earlier Pineapple Thief songs, such as Dead in the Water and, most spectacularly, Give It Back, whose whole new lease of life is underscored by the band bouncing around the stage.
It Leads to This highlights Rubicon, To Forget and the title song are coralled together towards the end of the set, before the quintet return to Your Wilderness for the lovely Fend for Yourself and glorious set closer The Final Thing on My Mind. That would have been more than sufficient to send us home happy, but they swiftly return to play In Exile from the same album and dig into the catalogue for Magnolia‘s Alone at Sea. Denied mainstream exposure like all modern prog bands, The Pineapple Thief are finding their loyal audience the old way. But if it continues to grow at the current rate, the band’s ‘best kept secret’ status could soon be under threat.
All pix by Mike Evans
Read more: Metal & Prog Picks: February 2024
Our top newsletters emailed directly to you
