Steven Wilson - Hand. Cannot. Erase.

Following my enjoyment of his 2013 album 'The Raven That Refused to Sing (and Other Stories)' I was looking forward immensely to Steven Wilson's latest offering, 'Hand. Cannot' Erase.'. The fact that it is a concept album did not put me off one bit as the concept quite appealed to me being loosely based on the sad but fascinating tale of Joyce Carol Vincent.

Lest you missed the story or have simply forgotten, the body of Vincent was discovered in her London bedsit in January 2006. The sad but shocking part of the story is that it had lain there undiscovered for two years! Like most people upon hearing the story, I assumed that Vincent was an elderly lady who had no friends or family to speak of, but it transpired that she was only 38 years old and was a beautiful, intelligent and socially active woman. How then could it have taken anyone so long to discover that she was 'missing'?

Attempts have been made to answer such a question, most notably in the 2011 film, 'Dreams of a Life'. Now, Steven Wilson has taken the themes of social detachment and urban alienation and woven eleven songs around this heartbreaking tale. Yet, the fundamental questions still remain unanswered and bring me to one of my own concerns about modern life. We are now so caught up in the the experience of what so called social media has to offer, that I sometimes wonder whether we are somehow missing the point of what social interaction should actually be about.

Let me give an example of what I mean.

A few weeks ago I met with a friend for a drink and a bite to eat in a city centre bar. As we chatted over our drinks, I noticed a group of four young women at an adjoining table. Throughout their own meal, each of them clutched in one hand, a mobile phone and as they chewed, their thumbs rapidly tapped out messages on the tiny keypads. Occasionally they would share messages with the other girls at the table, or they would lean together to take a 'selfie' which would then no doubt be sent off into the virtual network to be seen by other 'friends' who could not be present (or were perhaps enjoying their own social gathering elsewhere). 

Where, I wondered, was the real social interaction between these four young women. You know, what we used to call - conversation? Sadly it seemed to be non existent. Having finished their own meals, they left still clutching their mobiles, still staring intently at the shiny screens. To be honest, I found it all rather depressing. Despite these girls having access to a whole network of 'friends or contacts' did that make them less lonely or isolated than Joyce Carol Vincent? I wonder.

Anyway, you may by now be wondering what I think of the actual album. Well, there is no doubting the quality of the musicianship and as one would expect from Steven Wilson, the brilliance and clarity of the production. However I find the album less jazzy than it's predecessor and somehow lacking the charm and warmth of 'Raven'. Maybe it will just take me longer to get into and I intend to persevere, but I somehow feel it will fail to make it into my list of best albums of the year.

We shall see.