QUIET LIVES
Asked if he considers he’s been prolific or not since the long Porcupine Tree hiatus began in 2010, Richard Barbieri answers in the affirmative. “In the last five years or so, sure. In truth it all began when I tore the cruciate ligament in my knee playing tennis, which ended my tennis career! So I was there at home, and only then got into social media, and started seeing there were a lot of people out there still very interested in my music. So I began working on what became Planets + Persona, finishing that in 2017. That album was a real step forward for me.
“Porcupine Tree haven’t split up as such. I know it might be one of the longest hiatuses ever, but I wouldn’t rule a reunion out, let’s put it that way.”
I was so pleased with it I felt I could follow it up, so I came up with the sessions, a series of EPs over about a year and a half culminating in a box set. Then came this new album, so…” Barbieri’s engaging with multiple other projects will loop back. “So yes – I’ve been very busy!” he insists.
