After a hiatus that spanned more than a decade, Porcupine Tree returned in 2021 with a new album, aptly titled Closure/Continuation, which was followed by a worldwide tour that even saw them gracing the stage at Hellfest 2023.
Obviously, the fans want to know whether they will have the chance to see the band performing live again or not, and Steven Wilson isn't shy of talking about it.
In a new interview with Innerviews, Wilson was asked by Anil Prasad about whether the tour felt like closure or continuation for him. He answered: "I think in previous years when I've said "No, the band's over," that was a little bit of a smokescreen so people would focus on my solo work. I don't have that worry anymore, because I think people do focus on my solo work, now."
"So, I'm less inclined to say, 'Forget about Porcupine Tree, it's never going to come back.' It might come back, but I don't think it'll be anytime soon. We would have to have something fresh we wanted to say if we were to make a new studio record." Wilson continued.
"I cannot imagine us getting back together just to do a nostalgia tour. That's so not us. The chances of coming back to go out and play the songs for the fans one more time is pretty slim. I think it would have to be allied with a new studio project. I don't know what that would be at this stage, but maybe in three, five, or 10 years, if we're all still alive and around, it's possible."
In the same interview, Wilson also revealed the the arrival of a Porcupine Tree live album from that tour, in early 2024: "We recorded the Amsterdam Ziggo Dome show from last November. It was very beautifully filmed and mixed. It was one of the biggest shows with about 12,000 people. It was a great night, and it's a complete document of this period of the band. There will be a five-LP box set of the audio and a Blu-Ray. There might be a deluxe CD and Blu-Ray box set as well."
"One of the things I've enjoyed most about this phase of Porcupine Tree is that in some respects, I'm not at the center of everything, and things actually happen without me." Wilson added. "I've been able to let Richard Barbieri and Gavin Harrison take control of certain things, like working on this release. I've mixed the audio and approved the visual cut. It should be out at the beginning of 2024."