4 ½ by Steven Wilson

4 ½, EP by the genius of Steven Wilson from 2016

Released between Hand. Cannot. Erase. and To the Bone, it includes four tracks made during the recordings of Hand. Cannot. Erase., one taken from those for The Raven That Refused to Sing (And Other Stories) and a rearranged version of Don't Hate Me, a song composed by the Porcupine Tree for their masterpiece album Stupid Dream.

Amazing track My Book of Regrets with an exceptional Craig Blundell, with his unmistakable style, but also Sunday Rain Sets with the great Chad Wackerman on drums, with his toms with high and deep tones, very intense.

Vermillioncore is a fantastic track, also heard live, in an explosive version, during the concert "The Overview Tour" in Rome this year.

Don't Hate Me by Porcupine Tree with a great new arrangement and the drumming of Craig Blundell who, with his style, transforms it into something different without taking anything away from the great Chris Maitland who performs the original in Stupid Dream.  

Exceptional production, but we are used to this.

A short album (or a long EP, you decide) in any case another excellent production from our beloved Steven Wilson!

Tracklist
1. My Book of Regrets (9:23) 
2. Year of the Plague (4:15) $
3. Happiness III (4:31) #
4. Sunday Rain Sets In (3:50) #
5. Vermillioncore (5:09)
6. Don't Hate Me (9:34) °
Adapted from a live recording - Montreal 2015
$ Adapted from the recording sessions of the album "The Raven..." from 2012/3
# Adapted from a recording of the album "Hand.Cannot.Erase" sessions from 2014
° Adapted from a live recording - Europe 2015 (written in 1998, previously recorded by Porcupine Tree)

Line-Up
- Steven Wilson - vocals, acoustic guitars (1-3) and electric, piano and autoharp and Ghostwriter VI software (1), electric piano and sampler (2), Mellotron (1, 4, 6), Moog synthesizers (6) and Prophet-6 (2, 6), bass (2, 5), percussion, sound designer (5)
With:
- Ninet Tayeb - vocals (6)
- Dave Kilminster - guitar (1, 6)
- Guthrie Govan - guitar (3)
- Adam Holzman - Hammond, Wurlitzer, Minimoog, Fender Rhodes, piano, organ
- Theo Travis - saxophone (6), flute (4,6)
- Nick Beggs - bass, Chapman Stick (5)
- Craig Blundell - drums (1,5,6), electronic drums (5)
- Marco Minnemann - drums (3)
- Chad Wackerman - drums (4)