Steven Wilson, renowned as a multi-instrumentalist, producer, and remastering engineer (having worked on King Crimson, Jethro Tull, and Yes), is a vocal advocate for high-fidelity audio. To the Bone is his fifth solo studio album, co-produced with Paul Stacey. Unlike the sprawling, metal-influenced Hand. Cannot. Erase. (2015), To the Bone embraces concise, hook-driven songs influenced by Peter Gabriel, Tears for Fears, and Kate Bush.
Wilson has publicly criticized the “Loudness War” – the practice of dynamically compressing music to maximize average volume at the expense of clarity. Thus, the mastering of To the Bone prioritizes dynamic range, making a lossless format like FLAC essential for full appreciation. Steven Wilson - To The Bone -2017- -FLAC-
The standard version. Mastered specifically for the compact disc by Wilson and long-time mastering engineer Andy VanDette. This is the baseline reference—what Wilson heard in the studio at final playback. The dynamic range (DR) scores for this version are excellent, often scoring DR11 or higher on the Loudness War Database, a rarity in modern rock. Cannot
While MP3 or streaming compression handles Wilson’s earlier, more atmospheric work adequately, To the Bone demands FLAC for two reasons: Wilson has publicly criticized the “Loudness War” –