Gabriel, Peter - Up

Year of Release: 2002
Label: Geffen
Catalog Number: PGCD011
Format: CD
Total Time: 66:43:00

10 years is a long time between albums. An ordinary artist would be long forgotten or may conjure up some curiosity, but Gabriel fans have been eagerly awaiting his return. The question is will the fans of his more pop oriented material from So and Us be there to listen. Up is anything but; it is a somber moody affair full of rich dense textures. Songs like "Darkness" and "No Way Out" could easily have blended in with his 70's releases. "Sky Blue" a powerful track, uses world music influences on the vocals and rhythms. Gabriel also revisits pop territory in the parody of game shows in "The Barry Williams Show". One of the more intriguing tracks is the techno-dance groove laced "Growing Up" which could be the albums potential hit single.

I am not sure the casual fan will have the patience to get through this disc. It does not instantly grab you, but with repeated listens, the nuances make their way to the surface. The atmospheres that engulf the tracks are mesmerizing. Gabriel may not fill the air with a ton of notes, but his subtle melodies float across clouds of sound, tracks just feel open, slowly breathing at a comfortable pace, nothing forced. Up may not match his 80's success on the charts, but it is a fine addition to his storied career.

Tracklisting:
Darkness (6:51) / Growing Up (7:33) / Sky Blue (6:37) / No Way Out (7:53) / I Grieve (7:24) / The Barry Williams Show (7:16) / My Head Sounds Like That (6:29) / More Than This (6:02) / Signal To Noise (7:36) / The Drop (3:01)

Musicians:
Peter Gabriel - vocals, bosendorfer, mutator, keys, jamMan, mpc groove, organ, keyboards
Manu Katche - drums
Dave Power - Drums
Mahut Dominique - percussion
Ged Lynch - percussion, drums
Richard Chappell - percussion
Tony Levin - bass
David Rhodes - guitar , background vocals
Daniel Lanois - percussion, guitars
Peter Green - guitars
David Sancious - Hammond
Melanie Gabriel - backing vocals
The Blind Boys of Alabama - vocals
Steve Gadd - drums
Dominic Greensmith - drums
Hassan Ramzy - Tabla
Danny Thompson - double bass
Will White - percussion
Stephen Hague - percussion
Richard Evans - acoustic guitar
Shankar - double violin
Christian Le Chevretel - trumpet
and many others ...

Discography:
Peter Gabriel (1) (1977/2002)
Peter Gabriel (2) (1978/2002)
Peter Gabriel (3) (1980/2002)
Security (1982/2002)
Plays Live (1983/2002)
Birdy (OST) (1984/2002)
So (1985/2002)
Passion (1989/2002)
Shaking The Tree (1990)
Us (1992)
Secret World Live (1994)
Ovo: The Millennium Show (2000)
Ovo: (2000)
Up (2002)
Long Walk Home (2002)
Hit (2003)

Genre: Progressive Rock

Origin UK

Added: November 3rd 2002
Reviewer: Eric Porter

Artist website: www.petergabriel.com
Hits: 2444
Language: english