| Summary: You know what, I have missed their last visit here in montreal,
in 1980. Working day. So sad. |
It had to happen one day. 'Civilian' is the very last breath of Gentle Giant. Since their album 'The Missing Piece', they had become a shadow of themselves. They got deeply lost in a dubious pop/progressive. This huge virage has been fatal for the band. So they sadly broke up shortly after they completed'Civilian' tour. And it was premeditated. Until the end they did try hard to stay in the game but they lost their path somewhere in this commercial rock trend. That killed inspiration and creativity. Killed Giant. They finally lost their identity. Mainstream music s.h.i.t. was not made for Gentle Giant. At all. They were made for majestic progressive rock music actually. What happened after their very last classic album'Interview' ?...Easy: They were under pressure. Record label and Giant were trying hard to increase fanbase and enlarge audience. By doing so they took the risk of their career. Big ****ing deal!
This is usually a good idea. Not for Giant. At all.
Some Results:
- They've prostituted their music in a golden cage
- They lost their faithful public
- They've abandoned cello, vibes and flutes and their unique soundscape.
- It's a shame they have kept the name 'Gentle Giant'. It would have been more accurate to call them ' The Shulman's Solo Project'
- No more Giant gems.
- No more 'In A Glass House'.
- No more 'Free Hand'
- Broken dream
- Terminus for Gentle Giant.
No surprise. Frontman Derek Shulman confessed that 'Civilian' was produced in a very short time. Three to four months at most. And it shows. It is as if the band had decided to clean up what was left on shelf, in order to offer one last album. Sadly, the only traces left about their original style was limited to the excellent 'Inside Out' wich is by far the best on here. The song is a mid-tempo driven by a quiet electric guitar picking well supported by the solid rhythm section that builds and builds until it became more imposing, loud and heavy.. The song starts to be louder for the chorus. So things have started to (almost prog) rock harder. The singer's voice lends itself well to this surge of adrenaline. The music supports the emotions of the frontman too. I must say that Derek shines throughout the album. In the second half of the song, everything goes up a notch. It quickly becomes exciting and effective. 'Shadows On The Street' is another so called 'classic Gentle Giant'. Song is led by a beautiful and melodic piano all the way. Add to it some emotional vocals by Derek. Nicely done. Two other coups de coeur; 'Convenience and 'Underground' Both songs are excellent rockers but they could have been better ('progger') considering 'Giant's skill level. One would think they lost all inspiration or something! Still not so, but one thing is certain; Gentle Giant have abandoned their famous progressive rock style to indulge in kind of uncertain and bland 'pop-prog'. In choosing the facility Gentle Giant fell into a fatal comfort zone. Of course they are not the only ones to blame. The market tastes have changed in early eighties. So most of the well known prog bands had to take a more radio-friendly virage if they wanted to stay in the game and in good terms with their record label.
Happily we got some beautiful minutes throughout the album. Well, only a few. Not enough material left, and clearly not enough time either. I do not remember precisely each of weaknesses on this disc, since I own a vinyl copy wich is hiding somewhere under the dust. I have to say there are actually some forgettable songs, but before you skip one, listen to the cd in its entirety to make sure you do not miss any of their subtle touches. This is Gentle Giant after all. Damn this album could be more polished, more profound and consistent. All in all It's a 'good' album that could have been better with couple more rehearsals. It's a way better than its predecessor 'Giant For A Day', but its far from their classic previous albums.
The album 'Interview' and the fantastic 'live' 'Playing The Fool' (a must have) were their last full lenght releases with solid GG songs on it. And then after we got 'The Missing Piece' that is their first deceiver with only 'As Old As You're Young', 'Memories Of Old Days' and 'For Nobody' that we still could call 'classic Gentle Giant. No doubt their last 3 studio albums were made slightly too fast. 'Giant For A Day' is quite forgettable as we can hardly recognise the GG sound and skill level. 'It's Only Goodbye' was their requiem.
And soon the game was over...
R.I.P. Gentle Giant.
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