Review Summary: Peter and Gabriel
The one thing I absolutely don’t do when I want to review an album, is read other reviews/opinions about it beforehand because that can bias my own perspective. Otherwise, any bit of background information can be useful to understand a record. For instance, if there’s an interview centered on that particular album, it is, of course, a ripe source of first-hand information. And then, sometimes, even a quick look at the linear notes can be quite insightful.
In this case, a lot about this album becomes clear if you know who the producer is. Pascal Gabriel wrote and produced for a large catalogue of artists, from House and Hip Hop DJ’s in the eighties to pop megastars like Dido and Kylie Minogue later on. He did, however, dip his toes in rock as well, and in the nineties, he became involved with the goth scene as well. At the same time, Peter Murphy clearly didn’t want to keep things as they used to be any longer. After releasing and touring for “Holy Smoke,” he dismissed his backing band, The Hundred Men, and left the Beggars Banquet Records. Looking for a career reboot, he turned his attention to Pascal Gabriel.
So, this is a collaboration between a rock musician and a pop producer, oy vey! But it’s not like Peter Murphy became electropop all of a sudden. Even though the production is handled by a different guy, Peter is still in charge of the songwriting together with his long-time partner Paul Statham. So, the core Murphy sound remains intact. Yes, this is
the sleekest Murphy ever sounded. Yes, the guitars are warm and fuzzy. Yes, the choruses are as big as they come, and in two songs they are even supported by gospel-like female backing vocals. Yes, there are lyrics like “Say you’ll be mine” and “blue-eyed lonely boy.” The one song that is not so shiny and polished is “Disappearing” with its rumbling guitar riff and sneering vocals. Otherwise, it feels like Peter Murphy was determined to break through to MTV this time. Sounds terrifying, no? Well, if you made it this far, let’s get to the good parts.
First of all, not all songs are big in-your-face Disney numbers. Peter wouldn’t have been himself if he did not exercise some restraint. Such is the case of the second song “Subway.” It is not an all out get up and dance song, but it’s perfectly danceable once you catch the tune. It’s just not meant for noisy, raucous dance floors, but rather for an early evening dance at a chill night club. Secondly, one of the most frequent stabs at pop music is that the emotions that it projects are insincere and artificial. Yet here the emotions are genuine and conveyed perfectly through subtle changes of Peter’s voice. I’d be really surprised if you tell me that a song like “Sails Wave Goodbye” is not achingly sincere, or that the bitter-sweet guitar melody of “I’ll Fall with Your Knife” does not touch your heart.
Last but not least, most of the songs here simply work, regardless of their style. The one song that is really too saccharine and over-reliant on that big chorus is “Gliding Like a Whale.” I am also not crazy about “Huuvola,” which starts off good enough until that dreary wailing chorus comes in. And then there are absolutely impossible songs like the title track. It’s hard to say what “Cascade” doesn’t have! There’s sampling that foreshadows early 2000s club music, the spacey synths, the guitar outbursts, and of course the evocative singing. I don’t know why would I not remember a song like that from my previous discography run, but one of the reasons why I’m doing this reviewing exercise is to go through Peter’s works once again and rediscover the gems I missed the first time.
I could have written a scathing review, dismissing Peter Murphy as a sell-out. Luckily, my days as a rock/metal purist are long gone together with my early teenage years, and I can enjoy a good pop record. Besides, Peter did not really achieve any sort of commercial breakthrough with this album, and it did not perform that well in the charts. I wouldn’t mind songs like that gaining some radio play, but it wasn’t meant to be, and Murphy never tried to become platinum-level big again. This is a one-off trip to Disneyland, and it’s rather good for what it is.
