STEVE HACKETT - Surrender of Silence (release date: 10th September 2021)

Quite frankly, I'm surprised by the lack of comments. Together with the preceding acoustic album it's the best thing he has done since Shrouded, IMO.

It's full of quotes, too. Apart from quoting himself - "Imagining" (or is it "Achilles Last Stand"?) creeps up in "Cathedral", "Please Don't Touch" in "Sharks" - there's also Prokofieff's "Dance of the Knights" ("Natalia") and Ferrante & Teicher's "Exodus" ("Scorched Earth"). The first ten seconds of "Esperanza" even sound like a slowed down version of a certain extinct national anthem.

Anyway, I quite like all of that madness. A good year for Steve.

Quote from Christian

RELEASE DAY!

You can listen to ALL tracks on our info page here

https://www.genesis-news.com/c…info-and-review-s798.html

Feel free to discuss the album

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Well, not quite ALL of the tracks -- The video that should be "Relaxation Music for Sharks" is actually "Held in the Shadows," which is thus included twice.

Overall, this is fairly typical of recent Hackett -- plenty of good moments, but too often they just come one after another and are not arranged in such a way as to add up to actual, compelling songs.

Arrived back from a few days away and gave it the first spin this morning. I’m very pleasantly surprised. I’d feared another album that sounded like the last two but this seems to have a lot more light and shade and some decent melodies. Needs a good few more listens but I think it is a very strong album. I’m looking forward to seeing the two tracks live in Birmingham tomorrow.

I heard the album twice and need some time, can’t say good or average right now but obviously Steve plays some wonderful guitar parts. Scorched Earth is a great song

Quote from Pitscher

Is the 5.1 Mix worth to buy?

I've given the surround mix a few listens now. It's okay but it's not fantastic, in my view, because there is just so much going on that it is difficult to pick out the nuances.

SH/Roger King's production style for the last few albums has been to overlay dozens of tracks for every song which makes everything sound so bloody complicated!

For me, the best 5.1 mixes are for music that is a bit more stripped back and has more 'space' for the main instruments to stand out. Consequently, I find this 5.1 mix quite tiring to listen to.

Just my personal thoughts though. Other interpretations are allowed

Enjoyable album because almost all the songs are in line with the adventure-romantic lyrics and the music that Steve Hackett has accustomed us to.

Shanghai to Samarkand stands out above all, which would be the envy of Peter Gabriel's world music!

Leave Natalia and The Devil's Cathedral a bit confused, because they go on the rock opera genre, but on the other hand it was right to explore this path too.

If I promote Fox's Tango, Wingbeats couldn't leave it for last as a bonus track!?

Quote from DecomposingMan

Well, not quite ALL of the tracks -- The video that should be "Relaxation Music for Sharks" is actually "Held in the Shadows," which is thus included twice.

I note that the "Sharks" goof has now been corrected, so I've been able to listen to the whole album now.

Miscellaneous, updated thoughts:

I've decided that it's a good album overall.

In places where Steve seems to be making a "statement" I'm not entirely sure I'm with him, but that can be overlooked.

I find "Natalia" far more enjoyable when not watching the video.

The subtitle of "Sharks" ("featuring Feeding Frenzy") sounds like it could be a humorous nod to the subtitles from IN THE COURT OF THE CRIMSON KING.

I've now had a lil' listen.

Once you get past the wall of sound (which can be a little too much at times), there are some really good tracks that reveal themselves after a few listens: Relaxation Music for Sharks, Held in the Shadows and Shanghai to Samarkand, in particular.

Hackett's guitar work is phenomenal as ever and Fox's Tango sounds better within the album than as a standalone single.

As ever, the music just needs to breathe a bit. I'm exhausted after listening!

I recommend listening to Ray Wilson's new album afterwards!

I have added my own review to this site

https://www.genesis-news.com/c…info-and-review-s798.html

Let's discuss!

I’ve played it a bit more now and Christian’s review is very fair and says pretty much everything I’ve been thinking. The album is another missed opportunity which has a lot of potential smothered by too many layers of sound and guest appearances. To the point where Wingbeats is almost a relief because it has a recognisable chorus you can sing along to. Yet in terms of ideas, Wingbeats is overshadowed by most other tracks. Cathedral is probably best overall and Nad cuts through what is well described above as a wall of sound. Held in the Shadows also works well. I think Roger King is too integral to the whole set up now to change and he must be credited with helping Steve to be so confident and prolific, but I wonder if he cannot help himself and can’t resist overloading the production. It would be interesting to hear these tracks in some sort of demo form, I bet quite a few would sound better. I fear that if Steve came up with another Everyday, Virgin and the Gypsy, or indeed anything from the first three albums today, they would be lost in labyrinthine twists and turns and travel-by-numbers exotic instrumentation. Yet these albums are close to being very good indeed, just need more - as described by others here- space, room to breathe, a little more attention to melody and less to production. I think he still has at least one more classic album in him but I’m not sure we will get to hear it. I should say his voice sounds great and his playing is exceptional,

so still much to enjoy, but hard to listen to a lot of it in one go!

Quote from Christian

I have added my own review to this site

"The Devil's Cathedral stands out because Nad Sylvan and not Steve sings the track - apart from the Genesis Revisited II album, this is a first on a Steve Hackett solo album."

Actually, Nad also sings "Inca Terra" from The Night Siren. But on that track it's much less obvious that it's not Steve.

Quote from DecomposingMan

"The Devil's Cathedral stands out because Nad Sylvan and not Steve sings the track - apart from the Genesis Revisited II album, this is a first on a Steve Hackett solo album."

Actually, Nad also sings "Inca Terra" from The Night Siren. But on that track it's much less obvious that it's not Steve.

oh, thanks for the heads up! Will adjust this passage

Quote from Christian

I have added my own review to this site

https://www.genesis-news.com/c…info-and-review-s798.html

Let's discuss!

fair rating of the album. It ineed has its moments, but you tend to think "that's too much" on most of the tracks.

Finally got around to listening to this.

Boredom and almost annoyance was the primary listening experience.

Overarranged and overproduced. Roger King might be a good keyboard player, but I absolutely hate his arrangements.

Drumming sounds more mechanical than human.

The saxophone during the intro to one of the songs was far more annoying than amusing.

I’ve got every album Steve has recorded, and he’s released some amazing stuff over the years. But the last 4-5 albums have all been a total snooze fest….other than the acoustic one, that one was actually pretty good.

I’m sure I’ll still buy the next one.

Really like this album

Quote from Henry Hamilton-Smythe

I’ve got every album Steve has recorded, and he’s released some amazing stuff over the years. But the last 4-5 albums have all been a total snooze fest….other than the acoustic one, that one was actually pretty good.

I’m sure I’ll still buy the next one.

AHH but have you been foolish enough to buy Backstage....... Lockdown just because Steve is on it. I haven't all his albums but most. This was a spur of the moment buy at his show. I played it today. I feel the need to take up smoking again sit back and say NIIIIICE. Really not an album for people to actually listen to. I want my money back.

Thoughts after my most recent listen:

This is definitely one of Steve's 27 best studio albums!

Seriously, though... Steve has some great ideas as always, but he seems to lack a certain focus and discipline. Too many ideas are just stuck together with no real flow to them ("Shanghai to Samarkand" being the worst offender). And "flow" is often what separates an epic song from a merely long & complicated one.

Quote from thefarmer

AHH but have you been foolish enough to buy Backstage....... Lockdown just because Steve is on it. I haven't all his albums but most. This was a spur of the moment buy at his show. I played it today. I feel the need to take up smoking again sit back and say NIIIIICE. Really not an album for people to actually listen to. I want my money back.

I have not even heard of it. What is it?

Quote from DecomposingMan

Thoughts after my most recent listen:

This is definitely one of Steve's 27 best studio albums!

Seriously, though... Steve has some great ideas as always, but he seems to lack a certain focus and discipline. Too many ideas are just stuck together with no real flow to them ("Shanghai to Samarkind" being the worst offender). And "flow" is often what separates an epic song from a merely long & complicated one.

That's why I mentioned that I hate Roger King's arrangements....they're all over the place. There are some good ideas in there, but no cohesiveness