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

Quote from Henry Hamilton-Smythe

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

I have to agree. In the early days, he did seem to bring something new and valuable to the albums, but in recent times, he seems to be sapping the inventiveness. I kind of wish Nick Magnus was back in the fold, his solo stuff is great, and I think he'd improve Steve's sound.

Quote from foxfeeder

I kind of wish Nick Magnus was back in the fold, his solo stuff is great, and I think he'd improve Steve's sound.

Seconded!

I like so much Held in the shadows. As An album, I prefer the previous one (At the Edge of Light) which It’s more coherent IMO.

1st anniversary interview: “It’s a heavier album than I’ve done before..."Steve Hackett on Surrender Of Silence | Louder (loudersound.com)

I think I've listened to it twice and got bored halfway through the second time. The Night Siren and Beyond The Shrouded Horizon are much better albums.

It's OK, but it said a great deal that during the Australian tour, not one song was played from it (not one solo song at all, in fact).

Ahead of the new album's release, I had a listen back to this.

The standout for me this time around is Relaxation Music for Sharks. A fun full throttle instrumental that (just about) doesn't include too many styles.

Shanghai to Samarkand is also good as it predominantly sticks to a song structure and takes its time rather than thrashing wildly and noisily like too much of his recent material does.

Day of The Dead tries this again but less successfully for me plus it sounds very much like a track from the two or three albums before it so isn't very fresh.

The album is bookended nicely by the short The Obliterati and Esperanza which introduce and conclude the album well.

Despite being the only two tracks he played live, The Devil's Cathedral and Held in the Shadows are quite bland to me.

Wingbeats continues to be weak while Natalia is just not very entertaining or interesting to my ears.

Fox's Tango is a stripped back as he gets these days so it has that going for it as it benefits his guitar sound.

I want to like Scorched Earth but it doesn't quite click for me.

Overall, still only 5-6/10 but better now than on my initial listen.

By the time this was released I listened to it more or less frequently, but then somehow lost interest. So I didn't put that one on again since end of 2021 maybe. Perhaps I should give this another spin ....

Quote from Trick of the Wuthering

Ahead of the new album's release, I had a listen back to this.

Fox's Tango is a stripped back as he gets these days so it has that going for it as it benefits his guitar sound.

I want to like Scorched Earth but it doesn't quite click for me.

Funny, those two tracks were my favorites. I also liked "Devil's Cathedral".

Fox's Tango is also the track I like the most, despite its sound. I just want Steve's music to be nicely produced.