Sharp Sounds Swim Around

Peter Gabriel “Road to Joy (Bright-Side Mix)”

Peter Gabriel’s first album of new material in 21 years, i/o, was released last week after a very long roll out in which a majority of the tracks were issued separately with each full moon, and alternate mixes of those songs issued on the following new moon. I can appreciate the concept from a “hey, the moon is cool” perspective, but I feel like this strategy didn’t do Gabriel a lot of favors in terms of presenting this record as a prestige event from a major artist. The slow drip of material and multiple mixes made his return seem hesitant and tedious, and I personally don’t think it suits an elder statesman like this to approach streaming like a baby act signed to a major label throwing single tracks at the wall to see what gets enough traction to justify a full album.

It could be that Gabriel fully intended to deflate expectations for a record that’s been cooking for so long. Maybe he wanted to be less precious about it, and to embrace the more casual aspects of the streaming economy. I respect that, but I think this record would have benefited more from seeming like a big comeback. I would have pushed “Road to Joy” as the primary lead single, and let people get excited about a song that has a similar combination of ecstatic energy and brute force as classics like “Sledgehammer” and “Big Time.” Let people go “wow, he’s still got it,” because truly, he really does.

“Road to Joy” is a collaboration with Brian Eno, and it’s something of an outlier on i/o, which is generally low on energy and long on atmosphere. But that’s not too surprising – Gabriel’s body of work is light on bangers even if those tend to be among his most inspired tracks. I didn’t realize Eno was involved until after I’d heard the song at least a dozen times but his input is noticeable – it’s in the particular tonality and mix placement of the keyboards, it’s in the detailed but not cluttered approach to percussion. The general feel is not far off from his collaboration with Karl Hyde a decade ago, or what he did with David Byrne a few years before that.

It’s a great sounding record, but what really makes it is the inimitable sound of Gabriel’s voice. After all this time it’s still a very sleek tone with a slightly rough texture, a distinct bright timbre rounded out with warmth and depth. He sounds so certain and steady in contrast with Tony Levin’s rubbery bass, and heroic as he belts out the chorus alongside a choir that’s mixed so tastefully that the maximalism becomes a little bit minimalist. Like I said, he’s still got it.

Buy it from Amazon.