Album review: Peter Gabriel, 'Scratch My Back'
Rating: 2 stars (out of 4)
Peter Gabriel’s career as a recording artist has slowed to a crawl, his deliberation producing ever more ponderous albums spaced a decade apart. His last studio release, “Up,” was released in 2002. The follow-up, “Scratch My Back” (EMI), consists entirely of covers, suggesting a holding action more than a bold step forward. Yet Gabriel turns this collection into an oddball art-pop statement all its own, interpreting songs by well-known artists (David Bowie, Neil Young, Radiohead) in unremittingly somber fashion.
Shelving drums and guitars in favor of orchestral backdrops that veer from lush to abrasive, Gabriel turns these dozen songs into the soundtrack for an imaginary movie (presumably one best viewed on a cold, gray afternoon). The score by Durutti Column’s John Metcalfe frames the main attraction: Gabriel’s weathered voice, which focuses on delivering the melodies and lyrics with stark directness.
The approach works on certain songs. Stripped of its Afro-pop bounce, Paul Simon’s “The Boy in the Bubble” attains a kind of cosmic universality as the focus shifts to a narrative that blurs reverie and reality. The singer also does an admirable job of honing in on the melancholy melody underpinning the Talking Heads’ “Listening Wind.” But otherwise Gabriel rarely transcends the originals, erring on the side of caution (relatively faithful readings of Randy Newman’s “I Think It’s Going to Rain Today” and Neil Young’s “Philadelphia”) or sometimes miring a potent song in sludge (Radiohead’s “Street Spirit,” Bowie’s “Heroes,” Regina Spektor’s “Apres Moi”).
Though Gabriel’s decision to pay homage to the core essentials underpinning these songs is a noble one, he also sacrifices many essential ingredients: rhythmic drive, dynamic surprise, harmonic and textural variety. As experiments go, “Scratch My Back” ranks as a well-intentioned dud.
greg@gregkot.com
Sponsored Link: Amazon's Peter Gabriel Store
Peter Gabriel’s career as a recording artist has slowed to a crawl, his deliberation producing ever more ponderous albums spaced a decade apart. His last studio release, “Up,” was released in 2002. The follow-up, “Scratch My Back” (EMI), consists entirely of covers, suggesting a holding action more than a bold step forward. Yet Gabriel turns this collection into an oddball art-pop statement all its own, interpreting songs by well-known artists (David Bowie, Neil Young, Radiohead) in unremittingly somber fashion.
Shelving drums and guitars in favor of orchestral backdrops that veer from lush to abrasive, Gabriel turns these dozen songs into the soundtrack for an imaginary movie (presumably one best viewed on a cold, gray afternoon). The score by Durutti Column’s John Metcalfe frames the main attraction: Gabriel’s weathered voice, which focuses on delivering the melodies and lyrics with stark directness.
The approach works on certain songs. Stripped of its Afro-pop bounce, Paul Simon’s “The Boy in the Bubble” attains a kind of cosmic universality as the focus shifts to a narrative that blurs reverie and reality. The singer also does an admirable job of honing in on the melancholy melody underpinning the Talking Heads’ “Listening Wind.” But otherwise Gabriel rarely transcends the originals, erring on the side of caution (relatively faithful readings of Randy Newman’s “I Think It’s Going to Rain Today” and Neil Young’s “Philadelphia”) or sometimes miring a potent song in sludge (Radiohead’s “Street Spirit,” Bowie’s “Heroes,” Regina Spektor’s “Apres Moi”).
Though Gabriel’s decision to pay homage to the core essentials underpinning these songs is a noble one, he also sacrifices many essential ingredients: rhythmic drive, dynamic surprise, harmonic and textural variety. As experiments go, “Scratch My Back” ranks as a well-intentioned dud.
greg@gregkot.com
Sponsored Link: Amazon's Peter Gabriel Store