Steve Hackett
The Night Siren

For once, the purchase of the album, available from March 24 (also in 5.1 DVD), follows the live listening or, as they used to say in the old days, the "promotional tour." In reality, the concert on March 31 in Schio cannot really be defined as such; in fact, the only promotional aspect is the performance of a couple of tracks from the new album, which I couldn't say if it was a good or bad thing, such is the quality of the latter. But I'll get back to that; for now, I would like to focus on the ten new pieces composed either solo, with his wife Jo, more massively with his brother John, and the good Roger King co-producer and key keyboardist; the only "external" contribution is the last track "The Gift," a gift we must thank Bennet & Fenner for.

"Behind the Smoke," which inaugurates "The Night Siren," is precisely one of these and can certainly already be inserted among the "classics of Steve," that is, those performed in the first part of the concert; a calm start, soft arpeggio, and a growth of great impact, at times decidedly epic, it seems vaguely inspired by "Kashmir;" then you can write your view on the matter, I was far enough from the stage to ask Steven directly....... The interlude of the tar (a sort of Persian or Azerbaijani small guitar) is very nice, breaking the relentless and obsessive repetitiveness of the main theme; certainly here at the end, there is an extra Hackett, and the LZ supporters will forgive me. Steve told us that this track is dedicated to Refugees of all times, a very current topic, highlighting how his Polish family also belongs to this category, in his grandfather's time. I would not want to continue with the tedious track-by-track, also because of the novelty it seems more appropriate to leave the flavor of discovery to the reader, however, even the second track "Martian Sea" confirms the oriental wave with extensive use of the sitar (it is not a drug, but a string instrument from northern India, the Mughal one to be precise), expertly maneuvered by our hero. Even "Fifty Miles from the North Pole" has a characteristic epic imprint, with devastating choral interludes, musically speaking and in a broadly positive sense.

I can't, however, stop at 50 miles from the North Pole because "El Nino" heavily steps in, another pearl built on Hackett's almost infinite executive and compositional capacities; in this evocation of the climatic phenomenon, I even catch a citation of a genesisian fugue, I leave the reference to you. Of course, there is also room for the specialty of the house, namely the classical guitar in the manner of flamenco in "Anything but Love."

The Night Siren was written over the course of 2016, except for some tracks dating back to the previous two-year period, and draws inspiration from a virtual musical journey around the world that is differently represented: even the Incas with the use of the charango, a sort of South American small guitar, naturally well superimposed on typically Hackettian sounds, in short, a work of very vast inspiration and equally remarkable personal revisitation: the combination of "World Music" so dear to his fellow Peter and his purer Genesis origins, seasoned with a personal vocal contribution that for once is consistent and not penalizing as in albums of the past, also because Steven, cleverly, as soon as he realizes he is exaggerating, throws in a few chords and resets the track like "In Another Life" where it seems to me an evident tribute to Scotland and its rainy landscapes from the end of the world. It is worth noting how some parts were recorded in our country, always dearly loved by the author, who always tries to mumble some phrases in our language during concerts.

For the sake of completeness, I point out the marvellous launch track of the album "In the Skeleton Gallery," also performed and greatly expanded in Schio, whose "march" inevitably dragged an enthusiastic audience and I would have liked to see otherwise! This closed the "Classic Hackett" section, to then proceed with "Genesis Revisited" which, unsurprisingly, drew largely from "Wind and Wuthering," whose fortieth anniversary occurs, then smoothly moved to: "A Trick of the Tail" & "Selling England by the Pound," concluding with.......... "The Musical Box," capable of evoking the inevitable commemorative tear of his "promotional" concert in Lugo in the spring of '72 when we were both decidedly younger and more carefree...

Having listened to the Novelty a few times, one can base its judgment on the chills induced in the reviewer, no longer easily moved as before, well, these were certainly not lacking, on the contrary! Hence, I lean towards the maximum and can thus affirm that (finally!) we are in the presence of a new masterpiece, the least I can pay tribute to this great artist who has shaped the musical education of many of us. Thank you for existing, Steven.