Customer Reviews

Darktown

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4 star:		(8)
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Steve Hackett was never one for sitting on the fence. The former Genesis guitarist left the band in 1977 and never looked back, he is now on a certified 'guitar legend' thanks to a remarkable body of work as a solo artist, he is a also a much admired composer, of classical music, and a fine classical guitar player.

Steve has always broken boundaries, and along with former Genesis lead singer Peter Gabriel, is one of the most distictive and innovative musicians around. 'Darktown' is Hackett's masterpiece, released in 1999, the album took Hackett around 7 years to make, and the painsteaking detail in this recodring shows why. And album of great darkness, but an album of profound brilliance, here is my view of the album:

1. Omega Metallicus
A kick ass intro to the album, with fast paced 'beats' looped as Steve streches the guitar to it's limit, joking in the sleeve notes that "no guitars were harmed during the making of this recording", i don't believe him.

2. Darktown
The title track that sums up the atmosphere of the album really, dark, esoteric, sinister. A dark soundscape is established as Steve narrates rather than sings the song, and the terrifiying instrumentation only add to the ambience of the piece. This is a rave by Steve at the repressive English educatiobn system, and in paticular, at the "abuse of power" as Hackett says, with lyrics like: "Drink to the ones who dished out the marks/Rabid animals right from the start/It's happy hour shut the beasts away/Come along children it's time to play/In darktown..."

3. Man Overboard
After the overwhelling darkness of the opening tracks, the southing and laid back 'Man Overboard' is a nice relief. Hackett is on magic nylon guitar on this track, as he sings a beautiful tune about a man falling for the women of his dreams. A beautiful song.

4. The Golden Age Of Steam
A somewhat stiff titled song this may be, but it shows how Steve bends and pushes the medium to the limits of musical storytelling. Steve has always used narrative, characters, situations in his songs, and here he has written a 'character study' of young boy in Amsterdamn during World War 2, who turns spy for the Nazis. Beautiful and haunting, the song features brilliant orchestration and wonderful juxstapositions, one of the most rich and complex tracks here.

5. Day Of Long Ago
The only track here that Steve doesn't sing himself when there are vocals, a great Scottish singer named Jim Diamond provides soem great vocals (he also worked with Genesis keyboard legend Tony Banks on his song 'You Call This Victory'). A wistful and powerful acoustic love song, this is the most simple piece on the album, and is similar to 'Man Overboard', i like this very much.

6. Dreaming With Open Eyes
A fantastic song this, an evocative tale of day dreams in the car on a rainy day. Beautifully crafted instrumental passeges compliment the lyric and Steve's laid back vocals, rich and insightful.

7. Twice Around The Sun
What would a Steve Hackett album be without a stunning, heartpounding instrumental epic were Steve cuts loose on his guitar? This has everything, the floating openeing sections, the calmimg middle section, and then... THAT finale. Beloved by all Hackett fans, the STUNNING and deeply moving finale, were Steve plays some stunning guitars, words can't express, and he plays what could be the longest sustained guitar note in music history, remarkable.

8. Rise Again
My personal favourite Steve Hackett song. This beautiful and moving rock song is about the spirit carriying on after death. Steve's deep vocals are superb, as the acoustic openeing section leads into a dramatic electric second half. With lyrics like: "Take me where the sun don't shine no more/And the moon echoes were once was life/The wind is howling but it has no face/I know that we will rise again..." This will bring tears to your eyes.

9. Jane Austen's Door
A more laidback and melanchoilc song that again features great vocals from Steve. A song that will move you, with a strong sense of sadness and regret, this is obviously very personal.

10. Darktown Riot
A terriyfing guitar sound greats you on this track, as Steve turns out another powerful, idiosyncratic instrumental piece. Steve reprises the main guitar part from 'Darktown' effectively. With pounding drums, disorientating walls of noise and heavy guitars, this is a sinister track.

11. In Memoriam
This masterpiece of an album closes with the most powerful piece here,the most personal statment from Steve on this CD. As the title suggests, death is the main theme, and the moody sounds add a perfect backdrop for Steve's voiceover, as he laments: "Who needs all the endless lies? That serve to keep the world alive/To taste the sweetness of the grave/And not regret, mistakes i've made..." A powerful song, that ends a stunning musical journey through the dark recesses of the human mind.

This is a very odd mix of different musical styles all having a dark cast or hue about them. The album (the most personal thing Hackett's ever done) exudes something unique and almost indescribable. Much like the man who created it.

I believe Steve Hackett once said (referring to IN MEMORIUM) "I might be saying too much here" and I don't agree. I get the impression he has a lot to say and I'd love to hear more... a lot more. There comes a time when an artist has to decide if he wants to make the truth known or be content to know he at least touched on it.

This is without question the most intense and thought provoking work to come from any ex Genesis member which is really saying something. Definitely worthy of much more attention than it's received.

Twenty-nine years of growth in his composition, technique and arrangements have produced this, Steve Hackett's best work to date. This artist is much more than a musician yet his musicianship is unmatched. Over the years, he has written some of the most captivating music of any genre. Steve's work carries the listener away, as music is meant to do. It is impossible to say "Darktown" is his best work, because his work is all good. But it is his newest, and certainly his most mature. It is his best. Thank you, Steve. Be happy.

Having listened to the CD every day since it's release in the UK, I am still loving the different moods and sounds. I have every album of Steve's from Voyage Of The Acolyte, each time the new one is my favourite but Darktown I am sure is his best to date. If you are a fan of any one of his album's, this is a must for all of you!

This being only my 2nd foray into the solo material of Steve Hackett (the first being "Watcher of the Skies: Genesis Revisited"), I wasn't sure what to expect. I wasn't disappointed at the samples I heard in the store. Hackett samples various different styles, using each song to tell a tale or express an emotion. The last track, "In Memoriam" reminds me a little of King Crimson's "Starless and Bible Black" with its somber melancholy tones.

The experimentation and musical "stretching out" leaves me wondering why Hackett and former Genesis bandmate, Peter Gabriel, haven't worked together more since their respective splits with the former prog-rock supergroup. Genesis truly ceased to be Genesis when Hackett left.

Steve Hackett has defined the prog-rock genre without being in its spotlight. Ask most people on the street who Hackett is and they would probably answer "Steve who?" Yet, since the years after his departure from Genesis, Hackett has produced some of the most entertaining and captivating music caught on record. He shows that he has a tender side on albums like "Momentum" and "A Midsummer Night's Dream," but then turns the tables and offers up a good dose of rock n' roll ("The Tokyo Tapes," "Guitar Noir"). "Darktown" lies somewhere between the two. The album opens with an amazing bass guitar lick that throbs throughout the course of the song. This kind of guitar play is rampant through the album; Hackett is a true master of the instrument. Some of the songs may not be cohesive; a couple lack direction completely. Still, give this album a listen. It is worth the admission price.

This pseudo-autobiographical journey evoques somewhat familiar tunes and sounds hidden away within the sequences, effects and twisted saxs that craft the personality of this album.Fragments of themes like "Los Endos" and "I know what I like" appear suddenly and unexpectedly out of the shades of this somber album. A glint of optimism shines timidly through the melancholic fog that shrouds this record.

The record is technicaly perfect and benefis from the talents of long time hackett colaborators virtuosos like Ian Macdonald and Doug Sinclair. This is the definite Hackett album of the 90's.Please pay a visit to "Darktown".

..by far the best record by Hackett! different of all! really dark! the dark side of Steve Hackett is here!! Enjoy!

Twenty-nine years of growth in his composition, technique and arrangements have produced this, Steve Hackett's best work to date. This artist is much more than a musician yet his musicianship is unmatched. Over the years, he has written some of the most captivating music of any genre. Steve's work carries the listener away, as music is meant to do. It is impossible to say "Darktown" is his best work, because his work is all good. But it is his newest, and certainly his most mature. It is his best. Thank you, Steve. Be happy.

This is a solid progressive effort by the former Genesis guitarist. With the exception of track #5 the cuts are all quite good. Hackett's guitar playing is as as strong as ever and his vocals have matured and are quite enjoyable. He sounds quite a bit like Andy Latimer of Camel. Coincidentally this disc is not unlike Camel's recent release Rajaz in tone and sound. Worth procuring...Simon