SPECTRAL MORNINGS

Often referred to as the unacknowledged son of Genesis, "Voyage of Acolyte" has in "Spectral Mornings", Steve Hackett's third solo album, a sort of first cousin that also claims inheritance rights, and beyond whether they are valid, they don't seem to be so far-fetched.

From the initial and lively "Every Day", Hackett shows his intention to give more weight to the guitars in relation to his predecessor "Please Don't Touch", with an incisive and demanding solo that takes the lead role in most of the song and makes clear once again the virtuosity of the Briton, ratified by the delicate arpeggios and unplugged rhythm guitar of the pastoral and luminous "The Virgin and the Gypsy".

But Hackett also allows himself some exploratory licenses, as with the Asian sounds of the koto, a Cantonese instrument, in an atmosphere charged with oriental mysticism in the peaceful "The Red Flower of Tachai Blooms Everywhere", or with the surprising "The Ballad of the Decomposing Man", a strange combination between the circus and the moving Caribbean calypso.

The most classical vein and recognizable seal of Hackett, influenced in his formative stage by classics such as the German J.S. Bach and the Spanish Andres Segovia, is also present with the melancholic "Lost Time in Cordoba", where the acoustic guitars navigate with ease and mastery, accompanied by the sweet flute of his brother John in one of the highlights of the album.

And the ghostly "Tigermoth", which refers to the moments before the tragic end of the pilots shot down in WWII and evokes in the vocal parts by Pete Hicks the style of Peter Hammill's seventies VDGG, gives way to the piece that bears the same title of the album, "Spectral Mornings". Guided from beginning to end by a hypnotic and tireless electric guitar and immersed in the dense climate generated by the persistence of the melotron and tinged by the correct percussion of John Shearer, Hackett seems determined, without intending it, to show his ability to generate pieces of timeless value like this one. The best possible ending for the album.

From the 2005 remastered version, the live acoustic medley "Etude in A Minor / Blood on the Rooftops / Horizons / Kim" is well worth noting, with impeccable sound and better execution.

Excellent.

4 stars