PETER GABRIEL 4 [AKA: MASK OR SECURITY]

This album was a bit of a letdown for me considering, but how would it possibly be any different considering that Peter Gabriel 3 - "Melt" was Gabriel's greatest achievement. I guess that Peter had no real intention to make another artistic statement with Peter Gabriel 4 aka "Security" or "Mask" and instead chose to follow the same basic pattern of follow-ups to great classics like Queen's A Day At The Races and Deep Purple's Who Do We Think We Are, to name a few. The basic problem is that the artist is under a great deal of pressure to top his previous effort and therefore decides to make a change in direction instead of continuing pushing uphill.

Eventually this effort actually payed off for Peter Gabriel in terms of success and record sales. Don't get me wrong, this is not a bad album, I just don't see any really outstanding tracks and the best material here isn't anywhere near the compositions off the previous album. I'm always amazed when any popular artist releases a slightly weaker follow up release and actually get away with it. Things get even weirder when great artists like Peter Gabriel get the attention that thy deserve with on of the weaker release.

This is a good, but non-essential release for anyone interested in the experimental aspect of Gabriels music.

**** star songs: The Rhythm Of The Heat (5:18) San Jacinto (6:29) I Have The Touch (4:36) The Family And The Fishing Net (7:04) Shock The Monkey (5:29) Lay Your Hands On Me (6:11) Wallflower (6:35)

*** star songs: Kiss Of Life (4:16)

Total rating: 3,91