Peter Gabriel

Us

"What could we have been thinking of?"

Review Score:

(6/10)
That's the ending line for each verse in the song "Secret World", and this album makes me want to ask that question in third person singular. That song is the closest I've heard to a Neil Diamond clone since Simple Minds' "Sanctify Yourself", and I hope it's not a new direction (MOR pop) for the man who wrote "The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway". Another weak song is "Steam" (or "Sledgehammer--Phase II"). What's phase III, a cover of "In the Midnight Hour"? These two are offset by the witty "Kiss That Frog", where Gabriel retells "The Frog Prince" story and showcases his ability on harmonica; "Digging In the Dirt", which touches on anger at your mate a lot better than Phil Collins' "I Don't Care Anymore"; and "The Blood Of Eden", a boy-girl duet with Sinead O'Connor which unlike "Steam", ISN'T a clone of its predecessor on the previous album. Different partner/ different concept and style. Good for ya, Peter--a new song is supposed to be just that--new. But I still find the Diamond-ish number disquieting. The problem with diversification in music is that if you take it too far, you lose track of your main identity. The extreme form of versatiliy is inconsistency. We don't need that from someone of Gabriel's gifts.

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