Phil Collins

Both Sides

Very personal, but overall effect is too dark and depressing

Review Score:

(6/10)
(It really deserves 2 1/2 stars)

My goodness, NO ONE has reviewed this album? I may as well jump in.

If people actually *read* these reviews, then they might be surprised to see me on albums like this and albums like Yes' Relayer (That weird guy ranting on there is the same Picktonian as me). I seem to be one of the few people who can listen to stuff like Phil Collins or stuff like King Crimson and likebtoh of them -- the variety in music appeals to me, what can I say.

This is the first album of his I've reviewed here, and I am definitely a great fan of his music. Liking Phil Collins or, indeed, Genesis, seems to be a guilty pleasure in this world, don't know why. I feel his music is very enjoyable and pleasurable, even if a lot of is "poppy", and indeed, some of it is quite experimental too.

Both Sides is not a typical Phil Collins album, in that it is so much darker than what people are no doubt used to. Some fans praise this album for it's intense personalness, some can't stand it. I'm somewhere in between, though if anything, I tend toward the latter. It really deserves 2 1/2 stars, but I was generous.

The album is not without merit. The title track is a telling and powerful look at ghetto and domestic violence in the city, and in general, and is one of his most dramatic tracks. Indeed, I feel Phil reached his dramatic peak with this album. "Can't Turn Back The Years" is a very enjoyable and emotional song, about regret that he can't - well, turn back the years, similar to "All Of My life" on his But Seriously album. "Everyday" is a wonderful piano-set ballad, one of his best, and it and the title track are fantastic, in fact. "Survivors" is perhaps the brightest song on the album, very strident and fast-moving, and it builds up a lot of enrgy, as Phil realizes that somehow, "we are survivors in the night". "We Fly So Close" is another fantastic track, very dark and dramatic. In it Phil sings about how close we come to changing our lives everyday, maybe for the worse, in what we do - and sometimes we fly *too* close. And "We Wait And We Wonder" is a powerful and potent look at terrorism, particularly in Europe. On all of the stronger tracks, a great sense of drama is created, with a very powerful array of guitars and synthesizers, and even bagpipes. And on the more pleasant quieter songs, a very enjoyable emotion and sense of intimacy permeates, not unlike his work on Face Value, which this album is quite often compared with.

But despite some very decent tracks, the overall, and lingering, feel of the album, is dark, sadness, and depression -- and a loss of hope. And there's the real problem. With Face Value, which was indeed a rather dark album in a lot of places, there were some different factors. First, there were some very lively, uptempo tracks with horns and such, that really livened up the album. And second, even most of the slower tracks, which are fantastic, and indeed the whole album, had a lingering sense of idealism and hope, even in this terrible sadness and confusion. This was exemplified so tellingly in mixing the faster and slower tracks as Phil, and the listener, comes to emotional grips with himself, or tries to, and in tracks like I'm Not Moving and Tomorrow Never Knows, and in the hidden recital of Over The Rainbow, Phil gives us a hope.

That hope isn't found here. The remaining tracks, even if they try for it, don't reach it, and are painful and sluggish to sit through, and it's just really no comfort OR fun to listen to the whole album. Overall, it's far too dark and sad, and while there are some meritable tracks, they get bogged down by the resulting pace.

This isn't a BAD album. But it's not that great either. To anyone who is a fan of any of his ballads, or particularly of Face Value, it's at least recommended though. Some aspects of it are very pleasurable, and I DO like the personal nature of it, as with Face Value, but in the end it weighs heavy, as was intended, I'm sure. But too heavy.

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