PETER GABRIEL 3 [AKA: MELT]

It seems like PG has found his sound and style in this one, or maybe he was still looking for it but while doing so he just delivered some of the best songs in his career :p Anyway "3" is a HUGE improvement from the 2 previous releases. The album has a sense of unity and the musical style is dark, sophisticated, delicate and accesible all at the same time, while maintaining the theatrical style that is one of PG's trademarks.

Intruder is really dark and hipnotic, and I think it was a ballsy choice to put this as the opener since is clearly not one of the catchiest, but of course is one of those songs that gets better and better with each listen and a good representation of the spirit of this record.

No Self-Control is another hipnotic song, with a really dramatic performance by the man, since this haunting track leaves a lot of space to show his theatrical style. Also a great live song.

Starts works really well as a an interlude, with beatiful use of the saxo bringing some light to what is (up to this point) a really dark piece of work

I Don't Remember imo is THE hit song of the first era Peter Gabriel. The chorus is memorable, and on its overall simplicity lies its beauty. The Chorus is memorable and addictive as hell.

Family Snapshot is one of the highlights of the album, and that is saying a lot, since this "3" is like one big highlight. Pure subtlety and emotion delivered by the man.

And Through The Fire has a straight emotive melody, and a chorus that's really hard to forget. 5 minutes of musical joy.

Games Without Frontiers is another strong song, with a dark feeling like the majority of this masterpiece. And this is also kind of a hit song at the same time, yes, it can be done.

Not One Of Us, wow what a song. Strong melody, strong message, catchy all the way, a great live song, timeless. Levin shines as usual and PG's performance is remarkable.

Lead A Normal Life is probably the least spectacular song of the album, a moody, pleasant song

Biko is the perfect closer to this album, probably the first strongly African-influenced piece of music from PG. I find this song hipnotic as well but in a different way than the others, in a more melodic way, not so claustrophobic as some previous tunes. That chorus is well, anthemic at least. This song has a life of its own when played live.

Wow, I said hipnotic a lot of times during this review so I think that word defines my opinion about this gem. There are no weak songs here. An amazing, unique experience from beginning to end.