Steve Hackett
's solo
rock
albums have grown few and far between from the '90s onward. So the release of
To Watch the Storms
was surrounded by a lot of expectations from fans and they shouldn't be disappointed. This is a wonderful record, full of touching, intelligent songs, stellar guitar playing, and great production. It continues in the same direction
Hackett
has been pursuing since
Guitar Noir
, a blend of mature songwriting, thoughtful arrangements, and odd
numbers with
progressive rock
elements. Nothing needs to be taken out of this album.
"Circus of Becoming"
adds another example of
's infatuation with quirky
circus
-sounding tunes, but this one is much better than
"The Ballad of the Decomposing Man"
(from
Spectral Mornings
). In fact, it provides one of the strongest highlights of the set, thanks to its raucous side.
"The Devil Is an Englishman"
picks up where
"Vampyre with a Healthy Appetite"
) had left off, and doing the idea of an evil song better.
"Mechanical Bride"
lingers on for too long (its chorus is not catchy enough to justify repeating it so much), but that's an exception.
"Brand New"
features keyboardist
Roger King
singing in a vocoder and
Ian McDonald
making a guest appearance on sax.
"The Silk Road"
is an interesting take on
world fusion
dominated by
ethnic
percussion and
's furious runs on acoustic guitar. The album also includes the obligatory (and charming)
classical
guitar piece in
"The Moon Under Water."
"Serpentine Song"
closes the album with one of those dreamy
pop
songs
has a knack for. Some will find it a bit easy or trite, but others will be left uplifted and smiling. Some days, that's all you can ask for. ~ Francois Couture