Hackery

The fabled high-flying guitarist's solo debut is an oft-mocked venture. Usually, for good reason, given their propensity to be full of all the crappy ideas the band had previously stifled. But it would be just plain mean-spirited to throw snickers in Steve Hackett's direction for his first effort, even if its songs are titled after...umm...tarot cards, and even if the cover art a little too closely telegraphs the kind of soundworld on offer.

Most folks who hang around this space know that Songblague has lots of good feeling toward even the most tasteless of prog-rock efforts. Partly for nostalgic reasons, and partly because there's actually a lot to like in excess. This track hits all those notes. What charms me most is how it plays like a nice guy trying to get all sinister and prove that Peter Gabriel wasn't the only one in Genesis who had weird ideas (i.e. dark mellotron "choir" move at 1:53). Hackett just wasn't as savvy about assembling them. However awkwardly, it does sound like a respectable nightmare. And it does its genre proud by ignoring just about anything to do with the 1975 of consensus reality.

Steve Hackett - A Tower Struck Down