Following a year in which Peter Gabriel has released a new song on every full moon, November 27th sees the release of his new studio album, o\i, the follow-up to his critically acclaimed album of 2023, i/o, a number 1 in the UK album chart.
Peter Gabriel returns with a brand-new collection of songs after a mere three years – his shortest gap between studio albums since the early 1980s. o\i is a companion piece to its reflected name-sake i/o, expanding on many of the same themes: our relationship with nature, the passing of time, the increasing influence of technology in our lives and our place in the world; “Trying to get a handle on where you fit in life, that’s what I write about a lot,” he says.
The 13 tracks of o\i showcase the breadth of Gabriel’s song-writing palette, lyrically always insightful and imaginative, able to explore big themes with emotional conviction whilst retaining a peerless ability to speak to us, the listener, directly, personally, intimately. Songs that pull the heart strings, and reflect our hopes and fears sit alongside those full of optimism, love and joy, where the groove is king, and keeping still an impossibility.
“The songs are a mix of thoughts and feelings,” Gabriel says. “I have been thinking about the future and how we might respond to it. We are sliding into a period of transition like no other, most likely triggered in three waves; AI, quantum computing and the brain computer interface. Artists have a role to look into the mists and, when they catch sight of something, to hold up a mirror. “We are not, and have never been, the exclusively self-determining, independent beings that we imagine we are. We have had a sense of entitlement that everything exists for our benefit – that we’ve been given the run of the world to exploit as we see fit.
We are something else, a part of nature, a part of everything and when we feel that connection, shake our booty and give and receive a little love, it can help us find our proper place – and put a big smile on our faces. “This is how I see the lumpy bits – i/o: the inside has a new way out and o\i: the outside has a new way in.”
o\i was written and produced by Peter Gabriel and recorded primarily at Real World Studios and Peter’s home studio. The album, like most Gabriel records, contains both songs that have been written since the last album and some that have taken years, decades, to complete. “Sometimes things take time,” he adds, “most people do stuff a lot faster – but I have no problem with understanding my own process. Some things will mature and evolve spontaneously and some will just stay hidden-away in a box until their moment in the light appears.”
Long standing band members, guitarist David Rhodes, bassist Tony Levin and drummer Manu Katché feature on many of the songs, supplemented by other members of the i/o touring band Richard Evans, Josh Shpak and Don E and Real World staffers Faye Dolle and Katie May. The New Blood Orchestra, led by John Metcalfe are also heard, as are the Soweto Gospel Choir and Swedish all-male choir Oprhei Drängar. Other notable contributions come in the shape of Mike Elizondo (who co-produced A Hard Lesson), Brian Eno, guitarists Leo Nocentelli and Tony Berg, drummer and percussionist Abe Rounds, pianist Tom Cawley, trumpeter Paolo Fresu, cellist Linnea Olsson and multi-instrumentalist Evan Smith. Once again Peter’s daughter Melanie provides vocal support.
All 13 tracks come in two stereo mixes: the Bright-Side mixed by Mark ‘Spike’ Stent, and the Dark-Side mix by Tchad Blake in all cases apart from Who Are We Talking To? which has been mixed by Mike Elizondo. Both versions are included on the 4CD package, and are also available separately as double vinyl albums. The digital only Dolby Atmos In-Side mix is again shaped by Hans-Martin Buff, who won Best Immersive Mix engineer at the Grammy’s for his work i/o.
As will have been seen across the monthly full moon releases, Peter has once again invited a range of visual artists to contribute a piece of art to accompany the music that encompass a full range of artistic approaches, from painting, sculpture, installation, embroidery and weaving to co-authoring with spiders. The wonderful artists included are: Janaina Mello Landini, Tomás Saraceno, Judy Chicago, Tatsuo Miyajima, Shirin Neshat, Juan Genovés, Roelof Louw, David Altmejd, Fracis Alÿs, Tadashi Kawamata, Berndnaut Smilde, Tishan Hsu and Michal Rovner.
The cover shot is by renowned photographer Nadav Kander.
Piece by piece, one by one, the monthly full moon releases come together with the release of the album o\i, and, with two albums in three years, there’s no doubt that this collective body of work proves Gabriel is having a late career creative high. We will keep watching the moon to see what’s coming next…
Pre-order:
https://lnk.to/PG24
Tracklist:
CD | Digital
Been Undone
Put the Bucket Down
What Lies Ahead
Till Your Mind Is Shining
Won’t Stand Down
Who Are We Talking To?
Yes, It Will Go
One by One
A Hard Lesson
Face the Wall
I Belong to the Sky
Looking for the Happy
Sacrament
2LP
SIDE A
Been Undone
Put the Bucket Down
What Lies Ahead
Till Your Mind Is Shining
SIDE B
Won’t Stand Down
Who Are We Talking To?
Yes, It Will Go
SIDE C
One by One
A Hard Lesson
Face the Wall
SIDE D
I Belong to the Sky
Looking for the Happy
Sacrament
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