Peter Gabriel - Growing Up Live
Performance
Production
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Peter Gabriel - Growing Up Live
Performance
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Growing Up Live was filmed in Milan, Italy during Peter Gabriel's 2002-2003 world tour in support of his recently released Up album. This was Gabriel's first world tour since his Secret World tour nearly ten years ago. Gabriel is now in his mid-fifties, is slightly pudgier, is sporting a shaved, gray head and goatee, and has a noticeably more subdued stage presence. I did not run out and buy this DVD as soon as it came out. I have only been a mild fan of Gabriel's solo work, and have not been particularly fond of the increasing "world music" influences on his most recent releases. I am, however, a huge fan of Gabriel's work with Genesis in the 1970's. The Gabriel-era Genesis albums are some of my personal all time favorites, and I consider them to be some of the finest progressive/art rock albums of all time. Gabriel's solo work has been impressive, as well. His music is complex and always evolving, and his unique vocals can be both soothing and stirring. His concerts have been legendary, visual marvels, with dazzling effects comparing with a Cirque Du Soleil show. Gabriel has always been smart enough to surround himself with some of the finest musicians in the business, including Tony Levin, Manu Catche, and David Rhodes, which means that the music will never be overshadowed by the stage show. I finally decided to see what all the fuss was about and picked up Growing Up Live, after passing it over for the last year. The show starts of rather softly with Gabriel entering the brightly lit stage and greeting the audience. He then sits down to perform a solo piano version of "Here Comes The Flood", the majestic ballad from his first solo album. The stage, which is centered in the arena, is round, has two levels, and looks incredible. Everything is spread out and open, allowing for all of the band members to be seen from every angle, and allowing Gabriel to roam around freely and perform a variety of stunts. The excellent lighting and visual affects help to create unique moods for each song. During "Red Rain" the huge, round screen above the stage projected an ominous, Martian-sky-looking red hue over the stage. During "Downside Up", Gabriel and his daughter/background singer Melanie performed a gravity-defying, upside-down walk along the upper stage. During "Growing Up" Gabriel strolled around the entire stage inside a giant, see-through sphere. "Solsbury Hill" featured Gabriel taking a carefree bicycle ride around the stage. As silly and gimmicky as these effects may sound, they were actually excellent visual enhancements to the theme of each accompanying song. Gabriel never missed a beat vocally, while performing these stunts, but there may have been some recorded vocals used. The music was performed immaculately. Sometimes too immaculately, which makes it come across rather sterile at times. I would have liked to see more improvisation and spontaneity, but I often got the feeling that the songs were performed exactly the same way throughout the entire tour. It would have been nice to see him perform one or two of his legendary Genesis songs, to shake things up a little. Gabriel and the director decided to include the behind the scenes work of the stage crew as part of the concert footage. The entire crew were dressed in bright orange jump-suites, for effect, and were filmed working their magic underneath and above the stage. I would normally curse the director with every four letter word I know for interrupting the flow of the concert like this, but it was done in a somewhat entertaining and unobtrusive manner during this concert. Most of the stage crew shots were between songs and gave some nice insight on just what it takes to pull off a stage show this extreme. Growing Up Live was filmed in high definition, and is presented in anamorphic widescreen. The video is as sharp and clear as I have ever seen for a concert film. The fantastic variety of colors and shades presented in the show come across beautifully. The camera work was also outstanding. Numerous sweeping, craned, camera shots, and an astounding variety of angles make this a genuinely unique viewing experience. The cameras also take you underneath the stage to show you the stage crew at work between songs. This is often done using split screens to show both the crew and the band performing simultaneously. This could have looked cheap and gimmicky, but it was done with expertise. Both the DTS and Dolby 5.1 surround mixes were excellent. I preferred the DTS, as it was slightly more dynamic. I did have a few nitpicky complaints with the sound. I thought the vocals were way too loud in the mix, and I had to turn down my center channel to compensate. The drums were mixed slightly too low and did not have the best sound overall. Other than that, the sound was fantastic. The surrounds were used effectively for ambience and to simulate the live concert experience. Occasionally, instruments and other effects would be projected to the rear speakers, and this would stand out notably. It was great to see that Peter Gabriel is still putting on captivating concert performances well into his fifties. Now I will have to run out and get the Secret World concert DVD to see him as a forty-something year old youngster with a full head of black hair. Reviewed by Paul M. Roy - August 2004 |
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Set List |
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Running Time: 134 Minutes |
DVD Release Date - November 2003 |