i/o serves as a bridge between Peter Gabriel’s pop mega stardom and the apocalypse.
My man hadn’t released any new songs in over 20 years, so when I saw that Peter Gabriel was performing in Detroit this past autumn, I figured it was another greatest-hits review. You know, aging rocker rounds up ace players and trots out on the road one more time to cash in. However, a quick search revealed that he did in fact have new songs out, but seemingly no new album.
The Album
It turns out the complete album, entitled i/o, only dropped on 1 December 2023 in physical formats. But Gabriel released a new tune from the album each month during 2023 at the full moon (Bright-side mix), with an alternative mix released at the new moon (Dark-side mix). The title of the album refers to “input/output,” but also to Io, one of Jupiter’s many moons.
Make no mistake, this is some of the strongest material of Gabriel’s illustrious career. While i/o is by no means a pop album, he has dusted off some of his progressive rock chops. Peter Gabriel is as always, the auteur, a world-class artist and activist, a deeply compassionate thinker. So, while the lead track, “Panopticom,” is certainly groovy and haunting and hooky, it also represents how Gabriel has continued to grow and progress as a human. His web site explains the concept of the song’s subject thusly:
“The Panopticom platform is a constantly changing satellite fed globe which will be the central tool that allows people to upload and monitor appropriate and meaningful, personal, social, economic and political data along with all manner of scientific and environmental information. It should allow the world to see much more of itself.”
Some highlights for me in the i/o song cycle include “The Court,” which features a spare, complex rhythm and inhabits a future in which a higher judge will mete truly-blind justice upon our bedraggled world. The title track features a big pop chorus and finds Gabriel looking forward, toward the end of the road, connected to nature and the greater cosmos, plodding a path of happy destiny together with the beasts of the field. My personal favorite track is “Four Kinds of Horses,” with another eerie vibe and synthetic groove, it grapples with forces beyond our control:
Here is all your money
There is the load
This is how you travel
If you live to see the world explode
The most accessible track is probably “Road to Joy,” which harkens back to Gabriel’s golden age of pop stardom. More hooks from the jump with a tasty little groove. It also juxtaposes hope with the existential dread that permeates this collection. This man is clearly not done yet; he’s getting the blood to flow “in every nook and cranny” and from his “head down to his toes.”
There are some very delicate songs on this album, with contemplative lyrics in which Gabriel works out his place in the world, and the value and meaning of life. The lyrics tend to the arcane, but in combination with the grooves and melodies, I find they take on a zen quality the more I listen.
The recording has been referred to by some critics as “the Chinese Democracy of progressive rock,” referring to its 20 years in the making. But this is much more substantive than any Guns ‘n’ Roses record, so screw that. This guy has earned the right to take his time, incubate these songs, and work with his favorite, truly world-class musicians.
The Tour
Gabriel brought a number of those world-class performers out on the road for the i/o tour. Key among them were David Rhodes, his long-time collaborator on guitar, the legendary Tony Levin on basses and Chapman stick, and jazz fusion powerhouse Manu Katché on drums.
The night of the Detroit show, September 29, was a full moon. The lights came up with the musicians sitting around a campfire playing acoustic instruments under a huge replica of the moon, which revolved and slowly changed phase. It looked like it could have been a prototype of the Panopticom globe that Gabriel envisions.
This was a refined rock show – started precisely at eight o’clock with no opening act. The tour featured a simple, elegant stage set, with just enough lighting cues and video accompaniment to keep things interesting. At one point, there was a video wall in front of the band that Gabriel was able to paint on with a wand and his hands – like magic.
Notably, the man is still in excellent voice at 73 years old; he can still warble and howl. He sounds best on the new material, of which we were treated to quite a bit. But he can still crush his catalog stuff as well. Not surprisingly, the most enthusiastic response was raised for the hits that many fans came to hear. While hardly the greatest-hits review I suspected, he and the band did perform inspired versions of “Sledgehammer,” “Red Rain,” and “Solsbury Hill.” “Don’t Give Up” featured an extraordinary duet with vocalist and cellist Ayanna Witter-Johnson, who both honored and transcended the Kate Bush original.
The show appeared to conclude with “In Your Eyes,” but the band belatedly returned to the stage to cap the evening with an emotional and inspiring version of “Biko.” Having just attended a retrospective exhibit on Nelson Mandela’s life at The Henry Ford museum in Dearborn, this closer had special resonance for me.
Peter Gabriel continues to challenge his audience, often with astonishing results. i/o, the album and the tour, both qualify.
Keep up with Peter Gabriel’s projects on petergabriel.com
I suggest you pull up some video from the Hubble space telescope and experience Peter Gabriel and band’s entire setlist from the Detroit show. Remember, you’re just a part of everything
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