Word: gabrielic
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...GABRIEL GARCIA MARQUEZ...
...sometimes Gabriel's lyrics betray his inexperience at writing love songs. Bad rhyme abounds. In "Secret World," Gabriel sings, "Seeing things that were not there/ On a wing, on a prayer/ In this state of disrepair." Us exhibits the same flaws as U2's generally slick Achtung Baby, lyrics suffer when the Irish protest band recorded a dance-rock album...
...Though Gabriel's music still strays from the mainstream, his sentiments may meet with broader popular acceptance. Cynics and longtime Gabriel aficionados might scoff at the musician's emergent concern for broken hearts, but the emotionalism evident on Us usually works. "You lie there with your eyes half-closed/ Like there's no one there at all/ There's a tension pulling on your face/ Come on, come talk to me," Gabriel laments. Sinead O'Connor adds a fantastic background vocal...
Usually, however, it doesn't matter if the lyrics are cheesy if the music is good. Witness U2's "Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses." World-beat influences make most songs on Us, seductive. Gabriel's earliest work undoubtedly packs more intellectual power than Us, but the new album boasts a certain visceral appeal...
Although Peter Gabriel has given up on storytelling, Us is a solid album. Maybe it's good that Gabriel has loosened up. Loved, laid and dissed, he may have accumulated enough emotional baggage to make rock's founders proud...