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Peter Gabriel
Play: The Videos
(Rhino)
The Music Box's #10 specialty package for 2005
First Appeared in The Music Box, June 2005, Volume 12, #6
Written by John Metzger
Following the advent of MTV, music videos became prominent fixtures within
the major labels’ marketing campaigns, but few artists truly felt comfortable
working within this previously unrealized visual framework. In essence, their
inability to comprehend its potential, meant that they never viewed the format
as serving anything more than a commercialized purpose. However, when properly
constructed, the medium is recast as a new method of creative expression, and
Peter Gabriel, who forever has viewed his concerts as theater pieces, typically
has been at the forefront of this evolving form of art.
Not surprisingly, then, where most compilations containing material that was
plucked from the realm of MTV feel like an endless stream of meaningless
advertisements, Gabriel’s Play: The Videos retains its captivating,
cutting-edge charm for the duration of its two-hour, 20-minute length. Compiling
26 snippets that span his solo career — three of which are featured as bonus
selections — the package highlights all of the important short films that he
crafted with the help of an array of visual artists, including Stephen R.
Johnson, Francois Vogel, and Sean Penn. While viewing the sequential stream of
his accomplishments, the reasons that Gabriel has been so successful and revered
become immediately apparent: Not only is the imagery frequently stunning, but
the individual storylines, abstract as they may be, also match perfectly the
emotional resonance of the songs they are meant to support. From the frenetic
sexuality of Sledgehammer’s grinding, R&B groove to the warm intimacy of
Father, Son to the turbulent emotional release of Red Rain, there
isn’t a moment or a mood that isn’t enhanced by its dazzling visual
accompaniment. Given that all of the tracks were re-mixed in gloriously
atmospheric 5.1 surround sound (both DTS and Dolby Digital versions are
included), the end result is a mind-boggling immersion experience that
significantly blurs the boundaries that typically separate art from commerce. 
Play: The Videos is available
from Amazon.com. To order, Click Here!
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Ratings
1 Star: Pitiful
2 Stars: Listenable
3 Stars: Respectable
4 Stars: Excellent
5 Stars: Can't Live Without It!!
Copyright © 2005
The Music Box
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