Peter Gabriel - Secret World Live

Peter Gabriel - Secret World Live
by François Girard

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DVD Cover Information

• PETER GABRIEL: SECRET WORLD LIVE (DVD MOVIE)

Movie Reviews of Peter Gabriel - Secret World Live

Movie Review: Outstanding
Summary: 5 Stars

For me, this tour was one of the best PG concerts I've ever seen. The "Growing Up" tour was incredible, but I think this show had better showmanship and activity--and also a bit of a better selection of songs.

Really, who is a better showman out there than Peter Gabriel? I don't think any other act--with the possible exception of Pink Floyd/Roger Waters or *possibly* Tool--approaches a concert as theater to the extent that PG does. It isn't just the songs, it is an artistic push for mood, costume, lighting, and *story*. On this tour, Peter and band use two stages (one male, one female) connected by a catwalk and moving sidewalks.

The extras are also great with a "making of" doc that has Peter deconstructing the show and the sets. Rather than pure self-promotion, this segment really gives you a feel for all of the blood, sweat, and tears that went into creating this show. There's also a really great remix of "Steam", a pretty neat timelapse of setting up and striking the show, as well as previewing "Growing Up".

My one complaint about this DVD is that it is pretty clear at least some of Peter's vocals were re-recorded in studio. There's no breathing (PG spends about a third of the concert in motion), no mic fades, and the audio doesn't always match up with the video. This is pretty typical of PG who apparently did the same for the VHS version, the Secret World CD and Peter Gabriel Plays Live CDs (he said as much in the "Plays Live" liner notes). For me it is maddening. I've seen PG live 6 times now (soon to be 7 or 8 as the Growing Up 2003 tour shapes up) and I have never heard a missed note or a crack. Even if such a thing should show up, it's a LIVE performance, isn't it? The perfectionist leanings that PG has are admirable, but I believe this goes to far and takes away from his live recordings.

Most people don't seem to mind this, but I wanted to point it out.

To those of you complaining about the video compared to the VHS version, I have both and I've watched them closely: The VHS is full-screen and cuts off the edges. The DVD is not a cropping. The picture in the DVD is a little darker, but a whole lot sharper. I'm no expert but I believe that when the VHS edit was mastered, it was "sweetened" to make it look more like video: a little more colorful and brighter but a little more distorted. This looks more like film.

As for the audio, you can't compare the two: the VHS comes nowhere near the quality of the DVD. I can't compare it to the LD version, but the DVD mix is much more discrete and allows for a better feel for the full range of percussion--though Tony Levin fans might want to turn the bass up a bit; I think the low range was de-emphasized a bit to keep it from taking over.

Overall, this is an excellent DVD and well worth buying even if you've already bought the VHS. If only more acts put as much effort into their live performances as Peter does.

Enjoy!

Summary of Peter Gabriel - Secret World Live