Steve Hackett at Castello Sforzesco di Vigevano – 9th July 2000

Words and pics by Roger Salem

This concert was special for two reasons: It was the first time Steve was going to perform live in front of a crowd since the Tokyo Tapes concerts in Japan four years ago. And, on the other hand, it was the first concert with his new band. So, needless to say everyone was a little tense. I had the privilege of being well acquainted to friends at Blue Sky Agency, the Italian tour promoter, and was hence able to follow closely all the events that preceded the concert from the arrival of the band, Billy Budis and the technical staff at their hotel to the sound-check the following day. Their flight arrived very late at Malpensa Airport, Milan and a nervous Paolo Leoni, a long time admirer of Steve and frequent collaborator of the Genesis Italian fanzine, Dusk, could be seen pouncing up and down the hotel lobby waiting for the bus to come in, constantly checking his watch and downing his fourth Heineken of the evening. He had planned a special event, which even Billy was not aware of: a dinner in one of Vigevano’s finest restaurants. Would the band be arriving before the restaurant closed was his concern. By the time the bus arrived, it was already almost 22.00h. But everyone was starving after what had been an incredibly long delay of over 2 hours in London with most of the waiting inside the aircraft queuing on the tarmac!

The ‘pack-face’ secession luckily went fine : dish after dish being displayed in an uninterrupted going back and forth by the waiters and leaving us all in a state of complete bliss, ah, that famous Italian cuisine, just unbeatable! At the end of the meal when my stomach had doubled in size and my cheeks had bloated. I discreetly unbuttoned my trousers to be able to breath better and relax my aching bowels at which point in came the dessert. Steve was presented with a big cake for his 50 year of age, on which was a placed a piece of a marzipan in the shape of a guitar and a tiny chair made of chocolate next to a marzipan bed. ‘Anyone for half a bed?’, asked Steve. Everyone was now filled to the brink and ready for a good night’s sleep, a big day ahead.

A big day, indeed, but not just for Steve and his crew but also for Paolo and me. The good lad had concocted yet another surprise for Steve. He had planned out a tribute to Steve in the form of an exhibit spanning through 30 years of the man’s career, fully documented with newspaper articles, photos and videos (the latter were never shown for technical problems) . For this Paolo had benefited from the generous help of one of the biggest Genesis and Ex-Genesis fans in Italy, Mino Profumo (nice name, no?), who has, beyond the shadow of a doubt, the most impressive collection of Genesis paraphernalia in Italy and probably in the world! The hall, in a wing of the Vigevano castle, were Paolo had originally planned to have the exhibit was declined to him by the municipality of Vigevano at the last moment as they were afraid that fans would damage the frescos on the walls. So he was desperately looking for alternatives around every corner of the castle’s many hallways and courtyards. He was finally given the green light to install the stands in an ancient stables which had been designed by Leonardo da Vinci. The place was very near to the stage and presented itself like an impressive alternative site with beautiful chalk-coloured archways and tall columns down a very long corridor.

In between moments of setting up the exhibit I managed to sneak away from my ‘sweating’ companions to go check out another ‘musical exhibit’ that was being set-up close by. The stage was slowly taking form and the band started practising the first chords of an unrecognisable piece, which I later found out was ‘Mechanical Bride’, the opening number of the gig. The first impression I had was of a band that seemed to have been together for ages, while in truth they had only been rehearsing a few days back in England. Shame-ridden from not sufficiently giving my companions a hand in setting the exhibit, I turned back and headed back to the stables when I heard the first notes of ‘Watcher of the Skies’ resounding in the courtyard. I froze, my jaws fell down to the floor and my by blood pressure reached the sky! It was not that I didn’t expect Steve to do some old Genesis numbers but it was more the fact of actually hearing it live after such a long time that really dumbfounded me. I mean how often does one hear these ‘heavenly chords’ played live in this day and age of fast food music!

The rest of the day was spent meeting all the fans that started flooding in the castle grounds in the early afternoon. A crowd of at least 1'000 people was expected. Steve was to share the stage with two prog-rock bands, one from Italy, Saka and the other from Mexico, Cast. But, before the first band was to take the stage, the Italian fanzine Dusk headed by Paolo Leoni had organised a meeting between Steve and his fans. It was very informal to say the least. Steve, without the use of any microphone for amplification, sat down behind a table in the courtyard filled with seated fans and began answering all sorts of questions ranging from Genesis and his solo career. He was very relaxed and friendly not once loosing his patience and temper when the usual asinine questions on Genesis kept on being thrown at him. At one point one idiot asked him how the Knife had been composed…!! For Crying out loud, Steve was not even in the bloody band at that time!! I almost did not want to translate the question from embarrassment. When asked questions about his current band Steve seemed was visibly more enthusiastic and elated. He pointed out the great versatility of the band and the fun he was having working with them. Most noteworthy of all was when Steve pointed out that he wanted to explore new grounds in music : jazz, fusion , rock and classical without limiting himself to any one expression for future projects.

Right after this meeting, Steve came to check out our exhibit. He didn’t stop smiling and looking quite proud of seeing his past achievements. At one moment he stopped in front of one of Armando Gallo’s photos of Genesis. He clearly remembered the shot as being one of Gallo’s first of the band. Steve commented that Gallo had the virtue of capturing the most remarkable spontaneous photos of the band. Steve was also very pleased that we had displayed some of Kim’s paintings (reproductions of course!). He is very proud of her work. She is currently in Brazil exhibiting some of her new jewellery. After painting and jewels, maybe music someday? It occurred to me then that Kim has never sung on any of Steve’s albums. I wonder if she was ever tempted by the experience?

At 19.00h Saka took to the stage. I cannot comment on this show as I did not attend it, having opted instead for a good plate of sea-food pasta and red wine in the piazza outside the Castle. I came back slightly inebriated and nervous with anticipation and caught the encore of Cast. A fine prog-rock band with very a friendly and talented musicians but frankly this type of music is not my cup of tea with all due respect.

And finally the moment we had all been waiting for, Mr. Stephan Hackett, stepped on the stage at around 22.15h in front of a very excited and screaming crowd. He was dressed in black wearing, presumably the same sun glasses he wore on the Guitare Noire. Tour.

The Set list of this first night was:
Mechanical Bride
Serpentine
Watcher of the Skies
Hairless heart
Firth of Fifth
Riding the Colossus
The Steppes
Walking Away from Rainbows
Sierra Quemada
Vampyre with a Healthy Appetite
Satie : Gnossienne No. 3
Tower Struck Down
Darktown
Camino Royale
In Memoriam

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Los Endos (encore)

How to begin describing this gig? The first number was unusual and ‘mechanical’, sounding as its title indicates, very fusion-like. It even had a catchy melody which Paolo couldn’ t stop humming the rest of the evening. Serpentine was a beautiful mellow ballad, quite colourful and cheerful sounding. Hairless heart and FoF were pristine. If you’d shut your eyes it was like hearing Genesis playing back in the Wind and Wuthering days. Very articulate playing by all the band members without one wrong note. And for the first time in a Hackett concert the introduction of instruments such as the saxophone (correct me if I’m wrong about this, as I vaguely recall some sax on the Tokyo Tapes) and the clarinet played by Ben Castle.

At one point the band went into segments of Dancing with the Moonlit Knight. A definite teaser and somewhat of a disappointment, as all medleys, as one wants to hear the whole piece performed. To me and many other fans the highlight of the concert was unquestionably The Steppes. It was haunting and powerful moment filled with emotion and nostalgia. I could hardly stand still. I can remember Steve doing this number on the Defector tour, where it was played with the same physical intensity with a Steve swaying his arms back and forth thrashing at his guitar lever and sliding his fingers down the strings vigorously to creating these demonic typical, Ritchie Blackmore inspired ‘ring noises’ which I have coined, many years ago, as ‘Zuits’. Steve finds the term amusing and I hereby thank him for one of the most amazing Zuits of the evening on ‘ Watchers’. It was like Clint Eastwood after firing his Magnum: ’You made my day’, Grazie, Steve! Walking away From Rainbows and Sierra Quemada sounded even better live then the studio version, very dreamy. Vampyre sounded very spooky with lots of effects on Steve’s voice.

The Satie number was played with Steve using electric guitar and Ben playing clarinet instead of flute. I honestly must say that this version sounded more enchanting then the acoustic album version. The clarinet gave more body to the piece rendering it more ‘Arabian’ or exotic sounding. An extra Satie number would have been appreciated. The crowd gave a very warm applause on this number.

Tower Struck Down was awesome with Steve including for the first time (as far as I know) the pre-recorded ‘cough’ sound so characteristic of this old classic. The last three numbers of the set were less interesting for me as they are songs which just don’t ‘shake my tree’. In Memoriam is beautiful but a bit too sad to my taste. Luckily the band lifted my spirit and brought me back to life with their grand finale, Los Endos, which once again was up to the standard of how Genesis used to play it. I kind of missed the beautiful dry ice and lights cast in stone by the famous Gallo Photo on the ‘Seconds Out’ album cover. If one criticism of this show can be made in terms of visuals, it was undeniably the lack of any light-show. There were simply standard lights illuminating the musicians with no fantasy or effort made in that direction.

Perhaps if the band had brought their own PA and lighting this would have been different. In any case, the music is what counts the most even if I feel that Steve’s music always has had an extra added value with a good light show.

In terms of sound, which was beyond the control Steve’s technical team, it left a lot to be desired. It was a borrowed PA system stacked up on the stage instead of being suspended in the air for better sound, and there was for most of the show a humming sound coming from ,what I later discovered, from Roger King’s key-boards.

I also disliked the fact that Steve hardly addressed the audience. No in-between song banter left a rather icy feel in the air. I realise that Steve has always been a bit on the shy side, but in private he’s quite a blabber and he’s got an excellent sense of humour!

As for my appreciation of the other band members, on the whole I will say that they were very professional with excellent command of their instruments. But, it is difficult to judge them when most of the time my eyes as well as everyone else’s’ were fixed on Steve. Ben Castle who really excels on the saxophone and clarinet was outstanding and got a great dose of applause’s. Phil’s bass was very ‘woody’ and contributed greatly to the intensity of the songs. Most of the band sang and they sounded great in unison.

That’s about it folks...

Concert review: Steve Hackett at Castello Malatestiano di Cesena – 11th July 2000

Basically this was a smaller concert in terms of attendance. About 250 people. It was the same set as in Vigevano with an extra encore : Horizons and the only moment when Steve pulled out his acoustic guitar on the tour so far. Globally a much more intimate concert with a much better PA system. And, oh, I almost forgot, not a single mosquito in sight on this night. At Vigevano it was vampires night out…At the end of the evening Paolo face looked like the Slipperman costume from the Lamb show!! I was scratching my bites for days after…that bloody anti-repellent I used did not work for me.. I want my money back.

A few technical problems like at most concerts but on the whole great sound engineering and a band which already was less tense but just as disciplined as during the first night. They played at a lower volume to the point that ear plugs were hardly necessary. Earplugs, drugs, who on earth would use that for a Steve Hackett concert? The music is our drug! The courtyard of this castle was even more beautiful then the one in Vigevano, with spot-lights illuminating the ancient walls giving this very marked ‘Spectral’ atmosphere to the concert.

In Cesena the band spent more time at the sound-check. Most of the afternoon in fact. As a result, the fruit of their hard labour was felt. Again, the same emotion on The Steppes (next time I’ll pop some vallium to calm me down!) I felt like a teenager. It was like a time warp, being brought back to those early Hackett shows of 1979/80 which I was lucky to see. Steve is still so much the central figure that the absence of a Nick Magnus or a John Schearer was hardly felt. This was not the opinion of some of my friends who were far more critical about the band then I was. Some fans were also disappointed by the absence of material from Spectral Mornings. On both nights I heard the occasional hecklers asking for Everyday or Spectral Mornings to be played. I agree on that point, this album is far too important in Steve’s discography to be completely left out. I also regretted not hearing Twice around the Sun which to me is the best track on Dark Town.

I would like to close this interview by thanking Billy Budis for the effort and energy he has put into getting this ‘experimental tour’ on the road. At most moments I saw him in a ‘highly strung’, hardly relaxed and visibly discontent mood, which I can fully understand but I would like him to know that he cannot even measure the level of joy these concerts, which he has so well orchestrated, have brought to Steve’s most loving fans in the most loveable of countries : Italy. Grazie Steve, Billy and all at Blue Sky. I hope this will tour will be the start of a future world tour. Spread the Gospel lads, ‘twice around the sun’.

Lugano, Switzerland – 17th July 2000
Roger Salem
(a fan and occasional contributor to Dusk)