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The Movie: After the success of his "Growing Up Live" DVD in 2003, Peter Gabriel once again joined with director Hamish Hamilton (U2) for "Still Growing Up: Live & Unwrapped", which follows Gabriel on tour across Europe. Despite having already grown up and starting to grow older, Gabriel still remains a marvelous performer, putting a good deal of energy into his performance, playing to the audience well and, importantly, looking like he's having fun. That joyful attitude carries over to the audience, who follow along with the tunes, such as the moment where they sing along to the opening beat of "Sledgehammer". The description of the shows make them out to be smaller, more straightforward affairs, but the venues don't exactly look like intimate clubs and there's definitely still some flash - see the pretty nifty "light suit" that Gabriel comes out wearing during "Sledgehammer". Hamilton also edits the concert fairly heavily, as there are quite a few cuts and tricks (split screens, for example) during the show. For those who want a more visually toned-down look at the show, the second disc offers "Unwrapped", a look at performances from director Anna Gabriel, Peter's daughter, who collaborates with Hamilton. However, this footage also has Gabriel's comments on the track at times and some additional behind-the-scenes footage added in. It seemed odd to me that Gabriel's comments weren't instead made into a separate commentary track, but oh well - it is nice to get a different, more subdued perspective here. While my reaction to Hamilton's visual style was mixed, Gabriel's music still shines through in spectacular fashion, as classics like "Digging in the Dirt" still stand up incredibly well today, and Gabriel's vocals still are as emotional, haunting and powerful as they've always been. Overall, a very entertaining concert performance. Disc 1: 1. The Feeling Begins (from Passion) 2. Red Rain 3. Secret World 4. White Ashes 5. Games Without Frontiers 6. Burn You Up 7. The Tower That Ate People 8. San Jacinto 9. Digging In The Dirt 10. Solsbury Hill 11. Sledge Hammer 12. Come Talk To Me 13. Biko DISC TWO – STILL GROWING UP UNWRAPPED 1. The Feeling Begins (from Passion) 2. Red Rain 3. Secret World 4. White Ashes 5. Burn You Up 6. San Jacinto 7. Digging In The Dirt 8. Solsbury Hill 9. Sledge Hammer 10. The Tower That Ate People 11. Come Talk To Me 12. Biko The DVD VIDEO: The concert footage is presented in 1.78:1 anamorphic widescreen and looks absolutely terrific. Sharpness and detail are first-rate throughout much of the show, with only the occasional wide shot and crowd footage looking a bit more fuzzy than the rest. On a positive note, there were hardly any concerns to be found, aside from some minor shimmering and a tiny artifact or two. No edge enhancement or any other concerns were spotted. Colors looked great, as stage lighting never appeared smeary. Black level also remained solid, as well. Overall, certainly a terrific effort. SOUND: The Dolby Digital 5.1 and DTS 5.1 presentations are excellent, with the instruments spread nicely (and quite distinctly, as every instrument is clearly heard in the mix instead of one big sound where everything fights for attention) across the front soundstage and reinforced by the rears. Surrounds offered some reinforcement of the music, as well as a good helping of crowd noise. Thankfully, the mix remained enveloping throughout, while also remaining appropriate and tasteful. Audio quality was fantastic, as instrumentals and vocals sounded wonderfully well-recorded and crisp. Both the Dolby Digital and DTS presentations are enjoyable, but the DTS presentation wins out in comparison, as it offers a more seamless and enveloping sound, as well as tighter, richer bass. EXTRAS: Disc 1 offers a couple of bonus tracks: "In Your Eyes", from the 2004 "Still Growing Up" tour, and "No Self Control", from the 1998 "This Way Up" tour, presented here in 5.1 audio. The second disc offers studio footage of Peter Gabriel and the band performing "Darkness", "NO Way Out" and "Growing Up" in the studio and "Downside Up" and "Father,Son" on the BBC show "Later...With Jools Holland". Final Thoughts: "Still Growing Up: Live and Unwrapped" offers a highly enjoyable performance from Gabriel and his band. The two different concert presentations give viewers a choice as to the look of the presentation, but I was a little curious as to why Gabriel's comments couldn't have been made into a separate commentary for "Unwrapped" instead. Still, it's a very nice package that offers a great concert performance and excellent audio/video quality. Recommended. |