Composer, guitarist, vocalist, and former Genesis member, Steve Hackett is a role model. His passion for the diversity of humanity and his concern for the current world situation are truly moving.
Approaching his shows in Brazil, where he will be promoting his latest album The Night Siren (2017), the British musician took a few minutes to chat with Wikimetal and reveal some details about the album's creative process and his ideas on how music has the power to break down the ever-growing barriers.
“I think music does what politicians fail to do. Right now, most countries seem to be heading towards nationalism, but I think music has the opportunity to build bridges between people ,” he begins by saying.
The strength of his belief that "music heals the differences between people" is transparent in his album, especially in the track "Behind The Smoke," where in its music video he shows the difficulties faced by the population of the Middle East and creates a connection with the Western world while singing, "We will find our future soon / A knife in our hearts / While the world is torn apart."
Steve has worked with over 20 artists from different countries and is proud of his work: “People from Israel and Palestine working with people from Azerbaijan, Iceland and the United States and working with instruments from all over the world, that’s what I think the role of music is.”
He reveals that everyone who came together to make The Night Siren possible are his friends and colleagues, people he met during his travels since his time with Genesis, “It was a natural extension of friendship. Working with people from outside and people from home [UK] ,” he says, “Sometimes working together in the same place, sometimes sending ideas to the other side of the world ,” he recounts when I asked about the album's creation process.
With words of pride and happiness, the guitarist explained that the work was entirely based on getting to know new cultures and exploring different musical styles and instruments: “The idea is the same everywhere: the passion for music (…) Working with people from all over the world is incredible. You come together and strive to understand the person and understand their language and eventually you 'understand each other' [he said in Portuguese].”
While attempting to converse in Portuguese, Hackett demonstrated, once again, his passion and interest in understanding others, respecting differences, and above all, creating a bond with them. “You know, a while back I worked with Brazilian musicians ,” he recounts after trying a few more words in Portuguese, “In the 80s I released the album Till We Have Faces and worked with several Brazilian musicians on it, several percussionists. That’s the cool thing about music, you can work with many different people.”
Till We Have Faces was mostly recorded in Brazil with artists such as bassist Ronaldo Diamante, percussionist Waldemar Falcão, and drummer Rui Motta, who was part of the group Os Mutantes between 1973 and 1978. The album was recorded between 1983 and 1984 and taken to London to be mixed.
Speaking further about his work with different artists, the question of where his influences came from was raised: “When I was young, I listened to basic Rock and Roll and then I heard Segovia when I was 15 and it was like everything I had learned in Rock was something I could play one day for an audience and then I started listening to classical music and it became a secret pleasure and I never thought that these two styles of music could come together but I started to notice some influences like George Martin's work with the Beatles, the use of orchestra, the influence of [The] Moody Blues… All these bands, including Genesis, we all studied how to mix different genres.”
Recalling Genesis' unique sound, which, according to Hackett, was influenced by a wide variety of sources, he recounts the moment when he and his colleagues discovered the band's power: "In 1973, John Lennon gave an interview where he said he listened to Genesis, so we were all very proud at that moment that our influences were starting to listen to us."
The importance of Genesis today is unquestionable, and in the times we live in, where revivals and reunions are popping up every day, many fans still hope for a return. However, Hackett reveals that “ being in a band is competitive, and we don't have much room to grow personally. Our [Genesis'] music was recorded in England or Holland, and the music I make today is recorded in many different places. It's a privilege to be able to do this, it's an honor. I think it's the best job in the world, getting paid to play, it's wonderful. We make noise and get paid for it.”
And when the call was about to drop, he politely asked in Portuguese, "Could you speak one more time, please?" , and when asked about his visit to Brazil, he revealed that he intends to be "a tourist in the country ," also speaking in Portuguese.
“I’ll play some things from my solo career, some from Genesis, the band I had with Steve Howe [GTR]. You know, it’s material for three bands. I remember coming to Brazil a while ago and hearing one of the songs from the album Selling England by the Pound playing on the radio and I thought, ‘They don’t even play that song at home in England,’ so I knew that was something big for Genesis, because we were bigger abroad. But that’s usually what happens, artists tend to have more success abroad than in their own country.”
As our conversation drew to a close, amidst thanks and farewells, the musician tried his Portuguese again: “Thank you very much. See you later. Bye. ”
Steve Hackett will be performing in Porto Alegre (March 20th), São Paulo (March 22nd), Rio de Janeiro (March 23rd), and Belo Horizonte (March 25th). More information about the shows below:
Steve Hackett in Brazil,
Porto Alegre – March 20th
• Venue: Araújo Vianna Auditorium – Av. Osvaldo Aranha, 685
• Time: 9 PM
• Tickets: from R$ 95 (half-price) to R$ 340
São Paulo – March 22nd
• Location: Espaço das Américas – R. Tagipuru, 795
• Time: 10 PM
• Tickets: from R$ 80 (half-price) to R$ 380
Rio de Janeiro – March 23rd
• Venue: Vivo Rio – Rio Address: Av. Infante Dom Henrique, 85
• Time: 10 PM
• Tickets: from R$ 90 (half-price) to R$ 320
Belo Horizonte – March 25th
• Location: Grande Teatro Palácio das Artes – Av. Afonso Pena, 1537
• Time: 7 PM
• Tickets: from R$ 100 (half-price) to R$ 280