I am a little late to the party on this one, but not by much. Peter Gabriel released I/O, his tenth studio album and first album of new material in over twenty years, in December 2023. I bought it around that time, and it’s been sitting in my “to be listened to” stack since then. Well, kind of. Since this album has two versions (Dark and Bright-Side Mixes), it took me a while to decide between the two since I didn’t really want to get both on vinyl right out of the gate after noting the reviews were mixed on pressing quality.
I finally decided on the Dark-Side version, and bought the album on Amazon. It showed up in a massive box and looked like it had gone through a threshing machine. One of the main advantages of buying records on Amazon is that you can send defective items like this back for an exchange, and the process is very quick. So, I sent it back and received another copy the next day that looked a lot better, but appeared to have been opened. I took a look at the vinyl, and it didn’t seem to have been touched or played. I think that due to the heavy weight of the records, the massive booklet and the kind of loose plastic wrap on the outside, they must have punctured the packaging a bit.
In any case, I could find no problems with anything in the package this second time around, so I decided to keep this one. I cleaned the discs on my VPI, as per usual, and the discs looked great. The packaging itself is high quality, coming with a 12” booklet containing all the lyrics, a download card and cool blue Obi on the front cover. This Obi being the quick way to differentiate between the Bright and Dark versions of the album, with the Bright-Side Obi being pink. I packed up the album in a nice outer and master sleeves and put it on the shelf. There it sat for a few months while I avoided listening to it.
I should say that I am huge Peter Gabriel fan, but at the same time was a little apprehensive about this one. For starters, the two different versions of the same album thing seemed very weird, and obviously looks like just a way to sell more copies of the album. Secondly, the whole concept of the album seemed pretty far out. Peter Gabriel has always been known for embracing new technology to make his music sound better. His SACD’s, for example, are still some of the best ones I have ever heard, and I wish I hadn’t sold mine back in the day.
The intention for the I/O album is way more ambitious that just a new format, however. Apparently, this album is designed to be experienced in virtual reality in a “fully immersive environment”. Apparently, there was some kind of immersive exhibit where you could run around a Peter Gabriel virtual world and somehow manipulate the music. People have been doing this sort of thing for years with Dark Side of the Moon compliments of LSD, no 500.00 headset needed. It does seem like a groundbreaking idea as far as doing it with technology, though. I’m not sure if it’s still going on or if there will be more performances, but the official music video does seem like it would be pretty cool in a VR environment.
When I finally got around to playing the record, I noticed a good amount of background noise that I couldn’t clean away. The noise can get a little loud, but it’s just vinyl noise, which can be expected when you are listening in this format. I know that we have all gotten used to some super quiet pressings nowadays and have a low tolerance for noise of any kind, but personally I can get around it on this album. If it had been any louder it might have been intolerable. It seems like this pressing can also be hit or miss, so your results may vary. If you decide to get a copy of I/O on vinyl, I suggest you also get it from a retailer who’s willing to take it back if it’s damaged. In my experience, Amazon is the best for this. Check out the Dark-Side Mix of I/O at the link below:
Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. All opinions are my own.
Peter Gabriel IO Dark Side Mix
So what about the actual music? Well, don’t expect to find any “In Your Eyes” here. Or “Solsbury Hills” or “Games Without Frontiers”. Or even “Sledgehammer” or “Shock the Monkey” type tunes. I heard the album before I fully learned about the intentions of having this be a virtual reality thing, and now it’s all kind of coming together. I can see it as that type of thing. As a normal album, it’s a pleasant listen. Gabriel’s voice, as far as I can detect, is just as great as it always was. He doesn’t sound ancient or anything. Tony Levin is back on bass, which is always incredible. If you can get past the surface noise, the album is mixed really well. The drums are punchy, the bass is deep, and the sound stage is great.
Song wise, the only track that stuck out to me with “single type” potential is the title track itself, I/O. There were other songs I particularly enjoyed. Specifically, “Road to Joy”, “Olive Tree” and “This Is My Home” are all very good. As mentioned, they probably won’t jump out at you, but they were my favorites, at least on the Dark-Side mix. I may report back when I can give the Bright-Side version a good evaluation.
Originally, I had intended to wait on this review until I got the box-set of I/O which is coming out later this year, but at this point, I’m not so sure I’m going to pick it up just yet. The price seems reasonable for everything you get (as long as the pressing is good), but I don’t know if I like the album THAT much. At least not yet. If you want to take the plunge on the box-set, you can also pre-order that on Amazon cheaper than most other places. If it turns out the pressing isn’t great, just return it and try again.
Lastly, I wanted to mention that I also picked up the SHM CD for this release from Japan. We’ll be talking about SHM and other similar music formats later on this blog, but for now I can tell you that this one is worth getting if you don’t mind doing a little leg work to find it. It doesn’t have the experience of vinyl that many of us are looking for, but the sound is incredible, and the package is nice. It comes with a mini-Obi of its own, both the Bright and Dark-Side Mixes, a smaller version of the large book that comes with the record, and another booklet in Japanese.
Overall, I would give Peter Gabriel’s I/O (Dark-Side Mix) a rating of 7/10. This is going to be a polarizing release though, so don’t let me dissuade you from checking it out on your own. I’m going to listen to it a few more times and give it a chance to grow on me. Maybe by that time, I’ll be ready to dive into the box set.
Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. All opinions are my own.
You can find all the various US versions of IO available on Amazon.