Speaking to Produce Like A Pro recently, Steve Hackett talked about the influences that shape his music. When asked about what the members of Genesis think about Steve Hackett’s recent projects, Hackett said:
“The only one who’s really commented is Tony Banks. I was there at the launch of Mike Rutherford’s autobiography, and he said to me, ‘You’re keeping the legacy of the band alive.’ I fully expected Toni to step into me and say, ‘What the hell do you think you’re doing?’ But it was completely the opposite reaction. I didn’t expect that at all. You never know with Tony which version you’re going to get. And I thought, ‘Oh well, okay, yes indeed.’ And of course, I’m celebrating so much of his early work.”
Steve Hackett, who focuses specifically on influences outside of Rock and Roll, also talked about the early years of Genesis by saying:
“It’s very subtle, I think; the atmospheres the band conjured were not obvious rock ‘n’ roll. There were other things that were on the agenda. And the idea of ‘Church music meets syncopation,’ I think that’s what defined quite a lot of early Genesis. ‘Big Band meets [English composer] Ralph Vaughan Williams.’ We were listening to different turntables, and you get the collision of these ideas. It’s what makes up its Englishness and its idiosyncratic approach.”
Genesis And Early Periods
In the interview, the successful musician also touched on what he did in ‘Genesis’ and talked about the combinations of musical instruments they use and the importance of balance
“To do a guitar bass with Genesis, that normally meant that you typically had tinkly 12-string passages as opposed to a guitar-based tune that starts off with power chords… It was much more pastoral, I think.”
He continued his explanations with the current functioning of the music-making process:
“I understand this whole thing about [how] two people is all you need to make a hit record — the programmer and the singer. But then, everything I’ve done is flown in the face of that ever since that technology was available.”
Hackett added:
“So, yes, it’s all the things you can’t do on an iPad. I guess that’s it. However, we use technology of course, to stitch everything together. We used analog, digital, everything. I can’t say making modern records is more fun than making a very inaccurate… Lots of fun was had back in the day, doing these very inaccurate records that were a bit of a party at the time. You know, you don’t listen to ‘Sgt. Pepper’ for its precision; for it’s quantized this and that, and all those vocals put in tune. But that’s part of the appeal.”
Vintage Approaches In Today’s Music
According to Steve Hackett, vintage approaches continue to shape today’s music. Talking about the effects of technology on music, the guitarist states that the rebellious forms and reactions of the youth are especially influenced by vintage attitudes.
You can watch the entire interview below.
