Yamaha DTXpress/DTXplorer/DTXtreme

I saw Peter Gabriel last night at a semi-outdoor venue outside of 
Boston. My seat was near the sound board. It was interesting seeing 
the intricacy of it, though very little needed to be done once the 
show began. The sound crew is recording each concert on this tour 
and making it available through PG's website. 

The setting was far more intimate than PG's ones of recent memory, 
without the elaborate staging, though it was not without its 
invention, surprise, and eccentricity. I won't spoil the fun in case 
anyone is planning to attend. Anyhow, Peter spoke frequently and 
warmly to the crowd, which received him well, though there was a 
catcall or two when he chided US foreign policy a bit.

The band had the core personnel of Tony Levin and David Rhodes, with 
multi-instrumentalist Richard Evans (who seems to have come onboard 
with PG's millennial project), a new keyboardist (from the classical 
world), and a new young drummer--Gan Lynch, who has played on PG's 
recent albums. Lynch's style is relatively simple, relative to that 
of PG's former drummers--Jerry Marotta and Manu Katche--but no less 
effective. He was powerful and tasteful, even if not as intricate as 
his predecessors. For some of the material, he switched his forward-
facing positon behind his Premier drums 90 degrees to the right, to 
play what sounded like a couple of generic electronic pieces. Given 
PG's long-standing relationship with Clavia, I wouldn't be surprised 
if it were ddrum equipment. 

A fine time was had by all. Highly recommended.

Ed

I meant to add that PG's daughter played the role of the female 
singer this time around. The opening act, a band from Uzbekistan, 
was superb, mixing modern and traditional movements, instruments, 
and styles. The drummer, who looked like someone from The Man Who 
Would Be King, played ferociously when the situation warranted. The 
group's name escapes me as I sit here (bad Ed), but I'll think of it 
if anyone is interested. You can also find them on the first page of 
the Real World Records website. I plan to buy their album.