With a career spanning some 40 years, Steve Hackett has continued to blaze a trail across the prog firmament of which most other musicians can only dream. Once the introverted, bearded and bespectacled guitarist with Genesis, since his departure from the band in 1977,  he has carved a solo career, which includes more than 20 albums and collaborations with other musicians including his flautist brother John.

After a relatively quiet period, he came roaring back last year with the immaculate Out Of The Tunnel’s Mouth which was accompanied by some stunning live performances including a slightly abbreviated appearance at the High Voltage Festival in London. So is Beyond The Shrouded Horizon as good as its predecessor? The answer fortunately is a resounding “yes.” In recent times, his songs have been punctuated by certain episodes in his personal life which often made for lyrically interesting material. But now, he appears to put that particular past behind him having recently married Jo, who has co-written many of the songs and really seems to have brought a spring and a fresh new energy into the body of work here.

Retaining the Electric Band line-up (Messrs Nick Beggs, Roger King, Gary O’Toole, Rob Townsend and Mlle Amanda Leamon), who played so brilliantly with him on the recent tours, the album is a magical mystery tour to some very special places dear to Hackett’s heart. However, what you will notice throughout this album is the immaculate, almost totally effortless way in which Hackett can coax some magic out of his beloved Gibson Les Paul, using every effect in the book, to produce a collection of diverse and highly listenable pieces. Packed full of different moods and textures, this is one of the stand-out prog albums of the year, crafted by one of the greatest exponents of the genre. This album takes the Hackett canon of work to a completely new level. It’s not to be missed.

This review is available in book format (hardcover and paperback) in Music Street Journal: 2011  Volume 6 at lulu.com/strangesound.

The swelling opening  chords of “Loch Lomond” leading into a huge slab of melody punctuated by the characteristic wah-wah guitar sound opening into a melodic acoustic section topped by lush harmonies with Amanda Leamon clearly audible and also some bagpipes – perhaps another first in prog.