Peter Gabriel

Peter Gabriel emerged from Genesis as progressive rock's most theatrically ambitious frontman, then reinvented himself as a solo artist who fused art rock with world music, electronic experimentation and unflinching emotional vulnerability. His third and fourth self-titled albums (1980's "Melt" and 1982's "Security") established his template: dense, percussive arrangements built on African and Middle Eastern rhythms, processed through gated reverb and synthesiser textures that sounded both ancient and futuristic. "Sledgehammer" from 1986's So became MTV's most-played video, its Aardman Animations stop-motion work matching the song's exuberant funk. Gabriel's Real World Records and WOMAD festivals didn't just showcase global sounds but embedded them into Western pop consciousness at a moment when multiculturalism remained more theoretical than practical. His commitment to human rights, particularly through Amnesty International tours, positioned him as rock's conscience without the sanctimony. The whispered intensity of "Don't Give Up" or "In Your Eyes" revealed someone mapping internal landscapes with the same curiosity he applied to Senegalese drumming or Bulgarian voices. He made sincerity sound radical.