A CURIOUS FEELING

I think reviewer Mogens Gallardo hit it right on the nail: to get the most enjoyment out of this album, forget that it's from an ex-GENESIS member and enjoy it for what it is. When it comes down to the crunch, music, after all, is all about feeling. And as with love and sex, intellectual considerations fly out the door and pleasure sets in if only you will allow yourself to go with the flow.

This first solo album gave us a glimpse as to who was responsible for the undercurrent behind the music of GENESIS, but the man obviously did not intend to make another G album. As opposed to MIKE RUTHERFORD's easily memorable, sing-song melodies or PHIL COLLINS' 'in-your-face' type of music, BANKS' is all impressions such as one would find in film scores. It can nevertheless be very moving if your musical antennaes can pick up the thread. Like the undertow (pardon the pun), this music weaves its way deep into your soul and speaks to you in powerful, almost subconscious ways. Had the recording techniques of the 70's been any sharper and the vocalist totally absent, I would gladly have given this album 4 stars (I reserve my 5 stars for truly exceptional albums). This being said, I'll drown in this music any day, any time of day.