SOMEWHERE BUT YESTERDAY

Their first album "Serpents In Camouflage" was rather pleasant for the old Genesis fan that I am. Similar PG vocals, same sort of keyboards playing. A good album although inspiration was a bit thin. A characteristic of this band is that they propose long and complex compositions.

All the ingredients of their first release is concentrated in the opening number : exaggerated Gabriel vocals, carbon-copy of Banks keyboard, but no nice little story. Only a good sub-par Genesis song. Don't get me wrong : I like "Citizen Cain" 's music (so far at least). It is a pleasant trip back to my youth (the early seventies) but by no means can they fill the hole left by the masters. Actually, this hole will always remain empty...

Something strange happened between the first time I have listened to this band and today. The more I listen to them, the least I like them. "Junk And Donuts" is fully neo-prog and I wonder how this band is categorized in PA symphonic section. The type of music they play fully ranges them in the neo-prog category. Something to change I guess. Or vice-versa : all the same type of bands ("The Watch", "Chaneton", "Rael" etc. should be moved in the symph category). It's up to the admin team of course, but still I will mention this where more relevant and when time will allow.

Similarities with Genesis are plenty. "To Dance the Enamel" is pretty close to "The Battle Of Epping Forrest" (vocally, but not only). I don't know why I have such a nice feeling about "The Battle". Actually it was not love at first sight but when I rediscover the Genesis repertoire ages after their release I started to really like this song, so I like this clone as well.

The epic one of this album "Somewhere But Yesterday" (over twenty-five minutes) is actually like the rest of the album. You listen to it, you feel you like it and that's it. And the more you listen, the more you get the impression that it is not so brilliant as you thought it was...Nice flute moments, lots of vocals, typical keys. Is it helpful to tell you that there will be some "Supper's Ready" moments (almost copied around minutes 13). Still, it is the best song of this album.

Each long song, will be "acompanied" with a short piece of music / recitation. Interesting to notice that the one glued to the epic, speaks about restoring the power of the British ...pound ("Selling" maybe) ?

For nostalgic persons as I am, this album is a good one. By no means the creativity and absolute maestria of the ... masters is reached. Therefore, three stars seems a logical rating to me. This might sound as a low rating since most reviewers consider this either as a masterpiece or a four stars album. Maybe at first sight, but on the long run it seems a bit overrated. And this album is desesperately too long.