...AND THEN THERE WERE THREE...

Let me explain this transition with a comparison to soup: In early 70's, Genesis developed a new and original recipe for soup. You could taste more influences, different ingredients, different genres, different time epochs together. Absolutely amazing brand. Then Peter Gabriel left and the band proved to be still able to provide high quality music, maybe not so original as before, but still above standard. But with this album, I dare say that they produced a rehash of something that was being cooked for couple of years before. The atmosphere and musicianship is there, yes (I especially enjoy Collins's drumming), but I have a feeling like I already heard it on previous 2 albums. What's more, I find it irritating to hear Bank's keyboards at the beginning of songs like The Lady Lies, Deep in Motherlode or Rutherford's guitar in Scenes from a Night's Dream. It just makes me think that the band wants to build a song on some cheesy melody just in the sake of writing a song. I find writing most of the songs have just become a stale routine.

I was always so sad that 70's had to finish and prog with it, but Genesis showed me different viewpoint on the topic and that is that nothing lasts for ever. This album is a prove that most prog bands have depleted themselves and had to find new source. I remember when I first heard Many too Many and Follow You Follow me. I didn't like the first one and I thought about the second one: "what a piece of sh..." Well, that was because of the context of the Gabriel era. In the context of this album I think that these two songs are fresher and more interesting than longer songs as attempts to stick with the past. Unfortunately there is no way back and still, I consider Duke great album and I find at least 2 great songs on each 80's album (maybe except for Abacab).

PS: Steve Hackett is very missed - on the previous album, Tony Banks tended to absorb all the space for himslef, but he is not Emerson, there might have been arguments between these 2, but here, after Hackett's departure, Banks' creativity seems shocked and as if he got scared from the suddenly gained space. I believe he needed this tension and competition.

Let me finish with an experiment question: If this album had been released by a completely different and unknown band, would it be appreciated more or less than the way it is now?

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