The Knife vs Knife Edge

Kinda of bad comparison in my book, but it is what it is. In terms of character and when it came out, and made itself known and seen, I think that "Knife Edge" is way more valuable and important and that while the Genesis piece is nice, it is a bit over blown, and (possibly) overrated as well. 

I like those early Genesis albums, but did not bother with them until a year or two after SEBTP ... while the ELP stuff I had from the first day, when I got PAAE immediately to compare to other classical pieces, which, generally speaking stands up nicely, but very different. My only take on some of the Genesis stuff was that the "illusion" side of things was meant to be meaningful and forceful, so the band did not feel kinda ignored for cheap pop tunes, and songs. Also, if the costumes get taken out, I think that a lot of their stuff falls kinda flat, and a singer has to be way up and above and beyond the capabilities to make the material come alive. While I have always liked PG, I don't think he is that singer, and in his solo albums you can see the limitations by sounding similar and the lyrical design getting repetitive to hide his lack of ability. He does have a lot of nice things, I will admit.