TRESPASS

Trespass has a bit of a bad reputation everywhere except, well, progarchives.com, so I guess it'll be useless to try and defend it, since on this website at least it doesn't really need defending. That said, I would go so far as to call it one of Genesis' stronger efforts, if a bit different from their later discography.

"Looking For Someone" begins the album, in a pleasant but unspectacular fashion. Gabriel is, as usual, a master lyricist, in this instance using simple, evocative phrases("Nobody needs to discover me: I'm back again"), but nothing about it truly sinks its hooks into you. The album REALLY gets going with "White Mountain", which is a bit silly, a bit cheesy and overblown, but still thrilling story about a wolf who acquires unlawful knowledge and must fight to keep his life. It's a classic Genesis "storybook" style song and a great blueprint of what was to come. "Visions of Angels"...well, there's not a whole ton to say, it's just a very pretty song.

"Stagnation" is another lovely song, evoking images of Christlike salvation to an undeserving populace, from an unwitting Messiah. More of Gabriel's lovely songwriting is apparent here("Moon, my long lost friend, is smiling down at me...smiling at my tears") and it all builds from a simple folk song to an extremely boisterous, satisfying climax.

While "Dusk" proves unspectacular, probably the weakest link on the album, "The Knife" brings the whole thing to a rollicking close, and is not only the best song on the album but among Genesis' 5 best songs, period. A scathing attack against the Vietnam war(that's my own interpretation, of course, but lines like "We must strike at the lies that have spread like disease through our minds" indicate that this may be the case), "The Knife" is the best argument for the original Genesis lineup. Steve Hackett was a fine replacement for Anthony Phillips, but never once did he manage to replicate the power of the thundering riffs and solos that Phillips cranks out for this song. Phil Collins was probably a better drummer on the whole, but the rumble in the rhythm section of this song has never been repeated. "The Knife" is a triumph of both progressive rock AND heavy metal, and proved to be one of the most exciting, dynamic songs Genesis ever recorded.

"Trespass" is not a perfect record, but it is massively entertaining, totally thrilling and even downright delightful at points. It's worth a full price admission any day of the week, and for six dollars on Itunes you'd be foolish not to pick it up. Go and listen to this always underrated, never repeated interpretation of the myths and tales of Genesis.