SELLING ENGLAND BY THE POUND

Genesis (with Peter Gabriel) is commonly know as one of the greatest progressive rock bands out there. After you listen to this album, it will be difficult for you to disagree. "Selling England by the Pound" is Genesis' fifth studio album, and was a large step forward for the band. Out of the eight tracks on the album (clocking just over 50 minutes), only one comes to mind that is a bit of a let down, being "The Battle of Epping Forest" (there is such a thing as TOO much jamming). Each member of the band has grown as a musician, and the band itself has grown much tighter. You can really tell these guys know each others styles and easily make all of their parts fit wonderfully with each other. It's very rare that you hear a band that is this close together in terms of sound. This album has a ton of great songs, and many of them you will want to listen to again. The great thing about them is that they're constantly moving. Often a song ends in an entirely different way then it started, and this constant change really makes the music interesting to listen to. From the flute solos, to the guitar solos, to the piano solos, this band really pulls off great music. The music is catchy, while at the same time being interesting and techinically complicated. In terms of actual instrumentation, Genesis is no let down. Tony Banks, the pianist / synthist, begins to play a more dominant part in the band, having more complex solos and parts in the songs. His playing has definitely gotten even better from the last album, and even when his part isn't as important he manages to make it sound amazing. Phil Collins does a fantastic job on drums, able to keep up with strange time signature while still keeping things interesting and moving. Steve Hackett's guitar playing is also nearly flawless. He is able to acheive a very amazing tone, and while for the most part his guitar playing is not overly complicated, the feeling and emotion in it can really be heard. It may be strange to say, but I almost felt like there wasn't enough guitar however.. Other than that though, the guitar is fantastic. Mike Rutherford's bass is good.. when it's there. When he plays, he plays beautifully, but there could definitely be a lot more of it. Many songs feel slightly lacking without a powerful bass part. Finally, Peter Gabriel's flute parts are breathtaking. They fit in perfectly with the style of song and sound amazing. So basically, this album is great. The band obviously consists of very talented musicians who know what they're doing and do it well. There are a few downsides, including some of the extended jamming and lack of guitar solos and bass, but these are relatively minor when compared to all of the good parts.