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Calling All Stations has some legit good songs
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Deadwing View Drop Down
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    Posted: August 10 2020 at 02:27
As long you forget this is a Genesis album and more like a neo-prog one, among the endless amount of filler, Calling all Stations has some songs that are pretty fun to listen to. I decided to make a more compact version of the album and it ended being a nice 3.5 stars album. Here's the tracklist I've made:

1 - Congo: The poppiest of the selection, it has actually some really nice hooks and a cool little keyboard solo in the end with a more consistent structure than the title track. The drums on both tracks are unimaginative, though.

2 - Alien Afternoon: Pretty cool track with nice pads in the intro and a great crescendo towards the end.

3 - There must be some other way: Nice introspective track with a great keyboard solo in the mid-section, it drags on a bit after the solo though, but still a great track.

4 - The dividing line: The best track of the album for me, with a great drum beat, energy and nice opening and closing keyboard solos.

5 - One Man's Fool: The closer is a two part songs reminiscent of tracks like Driving the last Spike or Domino, with again a really nice crescendo at the end.

Total Duration: 37:22

Still not Genesis, but without the filler the whole thing becomes a lot better, IMO.
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No.
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^Yikes, tough crowd.
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I like the album, a shame Banks and Rutherford did not use Wilson much in the writing process, Ray is a good songwriter on his own. 
I think this album would not have been so hated had it been called Banks, Rutherford & Wilson or something else and not Genesis. 
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Rule of thumb, you should shamelessly like the music you like and not let anyone else’s opinion have any bearing on how much you enjoy something. It’s a 2 way street, if you don’t enjoy something there’s no need to try to tear it down for everyone who does enjoy it. I see it all the time with fans of Opeths death metal era regarding their new direction for the past decade. It’s just not worth dwelling on after so many years, all those old beloved albums are always gonna be there. I just feel bad for Wilson, dude probably thought he was finally getting his big break when in reality it destroyed his career and got him endless hate.
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Originally posted by Cristi Cristi wrote:

. . . I think this album would not have been so hated had it been called Banks, Rutherford & Wilson or something else and not Genesis. 


I always thought this too. Taken on its own, it would have been a decent solo or project album for Mike and/or Tony but should NEVER had the Genesis name attached to it. Doing so unfairly inflated expectations for the album and unnecessarily detracted from the reputation of Genesis.
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CAS never really done anything for me, and I don't really regard it as Genesis. They should have split after Collins left, and the just produced 'projects' under the name 'Rutherford & Banks' collaborating with various respected musicians. I would have liked collaborations with the likes of Francis Dunnery, Mark Hollis, Sylvian and Mick Karn, Eno, Trevor Horn, Kate Bush...

I think for Genesis to be Genesis, Phil Collins or Gabriel or Hackett at the very least need to be present. That's just my narrow minded take on it...
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Points: 43738 		Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Cristi Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: August 10 2020 at 05:11
Originally posted by dougmcauliffe dougmcauliffe wrote:

Rule of thumb, you should shamelessly like the music you like and not let anyone else’s opinion have any bearing on how much you enjoy something. It’s a 2 way street, if you don’t enjoy something there’s no need to try to tear it down for everyone who does enjoy it. I see it all the time with fans of Opeths death metal era regarding their new direction for the past decade. It’s just not worth dwelling on after so many years, all those old beloved albums are always gonna be there. I just feel bad for Wilson, dude probably thought he was finally getting his big break when in reality it destroyed his career and got him endless hate.

it hurt his career just a little bit, as he even admitted in an interview. But he is fine, his albums re quite good and he revived Stiltskin in the 2000s and did quite well. He even was invited onstage by Steve Hackett. Check this out Big smile
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Wilson sings really well in the album, IMO. Biggest problem with me in CAS are the drums, with probably were done first in a drum machine and then they got translated almost in 1:1 with real drums, which is a shame because Nick's work in BBT is stellar, for example.

The lack of good drum patterns is a consequence of lack of dynamics in most songs arrangements, though. Most songs have the same beat and energy all the way through it, the exceptions being the ones I've posted in the OP

Edited by Deadwing - August 10 2020 at 05:58
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I'm glad other people are able to find some merit in it but OOF, this album's a rough one for me. I own the CD (I got it for my birthday once as a joke so I didn't spend a penny on it, and I've kept it purely out of completionism) but I've never been able to listen through it all in one sitting because it just wears me down. It's so devoid of energy that it feels like every single note played on it caused the musicians physical pain, and most of it sounds totally indistinguishable from the generic mid-tempo grungey "alternative" rock that permeated radio stations in the early 2000s. "Not About Us" probably wouldn't sound that much out of place on a Nickelback album.
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Originally posted by dougmcauliffe dougmcauliffe wrote:

Rule of thumb, you should shamelessly like the music you like and not let anyone else’s opinion have any bearing on how much you enjoy something. It’s a 2 way street, if you don’t enjoy something there’s no need to try to tear it down for everyone who does enjoy it. I see it all the time with fans of Opeths death metal era regarding their new direction for the past decade. It’s just not worth dwelling on after so many years, all those old beloved albums are always gonna be there. I just feel bad for Wilson, dude probably thought he was finally getting his big break when in reality it destroyed his career and got him endless hate.
He had his revenge. Stiltskin had a UK number one, something Genesis never achieved.
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Originally posted by Mirakaze Mirakaze wrote:

"Not About Us" probably wouldn't sound that much out of place on a Nickelback album.

I disagree, the song could be on a Mike & the Mechanics album for sure, never a lame band like Nickelback. Dead
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Originally posted by FatherChristmas FatherChristmas wrote:

Originally posted by dougmcauliffe dougmcauliffe wrote:

Rule of thumb, you should shamelessly like the music you like and not let anyone else’s opinion have any bearing on how much you enjoy something. It’s a 2 way street, if you don’t enjoy something there’s no need to try to tear it down for everyone who does enjoy it. I see it all the time with fans of Opeths death metal era regarding their new direction for the past decade. It’s just not worth dwelling on after so many years, all those old beloved albums are always gonna be there. I just feel bad for Wilson, dude probably thought he was finally getting his big break when in reality it destroyed his career and got him endless hate.
He had his revenge. Stiltskin had a UK number one, something Genesis never achieved.

No. Mama was the highest charting single at number 4.
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I actually never listened to the whole album because it had such a bad rap. I heard Congo on the radio, that's all I remember.   I may need to check it out.

Edited by Argo2112 - August 10 2020 at 12:23
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Points: 12732 		Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Dellinger Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: August 10 2020 at 23:08
It's OK. Nothing particularly distasteful, like many such albums from the 80's / 90's. Still, The Dividing Line is particularly good, I think.
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I never thought it was a horrible album. Not one of their best but still a bit underrated imo. Over all it's maybe just a step down from Invisible Touch and maybe about equal to We can dance. I think the title track, alien afternoon and a few others are decent enough. I'm drawing a blank on most of the titles though.
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Points: 3242 		Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote iluvmarillion Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: August 10 2020 at 23:56
I can actually listen to Calling All Stations despite the production of it being terrible. Ray Wilson has a great voice. He deserved better. Three star album for me. 
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