I kinda feel bad about saying I listened to this. Usually I won't post an album here unless I've heard all of it, or maybe all of it except for a song or two (especially when said songs are big hits or personal favorites that are permanently etched in my brain).
But I skipped through about half of this. Listened to 30 seconds or so of each song in the second half and then hit the "skip" button.
Because it's wretched.
Basically, in case you didn't know, this album is ex-Genesis guitarist Steve Hackett's re-workings of some of the better Genesis tunes of the 70s. It sounds like a good concept, but no, it's a terrible disappointment.
Oh, it has strengths...the audio quality is stellar. Hackett's playing is sublime, showing more technique and prowess picked up since his days with the band. The title track, "Watcher of the Skies" is awesome.
I guess they placed it at the beginning of the album so listeners would maybe hang around just to see if anything else is as good.
Nothing is.
I could cite a few issues I have with "Watcher of the Skies: Genesis Revisited", but I only want to focus on one: the vocal stylings on "Dance on a Volacano" and "The Fountain of Salmacis". Both songs feature a deep, low register spoken word instead of actual singing. It sounds more like a death metal grumble, only with better enunciation so you can understand the words. It will make you long for the original. Even the most hardcore Phil Collins hater would beg to get him back in the vocal chair after hearing this awful take on "Volcano".
The supporting cast is stellar, including Tony Levin, Bill Bruford and and John Wetton. But it only goes to show that you can have great musicians and great songs but still wind up with a crappy record.
If it had not been Hackett I would have shrugged this project off as a bad Genesis tribute album. I expected more from him.
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