I was up late one Saturday night watching Night Flight on USA. A hairy leprechaun was leaping about in front of this band and it was just damn wild. I had no idea who this was but I was instantly intrigued. Even more intriguing was when the announcer stated that this was GENESIS. Now at the time, I knew GENESIS to be a trio and though I enjoyed a lot of the music I had heard from them, it was limited to a few albums and songs I had heard on the radio. Boy, was I about to be schooled. A few days later I was talking to a friend about it as we drove over to Buttons (formally Peaches) and he told me a mutual acquaintance of ours was a big fan of their early works. I picked up a copy of DUKE and a 2-tape set called THE LAMB LIES DOWN ON BROADWAY. As we drove around listening to my new purchases he told me that in the album version of TLLDOB there is a story that I should read before I got too deeply into it, so we headed to said acquaintances house and after having a snort of snuff gave his door a ring. "Man, it smells great in here" we jokingly said as my friend explained why we were there. Out came the album and I poured over the story, trying to take it all in but really only scratching the surface. This was my introduction. TLLDOB turned into a pastime. As I got more deeply into it and more of my friends were introduced, we would get together some evenings, turn down the lights, spark a few candles, and go on the journey through the streets of New York and listen to what Rael had to tell us. Okay, so we were dorks, but that album had so much to offer on so many levels that our dorkdom was justified. "Hey, nothing's going on tonight... Let's Lamb Lies It..." and we'd grab some beer and go to whoever's home was available and off we would go on our journey. At times girls would stop by and wonder if we were in some strange cult. Little did I know it at the time, but we were. There were other albums that got similar treatment (P.F.'s - WISH YOU WERE HERE,.. THE DARK SIDE OF THE MOON...) but TLLDOB got special treatment. Fast forward almost 18 years... Last year I noticed that a group called THE MUSICAL BOX was coming through Chicago. It looked intriguing, but my cynical side warned me to avoid it... having a horrible attitude to all things cover and all things tribute. The show came and went... but a few months later, the aforementioned mutual acquaintance dropped me an e-mail telling me about this band that does live shows as early GENESIS... not just the music, but the actual performance. There were some links attached and I took a look and listen... and I was amazed... and bummed. I said to myself that if given the chance again, I would not miss it... That chance came again this past Saturday night... and as luck would have it, they would be performing the LLDOB tour... the entire 2-disc set... as it was back in the day when Gabriel graced the stage with an amazing musical cast. I parked the car and took a toke in order to help suspend any disbelief and made my way to The House of Blues not long before set time... had a beer and stood there as the fly buzzed hovering before the windshield... and with a barrage of familiar notes, I was taken to a time and an experience that I never believed I would ever get in this lifetime. It was great. These guys had it dead on. I didn't get a sense of pretense with these guys... prancing around "acting"... they were doing. The music was all there,.. as were the subtleties and nuances of the original. Needless to say, I was swept away in revelry and experience for the next hour and a half... as was the crowd, those who were a part of the cult,.. singing along to every word and swaying to these Mesmers. We "Lamb Lies'd It" in a way that I had never done before. After accolades they performed THE MUSICAL BOX,.. as well as WATCHER IN THE SKIES (I hope I remember correctly), complete with costumes and, again, every note in tact. I sat there humming in my buzz and engulfed in my experience. I thanked their sound engineer and made my way to my car through the coming rain... drove to the roof of the parking garage and watched the clouds and lightning move across the amazing architecture of Chicago for a few moments... before heading to the street. If you are one of this cult... or have an interest in true concept musical arts, I can't encourage you enough to check out GENESIS' early works... and check these guys out if you have the opportunity: www.themusicalbox.net Thanks guys! Wonderful and true work... On a side note, I heard a quote from Phil Collins on The Howard Stern show about a reunion of GENESIS. At first, I wasn't aware that the 3 had parted ways... but the quote read said something about "...sitting back & playing drums and letting Peter sing might be fun..." Could this be? Was I just tripping this morning...? Perhaps residue...