the year 2007 could have been labeled the “year of the dinosaurs” in some ways since there were so many “reunited” bands out on the road which included Genesis. and as with most big reunion tours, a companion CD has been released – Live Over Europe 2007. the live recording is excellent with a clear pristine mix and great performances captured from various shows of their european leg of their world tour. the big downer for me personally is the fact that Phil Collins isn’t able to sing the songs in their original key so at times the songs sound a bit strange to me. Some listeners may not notice but for long time fans, it’s pretty obvious (and jarring). and when you’re used to a song performed in the original key, the songs that are modulated lower tend to sound “less exciting” and “less energetic”. just listen to “Land of Confusion” and “Tonight, Tonight Tonight” and pretty much anyone can tell the songs just don’t “snap, crackle and pop” like they did back in the eighties. and it has nothing to do with the perfomance but simply because their performing them in a different key. don’t get me wrong, seeing this legendary group live in concert is a totally different experience all together. but when you’re just listening to a live recording, the listener gets to really focus in on the songs, and for me, the key changes simply make me want to pull out the original recordings.
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