Simon Funnell (simon@genesis-movement.org) - June 2007
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Turning It On In Brussels Simon Funnell (simon@genesis-movement.org) - June 2007 |
I have to say, it felt rather odd being sat some 15ft in front of the stage that in a few days time, will dominate arenas across Europe. With around 250 people in attendance including media, fan club representatives, family and friends, myself and a few French fans had managed to snag front row seats for the production rehearsal in preparation for the 2007 Turn It On Again tour.
The set list has been well documented since shortly after the gig, so I won’t attempt to keep too many secrets here. That said, there are some nice touches in the show that I won’t go into ;-)
Looking slightly apprehensive as they walked out on stage to rapturous applause, the guys opened with a powerful instrumental version of Behind The Lines, leading into Duke’s End. Perhaps predictably, moving on into the first vocal number of the set, Turn It On Again.
After seeing the broadcast from the VH1 Rock Honors awards a few weeks ago, I was worried as to how the band would sound. The VH1 show, to me, did not show the band at their best and it was clear that they were midway through rehearsals. Thankfully, my concerns were put to rest immediately with Phil and the rest of the band sounding on fine form.
The band proceeded to perform the complete set as it will be on the tour. With the very welcome return of In The Cage comes some superb video wall effects. This ‘old medley’ being quite a lot shorter than the 1992, is more reminiscent of the Invisible Touch tour medley. Opening with Cage, I found myself preparing for a segue into In That Quiet Earth. A transition that didn’t occur, something we will have to get used to throughout the tour.
Following an emotionally charged Hold On My Heart comes a deluge of the classic Genesis songs, some of which we haven’t heard for a number of years. The band have clearly tried to include some of the older favourites and there are several moments that are clear nods to their past.
I feel that they have attempted to develop a balanced set list that will please the entire fan base. There will always be those who will complain no matter what is played and I think there would be problems playing some of the much older songs in large arenas. They simply wouldn’t translate.
Ending the set in classic style, the band returned for an encore after a fairly short standing ovation. The set then concludes with a mixture of new and old, a mixture which although I was initially sceptical about, works surprisingly well.
Given that a half empty exhibition hall is hardly going to give the best acoustical qualities to a production of this size, the music was clear and the audience obviously loved it. Being so close to a stage so large, it was impossible to get the full effect of the performance, however this is clearly designed so that it will scale well into some of the bigger arenas and we’re all going to be in for one hell of a show!
The set list, in case you’ve been hiding under a rock or trying to avoid it….
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Behind the Lines / Duke’s End / Turn It On Again Home by the Sea / Second Home By The Sea Ripples Domino I Can’t Dance |