Genesis
Wind & Wuthering

THE REVIEW

If you find yourself holed up at home on a cold November evening, with the rain pouring outside the window, in the dark lit only by the occasional lightning flash, and you feel the urge for good music... well, this album could be the ideal listening.

Intensely melancholic and romantic from the very title, "Wind and Wuthering" is the last masterpiece of the progressive era of Genesis, as well as the second from a lineup (the quartet) that lasted very briefly but managed to give us unforgettable songs. It's also the farewell album of the skilled and underrated guitarist Steve Hackett, who not coincidentally reaches emotional and executional heights with this album, perhaps only touched on "Selling England by the Pound". But the main compositional protagonist is Tony Banks, the tireless cornerstone of the group.

There are quite a few strengths in this work from 1976... "Eleventh Earl of Mar," an excellent piece entrusted with the opening, is a dynamic and lively track enriched by a sweet acoustic interlude. Equally rhythmic is "All In a Mouse's Night," with a somewhat naive lyric, featuring a magnificent instrumental finale that captured the hearts of the band's fans. A poignant classical guitar solo introduces "Blood on the Rooftops," sung brilliantly by Phil, one of the highlights of this album. Even Banks himself, although not involved in the composition, has stated it's one of the most beautiful in the history of Genesis, unfortunately never played live! "One for the Vine" is a long and complex track, at times perhaps a bit wordy, rich in rhythm and atmosphere changes, with various typically Banksian harmonic passages. Also worth noting is the intricate instrumental "Unquiet Slumbers...," composed almost entirely by a great Steve, which after a nocturnal and gloomy start explodes into brilliant fusion rhythms, before flowing into "Afterglow," a simple yet among the most emotional and evocative tracks ever written by the band. Listening to it almost feels like watching the pale sunset descend on a man who has lost everything... On the other hand, the sugary ballad "Your Own Special Way" and the instrumental "Wot Gorilla" seem inferior to the rest, not particularly significant.

The previous analysis of the tracks leaves no doubt: this is a great album, played excellently by musicians who had reached full instrumental maturity. The only flaw, which prevents it from reaching five stars, is that it doesn't add anything new to the Genesis story. Perhaps it lacks the freshness of the previous "A Trick of the Tail," a splendid and also evolutionary work compared to the past. Instead, "Wind and Wuthering" seems to want to confirm the role of progressive rock princes, further refining an already previously expressed language. The need for change was looming, and the members themselves realized it, considering the more easy-going nature of the "Spot The Pigeon" EP, released shortly thereafter. The pop turn was on the horizon, but a question lingers in the air: what would have become of Genesis if Steve hadn't left the band?