Genesis - The Musical Box
From the 3rd episode of TOP(PA) 100.
The materialization of a dream dreamed in the realm of dreams. One of the highest representations of the musical universe, sweet yet brutal, macabre like few others, starting with a title that is an alteration of the term "nursery rhymes," famous children's rhymes widely circulated in the lands of Albion at the time. The contrast between sweetness and cruelty permeates the entire work. A significant example is the stunning suite "The Musical Box" where a girl decapitates her peer while they play croquet. And then there's incest, pedophilia, sadism in a context of disarming childhood innocence that renders the atmosphere of the entire album surreal and grotesque. There's not much more to add to an album that has been extensively dissected, praised, and imitated for over 45 years. "Nursery Cryme" is a must by vocation, among the masterpieces that have forever changed progressive rock.