Ladies and Gentle, I'd like to welcome you all to see . . . The Watch!!

Please give this amazing prog rock band a warm welcome to the US! With 3 confirmed dates and venues, 1 pending performance in or near Washington DC (venue TBD), and 2 more planned performances (cities and venues TBD), this will be The Watch's most extensive tour of the US. They've come here twice before. They performed in Lowell, MA and Albany, NY in 2007 and in Phoenixville, PA in 2006. This Italian prog rock band brings forth a familiar sound to put prog-heads in their comfort zone while carving out a style of their own with the release of their 5 studio albums, including the early album released as The Night Watch called Twilight. They also released a live album in 2008.

I'd like to invite you to visit their web site where you can become a member of their community, download videos, hear unpublished tracks, and see their US tour dates. In addition to their own material, The Watch will be performing the Genesis album, Foxtrot, in its entirety! Let me tell you that these guys are way beyond a mere tribute or cover band! They capture the very essence of Gabriel era Genesis! Their performance goes far beyond those of most tribute bands who might play the songs with technical precision. They bring the songs to life in much the same way Genesis did back in the 70's!

Those somewhat familiar with The Watch might have noted that Simone Rossetti's voice sounds similar to 70's Peter Gabriel. Yes, they are similar in timbre. However, I think that Simone has a better vocal range and, thus, can sing the early Genesis material without putting so much stress on his vocal cords as Peter did. So, in my opinion, he sings these songs better than Peter did. Before you flame me, I'm a huge Peter Gabriel fan. I love that era of Genesis and most of Peter's solo material too. He's a phenomenal musician and composer. What I am trying to say is, consider Simone Rossetti as Peter Gabriel "remastered". As you know, remastered albums often sound better than the originals thanks, in large part, to the quality of the original master tapes and the wonders of modern recording.

As I bring this post to a close, please support this amazing band by attending their performances here in the US and buying their albums. I recommend buying their latest album, Planet Earth?, from The Artist Shop as it is actually cheaper their than at Amazon. Also, Gary Davis, the store owner, is a really nice guy. If you don't like the online order form, just send him an e-mail at artshop@artist-shop.com listing the "artist / album" that you want. He accepts payments via PayPal.