20 years of 'it': Martin Peitz

I came across the it-Forum sometime in 2000 or 2001. I had seen the Genesis concert at the Westfalenhalle in Dortmund in 1998 and was deeply impressed by Ray Wilson and his voice in songs like No Son Of Mine, Lover's Leap, and Carpet Crawlers. Strangely enough, a friend told me at the time that a new Genesis CD was planned, on which the old songs would be re-recorded with Ray Wilson as the singer. That was reason enough for me to search the internet for relevant information. That's how I ended up on the it-Forum! I wanted to find out if Genesis still existed and what might come after Calling All Stations. At first, I just passively read various posts for a while and used the forum as a source of information about Genesis, Peter Gabriel, Ray Wilson, and co.

At some point, however, I wanted to get actively involved and exchange ideas with like-minded people. During this time, I noticed that a large part of my musical taste was reflected in the it-Forum. Not only because Peter Gabriel has been my absolute god since the two Secret World concerts in Dortmund in 1993 and of course has his place in the forum, but also because many posts in the forum revolve around bands like Pink Floyd, King Crimson, and David Bowie. That's why I've been visiting the forum almost daily for some time now. Unfortunately, due to time constraints, I don't get to write posts as often as I did in the early years.

But I still regularly read through new and older posts and see the forum as a real asset. Information about releases, concerts, interviews, etc. is now just as interesting to me as the simple exchange in the forum or the various polls. Special highlights that I have experienced through the it forum were the ticket promotions for Peter Gabriel's New Blood concerts and the last tour of Mike & The Mechanics. It's really impressive how much work and time is invested here to create such opportunities!

Through my job at the Hot Jazz Club Münster, where I book the program and take care of press and public relations, I have gotten to know several musicians from the Genesis scene. Tony Levin, David Rhodes, Rachel Z, and Ray Wilson have already played at our club, and Roachford is coming with his band in November. There are also plans for Paul Carrack, which will hopefully come to fruition next year. Christian asked me if I would like to write an article for the forum combining the perspectives of a fan and an organizer.

I'm still thinking about how exactly I could approach this, but I believe I really need to do it. If only because it's already interesting for me in this context to think about how Genesis and Co. have accompanied my life in various ways over the last 20 years. I'm sure that without the IT forum, all of this would have been less intense for me personally and that various opportunities would not have presented themselves. And that's why I'm somehow willing to put up with reading silly posts every now and then, where people argue about whether Phil Collins is a better front man than Peter Gabriel, or whether Ray Wilson is even allowed to sing Genesis songs. It can be funny sometimes! 😉