SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. — Local man Travis Anders recently listened to all 15 Genesis albums while waiting for a chance to back out of his parking spot at Trader Joe’s, fellow shoppers reported.
“When I got to my car it was classic TJ’s parking lot gridlock so I put on the Genesis debut and went to work on a bag of strawberry popcorn,” Anders recounted with the corners of his mouth still caked in congealed pink flavor dust. “I never intended to go deep in the catalog but after the proto-prog triptych of ‘Trespass,’ ‘Nursery Cryme,’ and ‘Foxtrot’ I was still boxed in and figured I’d dig into some tuna-cheddar cashews and fire up ‘Selling England by the Pound.’ I finally had a window of escape but a Cybertruck hit a shopping cart and burst into flames so I settled in for the hyper-concept ‘Lamb Lies Down on Broadway’ through synth-rock smash ‘Invisible Touch.’ Once the store closed I ended up spinning the final two albums while some teenage employees partied on the hood of my car not realizing I was in it.”
Resident Trader Joe’s parking lot busker Rusty Fitzgerald listened along to the whole thing from a nearby mulch bed.
“Hearing the complete works really highlights how Genesis was a constantly evolving force of creativity and innovation, kind of like the Trader Joe’s snack lab,” Fitzgerald mused while dipping jalapeño banana chips in butterscotch ricotta. “Peter Gabriel and Steve Hackett’s departures were like Trader Joe’s pulling Chocolate Chip Sandwich Cookies from the shelves; it left a huge void in a classic lineup. Phil Collins taking the lead of the remaining trio felt like the music version of a wasabi pea covered in shredded coconut; nobody asked for it but there’s a subtle complexity. In the same way you’ll try a snack and say, ‘whoa- these are Trader Joe’s?!’ you’ll hear a song and say, ‘whoa- this is Genesis?!’”
Trader Joe’s manager Fran Dunbar pointed out that customers going through discographies in the parking lot is quite common.
“Many people are more comfortable sitting alone in a Trader Joe’s parking spot than they are being at home,” Dunbar explained while doctoring expiration dates. “Once a week I see someone with their seat all the way back and an icepack on their head listening to the full Rolling Stones or Bruce Springsteen or live Grateful Dead library. It’s one of the last places people can still go just to think. One guy hasn’t moved in months; he’s working through the Ty Segall collection but every time he finishes one album three more have come out.”
At press time, Anders was consulting with MIT professors to guide him out of a diagonal spot he’d foolishly backed into.