marillion.com review

A warm welcome to the first review by Laurie Quaderi who challenges the BOA paradigm by managing to be young, female, French, attractive and single all at the same time! However she is a bit of a prog head but we are working on that (here, listen to some more Phish).

A Legacy (6.16)*
Deserve (4.23)**
Go! (6.11)*
Rich (5.42)**
Enlightened (4.59)**
Built-in Bastard Radar (4.52)*
Tumble Down the Years (4.33)**
Interior Lulu (15.14)*
House (10.15) ***

* : mixed by Steve Wilson.
** : mixed by Nick Davis.
*** : mixed by Trevor Wallis

"This is your mission should you choose to accept it ... review Marillion's new album marillion.com "

You might think that I sound melodramatic but as the youngest part-time member of the B.O.A, I still have a lot to prove. Please note too that I am an unextraordinary drummer who doesn't even read music!

I first heard of Marillion in my teenage years, the very year Fish decided to go solo and I became a fan within a few months helped by a group of friends. Who out of a group of 6 or 7, unfortunately, only 2 or 3 remained interested in the "Hogarth era"(I hate that expression) (or the "new singer" as the rest of BOA still call him). I have since bought all their albums (and re-bought them when an ex-boyfriend decided to keep them for himself), attend their concerts and follow with interest the band changes and the increasing criticisms. 11 years on I am still enthusiast for the band and rushed to Oxford Street's Virgin Megastore to buy marillion.com within days of it release. There, first surprise : nothing on the shelves, I had to ask a assistant who (as usual) didn't know anything, checked on their computer "yes that the one I want"; the manager arrives with a big smile : "no worry it won't be a moment"; 15 minutes later (and £13.99 lighter) I finally managed to escape with my treasure, get into a cafe bar and get rid of the plastic protection.

So here it is : a carton slipcase with Bill Smith artwork, and 732 pictures of fans ( Marillion is a big family). I understand that some won't like the packaging or the artwork; I have often bought an album because the cover was great and I've been disappointed many times. So I won't judge that part. We have a saying in France : Never mind the bottle, let's just drink it! (I know you can't hear it but I do have a strong French accent).

A very eclectic album, doesn't sound like a whole thing, maybe because it has been mixed by 3 different persons with, I think, strong personalities and ideas that obviously were brought to their particular mix.

I'd love to hear the demo, before the individual producers were loose, to measure those influences (Steve Wilson of Porcupine Tree and Nick Davis for the might-single-to-be ( Deserve, Rich and Tumble The Years) and Trevor Wallis (House)).

Still a Marillion signature : Ian Mosley is as sharp as ever, and we are greeted by some absolutely great Steve Rothery's pieces (including lot's of acoustic guitar), Mark Kelly's keys are everywhere but I would say more precise and subtle than previously. Pete Trewavas' bass is deep and warm. The delicate part is Steve Hogarth' voice; I personally prefer listen to him live because I think he expresses himself far better then. A friend of mine says that recorded he "sounds like is gonna die", fair enough maybe; However I really think that something has changed in Steve Hogarth 's singing, he sounds more comfortable, more secure as well.

In a slightly new departure the album contains some acoustic audio experiments such as brass instruments, hand clapping, doo-doo, etc ... "How dare they introduce any external sounds that are not synthesizer made!" - Some may ask - Actually I think it is great, and does not compromise Mark Kelly's brilliant synth work.

I don't like a track-per-track review, so I would only comment on my personal highlight : Interior Lulu, in which, I think Marillion indulged themselves (and us!) :

After a quiet introduction when you really expect a nice ballad, you are assaulted with a fantastic explosion of Mark Kelly's keyboards (worthy of Emerson's ones). After that it is a beautiful chain of rhythm changes where Steve Rothery's acoustic guitar mixes with Steve H's surprising new found vocal range. Your heart will beat with Ian Mosley' powerful play. You need to concentrate a little to hear Pete Trewavas' inspiring but understated bass work: he's absolutely amazing!

marillion.com sounds very much like Radiation but goes even further in introducing external/non musicals sound experiments and samples (answering machine, scream, distant microphone). You'll certainly find some so-called "progressive (I'd rather say "regressive") rock purists" thinking that it is not a classic "Marillion" sounding album and that the band are taking experimentation and diversity too far. But I say : erase all external sounds in St Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band and you miss one of the best albums of the century (but that's an other polemic).

Basically I found the album very "polished", somehow, very mature. With lots of sounds that I consider as Marillion's signatures; but admit that it might not be everyone's "cup of tea".

What does marillion.com tells about Marillion ? As I already said marillion.com is a mature album; however I'll say that it is a "tired band album" too, I really feel that Marillion need a break, some really long holidays, to get out of Marillion's "frantic life".

Recently the band have taken control of every aspect of their professional lives effectively making a Marillion' brand. It adds certainly to the pressure (e.g. their distribution problem with Castle Records). Furthermore they have some difficulties money wise (remember Radiation's American Tour, that had to be financed by the fans). All this makes me worried a little about Marillion's long term future (I hope I am completely wrong). As Fish (Marillion's former singer) encounters the same trouble, it comes (again) to my ear that they might be planing a gig with both singers (a dream come true for me), but still is a rumor (and I hate gossiping!). My elders at BOA have already pointed out that in 1982 Genesis reformed with the classic line up (Milton Keynes Bowl - a very wet October night - Ian) to help get over Peter Gabriel's financial problems at that time. So the precedent has already been set and perhaps history will repeat itself.

marillion.com is definitely a very British album in the sense that you can indeed feel influences by what Britain produces nowadays (and I am NOT talking about boy's bands) and I feel that they wanted to please themselves too by taking on board various modern influences (notably Radiohead and Massive Attack) . Some will say not its "progressive" any more; I shall say very progressive indeed! A late 90's album that takes account of technology and melody changes since the late 70's.

In the end I know that marillion.com will be again a kind of polemic, that the ex-fans will say that this is not Marillion any more, and bla-bla-bla. I personally get tired hearing that kind of comment; especially because it is fashionable to say so. marillion.com is not Brave or Misplaced Childhood (to take only those), but it is still Marillion a band of GREAT musicians, who know what they are talking about (which it might not be my case). As in House (the albums last track) some might "Looking at it [Marillion], ... not seeing it...".

A new musical direction for Marillion (a progression in the journey shown by Radiation or even Brave), I am sad to say that they might lose some fans with marillion.com, but I think that they'll get some more as well; after all some still think that Rock died with Buddy Holly.