Steve Hogarth

Delivering a political album is always risky, with the possibility that it will get locked in its historical era usually a direct consequence. On their 18th album, prog rockers Marillion don't seem to care, and they have nothing to lose and no one to account to but themselves. FEAR is an acronym for "Fuck Everybody and Run." Two of its three lengthy, multi-part suites ("El Dorado" and "The New Kings") are overtly political statements that look at England and the calamitous state of the world not only observationally but experientially. Topical songs have been part of the band's catalog as far back as 1984's "Fugazi," and have shown up as recently as the multi-part "Gaza," from 2012's Sounds That Can't Be Made (the latter was perhaps an impetus for this record)…

Marillion surprised the European market by earning Top Ten placings in the U.K. and Holland for its single "You're Gone" in the spring of 2004, but the comeback wasn't hard to figure if you listened to the record, which found the band making like U2, with a martial beat, a sustained, repetitive guitar figure, and Steve Hogarth keening, "You are the light," in his best impression of Bono. Elsewhere, Marbles, the band's 13th studio album in 21 years, for the most part recalled not so much U2 as a more long-standing influence, Pink Floyd…

Marillion surprised the European market by earning Top Ten placings in the U.K. and Holland for its single "You're Gone" in the spring of 2004, but the comeback wasn't hard to figure if you listened to the record, which found the band making like U2, with a martial beat, a sustained, repetitive guitar figure, and Steve Hogarth keening, "You are the light," in his best impression of Bono. Elsewhere, Marbles, the band's 13th studio album in 21 years, for the most part recalled not so much U2 as a more long-standing influence, Pink Floyd. From the album cover and graphics in the CD booklet, which revealed the influence of Hipgnosis, the firm that did the same work for Pink Floyd, to the lengthy closing track, "Neverland," with its echoing vocals, Marillion, a group formed in the shadow of progressive rock progenitors like Genesis and Pink Floyd demonstrated that they had no trouble continuing the tradition…

In 2002 EMI released a box with twelve CD singles by the British progressive rock formation Marillion from 1989 to 1995. It was the second single box of this type. While the first box covered the era of the charismatic singer Fish, the second now includes the story of the no less fascinating successor Steve Hogarth. The 57 pieces in the box, which is now out of print (the twelve CD singles were contained in cardboard boxes with original covers) will be released on April 19, 2013 as a 4-CD box.

Less Is More marks a kind of evolutionary milestone for Marillion. They may have emerged in the early ‘80s as the front-runners of the British neo-progressive movement (alongside the likes of Pendragon, IQ, et al.), but these days it's hard to imagine that the prefix "neo" was ever attached to this longstanding band. Four out of five current members have been on board since the second Marillion album, 1984's Fugazi, and singer Steve Hogarth became a 20-year man the year of Less Is More's release. They've come so far from their over the top, Genesis/Van der Graaf Generator-indebted beginnings that it's difficult to believe they're even the same group. Of course, in many ways, they aren't; that's the whole point of Less Is More, which finds Marillion revisiting songs from all across the last 20 years of their discography in new acoustic-based arrangements…

After Fish's departure, Marillion teetered on the brink of collapse: The frontman's distinct voice and poetic prose made him the defining member of the band. One can only imagine how record executives held their collective breath as Steve Hogarth was brought in to take the reins. His first outing with band, 1989's Season's End, removed all doubts about the band's future. Hogarth's unique, expressive voice fit Marillion perfectly; on the full-throttle rock assault of "The Uninvited Guest" or the emotional "After You," Hogarth's singularity is unmistakable. The heartfelt "Easter," with its imaginative electric-acoustic arrangement, is another showcase for Hogarth's talents…

Marillion surprised the European market by earning Top Ten placings in the U.K. and Holland for its single "You're Gone" in the spring of 2004, but the comeback wasn't hard to figure if you listened to the record, which found the band making like U2, with a martial beat, a sustained, repetitive guitar figure, and Steve Hogarth keening, "You are the light," in his best impression of Bono. Elsewhere, Marbles, the band's 13th studio album in 21 years, for the most part recalled not so much U2 as a more long-standing influence, Pink Floyd. From the album cover and graphics in the CD booklet, which revealed the influence of Hipgnosis, the firm that did the same work for Pink Floyd, to the lengthy closing track, "Neverland," with its echoing vocals, Marillion, a group formed in the shadow of progressive rock progenitors like Genesis and Pink Floyd demonstrated that they had no trouble continuing the tradition…