MARBLES

A staggering piece of work. A double album where I have a hard time finding those songs which we call "filler" but never agree upon which ones they are... hehehe. The first cd is certainly darker and quieter than the second, which has some of the pop flavour of many Marillion songs from previous albums. Nevertheless, if I had to summarize it all in a word, it would be BEAUTIFUL. The songs, with very few exceptions, are packed with a sense of beauty that makes them like ear honey.

Let's begin a quick review of both cds.

The first one begins with one of the darkest songs Marillion has ever done; following the lyrics is essential to understanding why the melodies keep changing and we feel we're listening to a new track while still cruising through this 13 minute story. Great song. "Marbles I" introduces us to the first of four very short but delicately beautiful songs that tell a simple story about H and his marbles from youth. Then comes "Genie", which probably sounds too similar to the works of other contemporary bands, but comes out as probably my favorite song out of the "poppier ones" from the album. "Fantastic Place" and "The Only Unforgivable Thing" take the album to a melancholy place; again, lovely melodies, really soft and soothing. After the second Marbles song, we close with a song that has a wonderful atmosphere but goes on for too long for my tastes: "Ocean Cloud". Still, it's one that confirms the sense that this is an album to hear really loud with the lights off. It's all about atmosphere and melody.

The second cd kicks in with the brief "Marbles III" and then a modern pop song comes up, with almost identical lyrics to the ones in "Genie", to introduce us to the more upbeat section of the album. "Don't Hurt Yourself" and "You're Gone" were released as singles, good songs, but not really special. "Angelina" brings back the quietness and emotion of the previous cd, while "Drilling Holes" was the most surprising to me... it kind of reminded me of some Beatles work, something to be found in Revolver or next to "I am the Walrus". Great, quirky song, a real gem. And finally, after the final "Marbles" song, part four, comes "Neverland", which has all the strengths from the album but also suffers from what the cd 1 closer suffered from... it feels a couple of minutes too long.

In any case, you have a clear sense of my feelings towards this album. It's one of the best I've heard in years. Hugely enjoyable.