SEASONS END

Having recently posted a review of Happiness is the Road, the band's latest opus, I thought the time was right for a reappraisal of all the Hogarth albums. This was the first, and it is a worthy 4 star LP.

Like most Marillion fans, it was Fish who drew me to the band in the first instance, from the early Marquee days I was a huge fan. This LP went a long way to persuading me that the new incarnation might be worth sticking with.

The album opens with a bang as King of Sunset Town bursts into life. A frenetic and powerful song about Tianammon Square, it is the perfect showcase for a band obviously enjoying a new creative phrase with a bloke who can sing well.

Easter is simply the finest ballad I have in an extensive collection, and if you get the chance to see the live version in Dublin on You Tube, do so.

The title track is again moving, sad, and powerful, with all band members stretching the limits.

The Uninvited Guest & Hooks in You are fun tracks which showed that the band had not lost their touch in writing catchy singles to attract a wider audience than the prog core.

Berlin & Holloway Girl are interesting songs, which hint at a future direction. The only trck which, to my mind, prevents this LP being more than a 4 star is The Space, a track I have always found unconvincing and over long.

If readers are looking for an introduction to the band still the finest post prog outfit around, they could do a lot worse than start with this. An exciting, new, and still remarkably fresh sounding LP after all this time. Yes, we loved Fish, but, by God, Hogarth is a great successor.