MARBLES

Marillion 2004 "Marbles" album is one of those which are making many opposite opinions and reviews among listeners who wrote down their thoughts, but is evident that most of them consider it very good and rated it very high, although many agreed that it could hardly can be placed neither in progressive nor neoprogressive albums. Music that can be heard on it is combination of modern sounding pop and some parts that reminds of progressive rock.

Fact that album is available in two versions, condensed single and full double, is sign that authors were not sure what to do with it. On single version it says "if you don't want to miss out on the extra tracks, and want to hear the album the way we intended, purchase the double version"! Since I haven't been impressed with the condensed version, I have found double version, and now I'm impressed even less. The true is that both version is not quite good enough to pay so attention to it. While single version omits the significant and longest "Ocean cloud" track, double version is "doubled" with several pop songs. In fact, the only connection with progressive elements (or neo progressive if someone likes it more) on music level is idea in which four short "Marbles" tracks ties up some other tracks, three of them between ten and twenty minutes long, and gives a conceptual feel to album. But it is very hard to tie up things that stands against each other, specially musically.

Maybe on both version should be written: "if you don't like our choice and ordering of songs, do it yourself and make Your own version". Get blank CDR, made a choice and order, put it in a burner, and make Your "Marbles". Include "Marbles" I-IV, "The invisible Man", "Neverland" (the best song for me), "Ocean cloud" and maybe "The only unforgivable thing", "Angelina" and "Drilling holes", in order You prefer!

Don't get me wrong, "Marbles" isn't bad album, it is well played and produced, it has it moments, and Marillion is capable of making good music, but at the one to five rank, for me it stays closer to bottom. There are many, many more better albums that are waiting to be discovered, most of it recorded almost thirty or twenty years before "Marbles". Compared to these gems, this CD is far from masterpiece or essential record rate, and there are often too many stars bet on it. Many greater bands failed up trying to fill 80-100 minutes records. If You are new to Marillion, try with their first three 1983-1985 albums, two of them at the moment present on 100 Prog Archives most popular titles based on ratings.