My wife's favorite album, and it is relentlessly easy to see why.

A masterclass in rock opera holy shit

It's more enjoyable when I can focus on the soundscapes and not on Win Butler's fuckass lyricism

I don't know if one could tell, but I'm a fan of Studio Ghibli.
A big reason for that is how it balances its tone. It's a bright exterior with a remarkably dark underbelly, but seeks to understand that darkness as opposed to shun it altogether.
It's taken me a bit of wondering what the musical equivalent of that would be. Granted, it's not a hard thing to do. "Happy sounding music with sad lyrics" is a very common kind of music. You can likely think of an ... read more

The Reign of hrisC may be over, but Stavros Markonis proves himself another lord, worthy of the throne he took over.

Perfect for a boy age 12 to 14.
Now find a doctor.

She girlboss’d too close to the sun

The Marvelous World of Marillion, Chapter 6: Returning to a nature child; happy, wild and free.
Marillion moves forward. h is locked in as the band's new central voice, and the rest of the band begin to learn of their alchemy with each other.
There is an issue, however: it is the 90s. The kind of sound that Marillion is chasing, the alternative/prog rock blend, has been all but cast into obscurity. In order to keep themselves afloat, they needed to write hits. They needed to elevate their ... read more

This is worth it just for the novelty alone. A band that went under every conceivable radar for seventeen years, finally releasing their debut album, made up of those original 1980s recordings.
It really helps, too, that this is some strong stuff. It might be my general post-punk/new wave bias speaking, but I absolutely love all of this. Of course, there's the Most Mysterious Song itself, showing its absolute greatest form here, but there's also "Talking Hands" with the very ... read more

The Marvelous World of Marillion, Chapter 5: "Everything about you is so perfectly restrained"
And here we are. The band's first record without Fish, and the first with their new vocalist, Steve "h" Hogarth. (He will be referred to as "h" from here on out in order to differentiate him from the other Steve in the band).
I love talking about these kinds of records, because it shows what you find to be important about a band: their vocalist, or the rest of them. ... read more

The Marvelous World of Marillion, Chapter 4: "Confidence Wounded in a Free Fire Zone"
And here we are. The final Marillion album that features Fish, and easily the biggest shock to me, even after hundreds of listens.
It is another concept record, and while not as airtight a concept as Misplaced Childhood, it definitely carves its own path a lot more effectively than that record did.
Here's the concept, from what I'm able to parse: The protagonist is a man who is estranged ... read more

The Marvelous World of Marillion, Chapter 3: "The Only Thing Misplaced Was Direction"
Misplaced Childhood is held in a certain regard in the progressive rock community. It is seen as a masterpiece of post-70s prog, a rare sparkle in the sea of mundanity that modern prog offers (this, at least, is how I've seen it discussed in other circles). Allow me to raise my voice with that crowd...
...by channeling my inner devil's advocate.
Don't get me wrong: I absolutely see ... read more

Ah, Fugazi. Definitely the Marillion record of all time.
I think this, right here, is where I can get into my issues with Fish: I don't enjoy the energy he has with the band.
Don't get me wrong, he is an excellent performer, clearly taking from the likes of Peters Gabriel and Hammill, but he never really... fit in this band to me? It feels incredibly jarring to me personally with how much he wears his influences on his sleeve, while the band does this amazing mix of classic prog and ... read more

A phenomenal soundtrack for a phenomenal game.
Leave it to Toby Fox to make an unfinished game one of my favorite things of all time.
Also Ralsei is the fuckin MAN

Pink Elephant is the seventh record by Canadian-American indie rock band Arcade Fire. It follows three disastrous years after WE, a record that, despite its flaws, I’ve come to understand and like quite a bit over time. As for exactly why those three years are disastrous, some news broke out literally two days after.
Win Butler, frontman of the band, was accused of sexual harassment by no less than five individuals, which occurred in the mid-2010s. Butler followed by saying that these ... read more

Holy stars this thing is incredible.
Not what I expected from a band that had previously, at most, mildly intrigued me. This is the kind of record i never knew this band had in them, and it is absolutely a welcome change. James Ford's production work transforms this thing so much.

Ok wow
This was not what I expected on first listen, but I was very pleasantly surprised!
Much unlike Happy Birthday, this one hit me immediately as an instrumentally rich song with Georgia doing a very good job on vocal duty. She's no Tyler or May, but hell, she holds her own so well.
The lyricism hit me so hard too. Having those unrequited feelings, with nothing to do with them, just sucks man.
Looking so forward to this record. It's different from before, but "different" ... read more

I'll admit that this one took some getting used to.
Incredibly interesting structure, absolutely stunning vocal performance, and lyrics that take down those in places of privilege.
It grew so hard on me over time, a quality i can 110% respect in today's musical climate.

Holy peak guys
Encapsulating what makes this band so special in one six-minute opus, showing that this band still has their best up their sleeve. My already immeasurable excitement for this record has now skyrocketed.

Debut albums, amirite?
This might seem slightly contrarian of me, but I'm not gaga about Fish-era Marillion. The reasons why can wait for future reviews, in specific, on the next two albums, but for now, I would like to address the possible elephant in the theoretical room: "This band sounds like Genesis."
What might shock you is that most people phrase this like it's a bad thing. I don't think I need to tell you that sounding like Genesis, especially in the context in ... read more