Marillion say being out of the mainstream gives them the freedom to write about anything they want – a luxury some other artists don’t enjoy.
They recently revealed the first track from their 18th album FEAR (Fuck Everyone And Run) titled The New Kings.
The politically-charged song highlights “old systems of democracy have become overwhelmed and compromised by money and corporations.” And frontman Steve Hogarth reports he’s not constrained in what he can write about as he doesn’t have to make compromises in his music.
He tells Prog: “The other freedom of expression I have as a lyricist comes from being in this band. I know I can get away with being honest and it won’t terminate our career.
“For most artists that would be the end. Even bands like U2, there would be a limit to how much Bono could open his mouth politically without damaging their sales base. We’re not in that mainstream so we don’t even have to consider those compromises.
“Nobody in the band has ever come along to me and said, ‘Are you sure you want to say that?’ I’m quite surprised really.”
The singer previously said FEAR (Fuck Everyone And Run) could be regarded as a landmark album in their long career. And guitarist Steve Rothery echoes those sentiments.
He says: “I do think there’s a consistency to this album which is unusual. There are only a handful of albums where I think we’ve made that happen, which for me are Afraid Of Sunlight, and probably Marbles and Sounds That Can’t Be Made.
“So this is really up there and at the same time, it has such a broad scope of power to it. Maybe this album is good because we took the time – although that doesn’t have to be the case, as Afraid Of Sunlight came together relatively quickly.”
He continues: “I honestly can’t think of any way we could improve that album, which for me is a rare thing to say. There’s no musical uncertainty on this new record, and there’s an embracing of what we are and what we do.”
The full interview with Marillion can be found in issue 69 of Prog magazine, which also includes The Pineapple Thief, Aisles, Russian Circles, and a look at 20 of the most obscure prog albums ever recorded. It’s out now in print and via TeamRock+.
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Marillion FEAR (Fuck Everyone And Run) tracklist
- El Dorado (i) Long-Shadowed Sun
- El Dorado (ii) The Gold
- El Dorado (iii) Demolished Lives
- El Dorado (iv) F E A R
- El Dorado (v) The Grandchildren Of Apes
- Living in F E A R
- The Leavers (i) Wake Up In Music
- The Leavers (ii) The Remainers
- The Leavers (iii) Vapour Trails In The Sky
- The Leavers (iv) The Jumble Of Days
- The Leavers (v) One Tonight
- White Paper
- The New Kings (i) Fuck Everyone And Run
- The New Kings (ii) Russia’s Locked Doors
- The New Kings (iii) A Scary Sky
- The New Kings (iv) Why Is Nothing Ever True?
- The Leavers (vi) Tomorrow’s New Country
Marillion 2016 tour dates
Sep 10: Verona Teatro Romano di Verona, Italy
Oct 21: San Francisco The Regency Ballroom, CA
Oct 22: Beverly Hills Saban Theater, CA
Oct 25: Denver Paramount Theatre, CO
Oct 27: Chicago Vic Theatre, IL
Oct 28: Chicago Vic Theatre, IL
Oct 29: Northfield Hard Rock Live, OH
Oct 31: Toronto Danforth Music Hall, ON
Nov 01: Montreal Virgin Mobile Corona Theatre, QC
Nov 02: Quebec L’Imperial Bell, QC
Nov 04: Boston Royale Boston, MA
Nov 05: Washington 9:30 Club, DC
Nov 06: Philadelphia Keswick Theatre, PA
Nov 08: New York PlayStation Theater, NY
Nov 27: Aylesbury, Friars Waterside, UK
Nov 28: Manchester Academy, UK
Nov 30: Glasgow O2 ABC, UK
Dec 01: Leeds Beckett Student Union, UK
Dec 03: Cardiff Tramshed, UK
Dec 04: London Forum, UK
Dec 06: Utrecht MusicCentrum, Netherlands
Dec 07: Utrecht MusicCentrum, Netherlands
Dec 09: Lille L’Aeronef, France
Dec 10: Paris Elysee Montmatre, France
Dec 11: Lyon Radiant-Bellevue, France
Marillion Q&A: "We're going on and on and on, until somebody dies"
