THE FIRST RUN

Yes the Dutchband Marathon...Great debutalbum. Really those 2 cd I liked very much. After I saw them live i loved them. Such nice guys. And really great musicans. The first songs are really great. Solid melodic rock.Like Saga Rush and MArillion. And there is a song Open Field.....the best ballad ever. Wow what a f...great song.

Listening to this great Dutchband.

And so the title goes...

With a band name like that, the SAGA associations are pretty obvious. This Dutch band's debut album does not fail in that respect. Although not quite...... The other more obvious reference is MARILLION post Fish. Add PENDRAGON to the mix and you have MARATHON.

The music is pretty frisky with tonnes of good electric guitars and keyboards. The melodies is a mix of mid tempo pretty heavy stuff and some ballads. The opening track Beyond The Veil is pretty typical for this album. Unfortunate, this is also the best song of the album. A good song with some good guitars and keyboards. The male vocals is pretty decent. He also get a visit by a female vocalist on the track Voices and that to good effect. The sound is a bit dated, 15 years after the release of this album. It reminds me a lot about SAGA and RUSH on their '80s albums. Yes, this album is somewhere in this landscape. Elegant progressive rock with a bit dated sound. If all these bands are among your favourites, this may be the album and band for you. The First Run is a very decent debut album, but without the killer tracks. The material is a bit bland and the band does not take any risks. That is OK for a debut album. I may put in an order for their two other albums because this band seems to live in my kind of street.

3 stars from me.

Marathon - The First Run (1994)

A well produced progressive hard rock record with a sound that reminds me of the better works of Saga. Well controlled metal guitar in sync with keyboard sounds with pinch as well with symfonic sounds of the neoprogressive pallette. Moreover, Erik ten Bos is a very skilled rock vocalist with powerful high notes.

I must admit, I usually listen to the first five tracks of the album. Beyond the Veil sets the progressive atmosphere of the album; powerfull vocals, great AOR leadguitar, nice rhythm changes. The songs to come are often very catchy and the musicanship is great. Man in the Mirror has a lot of catche themes and a great progression in the opening section. I really like the uplifting 'I'll be there' which reminds me of the energetic stadionrock of Vandenberg. The ballad Open Field suffers from its too enthusiastic performance. On the longer tracks on the second halve of the album the Saga influences become more appearant.

My impression: this would appeal to a lot of neo-progressive and crossover listeners. I kind of like the almost AOR appeal, though the songs don't lack the sophistication of a progressive rock record. Three and a halve stars!