AFRAID OF SUNLIGHT

Marillion is a progressive rock band that was formed in 1979 in UK. Marillion had its origins in the early 80's presenting itself as the main representative of the new generation of the English progressive rock, as it was in decline since the appearance of the Punk Rock Movement and the New Wave, in addition to the abandonment of the style made by many of the classic prog bands, such as Genesis, Yes and Emerson, Lake & Palmer. They're one of the founders of neo-prog.

"Afraid Of Sunlight" is the eighth studio album of Marillion and that was released in 1995. Here again the band was faced with the challenge of continuing after the release of a very well finished album, "Brave". Although in its own way, Marillion remained within an excellent quality level. All tracks here are melodic, well written and beautifully produced, although on "Afraid Of Sunlight" the sound is much softer than in the Fish's era and even in the early Hogarth's era albums. Containing beautiful soundscapes, the songs are beautifully harmonized and are simply transposed into one another with organic textures, taking the listener in a musical ride that eventually erupts with good emotional intensity. So, all in all, "Afraid Of Sunlight" is an album that has emotions, complexity, excellent lyrics ad good instrumentation.

The line up on "Afraid Of Sunlight" is Steve Hogarth (lead and backing vocals, keyboards and percussion), Steve Rothery (guitars), Mark Kelly (keyboards), Pete Trewavas (backing vocals and basses) and Ian Mosley (drums and percussion). "Afraid Of Sunlight" is an album that had also de participation of Barbara Lezmy, Wendy Page and Hannah Stobart (backing vocals), as three guest artists.

"Afraid Of Sunlight" has eight tracks. The first track "Gazpacho" opens with the Rothery's chiming guitar figure and Trewavas' hyperactive bass line, as Hogarth introduces the themes that will emerge over the next seven tracks. This seemingly jaunty tune with its chiming guitars floats along on a deceptively cheery melody and with some great hooks. The second track "Cannibal Surf Babe" is a fun and silly stomp that recalls the 60's surf music and features some pretty awesome Beach Boys. While this could seem the album's throwaway track, there's nothing wrong with a bit of fun on the album. It has good lyrics with highly unconventional music for Marillion. The third track "Beautiful" was chosen to be released as a single. This is a melodic ballad which might not be to everyone's taste, since it's quite sentimental. It's a nice pop song with good melody and a simple naive text with few extremely broken treatments of the chosen meter. It would have fit in well on "Holidays In Eden". The fourth track "Afraid Of Sunrise" is a true gorgeous track. This is a completely atmospheric song, which is particularly noticeable with the lively bass from Trewavas and the broom drums from Mosley. It's one of the best tracks on the album and features some really enjoyable fretless bass work. This is probably one of the highlights on the album. The fifth track "Out Of This World" is another huge highlight. The lyrics get really personal and in the midst of this calm, cascading soundscapes of songs hides one of the most beautiful guitar solos that Rothery has ever played. The final consists of a carpet of keyboard sounds with all sorts of samples and around it, nothing for the impatient, but absolutely great for the intensity of the mood. The sixth track is the title track "Afraid Of Sunlight". This is another highlight, possibly one of my favourite tracks on the album. It's again a slow ballad, but this time tranquil and reflective, with some great evocative imagery. The track is further distinguished by a sprawling, grand chorus and a stupendously beautiful middle section. This is pure sonic nirvana music. The seventh track "Beyond You" is another heart on sleeve song, I think this time on the subject of love. This is almost a personal piece for the band, and especially for Hogarth himself, for a long time. According to Hogarth own statements, he simply couldn't sing it live. The lyrics are top notch with a haunting melancholy. The eighth track "King" closes the album bringing all the threads together in rumination on the attention seeking. It forms the massive conclusion, the dangers of fame, Kurt Cobain and Elvis form the thematic framework, along which we can see the claustrophobia. It concludes with a gloriously oceanic, noisy, a soaring build up. This is perhaps the strongest single track on the album.

Conclusion: Despite a disappointing commercial performance, the album was critically acclaimed as one of the band's best ever. From the opening track to the closing one, the album is an authentic musical journey, a perfect blend of different musical approaches that goes from progressive rock to pop. "Afraid Of Sunlight" has no weak points and it's the final proof that Marillion are meanwhile in a class of their own. It has a timeless quality and an effortless melody, not to mention that beautiful all around glow. In retrospect, "Afraid Of Sunlight" will proves to be a perfect divider between the first Marillion with their strong purely progressive atmospheres, and the futures projected towards a genre closer to rock than prog. The still unbroken courage to take risks against the too narrow die hard supporters ennobles the five.

Prog is my Ferrari. Jem Godfrey (Frost*)

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