HOLIDAYS IN EDEN

Please read my review on the previous one as this is not any better. I my mind , I always get confused between this album and its predecessor Season's End. They sound interchangeable and the new singer made them sound like a whole lot of other groups - a thing no-one could reproach Fish. There are tons of tracks that could belong to other groups (I am thinking of Pendragon or IQ of those very same years) and clearly Marillion was looking for a path to follow. Confused and hardly essential album

This album contains 70% straight rock / pop songs and only 30% (maximum) prog elements. If you haven't got this, you should purchase the 2CD version as disc two has more prog elements than the original 1 disc version. Say if it's not really prog, it's more rocking than disc 1. If you are expecting prog, the main problem with disc 1 is too many straight pop stuffs here, i.e. "Cover My Eyes", "No One Can", "Dry Land" that really do not fit to be categorized under any category of prog or even rock. These are the stuffs that you would not expect to be performed by Marillion. They are more suitable performed by the sort of Michael Learns To Rock or Duran Duran.

The sound of early Marillion is still around here. The opening track "Splintering Heart" has a very strong nuance of early Marillion as you may catch easily from Rothers guitar play and Kelly's keyboard sound. The ending session of "The Party" has also a sort of "At That Time of The Night" or "Lavender" style. They are not the same, but they share similar style. One thing that I like about disc 1 is the epic that comprises three songs in one piece of music: "This Town", "The Rakes Progress" and "100 Nights". "This Town" is a straight rock music like "Bon Jovi" but when the music enters "The Rakes Progress" it goes heavier. It's a nice composition, I think.

Disc 2 is opened with a Rare Bird's cover "Sympathy". I admire the clearness of H vocals part here. Excellent. Another version of this song also appears at track 5. It's another excellent version. "The Splintering Heart" is much better here, it is more rocking compared to original version. This version of Moles Club demo should be in the original disc 1. Musically, disc 2 is much better than disc 1 (the original release). The only problem with disc 2 is its sonic quality is not as good as disc 1. It needs better mixing.

It has come to my attention that never, during the whole time I've spent as a Prog Reviewer or anywhere in the depths of my collaborations regarding MARILLION, I have pointed out some kind of good observation upon HOGARTH's work. It's practically inevitable not to do so, but this time I'm committed to redeem myself somehow and try not to think with my guts as I occasionally do when it comes to the pretty boy from Kendal. Dammit! There I go again. sorry, I just can't help it. Seriously.

Appealing to the comprehensive guidelines established by Prog Archives and to my impartial judgment, I won't categorically deny that this album from the HOGARTH era, is quite a keeper. Maybe the recognition given to the album could've never reached such levels if it weren't for the good name of the band, aspect that disregarding Steve's inconformity, had to remain the same for the sake of the neo progressive band.

Arguably, "Holidays in Eden" is the best piece of work crafted by MARILLION ever since FISH let go the reins of the band to go solo. Perhaps, "Brave" could be good enough to overshadow the achieved on the second album of the second phase of the band, but hardly, we could decide which one is cheesier. I do admit "Holidays in Eden" is a great creation, and regretfully, I'd even say I happen to enjoy it. The lyrics are well written and perfectly intertwined with the musical composition, and far beyond cataloguing the whole thing as a "post-apocalyptical pop nightmare", there are truly exceptional hypnotic passages made out of scraps from the past.

HOGARTH's work on the microphone is quite remarkable, I need to say that apart from this "Holidays in Eden" experience, I never listened to him sing with such devotedness and passion. That's certainly an extra star on my review. The arrangements made to "Cover My Eyes" and "No One Can" are exceptional, almost suitable to avoid them from sounding extremely corny. It would seem to you that I'm softening up, but I specially take my hat off to "Waiting to Happen"; bravely composed and written, one of the most distinguishing ballads of the Hogarth transitional phase.

It isn't quite a challenge to enjoy the album because it's got the complete set of sensitiveness and spontaneity you could ask on an album performed by Steve. Right after "Holidays in Eden", most of the touch and carefulness put by HOGARTH, vanished towards the air, and in return, we can resemble MARILLION's music to anything that pops into the tuner whenever you turn the stereo on. Great album, determinant to tell the good music made by the band from the crap that was to come.

There are albums that change my point of view about some bands like Marillion. I still like the albums they recorded with Fish, and even "Seasons End" with Steve Hogarth is very good. I know that some of the music for the "Seasons End" album was composed and recorded in demo form when Fish still was in the band. So, this "Holidays in Eden" was the first full album composed with Hogarth, in words and music. Unfortunately, maybe their record label was doing some pressure to the band to record Radio hits. So, this album is predominantly a Pop music album recorded by a band called Marillion with a new singer. By 1992, when I bought this album, I was disappointed, and I lost the interest I had to buy new Marillion albums. The label years later didn`t release new albums by Marillion.They had to do it in other labels. The best songs in this album, in my opinion, are "No One Can", a very good ballad with "atmospheric" guitars and keyboards, and "Holidays in Eden". The rest of the songs are not too bad, but unfortunately, again, they didn`t have enough interesting things for me to listen to them again. Maybe my tastes changed, but I still listen to their albums with Fish and "Seasons End", and I still like Genesis, Yes, etc. Marillion didn`t have a lasting interest for me as other bands. But there are some good things about Marillion and their fans: their fans still give them support and love, and this is one of the best things in the music world. There are really very few fans like Marillion`s fans, who support them even with money to tour, and even buying their albums when they were not in a big record label. Congratulations to this kind of fans. And it also seems that the members of Marillion are humble with their fans. One of my brothers (himself a guitar player) went to see them playing in concert here in my country in 1992, and he was in a front row, just in front of Steve Rothery in the stage. Maybe Rothery was so glad to see my brother and his girlfriend enjoying the concert, that in the end of the concert he gave to my brother one of his guitar picks, with Steve Rothery `s name printed on it.

Single minded

Marillion's second Hogarth era album was really the first to be devoid of any Fish influences, given that he had been involved in the rehearsals for much of the "Season's end" album. "Holiday's in Eden" is however a natural follow on from "Season's end", with no major change of sound or direction. That said, the tracks are among the most commercial and straight forward recorded by the band, and about as far away from prog as they ever got.

I know the track lengths are something Marillion feel their fans are "obsessed" with, but there's a definite effort here to make an album of shorter tracks which will have a wide commercial appeal. There's little in the way of instrumental breaks, time changes, structured works, etc.

The opening and closing tracks, "Splintering heart" and "100 nights" are the most adventurous, both being slow powerful pieces, with some decent guitar. "Cover my eyes" has echoes of U2, being an upbeat and overtly pop based piece.

Melodies are strong throughout the album, especially on tracks like "No one can", "Dry land" and the sing-a-long title track. The band must have felt spoilt for choice when it came to the selection of a single from the album with so many obvious contenders.

While "Holiday's in Eden" can hardly be described as challenging, the music is pleasant and well presented. As a melodic pop rock album, it is highly enjoyable. As a Marillion album however, it is far removed from their prog foundations. Fortunately, on future albums, the band were to move away again from playing safe.

Marillion - Holidays in Eden

"Holidays in Eden was Marillion's first album that was in its totally written with Hogarth as a band member. For the previous "Seasons End" album, the band already worked on demo's with Fish still aboard.

I guess the record label saw the potential Hogarth has with his looks, because the urge for 3 hit singles was definitely present. Unlike any of the other Marillion albums this is mostly mainstream-orientated rock music. Nothing wrong with that, I like all songs, but one (I still dislike Holidays in Eden the title track. I find it rather dull and only the midsection; the 'break' seems to sound inspired to these ears.

In fact I guess there are only three songs with major prog rock tendencies and those are opening track Splintering Heart and closing tracks The Rakes Progress and 100 Nights. These are the songs which are the most varied, but there sure as hell is not anything wrong with all the other songs (except the title track as mentioned earlier on). I personally like the pop singles quite a lot, especially Cover my Eyes for its sing-along level at gigs and Dry Land for its pure beauty both musically as in Steve's crystal clear vocals.

I would have replaced the title track by Marillion's cover version of Rare Bird's song Sympathy. They performed this one excellent and it was released as a single at the time being (mainly to promote the "A Singles Collection" album though). It is available on the remaster 2 disc version of the album though.

This album it's maybe the most commercial Marillion's album, and this is not one of their most successfull... But it's not a bad album at all, and it's very better than Radiation, for example...

We have here really pop songs like Cover My Eyes, No One Can and Dry Land, a lot in the 80's way, in a similar style of Mike and The Mechanics or Roxy Music. But there's still some prog/symphonic songs like the great Splingtering Heart, The Party and 100 Nights, while other songs like Holidays In Eden or This Town more rock oriented (I don't like this way of rocking by Marillion...). And this is possibly the best thing of the album, its variety! At least it's not boring...

Good songs for me: Splintering Heart (a very good one, a classic...), The Party, Cover My Eyes, No One Can, Dry Land and Waiting To Happen. All the rest it's a little execrable...

Maybe this is not one of the best Marillion's albums, but It's still enjoyable...

I believe this is the post Fish disc that really had Marillion fans a bit nervous. This was the first real test of having both the vocalist and primary lyricist for Marillion, without the substantial help of John Helmer. Although this disc is very inconsistent, I still can't help but enjoy it. Even with the lighter moments.

I'll get the blatant commercialism out of the way first. The company fat cats were really leaning on the boys to produce a hit and to take advantage of having that "pretty boy" lead singer. "No One Can" and "Cover My Eyes (Pain And Heaven)" are obvious attention grabbers for commercial success. I do like "No One Can"; however, it is a bit sugary for a band such as Marillion. "Cover My Eyes" is a bit on the light side, but it's such a solid song that I can't help to like it. What does it for me are H's vocals...which are spot on. The man really shines on this one.

Now, the other tunes that are more in line to what Marillion are known for: heavy, meaningful, thought- provoking lyrics, a powerful rhythm that drives it courtesy of Mosley and Trewavas, Mark Kelly providing just the right mood without overdoing it, and (of course) the blistering guitar and overall support of one of rock's most underrated guitarists.

Among my favorites are "Splintering Heat", which is quickly becoming a favorite. The pulsing of the music and H's haunting vocals build until the band just explodes with Rothery and Mosley driving it along. It used to open Marillion shows on the Holidays In Eden tour and I really wished they would drag it out of moth balls.

"The Party" is becoming a favorite of mine, as well. It didn't really catch on until I saw them perform it on Marbles On The Road. The lyrics are so surreal and it's almost like the spirit of Jim Morrison had invaded Hogarth for this one. It all surrounds an evening that this high school girl attends a party thrown by classmates, only to be witness to a sensory overload of music, drug experimentation, and finding out that she really didn't know these people at all. Of course, Rothery provides (yet another a) blistering solo.

"This Town/The Rakes Progress/100 Nights" does seem to go on for a little too long; but, once you get past "This Town", the song really takes on some interesting moods. Mark Kelly really provides some excellent keyboards on these songs. Not one of my favorite Marillion tunes, but the final sections save it for me.

This album is hardly as bad as some people make it out to be. Sure, it was Marillion's most commercial release at the time that it came out, but that doesn't detract from the quality of the album. The main problem is that the album isn't really Prog; it has a few Proggy moments, but that's it (the main reason my rating is so low for the album). So what we have here, is high quality pop/rock.

The album's opener is probably one of the few Proggy moments on the album. Both Steves shine at their craft on this track. "Cover My Eyes (Pain and Heaven)" is actually one of my favorite songs on the album. It's very catchy and keeps the listener's interests, mostly due to Hogarth's EXCELLENT vocals. "The Party" is a decent song, but nothing outstanding. "No One Can" is another catchy Pop song similar to "Cover My Eyes," very addictive! The title track is a pretty bland and boring rocker, probably the worst track on the album.

Next up is another one of those great, catchy Pop songs, "Dry Land," definitely another highlight of the album. "Waiting to Happen" is rather forgettable, but still decent, not as bad as the title track. The last three songs are interconnected as a trilogy. The first, "This Town," is the weakest of the three. Like the title track, it's a more bland, rock tune, but still ok. "The Rake's Process" is a nice segue into "100 Nights," another one of the Proggy tracks, and one of the better songs on the album, and a great way to finish things off.

It's hard for me to assign a rating to this album. While I like it a lot, it's barely a Prog album at all. Many of the tracks are quite accessible and catchy, full of great vocals, keyboards, and of course, Rothery's signature guitar. In the end, I think the album deserves 2.5 stars, while great, it still suffers from having little to no Prog elements. Still a good listen for the Marillion fans, though.

Like Rico said above, something is missing here.

There is the typical Marillion mix of Pop, Prog and 80s (Even though its the 90s) and it is anything but spectacular. The instruments don't seem to flow as much as earlier Marillion did like Hogarth's debut on Season's End or the amazing era of Marillion where the legendary Fish was their singer. Unfortunately, this was an extreme disappointment after the exciting Hogarth debut on Season's End. None of the songs are spectacular and the repetition that Marillion uses on this album bothers me. Maybe its worth a listen, but it isn't spectacular.

(Note I am creating my own scale of rating)

90-100- 5 Stars 80-89- 4 Stars 70-79- 3 Stars 50-69- 2 Stars 49 or below- 1 star

This album is as close to a 1 star album as Marillion can go, but it isn't THAT bad.

After Fish had left in 1988, Marillion was left on the rebound of a terrible loss. Fortunately, they got their act together and began auditions for a new vocalist. The vocalist that they chose was ex-Europeans/How We Live member (and almost milkman) Steve Hogarth. The first album they produced with Mr. Hogarth was Seasons End. One could already tell from Seasons End that this incarnation of Marillion was a poppier, more radio friendly one. The album that came out after Seasons End is the perfect summation of that aspect in the group. Holidays in Eden was Marillion's first album of the 90s and I must say it is one of their weakest. Gone are the extended passages about the fall of the Berlin Wall and in come songs about splintering hearts and rakes progressing. This album isn't terribly good, but that doesn't mean that there aren't some redeemable qualities. The musicians certainly play the material well, but it's the material itself that really hurts this album.

Splintering Heart begins the album with a buildup sequence of keyboards and unison drums/bass. Hogarth's heartfelt vocal is one of the better qualities of the song itself. Add in a clichéd introduction to a heavy section, Rothery's solo is as always emotional and straight from the heart. It's one of the better songs from the album. Cover My Eyes has some signature Rothery echo riffing and a catchy chorus. It's not progressive rock at all; you'll find quickly that this album's progressive moments are few and far between. It's not bad pop, but it's very un-Marillion. The Party features some creative work from Trewavas, but the song really goes nowhere fast. It's one of the more forgettable tracks on the album. No One Can is a mellow track with some nice keyboard work from Kelly. It's a pretty playful pop song with a nice clean guitar solo from Rothery.

The title track to this album is probably the most uninteresting track on the album. Beginning with the clichéd plane sound that was made famous in Back in the USSR, this song really goes nowhere fast. It is a on the longer side for this album, running at 5:28, and the band really draws out every riff presented here. The chorus is also pretty contrived and uninspired. Dry Land begins with a mellow, if not too mellow, riff. Another pop tune for the album, this song features another strong Steve Rothery guitar solo. Waiting to Happen is a keyboard based tune with some nice bass work from Trewavas. Another catchy chorus, and some more pop sensibilities and you have yourself this song. It's not bad, but not terribly good at the same time. This Town begins with some sirens and smooth drumming from Mosley. The chord progression is really cool and it has this late great dance feel to it. The chorus is also fun and playful, making this song one of the better pop songs on the album.

The Rakes Progress and 100 Nights end the album on a more progressive note. The first being a short little synth based song with some nice volume swells from Rothery. Rothery's riffing towards the end is the perfect introduction to the finale to the album. 100 Nights is the album closer, and it closes it on an uplifting note. The riff here reminds me a bit of Lavender for some reason I can't quite put my finger on. The ending to the song is also great, with some more spectacular work from Rothery.

Overall, Holidays in Eden is a transition piece for Marillion. It would be their most commercial effort, and their next album would totally redeem their progressive qualities. Their next album would also be one of their most depressing and heart wrenching releases. Anyway, Holidays in Eden isn't a bad pop album, but in term of progressiveness, there is a lot left to be answered. 2.5/5.

It is really difficult for me to review this particular album simply because it is my all time favourite album. When I first heard it in 1992, it totally blew me away. I was speechless as it was my first "contact" with the band, (I admit that) but as I listened to the other albums,my enthusiasm and love for this album has NEVER changed. I was "shocked" at first when I read the reviews here on this site and found out this album is the least popular Marillion album. But I guess I'm just a minority in this case, so be it.

What else can I say? There may not be enough superlatives for me to use (just kidding a little bit) to express my enthusiasm; great musicianship from all members of the band, amazing vocals from Steve Hogarth, very good lyrics. I think this album received all the "heat" from fans because it was different from the previous albums; nevertheless, there is a lot of "progressiveness" on songs such as Splintering Heart, The Party and the This Town/Rakes Progress/100 Nights Trilogy. The slower tracks have always put a smile on my face (at least) - No One Can, Dry Land and Waiting to Happen; and last but not least, the two remaining rockers - Cover My Eyes and Holidays in Eden are enjoyable tracks for any rocker or prog-rocker.

Therefore I give 4 stars to Marillion's Holidays in Eden (not 5 stars as one might have thought, actually the 4 stars is even better), I highly recommend this album to all of you. This album has been my favourite for so many years, so I guess it ought to be enough for you to give it a listen, you might be surprised....

Excuse my subjectivity....

Experimenting with their new vocalist leads to an even greater shift in song structure and style than with "Season's End", which doesn't pay-off in the long run. "Holidays in Eden" is a mixed-bag of catchy, artistic songs like "Splintering Heart" and a few huh moments like with "The Party" and "This Town", which are popish without retaining the band's usual artistic flair. The album as a whole, actually, is much less dynamic than its predecessor, and lacks a lot of its intensity.

Great for serious fans, but not a good example of the band's strengths considering their previous, and future output.

Songwriting: 2 Instrumental Performances: 3 Lyrics/Vocals: 2 Style/Emotion/Replay: 3

Marillion in Holidays?

Possessing the original release (without the bonus disc) for a long time I like this very much. I know 'Holidays In Eden' is very controversial and many MARILLION fans might have expected something else. But my opinion is - this album is underrated. Amongst some others it kept me in touch with the Progressive Rock genre during the 90s. 'Holidays in Eden' contains some mainstream orientated songs - maybe the band (and first of all producer Chris Neil) had high hopes of a better financial success. But the essence of this album is Prog!

So we have an excellent beginning with Splintering Heart - very expressive vocals by Hogarth. The songs explodes and collapses several times and is one of my highlights. The Party is very emotional indeed. If anyone considers this to be not Prog - never mind - I love it, first of all the last two minutes! Cover My Eyes and No One Can are decent songs but not more - they seem to be more chart orientated and cannot convince me much. With the title track Holidays In Eden the band ist starting up with an uptempo rocker - good, but not one of my favourites. The following (last) three songs are something like a short suite. Opening with a straight rocking song This Town gliding into the interlude The Rakes Progress with excellent keyboards by Mark Kelly and finally 100 Nights - a typical MARILLION song - very melancholic and dreamy.

Probably 'Holidays in Eden' is MARILLION's nearest release to mainstream. But it should not be ignored because Steve Hogarth's vocals are brilliant and it encloses some very exciting songs.

During my Marillion maniac period, I almost purchase their entire catalogue in the remastered format (double CD). From this release, I prefer the bonus disc as the original one. It of course due to "Sympathy" which is a song I owed in the old 45 RPM format from "Rare Bird" which is a marvelous and melodic song. I must say that Steve's voice perfectly fits for this track (both versions available are nice). But not only.

After the poor remix (as most remixes IMO) "I Will Walk on Water" (a B-side track), there is is an interesting version of "Splintering Heart". This (live ?) one is harder and less mellowish than the studio one. "You Don't Need Anyone" is again a good rock number. It would have been very nice to get it on the original album to break to melancholical mood.

Much of the demo songs aren't as melowish as the final released ones, they are less polished of course and therefore fresher, especially "This Town" which is another good rocker. Still, it is funny enough that the rockiest numbers are more appealing.

"Eric" is not really a number during its initial phase. It is a short explanation on how Mark Kelly is using his keys and record some guitar riffs and reproduce it. The true musical instants are really good. What a pity that it lasts for so short. Truely great instrumentation!

Nice guitar break from the other Steve during "The Epic" the closing number of CD2. It is a great version (again far much better than the original) of "100 Nights" featured on disc one. It is one of preferred track of the whole (together with "Sympathy"). It is a pre- version recorded in 1989.

Of disc one, the title track is also a good song (the instrumental intro is particularly catchy). Heavier keys and stronger beat than usual. Rothery will display another great guitar break in "Dry Land", another good and melodic song actually. "Splintering Heart" in its final release only stands out thanks to another great Rothery solo (we are fortunate to have him here). "Cover My Eyes" is one of the very few songs that I prefer in its original format.

The numbers I prefer on this album are the harder ones, definitely. The great work from Steve Rothery must be rewarded as well: he really did a great job. I would rate this album five out of ten and upgrade it to three stars thanks to the bonus disc (but as such the original album is no more worth than two stars) .

Even Steve Hogarth has said that "Holidays In Eden" is the poppiest record that MARILLION has ever done.The producer that they used before (Chris Kimsey) was not available to them as he was producing the "Steel Wheels" album for THE ROLLING STONES. Enter Chris Neil "Pop producer extraordinaire" who offered his services and was accepted. The record label was happy, as they were putting some pressure on the band to come up with 3 singles.

"Splintering Heart" is a great opener.The intro features Hogarth and little else until we get a full sound almost 3 minutes in. Passionate vocals and some good guitar from Rothery until things settle down to an atmospheric mood. It's kind of cool the way the melody stays the same but Hogarth changes his vocal tone 4 minutes in. What a difference this amazing singer can make in the mood of the song ! Some ripping guitar 5 minutes in. I think it's great that Hogarth came up with the lyrics for this song on a very cold day in February in Toronto, 80 miles south from where I live. "Cover My Eyes (Pain and Heaven)" is an uptempo tune that opens with guitar and vocal melodies.The highlight of the song for me are the vocal melodies that come and go. "The Party" is one of my top three songs on this album. I think this would have fit well on "Seasons End". The lyrics are fantastic ! I really get drawn into the story they are telling here.This is a powerful and emotional song. Rothery really grinds it out on this one as vocal melodies follow. Nice.

"No One Can" is really a love song with the focus on the lyrics. "Holidays In Eden" opens with birds singing before you hear a jet fly over head ! This is a poppy tune. "Dry Land" is my favourite ! This song is so smooth and tasteful. Hogarth's vocals could soothe a savage beast, they are so emotional. "Waiting To Happen" is the other top three song for me. Acoustic guitar and reserved vocals are contrasted with the full sound, where Hogart's vocals are too incredible for words. I wish he'd stop that ! Ok, no I don't. "This Town" is an energetic song. Check out Rothery ! These last three songs blend together. Next is the short song "The Rakes Progress". "100 Nights" is an atmospheric tune until Rothery freaking loses it and tries rip it to shreds with a blistering solo ! The atmosphere lives though and returns to end the song.

3 stars is a fair rating for my tastes.There are passages that are amazing and others that I could live without. My first impression was "what happened ?" but after many listens I really like this record.

Holidays in Eden was Marillion's second album released with new frontman Steve Hogarth. With this album Marillion moved almost completely into mainstream, radio-friendly rock/pop music, nearly completely abandoning their progressive roots. Yes, there are elements here and there that show progressive tendencies, but they are much fewer than on any previous effort by the band. However, with all the complaining about the direction they chose, it was quite clear from Misplaced Childhood onward the band had been evolving to this. Either they liked this new style of music or they were attempting to line their pockets with more money. If it was the latter, apparently this attempt failed as it didn't fare well with other contemporary pop rocks acts at the time. The only positive thing to come from this was that Marillion learned a lesson and future releases would show stronger prog rock tendencies as they cater to their original prog rock fan base.

Although this is probably one of the worst Marillion releases in terms of "progressiveness," it does have some enjoyable AOR material that's written quite intelligently and performed quite well. All in all, not a bad album, but in terms of prog rock I can only give it two stars. Recommended for mainstream rock enthusiasts with slight progressive tendencies and die-hard Marillion fans. The rest of you should probably avoid.

Marillion's sixth album from 1991 - Holidays in eden. To me this is a decent album with some great pieces, some mediocre one, a so so album in the end. They change the musical aproch and direction when Fish departuring the band in 1988 and now they sound more mainstrem more towards AOR-prog with some pop elements. Well is not bad, some good examples are pieces:Cover my eyes (Pain and Heaven), Dry land,Something to happen and 100 nights, the rest are ok. I like the voice on Steve Hogarth, on some pieces is real great, but is far from poetical and theatrical voice of Fish, thats why i consider Fish era to be the best in Marillion career. All in all not much to add, a pleasent album to me, worth listen from time to time, but hardly an essential one like Mispalced Chillhood or Fugazi, the best they ever done. I will give 3 stars, because is a good album, but less intristing and kinda usual in manner of interpretation.

The second of my H era band CD revisits, and I can still only award this LP 2.5 stars.

I really don't know why - there are some cracking tracks, some of which such as Cover My Eyes and Waiting to Happen are still fantastic rollocking live pieces by the band. Splintering Heart is a fine opener.

I don't know - it is just that the LP does not seem to hold together well and feels disjointed and...well, wrong!

Certainly, the story told in This Town,This Rakes Progress, and 100 Nights are probably forgotten by all except those of us who are completists and fanatics.

It is as if the band were completely unsure of which direction they wished to take. The commercial singles are, in keeping with tradition, fine pieces, especially Cover My Eyes which deservedly charted.

However, Dry Land, and the title track are simply boring and lack any direction at all.

The playing on the LP is as competent as ever, although I feel it lacks Rothery being in the background too much.

This was the beginning of the end for the mass commercial appeal of the band, and we all waited with baited breath to see where they would go. A lot, I think, gave up after this LP, which is a shame because you missed some great works afterwards!

Holidays In Eden further explores the more poppy inclination of Seasons End. There are a number of songs where they pull off their new sound with grace, but there isn't much that will really capture your attention.

The strong opener Splintering Heart even raised my expectations when I first heard this album. Hogarth's epic delivery blends in very well here with the synth and clean guitar driven rock. But the opener isn't representative for the entire album. There are a few more songs with a similar dramatic impact such as The Party, Waiting To Happen and 100 Nights, but mostly this is an album filled with gentle and harmless pop-songs that nobody was waiting for, especially not in 1991 where grunge and metal ruled the independent charts and where Dream Theatre filled in the vacant prog spot. Besides, most of these pop songs are rather unremarkable, with a notable exception for Dry Land.

Marillion had sure found them an excellent new singer. It's hard to contest that when hearing this album. The problem is they didn't know what course to take with their music. But that insight would soon dawn on them. 2.5 stars

Now that had Hogarth finally settled into the line-up and had time to really collaborate with the band on a brand new album what results were we to expect from the new Marillion?

Holidays In Eden marked the band's transition into the '90s which generally was considered a difficult task for any popular '80s band to achieve. Even artists like Michael Jackson couldn't please the new generation of audience who instead seeked their kicks in the rising new genres of Alternative Rock och Grunge. A revision was definitely in order especially considering that no band can push on in one and same direction forever.

I think that most people have a difficulty of accepting the results featured on this album because of how well Marillion managed to show all the '70s progressive rock giants that their music could actually find an audience in the generally prog forsaken decade that was the '80s. Still once they themselves had to cross into a new decade Marillion went through the same sound re-inventing phase as Genesis, Yes, ELP etc. I guess that history repeats itself after all!

I can empathize with fans who bought this record when it came out and felt completely disappointed. But I personally didn't start exploring Marillion until 2001 and so once I heard Holidays In Eden back in 2005 my first reaction was related to how well this album had actually aged over the years. It's difficult to compare this release to any of the previous Marillion records but if I really had to then the closest comparison would be that of Fugazi. Just listen to the first side of that album, compare it to Holidays In Eden and tell me that you can't see any similarity between composition styles. Quality-wise this album comes closer to Seasons End but on completely different grounds. While that album was a a mixed bag of strong Marillion compositions shuffled in with some completely forgettable works, Holidays In Eden managed to keep a pretty solid quality straight through. That doesn't necessarily mean that the solid material here is nearly as good as those high points on Seasons End but the track listings basically balances each other out and marks another excellent release from the band. The low points for me here are the not so cheerful The Party that I feel is trying too hard to create an atmosphere that would be perfected on the band's next release both instrumentally and lyrically. This Town, on the other hand, is a just an average rocker that would probably have worked well in the live setting although I've rarely heard Marillion perform it at concerts so it kind of looses its sense and purpose. Previously I had the difficulty of telling the difference between Cover My Eyes (Pain And Heaven) and Hooks In You, but after seeing the hideous video for the latter, the former has really grown in my appreciation of it.

Holidays In Eden might not be a favorite among the fans that have followed the band since their glory days in the '80s but it doesn't necessarily mean that new fans should overlook another solid Marillion release that actually gets better with each passing year.

***** star songs: Splintering Heart (6:54) Dry Land (4:43)

**** star songs: Cover My Eyes (Pain And Heaven) (3:54) No One Can (4:41) Holidays In Eden (5:38) Waiting To Happen (5:01) The Rakes Progress (1:54) 100 Nights (6:41)

*** star songs: The Party (5:36) This Town (3:18)

The issue with second album of the Hogart's era is that they didn't evolve quickly enough. Holidays in Eden is no more than a follow-up to the previous Season's End with very few improvements. The band is still too tied to its original sound. "Splintering Heart" is a good song and Hogarth features very good vocals, but his voice is very different from Fish and this requires an adjustment in the band's sound that will not arrive until Brave.

"Cover My Eyes" suffers of the same issue. The guitar riff is almost the same of Incommunicado. The song is good and Hogarth makes a good job, but it's far from being a masterpiece. A bit too poppy.

"The Party" is the first song really built on Hogarth's voice. Promising.

"No One Can" is a pop sentimental. Listenable if you don't pay attention to the trivial lyrics.

This was the A side. B side opens with the title track. A rock intro then it calms down. this is another song on which Hogarth appears to be well fitting with the band's sound. I suppose it's a Hogarth's song as is unusually rock for Marillion.

"Dry Land" was the first videoclip from this album. I think they were in Iceland on summer. More than dry the land was appearing desert but green. The song is my album's favourite. It failed to be a hit single, actually, but it's a great song.

Mellow acoustic 12-strings guitar for "Waiting to Happen" a harmonic round of open chords. It's a good pop song, nothing more.

A rock-and-roll moment with "This Town". A short but quite good filler as "The Rakes Progress" and it fades into "100 nights". It's the typical Marillion song of this period, at least in the structure: A guitar harping and Hogarth's voice, then a hit of drums and all the instruments are in the piece, but without changing ,elody of rhythm. The music contines as before, just with more instruments. A mellow interlude and it starts again.

Better than Hogarth's debut, but still a non-essential album.

It's occasionally been said that H-era Marillion is such a different prospect from Fish-era that it's best to think of them as two different bands - and indeed, in interviews H has revealed that there's been points when some of the band members have advocated a name change to finally put journalistic comparisons to the Fish era to rest. If we had to assign a category on progarchives to H-era Marillion, where would we place it? I'd be tempted to suggest it'd go in crossover prog as opposed to neo-prog, since they've taken on a heavier indie-pop influence than more or less any neo-prog outfit I can think of - and the transition to their new sound began on Holidays In Eden.

Holidays is a transitional album, and there's no doubt that it suffers for it. In some ways, in fact, it was even more of a transitional album than Seasons' End, since a lot of the music for that had already been workshopped for the scrapped fifth album with Fish. (Essentially, Fish took the lyrics and set it to new music to knock out his first solo album, whilst the band cooked up new lyrics for the music they had and had H sing them.)

Whilst I think it was probably necessary for the band to delve into the sort of unashamedly indie-pop musical territory previously explored by Steve Hogarth's band How We Live - both as part of the process of integrating H into the band and getting to grips with his own musical approach and as a means of finding a way to evolve their sound for the next phase of their career - it's hard not to acknowledge that there's some serious sag around the middle of the running order, with poppy numbers such as No One Can, the title track, Dry Land and Waiting to Happen coming one after the other without a more progressive break in between.

Still, whilst I will freely admit that this album is not quite as good as any of the band's studio releases of the Fish era - or the heights the H era would soon attain with classics like Brave or Afraid of Sunlight - I wouldn't call it the unabashed disaster it's so often written off as. Splintering Heart is a great opener which shows a combination of a progressive approach in evolving the band's sound on the one hand and a connection to their heritage and earlier work on the other, whilst the closing triptych of This Town/The Rake's Progress/100 Nights is intriguing - I like how the increasing murkiness and progginess of the music parallels the corruption of its protagonist, and in its conclusion it seems to point the way directly to the sort of territory the band would explore on Brave. The Party, whilst you'd never mistake it for a neo-prog song, is hardly empty pop either, being a moody contemplation of teenage loss of innocence.

On top of all that, I find that many of the poppier numbers on the album - Cover My Eyes, No One Can, and Dry Land - are genuinely moving. Indeed, despite having a lukewarm reception on release, many pieces from this album have ended up becoming fan favourites at live gigs, though this may be down to two issues - first off, the band have added some embellishments and improvements to the songs over the years (in particular to the This Town triptych) which perhaps bring out their finer points, and secondly the approach to production on this album isn't quite what it could be - EMI paired the band up with a pop- oriented producer in order to encourage them to write a hit or two, but the approach taken obscures what's really interesting and unique about the songs, progressive and mainstream alike.

On the whole, though, Holidays In Eden does at least tick the box that every other Marillion album before it ticked: once again, the band prove themselves masters at capturing a unique atmosphere on each album, and when the mood takes me I'm first in the queue for another listen to it. I'd encourage all Marillion fans to give this one a second chance - even a third or a fourth one! - because as well as being historically important to the development of the band's sound it's also a pretty good album, but at the same time I'd never recommend that someone who's new to the group should start out by trying out this one.

Not all of Marillion's albums have been particularly well-received by the prog community, but Holidays in Eden is almost unanimously agreed as one of the band's weakest efforts. Listening to the album today, it's not hard to understand why either - the progressive credentials of this 1991 record are limited, and by this point Marillion sounded almost entirely different than they did with their eccentric Scottish ex-frontman. Most Marillion fans were scared by the direction the band was taking, and many fans still have nightmares about the commercially-geared songwriting of Holidays in Eden. Of course, we now know that these famed British neo-proggers followed this up with possibly their most ambitious observation in 1994's Brave, but the poppy vibe of Holidays in Eden didn't entirely indicate that the band had a groundbreaking new sound up their sleeves.

Even though I do concede that Holidays in Eden is a very commercial-sounding effort, I disagree with reviewers that claim that this somehow makes the album 'poor'. This is a very inspired and sincere observation from Marillion, and a few of the songs here actually compete with the band's very finest efforts. Holidays in Eden may not offer very much to the average neo-prog fan, but in terms of progressively inclined pop music, it doesn't get a whole lot better than this!

The opening tune, "Splintering Heart", is likely to be the song that will appeal most to progressive rock fans, with its epic song structure and powerful riffs making for an exceptionally strong opener. "100 Nights", the final song, is the other 'proggy' tune on Holidays in Eden, and the rest of the album is generally pretty pop-oriented. I, of course, have no issue with this, and quite a few of the shorter songs here are downright excellent in my opinion. "The Party" features some spectacular vocals from Steve Hogarth, "No One Can" is a very straightforward, but also very beautiful composition, and "Dry Land" is also another favorite of mine. "Waiting To Happen" is a ballad that may actually be my favorite of the shorter songs on Holidays in Eden; I think this is a great example of 'pop ballad' done right. Steve Rothery's guitar work on this track is particularly excellent. "Holidays in Eden" is probably the least remarkable song here, but it is still quite acceptable. As is usual by Marillion standards, the melodic musicianship is terrific across the board and the production is crisp and powerful.

While I don't think this is quite as great as its predecessor or especially its successor, Holidays in Eden is still an excellent effort in and of itself - progressive or not, this is damn good music by some of the finest musicians out there. Holidays in Eden is well worth a listen for any fan of neo-prog, pop/rock, and art rock, and most open-minded Marillion fans may find themselves surprised by how solid the songwriting is here. Although it's not one of the best Hogarth-era Marillion observations, Holidays in Eden is still a magnificent and criminally underrated album.

I did not listen to this album at the time it was released, back in 1991. I was too disappointed with their previous Seasons End (and the band´s new musical direction) to actually risk buy the record to get to know the newer material (like a did with Seasons). So I asked my friends who did and they did not like it. Critics in general dismissed Holidays In Eden as a blatantly commercial attempt to get a wider, pop audience, specially in America. So I just forgot about it until 2001, when I decided to give the Hogarth era Marillion a second chance. And I was quite surprised.

While Seasons End best track (The Space) is the last one, on this album is the opposite: the opener Splintering Heart is definitely one of their finest songs ever, Fish era included. It is beautiful, powerful and dramatic, with a strong build up that delivers the goods like the old prog times of the band. It is no surprise how this became so popular among fans, and a live favourite. The closer 100 nights is another excellent tune that reminds of the "old Marillion in terms of overall quality, a very strong prog song that deserved to be more known. Both feature blistering, emotional Steve Rothery guitar licks and solos and an emotional delivering by the band in general (and Hogarth in particular) that give goose bumps every time I hear them. The rest of the album, unfortunately is not on par with these two, of course, but it is far better than I initially thought.

The so called "commercial songs" (Cover My Eyes, No One Can, Dry Land, Waiting to Happen) are of course less prog and more pop, but of highest quality nevertheless. I really wish the radio played that sophisticated kind of accessible stuff more often. the problem here are the "rockers": numbers like This Town and the title track, like Hooks In You from the previous album are not their forte. Not really bad, they have good moments, but uncharacteristically and spoil the overall flow of the CD. However, they are only two "weak" tracks among 10, so I guess it is not that bad. (the extra CD that comes with the 1998´s remastered has a much more convincing rocker called How Can It Hurt. It would have been a better choice for either song. The other bonus tracks include a good selection of out takes, covers, demos and singles that did not made the final cut. So, if you´re going to get this album, be sure to buy the double remaster).

So, Holidays in Eden ended up being a far better CD than I expected. That if you don´t compare with the Fish era stuff, of course. The band had decided to change their style before Fish quit Marillion, so it was not Hogarth´s fault. Whether or not you like it, they would have been different from their sound of the 80´s anyway. So it is another band altogether, and seeing that way, I can appreciate them as they should (why not a change of name? I guess the recording company would not have agreed with that).

Rating: 3,5 stars. Not really essential, but more than just good.

While the songs on "Season's End", the first Marillion album without Fish, were already ready before Steve Hogarth's arrival, "Holidays in Eden", the sixth album, is the first one where the singer really had a relevant participation in the definition of the band's new musical approach. A proposal of more linear and less intricate tonalities, on the way to finding their own identity and taking distance from their recent history. That is precisely what "Holidays in Eden" conveys, flying in winds closer to pop, turning at times into a work with little flavour and tinged with some flashes of greater elaboration.

Hogarth, who decisively tries to take charge of the situation although he is somewhat impostured, is accompanied by the calm keyboards of Mark Kelly and by the neat arpeggiated guitars and solos of the very correct Steve Rothery, generating an atmosphere of lightness and persistent accessibility throughout the album, getting closer to the commercial radio waves rather than to the canons of the progressive world, as is the case of the lively "Cover my Eyes", and the light "No One Can" and "Dry Land". Even the expectant title track with its catchy chorus fails to get off the ground.

Beyond the feeling that "Holidays in Eden" doesn't take any major risks, there are nevertheless some valuable passages: the opening, sorrowful "Splintering Heart", the acoustic chords of the melodic "Waiting to Happen", and the concluding "100 Nights" with an emotive guitar solo by Rothery backed by Ian Mosley's drums. Tracks that are enough for the album to scrape a pass mark, but not much more than that.

A new and definitive stage was underway for Marillion, and the hitherto little known Hogarth clearly assumed the musical leadership from "Holidays in Eden" onwards.

2.5/3 stars