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Jack the bodiless,
I wouldn't dare get into a debate about real music vs pop music in relation to Marillion. I agree with you regarding Marillion's pop music side. I also love that side of their music. Hey, it's Marillion! Cover My Eyes, Dry Land, 80 Days, Waiting To Happen, Map Of The World, No-one can, Beautiful etc. were all brilliant tracks which should have been big hits but had no record company backing. It has always been important for a band wanting chart success to get their record company to put the big money behind them - guaranteed success even if a song is really bad - how else would some of the songs that hit number one get there! A lot of the number one hitters are never heard of again.
All Marillions poppier stuff should have been big hits, but it seems that EMI had just moved onto someone else as being flavour of the month, and that was it. However, Marillion are more than just their music, they're a band that are committed to their music, and they enjoy playing and writing that music. This then comes across in the music they write, which is what makes it so special.
The interview on the DVD single suggests that the band don't like doing the big pop circus thing, although their having a good stab at it with "You're gone". At least they're trying to do it themselves without the big company money behind them - can it be done? We await the charts today! Even if they don't get big chart success, the album Marbles is brilliant and I am recommending it to all and sundry.
I personally think the single version of "You're Gone" is too short and doesn't give any new listeners anything of Marillion to hang on to. The video also looks very cheap and rushed. Steve H even looks like he finishes miming too soon at the end, and looks around at the band with a "are we finished yet" look. Having a full two verses at the beginning of just Steve H's face (not even clear) is just plain boring and won't make anyone sit up and notice, which is what Marillion need to do if their going to attract new fans using this medium.
I personally think the next obvious single from Marbles should be "Don't Hurt Yourself", but they need to keep it full length, and do a decent video - lots of footage of the band live, interspersed with some kind of humorous story thread - these type of videos always seem to make people sit and watch the whole thing, and thereby get to know the whole song. |
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