Formed by Mick Pointer and Steve Rothery, prog-rockers Marillion have often been compared to Genesis and Van Der Graaf Generator, although they have included other influences over the course of their recording career. The band have gone through several line-up changes, although fans consider the most crucial change to have been the departure of frontman Fish, who provided lyrics for the band's early output.
The 1983 debut, Script for a Jester's Tear, helped to establish the band's strong following and they continued to build on this with subsequent releases Fugazi and Misplaced Childhood. The albums charted the rise and fall of a musician, from anonymity to success to excess. Misplaced Childhood was the most commercially successful of the trio, hitting No.1 in the UK while the single "Kayleigh" reached No.2. The lyrics of 1987's Clutching at Straws hinted at the difficulties faced by musicians, brought about by the stress of touring and pressures of stardom. The album proved to be the last Fish would record with the group and he left to pursue his own career.
A new frontman was required and former European Steve Hogarth joined Marillion for the recording of the 1989 album Seasons End. The follow-up album Holidays in Eden was considered by many to sound too mainstream, although the band hit form again with the follow-up Brave.
Brave was a full-on concept album, based on a news item about a young woman who was found by the police wandering over a bridge. The vinyl edition of the album contained a double groove, so whichever groove the needle followed determined the ending of the story. The album went on to be hailed by many as the best prog-rock album of the 90s.
When Marillion found themselves with a new record label which didn't have the money to promote them, American fans raised money online for the band to include the US as part of their tour. This marked a turning point for the band who saw the potential of the internet for fan interaction. The band contacted fans asking for orders for their follow-up album, raising sufficient money to pay for the promotion of the 2001 release Anoraknophobia. In gratitude to the fans the next album was only available through the Marillion website.
The band continue their strong relationship with their fans over the internet, and with 2007's release Somewhere Else reaching the Top 30, the relationship seems to be working.
