Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
music for recollecting past loves/hates, April 16, 2003
I first heard this album (yes, album)when it first came out. "Assassing" held my attention; "Punch and Judy" made an immediate purchase necessary. Marillion is a band that can be listened to on two different levels. On one hand, one can superficially listen to a very emotional vocalist spouting dark poetry, backed by a superb back up band with a clean, clean guitar, passionately soloing. On the other hand, if you sit down with the lyrics (sometimes, not entirely accurate), you can find deeper, hidden meaning within lyrics worthy of study at a College level English class. Unlike, "Jester's Tear", which has some high points but which I find to be uneven, "Fugazi" has no low points. Each song is a finely crafted mini-opera. I would personally love to see a director take each song and craft a video for them. The subject matter is a dark view of relationships with women and the hardships they cause. Feminists beware, at this period Fish holds women in very low esteem. The only song not about relationships is the first, which is a slice of 80's upwardly mobile life, where you shove, walk and kill to get ahead. If the subject matter is a little dated, Rothery's guitar makes up for it. In closing, Marillion fans are torn over vocalists, Fish versus Hogarth. Each has his admirers/detractors; this is one of the two finest moments for Fish. The other is "Clutching at Straws" a sobering and revealing look back at life through the bottom of a bottle.
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Where are the Prophets?, October 23, 2007
The mid '80s were an interesting time for pop music. Some bands let keyboards drive them (Eurythmics) and some bands let their guitars do the talking (Big Country). During this same period, prog rock experienced something of a revival. And Gabriel era Genesis inspired Marillion led the way. With musicians par excellence (Steve Rothery - guitar, Pete Treavus - bass, Ian Mosely - drums, and Fish - vocals) they really took off, at least in England. In america, the best they could muster was an opening slot for Rush on the Power windows tour.
Fugazi is the middle album of a trilogy and represents the first record by the classic lineup with Mosely having replaced Mick Pointer on drums. An album of politics, blaring guitars, and heavy keyboard interludes, this album grabs you by the shirt. Where Script was uneven and Childhood bombastic, this album was much more succinct. That said, Script and Childhood are also musts, but this one is my favorite....The song Incubus is CLASSIC
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A melancholy masterpiece, unique in the band's catalog, August 30, 2007
I was surprised to see only 3 previous customer reviews for this album. I first discovered Marillion when I found the vinyl LP "Script for a Jester's Tear" at my local used record shop, back in my teen years. I'd never heard of them but the album art and themes just grabbed my attention, and needless to say that record is a classic. I think Fugazi must have already been out because I found it shortly thereafter in the same record shop. I was already a fan when "Misplaced Childhood" was released and I was fortunate enough to see the band twice on the U.S. tour for that monumental album. And I saw them again for "Clutching at Straws". I do prefer the Fish era, but I liked some of Steve Hogarth's work with the band too, it just changed a bit too much for my tastes and it departed from what had drawn me to Marillion in the first place. "Fugazi" in many ways is an ending...it has such moody, downbeat material that the next record couldn't possibly have been any darker, and then they delivered the magnificent "Misplaced Childhood". The first two albums mark Phase 1 and the latter two mark Phase 2 of the Fish era. I think "Fugazi" is generally the least-heralded of the Fish-era Marillion albums and this is a shame, because it's fantastic. If you have any interest in Marillion and you are not familiar with this album, check it out. You won't regret it.
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