Customer Reviews

Strange Engine

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(16)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Most die-hard Marillion fans' least favorite Marillion records are This Strange Engine and Holidays in Eden. After having owned most of what is domstically available by Marillion, the only two I presently own are the two must-haves, This Strange Engine and Holidays in Eden. "Estonia" and "This Strange Engine" are easily the two best tracks, but moreso because of how incredible they are, not because the rest of the album is lacking. I'll also admit that at first I had a hard time getting past how much "One Fine Day" musically reminded me of Aerosmith's "Dream On" but after a few listens, I was very much over it. I don't know what pressings Amazon.com sells, but some domestic copies come with 2 unlisted bonus tracks, the Positive Light remix of "Estonia" and the acoustic version of "80 days." If you can find a TSE with those two extra tracks, they make the album even better, but either way, this comes highly recommended...

This Strange Engine is quite simply one of the most beautiful albums I've ever heard. I understand that Marillion is one of the most highly regarded bands in the progressive/art rock genre, and that their back catalogue contains some truly exceptional albums, but This Strange Engine is in a class all its own and remains my favorite Marillion album.

This is an album that may not fall into the traditional progressive mold, in that aside from the title track there is not much in the way of showy instrumental passages or lengthy epics. Instead the band opts for a sound that appeals more to emotion and a sense of beauty. Much of this appeal comes from the performance of vocalist Steve Hogarth.

When original vocalist Fish left the band, it marked a turning point for Marillion's sound. Fish's fey, almost otherworldly delivery was replaced by Steve Hogarth's more earnest and (to my ears) emotional style. I know that many purists greatly prefer the Fish era albums, and that is quite understandable, as they are truly works of art, but I tend to enjoy the Hogarth albums more. They just seem to resonate more and connect with me on a more emotional level.

This Strange Engine is, so far, the best of those albums. All of the songs are excellent, but Man of a Thousand Faces, Estonia, and An Accidental Man are truly exceptional. This album is emotional, powerful, and beautiful, and I highly recommend it.

This album is a bit awkward. It starts off with a great song, man of 1000 faces. This song is easily one of the three best on this albums. I don't really know what they're doing on Accidental man, Memory of water or Hope for the future though. These songs all sound a bit uninspired. BUT! The title track is EASILY the best thing they ever recorded. Especially the last 6 minutes of the song are pure emotion, and if you don't own this record, you're sure to be missing something in your life.

For my general views on the "new" Marillion (that is, Marillion without their erstwhile lead singer, Fish), please read my review of "Afraid of Sunlight".

I shan't repeat everything hear. Suffice it to say that "Afraid" took me by surprise, becoming one of my favorite albums in spite of the fact that I bought it on a whim and was totally prepared - even perhaps looking forward - to disliking every second of it.

"Engine" is, in many ways, similar to "Afraid". If you like the one, you should like the other (and, yes, and you should like the one AND the other; they're both excellent!) However, there are a few points which should be made.

Firstly, "Engine" is not as homogenous as "Afraid". The title track of "Engine", for example, lasts about 16 minutes and is utterly wonderfull; set against this, however, are the quite staid world music inclinations of Hope for the Future, which in comparison seem quite innocuous.

Having said that, though, I've run out of steam. I simply can't fault the rest of the album. It's not world-shattering, it's nothing like (for example) the sheer, determinedly vituoso performances of King Crimson. But why should it be? This isn't a rehash of Crimson, or Yes, or even Genesis, the group Marillion obviously felt bound to during their first years.

This is Marillion, the "new" Marilion. And they're to be enjoyed and liked. And admired.

Like "Afraid", "Engine" is a great album. Thought-provoking, beautiful, reflective and occasionally intense, it is worth every penny you spend on it.

Buy this album!

Released in 1997, this album is not at the top of my Marillion preferences. Being them my favorite band since 1987, I consider "Season's End" (1989, 1st without Fish) or "Afraid Of Sunlight" (1995, the previous to this one) more homogenous (regarding only the band's discography with Steve Hogarth as lead singer).

But 6 years have passed since I bought it, and I keep on listening to it pretty often. So where's the explanation? Well, especially in 2 great tracks: Estonia (lovely lyrics) and This Strange Engine (a pure Marillion song). These 2 songs would be reason enough for me to rate this album 4 stars instead of 3. Man Of A Thousand Faces (played on the 2001 live tour) or An Accidental Man are also good quality songs. The rest of the album is well listened but I don't find any other track at the same level as those.

P>...Once upon a time there was a musical style called "progressive" by its fans and "art rock" by its enemies (neither term told you squat about what would come out of the speakers when you hit "play"). Some outfits dragged in classical. Some dragged in jazz. Some dragged in Eastern forms. Some did a bit of each. Some outfits were all electronic (Tangerine Dream, Kraftwerk). Some used the same gear any pop group used, like guitar, bass, drums and ONE keyboard (the Doors, the Iron Butterfly). The only commonality was that musicianship was just as important as the beat or the attitude expressed by the lyrics. Then the folks who got to say what was or wasn't real rock'n'roll decided it was all heresy and had to go. Some outfits went in the dumpster (Gentle Giant, ELP Mark I). Some found a "normal" style they could live with, like hard rock (Pink Floyd, Jethro Tull) or soft rock (Genesis, Yes). We the listeners had the choice of listening to The Boss or Seger like MTV told us to. Or some of us fled to New Age and got put to sleep. Lotus-eaters with headphones. 25 years later, we've got bands like Spock's Beard and Dream Theater. You know--"this is not your father's art rock, this is the new generation of prog". Okay, both bands are great, but let's not forget the transitional period or who paid the dues during those days. Marillion came up during the original wave's crash-and-burn, and while Rolling Stone was telling everyone else to cool it, Marillion didn't listen. They kept on keepin' on--making real music while bands around them did soundtracks to videos. This album shows they're still at it. Which gives younger bands like D-T and S-B proof that the older generation aren't all Top-40 dinosaurs.

"Coming down" from Afraid of Sunlight, one of my favorite all-time albums, This Strange Engine is good, but leaves a bit to be desired. Songs are quieter, often less ambitious and diverse, and the album misses an element of cohesion found in Brave and Afraid of Sunlight. The epic title track is missing an integral musical theme to hold it together. This is no Afraid of Sunlight.

Given time, I realized that it didn't matter. There's some great work here, some of the band's best writing, I'd say. "Man of a Thousand Faces" is one of their best album openers ever, I think -- quite simply a GREAT song. Driven by acoustic guitar and piano flourishes, think "King of Sunset Town" with acoustic guitars and you're close. Actually, Rothery uses lots of acoustic on this album. "80 Days" and "Estonia" are wonderful songs both anchored in acoustic guitar melodies.

The title track in particular is totally beautiful. Quite simply, it is a progressive songwriting showcase of huge proportions, and certainly one of my favorites of theirs. Rothery's slow, sparkling guitar solo near the end is gorgeous, with sonic grandiosity and innovative arrangements building up to it. The song reads in at a little over 30 minutes, but in reality there is only about 16 minutes of music. This is followed by a long moment of silence before some piano chords chime in and there's some creepy laughter. Did they think it was funny tricking us like that? It was mean, very mean! That's the most progressive thing on the album, although "Estonia" is fairly reminiscent of the "classic" Marillion sound, as well.

I always find myself liking songs no one else enjoys. "Memory of Water" is a spooky, haunting arrangement where Hogarth's voice is the main instrument, supported by quiet synthed violin and what might be cello and some flute. There's also some, uh, provocative lyrics in the form of, "Your taste is blood and ecstasy | But I must drink you all alone." I have mixed feelings about some of the other work, though. "One Fine Day" has an overly pushy guitar riff for a song with those quiet vocal melodies and rosy lyrics. "The Accidental Man" is pretty good, but "Hope for the Future" is too unlike anything they've ever done for me to appreciate -- it just doesn't fit. The refrain "Carrying a message" is overused and overall the music sounds like it belongs on someone else's record.

So it's an album of peaks and valleys, but those peaks are certainly some of their best moments.

After listening to an mp3 of the first of the title track I was entrigued by the haunting atmosphere the boys had created. The album has a soaring quality only equaled by the finest moments of AOS and Brave. Man of 1000 faces never fails to impress even after repeated listenings and the more commercial sounding 'one fine day' and '80 days' are very rewarding. Estonia is a triumph but I think the Positive Light remix has more atmosphere to be honest. The memory of water is very disappointing at first but it has certainly grown on me over time. 'An accidental man' and 'Hope for the future' are lighter songs but can be enjoyed just as much if you don't take them too seriously. And as for the finale, well just listen to it now!

I actually hoped Marillion would follow up with the same kinda sound they had on "Afraid of Sunlight", but I guess that's not their style. "This Strange Engine" uses more acoustic guitar but still comes across as a good rock album. My favorites on this one are "Estonia" and the title track. I must admit I am quite amazed at the way Marillion changes their sound but not their quality. This is a fine band that shows they can do it all.... Enough said, BUY IT!

if the only song on TSE, was 'tse' that would make it worthwhile. lucky for us fans, we get seven more songs, making this album another perfect gem from marillion. when this album came out i was 17, and i had only been listening to marillion for about one year. the first day that it was carried in the import section in the cd shop, i was thrilled. it contains the most emotional song ever in 'this strange engine' and the rest of the album leads up to that song in grand style. it is greatly under appreciated not only by the music world, but by FREAKS as well. TSE is a wonderful album, buy it!