Author: Peter Podbrežnik
Artist: Marillion
Label: EMI Records
Release: 1991
Rating: 4/5
“Holidays In Eden” was the first album by the legendary British (neo) prog heroes Marillion that they recorded from start to finish with their then still relatively fresh-faced singer Steve Hogarth. He had joined the band in a hugely successful and dramatic fashion on the previous album, “Seasons End” (1989), which already hinted at a new sonic direction, one that was starting to drift away from the traditional influences of the 70s prog rock legends that were typical of every neo prog rock outfit. Hogarth, whose unique vocal talent helped unlock completely new dimensions in the Marillion sound, pulled off the impossible job of replacing the original singer, the charismatic Scottish highlander Fish, with flying colors, while Fish had meanwhile started a solo career. Most Marillion fans have followed the careers of both camps with interest ever since, and even though at first it looked like Fish would be the one to score bigger success and deliver the higher-quality, if not sonically more mature, records, it was his old bandmates who came up with more innovative experiments and stylistic variety, and as one of the leading bands kept the honor of progressive rock alive in the 90s too. From this album on, Hogarth (known to fans as H’) proved himself not just as a superb singer, but also as a gifted songwriter and a solid extra keyboardist on electric piano, which is no surprise given that he started out as a keyboard player. At the same time, his pop rock pedigree played a key part in the big sonic shifts and the birth of what was practically a brand new band.
On “Holidays In Eden”, which is without a doubt one of the most unique albums in their discography, Marillion made an almost radical stylistic U-turn away from the neo prog rock that defined the Fish era, heading into more art rock, and at times even pop rock, waters. You could say that in a way a completely new band was born, since from this album on only a handful of songs were written that sound even remotely like their neo prog days. It was a bold move that won them at least as many new fans as it cost them. The more commercially accessible direction of this album owed a lot to the wishes of their label at the time, EMI, who wanted hits in the style of “Kayleigh” at all costs, which was completely unrealistic from the get-go. Marillion did give them three potential hit singles (in the 80s they’d surely have been a huge success), but the times for this kind of pop rock/AOR hit took a radical turn for the worse, mostly thanks to the rise of grunge, and the album ultimately didn’t deliver the success everyone hoped for. Despite having plenty of haters, especially among the hard core of inconsolable Fish fans who couldn’t come to terms with the band’s logical evolution, “Holidays In Eden” is a great album. On what is still their most commercial-sounding record to this day, Marillion served up some of their best melodic pop rock songs. And especially in the second half of the album they proved that they hadn’t lost their taste for prog rock experimentation by a long shot.
But the album is nowhere near opening in pop rock fashion. The superb “Splintering Heart”, practically bending under its kinetic energy, immediately confirms that Marillion haven’t lost their innate sense of drama. After a rising, atmospheric intro built on H’s dramatic vocals, Rothery’s trademark “weeping” guitar riffing barges in and carries the song off toward seventh heaven, and that’s when the whole band joins in. In between, energetic and calm passages keep trading places as Kelly’s keyboards and Rothery’s guitar build melancholic arrangements. After a dramatic guitar solo crashes in, H’ delivers a heart-wrenching vocal performance, with lyrics about moments of loneliness. Next up is the phenomenal pop rocker “Cover My Eyes (Pain And Heaven)”, probably the most commercial piece in the band’s whole history, with plenty of echoes of some U2 songs and especially of the Pink Floyd classic/hit “Take It Back”, even though the latter was written three years later. The centerpiece of this gem is its incredibly sexy melodic chorus with great extra vocal harmonies, plus a mystical, galloping rhythm teamed up with excellent guitar riffing. Lyrically it deals with fantasies about assorted beautiful femmes fatales from pop culture. It’s frankly unbelievable that this great song didn’t become far more popular and bring the band worldwide success.
“The Party”, a lyrical tribute to the memory of teenage parties from H’s childhood, is a solid piece that tips over from a calm intro into more energetic waters via a powerful vocal over melodic passages on keyboards and guitar. A great contrast in the second half comes from a sprawling guitar solo and the dramatic transitions of Mosley’s drums, which lift the atmosphere even higher. “No One Can”, spiced with an AOR flavor, is one of the most beautiful ballads in the band’s history and probably their softest piece, which in mood sits very close to “Easter”, even though it’s more of a love confession. Its main charm lies in a simple and serene melody with a mighty melodic chorus and extra backing vocal harmonies. Someone at EMI even said when it came out that they’d jump out of a window if this song wasn’t a huge hit. Of course, they were lying. Next comes the title track, “Holidays In Eden”, with its mystical tint and a few prog instrumental finesses as well. The lyrics, about a girl who went into the South American jungle and had trouble fitting back into the “civilized” world after coming home, were co-written with H’s buddy John Hemer, who contributed to several of the band’s lyrics over the years. The interplay between guitar and fiery keyboard passages is superb, while the melodramatic chorus makes the biggest impact. Wild and calm rhythms alternate throughout, just like the nature of H’s vocals. A very solid piece, although it could have been a bit wilder rhythmically, considering it’s about jungle adventures.
The ambient pop rocker “Dry Land”, yet another potential pop hit, which H’ wrote back in his previous short-lived band How We Live, is one of the best songs on the album. The vibe radiates a special mystical serenity, built up generously by H’s dreamy vocals and melancholic touches on guitar and keyboards. All of it rests on an incredibly refined rhythm. The mighty chorus, riding the main guitar riff, gives the composition majestic proportions and lifts the listener above the clouds. The triumph of pure beauty is sealed by the weeping guitar solo at the close. “Waiting To Happen” is a tender love ballad with a melancholic intro on acoustic guitar and calm singing. Of course, this time too there’s no escaping a dramatic, confessional chorus with a heart-wrenching vocal delivery and Rothery’s distinctive guitar solo. The best part of the album, though, is the closing prog rock trilogy of linked tracks, “This Town/The Rakes Progress/100 Nights”. Of everything on the album, these three come closest to their former neo prog rock heritage, but that’s not the main reason why they usually make the biggest impact on the average listener of this album. “This Town” has an almost hard rock pulse with punchy riffing, angry vocals delivering lyrics about two kindred souls growing apart after moving to a big city, and complex rhythmic shifts. With rhythms like these, it’s not hard to picture a city madhouse. “The Rakes Progress” is a short instrumental section that sets the stage for the closing “100 Nights”. H’s vocals here reflect the cynicism of the central character of the lyrical concept, who got corrupted after arriving in the big city and decided to use it for his own selfish ends. The nocturnal mood is fed by melancholic, extremely fragile passages on keyboards and guitar, plus yet another excellent Hogarth vocal performance, full of conflicting emotions. The second part brings a dramatic section with an orgasmic guitar solo and mighty drum fills backing the foaming vocals. The finale is a calm, repetitive outro that keeps the central motif of “This Town”.
The 1998 double-disc reissue of the album comes loaded with bonus goodies. Besides acoustic, alternate and demo versions of songs that were released on the album, there are also a few solid tracks that never made it onto it. These include “Sympathy”, a great cover of the only hit by the legendary prog rock band Rare Bird, which the band practically adopted as their own. “How Can It Hurt” is a solid, punchy hard rock piece with snarling riffs and a dramatic edge. “A Collection” is an interesting acoustic ballad whose lyrics are about a guy, an acquaintance of Helmer’s, who had a very strange fetish: he always took photos of his (ex-)girlfriends in the same spot and added them to an album in sequence. Despite this rather perverse subject, the main melody sounds incredibly gentle and innocent. The excellent “I Will Walk On Water”, whose lyrics are dedicated to a mystical experience H had while watching the rain, is a pretty atypical piece by usual Marillion standards, with a bouncy, heavy-rock-style rhythm and plenty of Hammond samples on the synths that lean quite heavily toward the likes of Uriah Heep. “You Don’t Need Anyone” is another rarity with unfinished lyrics. “Eric” is a short instrumental demonstration of Kelly’s use of guitar samples on keyboards, which create the central motif shared with “This Town”. These are backed by a Rothery solo. “The Epic” is a sort of collage of some of the main motifs from individual songs before they became separate tracks, and it shows the band’s usual studio process: they put together a longer pile of musical ideas and later decide what fits together and what doesn’t.
“Holidays In Eden” is an excellent and sadly still rather overlooked album that falls just short of Marillion masterpiece status. You could also call it the successful birth of a completely new band with a completely different musical direction, one that (quite understandably) no longer wanted anything to do with the genre/term neo prog rock. As the most pop rock album in their story, it’s undoubtedly something special, and for that many a neo prog Fish-era purist despises it, and some even broke their loyalty to the band back then, convinced the dominant pop rock material would keep escalating for a long time. They failed to appreciate the band’s new ability to outgrow the old neo prog confines and the logical next evolutionary step, which turned out to be short-lived. To everyone’s surprise, loyal fans and disappointed ones alike, after the commercial flop of “Holidays In Eden” they went on to make “Brave” (1994), one of their most mature records and a progressive rock concept masterpiece without obvious influences from the 70s prog classics. With it they won back those who believed they had given up on more ambitious prog rock for good, and had a nice success with prog connoisseurs, but that’s material for another review.
Lineup
Steve Hogarth – vocals
Steve Rothery – guitar
Pete Trewavas – bass guitar
Mark Kelly – keyboards
Ian Mosley – drums
Production
Chris Neil
Tracklist
1. Splintering heart (6:54)
2. Cover my eyes (Pain and Heaven) (3:54)
3. The party (5:36)
4. No one can (4:41)
5. Holidays in Eden (5:38)
6. Dry land (4:43)
7. Waiting to happen (5:01)
8. This town (3:18)
9. The rakes progress (1:54)
10. 100 nights (6:41)
Album length: 48:17
Bonus CD from the 1998 edition:
1. Sympathy (single) (3:30)
2. How can it hurt (single) (4:41)
3. A collection (single) (3:00)
4. Cover my eyes (acoustic single) (2:34)
5. Sympathy (acoustic single) (2:30)
6. I will walk on water (Alternate ’98 mix) (5:14)
7. Splintering heart (live) (6:42)
8. You don’t need anyone (Moles Club demo) (4:04)
9. No one can (demo) (4:51)
10. The party (demo) (5:45)
11. This town (demo) (4:16)
12. Waiting to happen (demo) (5:31)
13.Eric (Video o.s.t.) (2:32)
14. The epic (Fairyground) (demo) (8:31)
