HOGARTH,STEVE+BARBIERI,RICHARD - Not The Weapon But The Hand (Sealed) (CD)

Marillion was a very digestible anachronism. A band that stubbornly continued where Genesis had stopped. Strangely, this sultry progrockpamp was even chart-like. At "Kayleigh", Fish still held the micro in his hand, but like the Scot, his successor, Steve Hogarth, had the theatrical leaning towards the Jammerfalsett, which was somehow stylistic - passing through all the new mainstreams between U2, Cure and Police. The two good decades for keyboardists broke down at that time; So it was good times for Richard Barbieri, who shaped the sound of bands like Japan and Porcupine Tree. Meanwhile, Hogarth and Barbieri let the whole thing go more relaxed: her album is a collaborative project, which originated musically in Barbieri's head and found his lyric form by Hogarth's reactions to the compositions. Over loops and trance, drum & bass and quiet beatpoetry define the numbers, which one may feel gloomy and gothic depending on the daytime, or also naturalistic to romantic. Whoever - Japan, Marillion her - surrounds acoustically with Ambient, Industrial or Darkwave surrounds, Hogaths and Barbieri's album will feel as a beneficial decelerating inspiration. (Ron)