Ed’s Letter

So what were you doing in February 1994 when Marillion released Brave? I was Deputy Editor on Metal Hammer magazine, which had just been bought by Dennis Publishing (who would eventually sell it on to Future Publishing in 2000). Back in those pre-Prog and Classic Rock days, Hammer was one of the few outlets for coverage of any kind of progressive music, but as metal fragmented ever further in the wake of grunge and the street appeal of nu-metal, space was becoming severely limited for what many considered, even back then, old farts.

News that Marillion were going to release a concept album was met in the office with a mix of bemusement, amusement and plain old indifference. They were old hat to the younger writers and the old ‘Fish versus the new boy’ argument could still be heard among those that did care. As one of the ‘prog-friendly’ crew, I was impressed with such a bold move, and I’ve loved Brave ever since. The endurance shown by the likes of Marillion during such fallow years for the genre went a long way to the creation, four years later, of Classic Rock magazine, and again with Prog magazine a decade after that.

But my, does time skew the memory somewhat. Reading Dave Everley’s enlightening story on the making of the album that graces the cover of this issue (page 34) , it’s amazing to see how Brave really shook things up for the band. Sure, offering a concept album to a major record label at the height of Britpop is the kind of thing that’s hardly going to be welcomed with open arms, but it’s amazing to hear how some of the fans reacted at the time. And equally, the overriding impression is of the 90s being a bit non-prog, yet just check out our list of great 90s concept albums. In all, it’s a bit of an eye-opener.

So Brave. The album that created the Marillion of today. Thank prog for that, say I. Enjoy…