Somewhere Else (Marillion album)

Somewhere Else is the fourteenth studio album by British neo-progressive rock band Marillion. It was released by the band's own label, Intact Records, in the United Kingdom on 9 April 2007.[1] Produced by Michael Hunter, the album was recorded during 2006 at The Racket Club in Buckinghamshire, except the track "Faith", written during the Marbles sessions and recorded the previous year.

Somewhere Else
Studio album by
Marillion
Released9 April 2007
Recorded2006
StudioThe Racket Club
(Buckinghamshire, England)
GenreNeo-progressive rock, alternative rock, pop rock
Length52:07[nb 1]
LabelIntact
ProducerMichael Hunter
Marillion chronology
Marbles
(2004)		 Somewhere Else
(2007)		 Happiness Is the Road
(2008)
Singles from Somewhere Else
  1. "See It Like a Baby"
    Released: 26 March 2007
  2. "Thankyou Whoever You Are"
    Released: 11 June 2007

Artwork

The album title was initially supposed to be 14 and a cover art was prepared to match with it. However, the name altered and a new artwork became necessary. The final variant of the cover featuring a tower viewer also known as a coin-operated binoculars was designed by Carl Glover. It is quite similar to that of the Weather Report's compilation album Forecast: Tomorrow. The band had been aware of this but since it occurred by accident they decided not to change anything.[2]

Release

Critical reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Uncut[3]

Stephen Dalton of Uncut, describing Somewhere Else in a 3 star (out of 5) review, stated that "some tracks chime and soar like Coldplay. Others are just a post-rock whimper away from Radiohead". Dalton concluded that "Marillion deserve a fair hearing".[3] Richard Mann of Guitarist was less impressed, claiming "with its bombastic production, meandering instrumentation and anthemic AOR choruses it's no doubt precisely the sort of thing owners of the other 13 albums by the band will lap up. But for the innocent bystander, there's really nothing to see here...Steve Rothery's guitars often seem weighed down with unnecessary effects from the Museum of Abandoned Guitar Sounds: the solos, usually a strong point, seem tossed off and inconsequential ... in places, the album's lyrics beggar belief." Mann concluded: "On Faith, the barely disguised aping of McCartney's Blackbird fingerpicking offers the final proof that there's little invention left in the tank."[4]

Classic Rock ranked the album number 24 on their end-of-year list for 2007.[5]

Commercial performance

Somewhere Else peaked at number 24 on the UK Albums Chart, becoming Marillion's first to enter the Top 40 since Radiation (1998).[6] The first single from the album was "See It Like a Baby", a download-only release, which made number 45 on the UK Singles Chart. Follow-up "Thankyou Whoever You Are" fared better, reaching number 15 and giving the band their third Top 20 hit of the 2000s and in fact their second highest charting single since 1987's "Incommunicado".[7]

2011 Madfish reissues

Unlike their previous two albums, Marillion did not ask fans to pre-order Somewhere Else before it was recorded because they did not need the money. This left some fans disappointed as there was no special edition available. However, a similar 36-page deluxe edition packaged in a digibook format with an additional artwork designed by Carl Glover[nb 2] was issued on 25 April 2011 by the independent label Madfish, a division of Snapper Music.[8] Moreover, a limited double vinyl edition featuring a modified track listing and three extra live tracks[nb 3], taken from the live video Somewhere in London,[9] was released by Madfish on 11 July 2011.[10]

Track listing

All lyrics are written by Steve Hogarth (except for "Most Toys" by Hogarth/Ale Dozal); all music is composed by Marillion

No.TitleLength
1."The Other Half"4:23
2."See It Like a Baby"4:32
3."Thankyou Whoever You Are"4:51
4."Most Toys"2:48
5."Somewhere Else"7:51
6."A Voice from the Past"6:22
7."No Such Thing"3:58
8."The Wound"7:18
9."The Last Century for Man"5:52
10."Faith"4:12
Total length:52:07

Two tracks from the sessions were included on different editions of the single "Thankyou Whoever You Are": "Circular Ride"[11] and "Say the Word".[12] These two b-sides have not been included on any edition of the album so far.

2011 Madfish 2xLP edition

Personnel

Marillion

Additional musicians

Technical

Charts

Release history
Region Date Label Version Format Catalog
United Kingdom 9 April 2007 Intact Standard CD INTACT CD11
Germany 13 April 2007
North America 24 April 2007 MVD Audio
Europe 25 April 2011 Madfish Deluxe CD SMACD973
11 July 2011 Limited LP SMALP973

References

Notes
  1. Intact: INTACT CD11
  2. Madfish: SMACD973
  3. Madfish: SMALP973

Citations

  1. "Somewhere Else" (Press release). 1 February 2007. Retrieved 18 March 2015.
  2. Marshall, Fraser (April 2007). "Somewhere Else – Introduction". Marillion – Explanations of Lyric Elements. Retrieved 18 March 2015.
  3. Dalton, Stephen (May 2007). Uncut (120). {{cite journal}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  4. Mann, Richard (May 2007). Guitarist. {{cite journal}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  5. Parker, Steve. "Classic Rock end-of-year lists". Steve Parker Micro Site. Retrieved 18 March 2015.
  6. "Marillion – Somewhere Else". Official Chart Company. Retrieved 18 March 2015.
  7. "Marillion". Official Chart Company. Retrieved 18 March 2015.
  8. "Marillion – Somewhere Else (digibook CD)". Madfish Store. Retrieved 18 March 2015.
  9. Marillion - Somewhere Else, retrieved 7 September 2022
  10. "Marillion – Somewhere Else – vinyl edition (double vinyl)". Madfish Store. Retrieved 18 March 2015.
  11. Marillion – Thankyou Whoever You Are / Most Toys (2007, CD), retrieved 18 October 2021
  12. Marillion – Thankyou Whoever You Are (2007, Cardboard Sleeve, CD), retrieved 18 October 2021
  13. "Dutchcharts.nl – Marillion – Somewhere Else" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 17 March 2022.
  14. "Lescharts.com – Marillion – Somewhere Else". Hung Medien. Retrieved 17 March 2022.
  15. "Offiziellecharts.de – Somewhere Else – Anoraknophobia" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 17 March 2022.
  16. "Italiancharts.com – Marillion – Somewhere Else". Hung Medien. Retrieved 17 March 2022.
  17. "Swisscharts.com – Marillion – Somewhere Else". Hung Medien. Retrieved 17 March 2022.
  18. "Marillion | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved 17 March 2022.
  19. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 22 August 2016.
  20. "Marillion – Thankyou Whoever You Are" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 19 March 2015.
  21. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 22 August 2016.
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