With Friends From The Orchestra (studio album)
by Marillion

I have long been a fan of Marillion and was so excited to see them live for a second time in Cardiff for the tour of this album, aka, the Steve Hogarth show! The concert experience was possibly the most disappointing concert I have ever witnessed. Steve Hogarth came onto stage so pissed that he could hardly construct a sentence and staggered around in a cringeworthy manner, at one point even daring to venture into politics with some garbled jibe about brexit! During the concert, Steve Hogarth must have switched guitars about twenty times, an elaborate rack of very expensive looking guitars all came forth to sit about his neck through various songs, yet I am convinced none of them were plugged in and hey, when did Hogarth become a guitarist? Near the end of the concert he resorted to a cricket bat with some sort of electrical rig attached but no sound came from it so WTF was that all about? Steve Rotherhy was about as engaging as a 3 hour snooker game and I am not even sure if he looked at the audience or any other members of the band. Pete Trewavas and Ian Mosley carried on in blissful ignorance of their front mans stupidity. I did notice Mark Kelly glance disapprovingly at Hogarth several times. As for the friends from the Orchestra, who were kind of sat at the back, I am not even sure that I could hear any of their instruments. If this is what it has come to Marillion, best you hang up your tools and take up golf or snooker! By the way, I won't be buying this having already wasted money driving to and fro from Cornwall to Cardiff, staying in a Hotel and watching a concert, where from the end of the first song, I wished I could go home...