The Ghosts of Pripyat

Having listened to prog of all sorts since Sgt. Pepper, I have amassed a huge collection of music from all over the world. In recent years, prog has come on strong and it's hard to keep up with the volume of excellent music being released. Of course the majority of the American public is unaware of all this great music either because they never hear it, or are too busy listening to bubble gum, synthetic pop garbage....but that's their loss. After prog imploded in the late 70's, there was little to get excited about, in fact most of the 80's pretty much sucked with a few notable exceptions, one of them being Marillion who made their mark, especially with Misplaced Childhood. Fast forward 30 years and Fish is long gone (from Marillion), but that band keeps going with mixed results, sometimes great, sometimes tired and droning. But one of the consistent bright spots has always been the stellar guitar work of Steve Rothery. That work takes center stage on this release, without the restrictions of having to incorporate the other band members, most notably the often nasal droning of Steve H. Here it's all about the guitar, and the big man shines. No blatant showing off, no off the wall arrangements, just tight solid beautiful sounds that flow seamlessly. I admit, I was impressed. Instrumental albums often just become background music that are often tuned out, but this disk begs for your attention and engagement with rewards at every turn. A couple of guest turns by Hackett and Wilson only add to the party. Smooth, graceful, refined, and mature. No BS. Sadly it likely won't get heard by the general public...too busy sucking up commercial crap...but if taking the time to write this leads to a couple of you buying the disk, it was worth it. There's some great music out there folks, you just have to go out and get it. Great stuff....

Beautifully lush, melodic album from the Marillion guitarist. This is an all instrumental effort so no lyrics to gum up the works, and the songs are all over five minutes in length with one song a good eleven minutes forty two seconds. That the songs are longer is a big plus for me. I've really gotten into instrumental rock a lot lately and this is one great piece of art from Rothery. Steve Hackett guests on two of the tracks and Steven Wilson appears on a track that includes Hackett. The musicianship on this recording is, needless to say, outstanding. Rothery is a tremendous player as are Hackett and Wilson. The info booklet does not give any names of contributing musicians but let me praise the quality of their playing. The song "White Pass" is probably my favorite track, it's slightly Pink Floyd-ish (whom I love). "Yesterday's Hero" is a real rocker lots of fun. This is a very good and balanced recording, something for everyone. Very highly recommended.

I have to agree with most of the reviews I've read on this album. It's rare for me to like this quantity of purely instrumental music but this album is an exception.Coming from the place of being a huge "Fish era" fan of Marillion, and somewhat a fan of the "H" era, I've always treasured the power and beauty of Rothery's guitar. He really was the first thing that ever grabbed me and moved me towards the band. Huge fan.So I approached this with some trepidation - I almost expected to be let down. And really, no such thing happened. This is really interesting stuff. It does reflect his stage of life in that it is very relaxed and mellow. In that context, it is a huge success. It's good all the way throughout. Lots of typical Rothery licks, without being "showy" at all.The one thing I have some issue with is the subject matter of the album. Personally the music doesn't match (overall) the unimaginable sadness over this topic. So I do think I would enjoy it even more under another title.But if you are a fan, this is a must own. It's very good, without being spectacular. Understated seems what this album is about. So I like it a lot, without loving it - therefore 4 stars.

First and foremost the album is Wonderful ! The quality of Steve Rothery's compositions is Excellent! Do not take this review in anyway as a criticism against Mr. Rothery's music. That is not the case.My criticism is against Amazons shipping what I call a lesser grade CD. I received the CD today and immediately noticed that the only information on the liner notes is the name of the album, the song list and track times. No other information. Actual physical disc quality is minimum grade. very thin and bends easily. My problem is I put the CD in my Pioneer Elite CD player in my GMC and the disc is so thin the eject mechanism cannot get a grip to eject. I noticed after ordering, that the disc is manufactured on demand thru Create Space, a subsidiary of Amazon. This was not a Disc manufactured by InsideOut Music

Would love it if this band recorded more music in this style. I have not found a lot of music with just that right blend of chords, rhythm, and not interrupted by lyrics or unnecessary changes in tempo. This music, IMO, is as if you took out some of your favorite less raucous instrumental passages from a great progressive rock band, and I love it.

Of course Marillion fans are going to buy this, but even if you aren't, buy it anyway. It is one of the most soulful instrumental albums I have ever heard. The melodies are fantastic, and Rothery continues to be one of the most criminally underrated guitarists out there. Not flashy, but never misses a note. If you need an introduction, sample the solos for Sugar Mice and The Great Escape. And then, of course, buy all the Marillion albums too.

This album came as a real and totally unexpected surprise. Steve Rothery had been off my musical radar for several years. I was a big fan of his work with Fish-era Marillion; his wonderfully crafted solos, particularly on Script for a Jester’s Tear and Fugazi, were an essential part of the Marillion sound. However, in the Hogarth-era group it was a case of diminishing returns as, from the late 90’s onwards, the solos slowly disappeared and he faded back into the mix, sometimes so far that I wondered if he was still in the group. The loss of lead guitar curtailed my interest in the band and I stopped listening and lost track of Steve Rothery, not even registering his Wishing Tree project.Fast forward to 2015 and a chance listen to ‘Morpheus’ on youtube which got me hooked immediately, followed by the swift purchase of this album. ‘The Ghosts of Pripyat’ is an instrumental album of seven songs. In deciding a direction Steve has described his intention to create ‘cinematic’ music that could stand as a film backing track, and that is precisely what he has achieved – the music is symphonic and each track is composed of two or three movements, where radical changes of melody, tempo and atmosphere take place, allowing for complex aural landscapes to be painted, which give each track a greater depth.Steve’s playing is superb, with nods to Steve Hackett (who guests on the album) and Andy Latimer, but he creates a sound which is very much his own. The style ranges from orchestral to straight ahead rock (the last part of ‘Summer’s End’ could easily grace a Deep Purple album) and is wonderfully atmospheric throughout. It’s great to hear him cut loose and show what a really great player he is. Steve also gives his bandmates room to breathe and their own chances to shine – Leon Parr on drums, Riccardo Romano on keyboards, Yatim Halimi on bass and Dave Foster (who co-wrote the music) on guitar are all great (even more so on the ‘Live in Rome’ album where Dave Foster really shreds – but that’s another story) and a lot of care has gone into crafting the backing melodies for Steve to play over.This is a wonderfully crafted and very melodic album; it has hardly been out of my CD player since I got it and I can heartily recommend it. Steve Rothery has definitely found his mojo with this one and is sounding better than he ever did before. Coming out of the confinement of Marillion has allowed him to flex his chops and truly shine. Buy the album; you won’t regret it.

I've had this album since it came out and i have to say it's absolutely brilliant. Rothery at his melodic best since the days of Fish Et Al. I put it on once or twice a month, sometimes three and it just gets better every time i hear it. NEVER have i thought "ah, not this again"... always "ah yes, i love this track".... Superb.

I was always a fan of the old Marillion with Fish but lost iterest when he left... don't know why really. Marillion just wasn't the same afterwards. last year I bought Marillions latest... don't remember what it was called, don't care.. it was crap and and not prog rock anymore. This album, however is fantastic and you can clearly hear Steve's old wonderful guitar sound. I think I'm missing fish's vocals but otherwise a great, atmospheric album. Apparently Steve Hackett and Steven Wilson are guests but I couldn't say on what tracks they're playing (haven't really looked). They could perhaps have call themselves "The Three Steve's". Joking aside, it was great to hear at least someone from Marillion still had it in 'm to make great music... a must for old Marillion sound lovers... I often put it on when cruising on the motorway.

This is a stunning record. Steve Rothery produced a true masterpiece here. From the very first song, from the very first tones, the scene is set for an atmospheric, thoughtful music. No major fireworks here, rather a layer after layer of beautiful sounds with tasteful melodies. It's a musical landscape, the kind that only Pink Floyd, Genesis or Marillion can deliver consistently. It's a picture of today, with an incredible but natural musical precision. The album might come across as simple, but there is beauty in that simplicity and if you really listen to all the subtleties, it is not simple at all.Each song is a story, just let it play, let it talk to you, let it paint the world that was created by a true musical genius.

I was hoping for something more 'Childhood's End'.What I got is superbly played but almost bland.If you enjoyed Pink Floyd's 'Endless River' this will suit you wonderfully.If 'Market Square Heroes' is more your thing this might disappoint.Its wholly insturmental, no vocals.