{"id":768705,"date":"2026-09-12T21:28:28","date_gmt":"2026-09-12T21:28:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/768705\/"},"modified":"2026-09-12T21:28:28","modified_gmt":"2026-09-12T21:28:28","slug":"steve-rothery-interview-pompeii-and-the-future-of-marillion","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/768705\/","title":{"rendered":"Steve Rothery interview: Pompeii and the future of Marillion"},"content":{"rendered":"

Marillion<\/a>\u2019s ever-present guitarist Steve Rothery<\/a> tells Classic Rock about the band\u2019s upcoming extensive British tour, a forthcoming studio album \u2013 the prog band\u2019s twenty-first \u2013 and The Roaring Waves<\/a>, his new collaborative record made with former Genesis<\/a> guitarist Steve Hackett.<\/p>\n

\n

\"Lightning\n<\/p>\n

Marillion frontman Steve Hogarth fell off stage recently in Frankfurt. Is he okay now?<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Steve\u2019s absolutely fine. He just used up one of his nine lives, I think.<\/p>\n

Apparently he didn\u2019t miss a beat, and continued to sing Easter from the photo pit.<\/p>\n

Steve\u2019s a professional and completed the rest of the show. He got off easily. He could have broken a leg, an ankle or anything else.<\/p>\n

You may like<\/p>\n

There\u2019s a 14-date British tour beginning in September. With more than forty years\u2019 worth of music, how do the band pick a setlist?<\/p>\n

It\u2019s about finding a balance between old and new. On this tour [of Germany] we\u2019ve added one or two new songs as rehearsal for the two shows that are coming up in Pompeii. It probably will change a bit by the time we get home, especially from tonight and tomorrow in Leipzig, because those will pretty much be rehearsals for Pompeii, which we are filming.<\/p>\n

Sign up below to get the latest from Classic Rock, plus exclusive special offers, direct to your inbox!<\/p>\n

You must be excited by the prospect of appearing at the legendary Amphitheatre rendered iconic by Pink Floyd playing there in the 70s.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m excited and a bit nervous, to be honest \u2013 especially about the heat. Over the last few days temperatures have been in the mid-thirties, so in Pompeii it could reach the forties. My valve-preamps have been crackered out. When we get there I might have to stick them in a bucket of water. During the eighties I visited Pompeii as a tourist, to play there is going to be mind-blowing. We\u2019ve got a few surprises.<\/p>\n

Marillion – UK TOUR 2026 – YouTube
\n\"Marillion<\/p>\n

Watch On <\/a><\/p>\n

The press release for the British tour suggests that \u201chopefully\u201d we will hear new material from Marillion\u2019s forthcoming studio album.<\/p>\n

What to read next<\/p>\n

We\u2019ve been playing a new song every night. It\u2019s called Rhythms And Lace. It\u2019s a slow-builder with powerful lyrics and a long guitar solo at the end \u2013 so of course it\u2019s gonna be great [laughs].<\/p>\n

When, realistically, might the album be released?<\/p>\n

If we get it mixed in December after we have finished touring, it could be out by the following springtime. Maybe around May?<\/p>\n

Whose suggestion was it to have the Cornish alt. rock quartet Haunt The Woods as support act?<\/p>\n

They have supported us a couple of times before. Their music is really interesting. They\u2019re great musicians and a lovely bunch of people. We were more than happy to have them along again.<\/p>\n

Outside of Marillion, you have a new collaborative album with Steve Hackett, The Roaring Waves. It\u2019s a beautiful, evocative record that requires no words to depict the power of the sea.<\/p>\n

Thank you. Yeah, we wanted something cinematic. You make movies in your head to go along with the music. I\u2019m really satisfied that it came together the way it did. Steve and I had our first writing session nine years ago.<\/p>\n

So there was plenty of time to percolate.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s right. The bulk of it was written in 2018 during a two-day jam session we had at [Marillion HQ] the Racket Club. Steve and I get on really well socially, which helps. It\u2019s a really nice, noncompetitive collaboration.<\/p>\n

STEVE HACKETT & STEVE ROTHERY \u2013 The Black Sea (OFFICIAL VIDEO) – YouTube
\n\"STEVE<\/p>\n

Watch On <\/a><\/p>\n

Whose idea was the nautical concept?<\/p>\n

Mine. I grew up in Whitby. In fact, Steve, Jo [Rothery\u2019s wife] and I had a trip up there just after the pandemic. It was nice to show him around the place where the fifteen-year-old me listened to Genesis Live [1973] and was inspired by his playing.<\/p>\n

Might you play a show or two with Steve?<\/p>\n

Not yet, but what is being discussed is a second album. I\u2019ve already got some ideas for that.<\/p>\n

Were you sad and\/or nostalgic to see your former bandmate Fish retire from touring in 2025?<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a shame that the world lost such a remarkable poet and frontman. His decision to live in such an isolated place [the Outer Hebrides] seemed like a very strong reaction to whichever pressures he has felt. But at the end of the day everyone deserves to be happy, and if he is then I understand that decision.<\/p>\n

Marillion have no retirement plans at this stage?<\/p>\n

We will carry on until one or all of us falls over.<\/p>\n

Will you know when the time is right to stop?<\/p>\n

At our ages, I don\u2019t see us working beyond maybe six more years. But at the end of the day, what are we going to do? Retire and sit in our kitchens?<\/p>\n

Marillion\u2019s UK tour begins this evening (September 12) at the Guildhall
in Portsmouth. For full dates and tickets, visit the Marillion website<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Marillion\u2019s ever-present guitarist Steve Rothery tells Classic Rock about the band\u2019s upcoming extensive British tour, a forthcoming studio…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":768706,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[6491,96,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-768705","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-celebrities","tag-celebrities","tag-entertainment","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/768705","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=768705"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/768705\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/768706"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=768705"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=768705"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=768705"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}