Band Member Journal : 

HAPPY NEW YEAR, and hope you had a good holiday.

It was nice to have two weeks off with Fiona, the kids and Smudge (our new cat!). But now it's back with vengeance as our eagerly awaited masterpiece is slowly taking it's mysterious and final form. I was in with Dave (Meegan) today working in a very eccentric piece of psychedelia which is currently named 'Drilling Holes' (but no doubt will be renamed before it is unleashed).

If you are one of the faithful who have pre-ordered the album, I would like to take this opportunity to say a huge thank you. Once again we have been overwhelmed by the response and all of the belief people have in us. This is something very special we have going on - I know I say this a lot, but it really is true, and I hope you will believe me when I say we do not take your leap of faith for granted. If you haven't already, we have new sound clips on the website for you to download. We are still working on the last few overdubs, and in a couple of weeks we will start mixing.

Also, gearing up for a big tour is an exciting time for me, as this is what I love most about Marillion. We haven't really discussed what shape the tour will take musically, but with so many new songs to choose from (as well as all the back catalogue) I think we might become the first band to fill an entire i-Pod with just our own music!

On a completely different note, I'm currently in the new issue of Classic Rock magazine, spouting off about my new project with John Mitchell, John Beck and Chris Maitland. I still go over to Reading and write with JM, and we are close to recording the album. We still don't have a name, but will be holding a competition to name the band soon!

Well, I hope to see you on tour!

Pete