It is weird being seated in a Philharmonic auditorium for a prog-rock gig, with hardly a head bobbing along to each song, let alone any other action. No circle pits or walls of death tonight my friend! Antimatter are the only (non-advertised) support on this tour, and they’re fundamentally now Mick Moss’ solo project. Tonight, they perform as an acoustic guitar/electric guitar dark/prog-rock duo, and as the crowd make their way in and to their seats there is a gentle murmur of appreciation.

The atmosphere is filled with anticipation for the seminal prog-rock headliners though. Marillion take to the stage with ‘Sounds That Can’t Be Made’, after which there follows an early meandering story from frontman Steve Hogarth about Liverpudlian dialects before they move into second song ‘King’. He holds his guitar aloft to the lights before slinging it down. There’s a fantastic studio-like sound to Ian Mosley’s drums, yet none of the power or nuance is lost. That’s true for the whole band to be honest, save for Mark Kelly’s keyboards that are a tad overpowering in the mix at times. Pete Trewavas’ bass initially comes across as being hidden in the mix, but it’s actually just layered exceptionally well, with a deliciously warm tone rather than the aggressive overdriven biting style I’ve become accustomed to from modern Metal bands. His style and proficiency is akin to John Deacon, which is testament to his touch and feel while using a plectrum. Steve Rothery is undoubtedly an underrated guitarist, and the tone and colour of his sound cuts through delightfully tonight. He paints some awesome guitar landscapes in amongst the synths, and the reverb-soaked solos effortlessly soar majestically. Hogarth obviously demonstrates great clarity and strength of tone in his vocals, and fronts the band with a deliberate confidence and ease.

Despite the generally reserved nature of the crowd, they do applaud and shout plenty of stuff between songs. In fact, the shouting gets on Hogarth’s nerves pretty quickly, so heaven knows what it was like at the other gigs. This doesn’t stop him from indulging in some more Liverpool schmoozing prior to Easter, with Hogarth asking the crowd to sing along to the Liverpool citing lyrics. A peculiar thing I do notice is Hogarth’s really low keyboard. I mean it’s really, really low. Almost a gnome height keyboard. He has to do what seems like a squatting stance to play it, and I’ve got to say it doesn’t look very comfortable. He’s happy enough though, and with knees bent and body leaning forward over to play it he layers further keys over the top of Kelly’s array of keyboards.

One thing about this venue that is like a tightly packed pit at Rebellion is the temperature in here – it’s roasting hot. I awkwardly have my jacket and hoody stuffed down in my elegantly padded and secured seat in the auditorium, with my woolly bobble hat sat on my knee. Yet I’m still sweating buckets and wonder how everyone else can sit so calmly and still.

Finally, people on the side start to stand and dance...well, four people…two on either side of the auditorium. I jest though, the crowd are clearly loving every second. As the gig goes on more and more people start to clap and sing along, and by the time we reach the dynamic encore of ‘Splintering Heart’, ‘The Leavers I-V’ and closer ‘Made Again’ there is a standing ovation and sing along to outro song The Beatles’ All You Need Is Love. Marillion put on a fantastic performance and there’s no denying there’s plenty left in the locker from these gents.