“He said, ‘We can’t use this – people will think we’re a Christian rock band!’ I went and got myself a drink. There was no arguing with that kind of thinking”: Marillion’s battle over the cover for Afraid Of Sunlight

Marillion.

In 2019 Marillion’s eighth studio album, Afraid Of Sunlight, was reissued with a colourful cover that had languished on the reverse since 1995, after the band had a heated debate over its use. 30 years on, the members recall how tempers flared before eventually abating – as they always do in a band of friends.

“There are times when I see some potential artwork for the band and I think, ‘That’s it, that’s the one,’” says Steve Rothery. “Like when I first saw the Brave cover. But with Afraid Of Sunlight, it was a little bit harder to agree – let’s say that.”