Marble was formed in 1996 in Sunnyvale, CA. It's members include Roger Lyness, guitar, keyboards, Howard Padgett, bass, Erik Rosvold( of Zero Hour fame) vocals and Jeff Lackey drums. Before joining Marble Howard and Jeff played in Opus Wake, a progressive rock band along the lines of Marillion and The Fix. They had showcased in Los Angeles and opened locally for such touring acts as Kansas and The Dixie Dreggs. At the same time, Erik Rosvold was doing much the same; singing and playing bass in the progressive rock band Secular Trend. Roger Lyness spent most of his musical years gigging in cover bands in the Chicago area. Roger met Howard and Jeff at an Opus Wake gig and soon started getting together to jam on a regular basis. The intent was to create a "back to basics" style spurned by both the lack of artistic freedom and the growing tensions within Opus Wake.

They soon put up an ad at a local music store for a singer that included a list of influences ranging from Frank Zappa, King Crimson, Jethro Tull