No, melee doesn't need aggro. This is not your theme-park MMO. This game is mainly meant as a SP RPG game, you need to find a way to protect your party members in other ways, not the boring "trinity" stuff. Maybe you should not make your mage glass-cannon only and think about his own protection as well. Maybe you melee should not be a damage sponge but a brutal front line damage dealer that can kill enemies before they reach your mages.
I surely dont play my Sword and Board as a Brutal Frontliner that can slaughter everything in its way because it isnt possible (the dmg is not enough :P). Lowering the Cooldowns of the Melee skills would help alot (6-8 turns for Basic Skills aviable at level 1? wtf?).