PURE

Pure is a nice album from a nice band. From album to album, Pendragon has been consistent in both their overall sound and their approach to music. Pure is no departure from these norms. Pendragon's sound uses lush keyboard sounds to provide a very thick atmosphere, with various guitar tones to drive the melodies. The bass tends to get lost in the mix, especially when Nick Barrett's vocals are on display. This is vintage Pendragon and they do a good job of structuring their songs to please the ear.

I enjoy Pure quite a bit. I have a few quibbles which I will mention shortly. Pure presents some nice musical elements combined with a cohesive lyrical concept of the purity of adolescence. Barrett utilizes a wide range of guitar sounds and is adept at using them with a few haunting riffs and nicely executed extended solos. The one annoying aspect that sticks out to me is the use of way too many sound samples. I'm far from being a minimalist when it comes to my music, but in my opinion Barrett gets overly "cute" with his samples. The sample sounds (voices, dog barks, sirens, tribal chanting, etc.) are interesting on the first few rounds of listening, but get stale after a while and lose their ability to enhance the music.

Track 1: Indigo

Great opening tune and probably my favorite song on the whole record. This song is action- packed to the point of passing 14 minutes very quickly. Some nice imagery in the lyrics when Barrett sings "I've been trapped for most of my life in this airtight box. If I could get just one arm free - then the world would notice me."

Track 2: Eraserheard

This hard-driving song is also very strong. Barrett's vocals, which though unremarkable, are used rather effectively in creating varying moods in the music. Barrett sings with a bit of an edge on this tune which works nicely with the theme of this song.

Track 3: Comatose

Comatose is separated into three parts and covers 18 minutes. My opinion is that the music drags a bit through this epic and is not particularly memorable. I think the concept is a good one, but the music just is not up to the standard set by the rest of the album.

Track 4: The Freakshow

This is perhaps the most accessible tune as it has a very catchy melody in the chorus and clocks in at a radio-friendly 4:26. Barrett includes a soaring guitar solo which is very reminiscent of the solo found in Riverside's "Second Life Syndrome."

Track 5: It's Only Me

The album comes to a very nice conclusion with a moving piece made memorable by Barrett singing "We are a band of brothers..."

Overall

If you like Pendragon, you will love Pure, as this is the band at its best. From start to finish, this is a very nice piece of music.