PURE REASON REVOLUTION

Few good and interesting ideas, visionary imagination, all ruined by form in which it is presented. Art rock indeed, it's maybe purpose, but most of AR I've encountered had falsetto voices. Or higher frequencies in general. It's here too, but as every good element here, suffers from style in which it's done, setting in which it's situated. Electro-something. Of course that they probably aren't trying to make prog-perfect music (just good music), but why to make it this way. Not only that it became tiring towards the end of album (because it all sounds the same), but also isn't good at all from start. It's like beautiful apple in the inside, but rotten on the outside.

3(-), sometimes the form beats what's inside. And to be honest, except good vocal harmonies, melodic performance, there's not much anyway.

This sophomore full lengthy effort by Pure Reason Revolution is a rather strange effort. While their frst effort was gailed as treading new ground among fans of modern art rock, this latest album seems to be much more of a mainstream-oriented effort.

True enough, there are still tracks here with a great deal of sophistication as far as structural composition goes, but quite a few others are far less refined than what you'd expect from a band with a following among progressive rock fans. But it's the stylistic expressions that raise the eyebrows here.

While a few numbers do get close to the musical territories explored by acts such as Porcupine Tree in an electro-rock kind of manner, it is electro pop and synth pop that dominates this production. Most songs seems to reside somewhere in between Pet Shop Boys and Aphex Twin in sound and style - easygoing, slick melodies with darker and twisted undercurrents. And while the influence of the latter is much more profound than the former, and there's a few nods in the direction of acts like Kraftwerk and The Chemical Brothers too, this album does come across as a disc first and foremost aimed at an audience with a liking for relatively easy listenable music. Much more sophisticated in form and sound than most traditional Billboard acts, but lacking from a progressive or art rock perspective.

It's a well made effort though, with a few really high class efforts, but those looking for highly sophisticated, modern art rock will be disappointed by this CD.

Can I just say that I don't get it? I thought the debut from Pure Reason Revolution showed great promise in Progressive Rock and I was pretty excited to see how this band had evolved on Amor Vincit Omnia. What ended up happening was that I put on a techno album by mistake...no wait, this is the new Pure Reason Revolution! I can't stand techno/trance music, so I am completely thrown off by this record. There are some good things, however. I love the vocal harmonies, which is one of the things that drew me to this band in the first place. Sometimes the songs are pretty catchy...but there is hardly anything in this record that could be called progressive rock. Maybe progressive techo, or something to that effect.

"Les Malheurs" has a pretty standard beat that gets tiring to me about halfway through the track. "Victorious Cupid" is probably the only track that I honestly can get into. There is some powerful guitar riffs, and the vocals are truly glorious, and it sounds like something that could have been on the last record. There is a great jam towards the end that really is exciting, and made me hope that the first track was just a mistake and the album would get better from here on out...

But that just isn't the case. "Apogee" is just boring to me with an annoying rhythm that just keeps repeating itself endlessly. It gets better towards the end with some heavenly vocals, but it isn't enough to save the track from mediocrity to me. "Deus Ex Machina" is even worse, sounds like pretty generic pop to me. How dissapointing.

"Bloodless" is pretty boring and gets pretty repetitive. I don't feel any connection to "Disconnect", it is just a bland track to my ears. "The Gloaming" is the longest track on the record, but it seems too long and the techo aspects of it really grate on my nerves. And, then the album ends with another boring track that gets repetitive rather quickly: "Avo".

I'm sorry there isn't more I could say about the tracks, but to me that is the primary problem here, the tracks lack substance. I love the vocals, that is my favorite aspect of this record. The blend of these voices is truly magical. But, I just can't stand the bland techno that is going on behind it. I know there are many who would vehemently disagree with my assessment, but that is how I feel as I listen to this record. Oh well, I guess its just not for me.

I was kind of eager to offer up my opinion on this highly controversial sophomore release by PRR, having read the rather truculent put downs by many hard-core proggers and wondering how deep was the chasm with the rather fabulous and well-received "The Dark Third". I must say that I can see why they are frustrated, after all many do not really enjoy the more electronically slanted material that hints at Kraftwerk or even Depeche Mode. I personally deeply enjoyed Ultravox and John Foxx back in the lean days of prog, ergo I have little distaste in my mouth for more "techno" oriented music. The harsh synth screeches leap out immediately with the gritty "Les Malheurs", definitely closer to the classic synth-pop of David Gahan and crew (which would assuredly please my departed PA reviewer "febus", a massive admirer of Depeche Mode!), yet adding the slick vocal harmonics that make PRR an original entity. We are far from symphonic, neo or eclectic progressive rock there is little doubt but at least they had the audacity to dare altering their sound, discarding the Floydian influences almost entirely. "Victorious Cupid" remains firmly and resolutely rooted in electronica, looping rubbery synthesizers pounding aggressively while the various voices combine to weave their classic vocal harmonics. "Keep Me Sane/ Insane" is a brief ditty, the piece blends into "Apogee" with plucking strings hissing within the vocal cascades, suddenly exploding in a monolithic guitar heavy barrage of sound (Part 3 , "Requiem for Lovers"). "Deus Ex Machina" is the piece de resistance here, an atmospheric rant that is immediately appealing, a stellar mind-thumping and body-bruising composition that extols the special virtues of this courageous band of youngster-progsters. Urgently aggressive and blatantly angry, the sound is pungently ultra-modern, rebellious synths are almost industrial when united with the punkoid guitar and apocalyptic drums. "Bloodless" is another charmer, suavely sinuous vocalizations with intricate piano and strings. The mid- section is simply brilliant with tones closer to Massive Attack (with whom there are a few passing similarities), the backing vocals are completely spell-binding inducing a swirling hypnotic effect that is sheer bliss. The choppy "Disconnect" falls straight into Kraftwerkian territory, robotic vocoder voices repeated ad infinitum until the high-pitched lead vocal kicks in amazingly, swerving this into the classic PRR harmonic brew we need to admire for its sheer prowess. "The Gloaming" is the near 10 minute epic that conspires to take this into another direction again (closer to late 90s New Zealand-band Babble), with intricate vocal harmonies that build on repetition, hard beats propelling them ever forward and a final section where the electronic "whoops" really create a gloomy climate that is hard to dismiss. "AVO" is the acronym title cut, a genial piece that rekindles all those elements that are the hallmarks of the PRR sound, incredibly astute singing, piano and synths weaving in frolic trance, drums gently marshalling the rhythm ever forward. I found myself enjoying this album way more in the car CD player, racing down the autoroute with the volume on high than in the cottony confines of my audiophile basement. While not as dreamily prog as the previous masterpiece, they have caught us all unaware and hence surprised by their "cojones", opening themselves to disturbing the status quo by "progressing" elsewhere. Good for them, what's next, a Roxy Music style of romantic art-rock? I am game anyway because Love conquers all. 4 skins

This is one of those albums where I expect most people who review it on this site either aren't going to understand it and/or dismiss this as an electronic (fill-in-the-blank-non-progressive-genre) album. It really took me awhile to pull myself away from that realization, mostly because it seemed originally that PRR was going the route of some trance Radiohead copycat, except poppier. In reality, that is anything but the case. Sure, there's more of a feeling of trance music here than anything on The Dark Third, but if you listen carefully, the psychedelic style is still present. It's just buried under several waves of electronic music. For those who have already heard The Dark Third, the first time you hear Amor Vincit Omnia you will either hate it immediately or, like me, not be sure of what Pure Reason Revolution is trying to do here. This album fits every meaning of the word "grower" for me.

The music is, yes, poppy electronic music. But it still has a feeling of the blending of a rather large number of genres, and isn't that what progressive rock is about? While The Dark Third was more of a psychedelic feel with some electronic influence, this album has more of an electronic feel with some psychedelic influence. It's the polar opposite of the band's debut. This is even prog you can dance to. And while this is one of the strangest combinations of music I've seen in awhile, it really does work if you manage to put the time into it and have the ear for this sort of thing. Like PRR's debut, one of the major strong points of the album is the vocal harmonies. They're very catchy yet powerful and really add a good deal of emotion to each song. For the longest time I wanted to give this nothing more than 3 stars, but I think it's finally clicked for me. I may have to go back and listen to their debut some more as well, because the 3 stars I gave it may not be enough. The only thing about this album that really bothers me anymore is the use of electronic vocals on Disconnect. They annoy me every time and I'm not really sure why. I can give this 4 stars. If you liked the band's debut or can appreciate electronic music that's noticeably poppy, then give this album several chances. I'm so glad I finally did.

Pure Reason Revolution ? 'Amor Vincit Omnia' 4.0 stars

First listen - 'what happened?', second ? 'this is different', third and counting - 'this is awesome'

This was quite a pleasant surprise from the Pink Floyd-Beach Boy's brainchild. Pure Reason Revolution gives the phrase 'changing our sound' a whole different meaning. The layered samples that drove the music in the debut is now doused with electronics and dance beats. While this sounds like a disaster on paper, they somehow made it work. The whole vocalization stamp on the band is present and even catchier than ever. There will also be far more interesting work in this album, including some nifty string sections, a metal blow-out in 'Victorious Cupid' and some really trippy parts. Old fans might consider the band dead, but the fans that consider themselves 'open-minded' will not be disappointed in the slightest bit. Highly recommended album.

Try playing this in your college apartment, even the 'toughest' of guys will be dancing to this album. And half will ask for the name of this band, happened to me.

This is not a true prog album and it surely wasn't meant to be.

It is, however, an excellent electronic/rock album with great songs, production, musicianship and vocals with recurring themes and some fierce and fiery instrument interaction.

One of the best albums of 2009.

1. Les Malheurs 10/10 Synth/percussion driven with great vocals and lyrics that go from humorous to wistful.

2. Victorious Cupid 10/10 The influence of Porcupine Tree is present on this song. The drumming reminds me of Gavin Harrison. The guitar parts suggest a healthy dose of Steven Wilson. All kept together with some great vocals.

3. (i)Keep Me Sane/Insane 10/10 A short but pleasant intro to....

4. (ii)Apogee and (iii)Requiem for the Lovers 10/10 Melody and power merge for a tour de force production.

5. Deus Ex Machina 10/10 Another synth/percussion driven song. I enjoy the Super Furry Animals-type synth melody lines. More Porcupine Tree/Steven Wilson guitar-type riffing.

6. Bloodless 9/10 The slowed paced song on the album, very nice vocal work. I really think that a lot of people just take great vocal arrangements for granted not realizing all the work that goes into creating them let alone the talent to successfully sing them.

7. Disconnect 9/10 A humorous escapade dealing with being (what else?) disconnected. A warm and engaging tune.

8. The Gloaming 10/10 Probably closest in spirit to the songs on their first album, nice piano flourishes, beautiful vocals, the song morphs into various melodic passages that carry the listener along a great ride of musical expression.

9. AVO 10/10 Closing out the album with a dreamy and powerful summation of all that has been said. Love Conquers All...not always, but, sometimes.

PRR is a genre unto themselves. If you liked the first album you should like this.

I'm giving this a 5 star rating because what this album lacks in prog sensibility it more than makes up for in emotional honesty and warmth. Two things a lot of prog are sorely lacking.

Very good!

I really don't understand why people give this album a so low rating. Okay it's very different from their debut album but that doesn't make it a poor work. What made me fell in love with their music was their spacy sound and their groundbreaking vocal harmonies. That's what made the first album so awsome and almost perfect.

For this one, the album is focused on electro music but their is still Dark third touch on this one. There are less vocal harmonies and the spacy vibe is almost completely replaced by the electronic sounds. Though it's still recognizable PRR songs. The album is not as much progressive as the Dark Third but it's undeniable progressive music.

Some fans may think that they lost it but I think that it's important for a band to explore different horizons and PRR did a very good choice and it still keeps up with my expectations.

Personally I think that if there is no difference between the sound of two albums... you failed as a band.

If you're in for some proggyelectromadness this is the perfect album for you!

4/5

I was very close to not buying this record because of the poor ratings, but fortunately I decided to give it a chance anyway and I am thankful I did! This album might not be as progressive as The Dark Third (TDT), but there are some truly great tunes in between.

Some elements from TDT have been carried on to this record, but in general this is a complete new sound of PURE REASON REVOLUTION and hopefully that will result in the band getting more fans rather than pushing some of the old ones away. Amor Vincit Omnia (AVO) is a great album and should not be compared too much with TDT as the band has moved forward and explores new areas of their musical skills.

The electronic elements work very well, especially on the pick of the album 'Deus Ex Machina'. 'Les Malheurs', 'Victorious Cupid' and 'Bloodless' are also tracks of very high standard and deserve a mention while the nine-minute long 'The Gloaming' develops into a great progressive piece. The album ends with the title trick, shortened 'AVO' which is a beautiful, melancholic end to the three quarters of an hour of one of the best albums of the first quarter of 2009.

AVO is a bold move by PRR and I admire them for making such a powerful and experimental follow-up to their successive debut album. I am very surprised and dissapointed to read all the poor reviews of this album, but I urge you to give it a chance. I was pleasently surprised and I feel that it would be an excellent addition to most prog music collections; though it admittedly lacks some progressiveness it is still an experimental and exciting musical experience.

3.5 stars really, but rounded up to four as it is vastly underrated (2.7 at time of writing).

Well I can't say I didn't see it coming; it's been widely known for a while that a drastic change of direction was on the cards for Pure Reason Revolution's second album. With the exception of Victorious Cupid, a 2007 single, there's nothing else here that could sit comfortably alongside anything from The Dark Third. Gone are the Prog (particularly Floyd) influences, the bombastic riffing and the real drums for the most part, even the violin.. Instead in their place are synths and sequencers.

Amor Vincit Omnia has more in common with an eighties Depeche Mode album than Prog. The band may have moved on but Progressive it ain't. I can't say I'm disappointed with this album, I'd heard the rumours but on first listen I was not impressed in the least. The only common thread between this and The Dark Third is their use of harmony vocals but even they lose something without the grandeur of that previous album. However, after a couple of plays, despite not being my thing in the main it's not a bad album, quite good even at times.

Having said that I can't stand the computerised voice of Disconnect, or the track in general for that matter with its weedy 80's synth electro pop sound. Tracks like The Gloaming and AVO pass over my head, offering little substance to keep my interest. A bit better is opening track Les Malheurs which reminds me of Goldfrapp in places alongside the Depeche Mode influences.

Victorious Cupid is the second best track on the album, not because I think it's a particularly great song but it's the nearest we've got to anything on the last album. At least there's some guitar riffs. The best track is Deus Ex Machina which has a great riff..yes we get some guitars here too and even the synths have more power, all held together by a heavy, solid and driving rhythm.

Pure Reason Revolution have took a brave step which you've got to admire them for. Only problem is they may well lose most of the fans they gained with The Dark Third, especially in the Prog community. If they don't pick up a new following they could be in trouble. Amor Vincit Omnia is unlikely to be in anyone's top 10 albums of the year here. So it's not what I wanted from them but well enough done for what it is. It'll be interesting to see what they do next but I won't be shelling out cash for another one like this I'm afraid.