TRANQUILLITY

— First review of this album —

...Core is definitely Tranquillity's most enjoyable album at this point in his career. This album still vaguely includes some of the '80s new-age electronic elements, but they are masked by strong elements of darkness and cosmic atmosphere. The pop features on ...Core are kept to a minimum, which is usually a good thing concerning progressive electronic. Though the synth melodies are still slightly catchy, they don't have the bouncy dance club effect as before, and the dark cosmic atmosphere of the album really sets this apart from anything that would be considered popular, though it is still quite accessible. I'd still like to say this is still a clone of some Tangerine Dream and Klaus Schulze in modern form, but ...Core is also just as good as anything released by Przemyslaw Rudz.

It seems that Tranquillity is done on the music scene and has been for some time now, but ...Core was a great place to end.

— First review of this album —

The Spectre Within is actually better than its successor, while still being kind of "the same". The only real difference between this album and Deus Ex Machina is that the melodies on this album tend to be really strong. If I'm listening to progressive electronic in the '80s style, then I at least expect some very powerful melodies to get through the cheesy new-agey percussive elements and poppy sound effects, and this album delivers. Among the powerful synth melodies are also a few cosmic-chirping sounds that give the periphery something to notice. The energy on this album in particular reminds me of another electronic artist that I really enjoy (Przemyslaw Rudz) and a group that I don't enjoy quite as much (Software) smashed together, in a strange attempt to mash the old with the new with the cheesy. The mixture doesn't really come through all that well, however. This album still sounds very "the same" compared to a lot of '80s new-age progressive electronic artists that tend to become overlooked. I'd feel safe recommending this to fans of Software and late Tangerine Dream, but if that isn't the type of music that you enjoy then this album can be safely skipped.

— First review of this album —

Deus Ex Machina mostly sounds like a more modern, improved, and less cheesy version of '80s Tangerine Dream. Most of these tracks have high energy and a propulsive beat that really moves the album along wonderfully. Though Tranquillity doesn't cover any new ground with Deus Ex Machina, this album is a great reminder of what progressive electronic artists were doing in the '80s while he also is able to add his own touch of slight improvement over that era's brand of music. The material on this album is a mixture of space music and 4/4 disco music, and some of this music really wouldn't be too out of place in a retro dance club.

This music isn't new, nor is it incredibly wonderful. Nothing really sets this album apart from any of the other similar albums created by other artists who've done this type of material better. Deus Ex Machina, to me, serves as more of a nostalgia-type album rather than an attempt to be innovative and interesting, and it pulls that off quite well.