THE DARK THIRD

The Dark Third was one of my favourite albums from 2007. PRR is a young British band evoking the lush spacey sound of PF's Dark Side and Meddle, but they didn't content themselves with just quoting PF. No, they like the Beach Boys as well, and the partly male, partly female vocal harmonies gave them a very unique and instantly recognizable sound.

The opening instrumental Aeropause simply screams Pink Floyd, but it is done so well and inspired that it brings back the greatness of early Porcupine Tree. It flows into Goshen's Remains which immediately shows the band has more on offer then cloning Pink Floyd. Not only can they write memorable hooks, with their rich vocals they have an undeniable quality on offer.

PRR amply integrate indie rock into their sound. The pleasant dreamy vocals and bubble-gum melodies of Apprentice of the Universe fit in nicely in the Britpop traditions of the 90's. A first real progressive attempt is made on The Bright Ambassadors of Morning, a quote from PF that is repeated a bit too much really. The song is rather disjointed but still pleases me a lot.

To make things confusing, there are two very different versions of this album. The US version substitutes the average ballad The Exact Colour for a nice upbeat rocker Nimos and Tambos, but sacrifices the sublime Twyncyn for the rather forgettable Intention Craft. A weird choice, especially given how the Zeppelin-esque epic Twyncyn is the album's highlight and worth getting the album for just by itself.

The Dark Third is an excellent album that could serve as a good introduction to progressive rock for anyone with a Britpop affection. But to reach masterpiece standing, the band still needs to learn more restraint and avoid showing off all of their abilities and harmonic tricks in each and every song. 3.5 stars for the US version, 4 for the UK version.