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Post by Lawrie on Jan 23, 2008 0:18:16 GMT
This is how I understand the state of play on the songs you list. I am 90% what I think I know is correct, but I can't be completely certain: 1. The Borgens Vow Unsure whether this is a PRR song or whether it's by The Sunset Sound. It is an earlier version of Borgens Vor [disc 2 of the European release of TDT] that does not have any vocals, and comprises mainly of the opening guitar riff on the newer version, but with some more electronic squeaks and effects as well. 2. Arrival/The Intention Craft This is a PRR song, not The Sunset Sound. It is available on Cautionary Tales For The Brave, the US release of The Dark Third, or disc 1 of the European release of The Dark Third. To my knowledge, there is only one version of this song. 3. Asleep Under Eiderdown This is a PRR song, not The Sunset Sound. It is available on the B-side of the UK release of The Intention Craft [single], and also as a hidden track at the end of disc 1 of the European release of TDT. To my knowledge, there is only one version of this song. 4. Corporate Handshake As far as I know, this is a song by The Sunset Sound. Don't know when/what is was released on. 5. In Aurélia This is In Aurelia, and is by PRR and not The Sunset Sound. It is available on Cautionary Tales For The Brave, a standalone In Aurelia single released in the UK, and also on disc 2 of the European version of The Dark Third. To my knowledge, there is only one version of this song. 6. Human Zoo As far as I know, this is a song by The Sunset Sound. Don't know when/what is was released on. 7. Nimos and Tambos This is a PRR song, although I believe that it may have originated from work by The Sunset Sound. It is available on the US release of TDT, and also on disc 1 of the European release of TDT. A very slightly different version (earlier recording, no major differences) is also available on the B-side of the previously released Apprentice Of The Universe single. 8. Brief Reminder As far as I know, this is a song by The Sunset Sound. Don't know when/what is was released on. 9. Sound of Free This is a PRR song, and is available on the B-side of the UK release of The Intention Craft single. I believe there is also a slightly different earlier version by The Sunset Sound where there are slightly different electronic/keyboard effects in the mix, and an additional chorus: I don't know when/what this earlier version was released on. 10. Lil' Doggy As far as I know, this is a song by The Sunset Sound. Don't know when/what is was released on. 11. The Clearing As far as I know, this is a song by The Sunset Sound. Don't know when/what is was released on. Hope this helps. Anyone who knows better, feel free to go ahead and correct me - as I say, there I things I don't know outright and other things that I'm not 100% on.
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Post by Lawrie on Jan 27, 2008 21:09:55 GMT
Sorry, can't help you with the lyrics for Deus, can't imagine they'd be written down anywhere online or anything yet as it's only a demo at this stage. And kudos to anyone who can transcribe them: I have trouble keeping up even with the lyric booklets in TDT! On a sort-of-related tangent, I have total respect for the way that the band never drop even a single word during the faster parts of Trembling Willows [when they sing it live] - I know they wrote the thing, but damn that is some collective memory they all have to get every word out at that speed without singing the wrong line!
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Post by Lawrie on Jan 22, 2008 18:31:03 GMT
I really like whatever pedals/synths the band have used to make the fuzzy bass sounds at the start of the track - very [Radiohead's] "Myxomatosis"-ish, which is certainly a fine thing!
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Post by Lawrie on Jan 22, 2008 1:09:57 GMT
Ok, and like a kid at Christmas, I have just listened to this monster twice more, and I am SO loving the keyboard-y synthesized strings part at 4.10-ish!
New material from PRR: the musical equivalent of giving E-numbers to a toddler with ADD! ;D
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Post by Lawrie on Jan 22, 2008 0:59:05 GMT
Wow, just checked this forum before I was off to bed, and now bloomin' PRR have gone and messed everything up: I'll be listening to this on constant repeat for ages, and won't be sleeping much tonight!!! It's brilliant as it is (very much what I was hoping for in a studio cut after hearing the Krakow performance on Youtube), how good is this bad boy going to be if this is just a rough-'n'-ready demo?! If any band members stop by this thread, then please be advised that I am currently on my knees doing Wayne's World-style "we're not worthy" chants to the greatness of this song! And cheers BA for the heads-up!
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Post by Lawrie on Jan 25, 2008 20:11:10 GMT
Haha, TDF, a particular phrase in that story made me laugh! "The singer stood her up. Stood up Chloe Alper." Love the use of the second short sentence to really punch the point home! And yes, you are right, that is very bad behaviour and totally out of line, but I wonder whether you'd have typed that same phrase if Chloe wasn't the one doing the artwork and you had to type, "Stood up Jon Courtney/Jamie Wilcox/Paul Glover." ;D Just joshin' with you, pal, but it does seem to me that most male members of this forum appreciate the aesthetics of Ms Alper every bit as much as her music! Chloe is one *quarter* of PRR, chaps... Still chuckling, scat1620
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Post by Lawrie on Jan 18, 2008 18:02:47 GMT
Saw them supporting Hope Of The States at the Astoria back in, er, 2004 maybe. There was a big screen above the stage that people could text messages to and get them up on the screen, and the band and their families must have had big phone bills that month, because the words Pure Reason Revolution kept flashing up on the screen over and over again! I didn't realise it was the name of the support band until I got home and searched for who the supports were: d'oh! I didn't know any of the songs at that point, but I very clearly remembered the tunes and when I eventually found out titles it turned out that they'd played Bright Ambassadors, Apprentice, and Nimos & Tambos. Have been hooked on those sweet, sweet melodies ever since that HOTS gig!
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Post by Lawrie on Jan 18, 2008 17:12:52 GMT
Not sure where all the bad blood's come from lately - I think everyone who posts on these boards all want the same thing: PRR to keep making music and be as successful as they possibly can. At the end of the day, I think we all care about that a lot more than wanting to dig about in the previous legal shennanigans that's nobody's business anyway, or other peripheral issues. I'd guess that all the sniping that has been going on (in all directions) is just due to us all caring about this band so much and really wanting them to make it. Fair play to nikosonfire for calling time on anyone who makes assumptions about the state of the band without knowing the full facts, but we're all here because we love PRR and we want the best for them - hopefully we can all go forward on the same page from this point. Peace to all. scat1620
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Post by Lawrie on Jan 17, 2008 15:31:52 GMT
Until I hear otherwise, I will continue to believe that PRR see a future for themselves and plan to release new music. I think they probably still in the recording/production stage for a new album, which would explain the lack of updates.
That said though, if the band members do choose to go their own ways and pursue individual or other projects, I'd be annoyed if there was no official statement - however brief - to say that PRR were splitting up: it wouldn't be fair to just disappear without a word (a la Portishead, until recently).
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Post by Lawrie on Jan 17, 2008 11:06:21 GMT
God, this place is emptying faster a chocolate box at a Weightwatchers convention! No need to flee the nest for good, chaps and chapesses, I'm confident we'll all be listening to PRR Mk II some time this spring. Well, not confident so much as hopeful, but you get the general idea!
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Post by Lawrie on Jan 16, 2008 11:48:22 GMT
IMO...... If genius is being taken as a reflection of the excellence of PRR's first album (and it IS excellent), then surely the tag 'genius' belongs to Paul Northfield, the producer? I don't know how much of Sony's money he got paid but , to my mind, it does prove you can buy genius, especially if, like me, you had heard the band pre-Sony and despaired of it ever achieving any coherent sound whatsoever. Now that they have developed that sound so successfully, they really ought to follow the example of many mega-successful bands, sack their manager and get somebody with a grain of business acumen who can develop their career. You may disagree with my insightful comments, but let me ask you 2 questions: 1) Was TDT a good enough album to tour as a headline? and 2) Why wasn't it (headlined, that is)? (The correct answers are 1) Yes 2) Because of shit management) Can't really argue with the opinion that the band haven't been handled as well as possible by people who could really maximise PRR's exposure to the world, that's a fair point and one that I agree with. And yes, Paul Northfield's production on The Dark Third is indeed excellent and one of its strongest points (though I'd guess that Jon had a big hand in the production sound as well, given his well documented attention to detail with the little backround noises in PRR's music). Bit of a pedantic point coming up now though: wasn't Apprentice Of The Universe (Nimos & Tambos on the B-side) the only early non-Sony release as Pure Reason Revolution? I have the first two PRR singles and AOTU was released on Poptones while TBAOM was released on Sony BMG (Holograph). Presumably anything before Apprentice was made by The Sunset Sound, and not PRR? Only say that because AOTU and N&T on The Dark Third don't differ *hugely* from the early Poptones releases - and I imagine a large part of the reason for re-recording them for The Dark Third was the fact they were already available on Poptones? While they did get touched up a bit for The Dark Third, surely they can't be so different that you 'despaired' for the band on hearing the early Poptones versions? Was it hearing work by The Sunset Sound that made you worry for the band pre-Sony, or was it the Poptones PRR release that made you worry? No offence intended in any of that, just curious to know, since I don't think that there was a quantum leap in sound made between the transition from Poptones to Sony.
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Post by Lawrie on Jan 14, 2008 23:30:58 GMT
what? megalomania would have a sulk if it didn't get an outing in every muse set? *applauds harkins1 for a well observed point* ;D
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Post by Lawrie on Jan 14, 2008 23:29:28 GMT
Hmmm....well well welly well. I'd never have thought praise for Jon Courtney on A PRR FAN'S FORUM could come up against such staunch opposition. Amazing. Having been told to "get a life" and accused of "being an absolute retard", after meerly voicing an opinion IN FAVOUR of the forum's raison d'etre, I guess I'm gonna be doing a lot of rethinking... I cannot believe that someone wrote "Is it me, or does anyone else fail to see any similarity or influence of either Pink Floyd or the Beach Boys in any of the songs?" This is a truly startling statement, as if the obvious influences of such bands degraded or somehow made PRR's work UNORIGINAL!?!? I would like anyone to name me a band that sounds like PRR, because I've been looking for one for a long time and there is only one conclusion: PRR are unique. Bits sound like Floyd (though their music was nowhere near so rich), some of the harmonies sound like the Beach Boys (though they didn't even use distortion), some of the rockier riffs are vaguely Bellamyesque (though his music is unimaginative by comparison), and I guess some of the eletronics might possibly recall Radiohead, though barely. Lyrics are nicked from all over the place, but only about 10% of them at the most. No one musically has ever achieved what these guys have achieved. Of course, there are other fantastic bands, some of whose members may well be geniuses. But that doesn't make PRR's stuff any worse quality-wise. F*** me it's a friggin matter of opinion anyways what am I talking about.... So actually I'm not handing out the label to anyone who takes my fancy, I'm applying it to the man who is responsible for most of the creative imput in a band very dear to my heart. One man. TDF, I'd never insult you for thinking Jon is a genius, but I can't agree with that opinion [which, as you correctly point out, is all that we're all discussing here]. I couldn't see eye-to-eye with anyone who thinks that any of the band are geniuses on a technical musical skills level - there's just nobody (past or present) in PRR who is a Matt Bellamy/Jimmy Hendrix/Omar Rodriguez-Lopez/[take your pick of other insanely talented musicians]. I'd be amazed if even the most ardent PRR fan (and I like to think I qualify as one) would argue that particular shout. They are all at worst competent and at best good-to-great musicians, but none of them are technical geniuses with their particular instrument(s). Therefore, the only claim to genius you could lay at any of PRR's doors is if they produce a 'genius' piece of work, i.e. album. This is where opinions kick in, and I respect anyone who thinks The Dark Third is a work of genius, but I don't agree with that opinion myself. I certainly think it is a very, very good album, and not too far away from being worthy of genius status, but (in any of the releases - UK, USA, later European) in my opinion there are still a few songs/parts of songs that are not quite perfect and could do with tightening up or reworking. Bits of Aeropause and the first half of Voices In Winter/In The Realms Of The Divine come to mind, off the top of my head. However, that is just my opinion, and as I said I have no problem with anyone who thinks that The Dark Third is an album that could be labelled as genius. I also think that PRR have got a great shot of making a 'perfect' [IMO] album in the future, and so I'd say that they're a band who I wouldn't bet against me calling geniuses in years to come. But for me, no - they're not there *yet*.
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Post by Lawrie on Jan 14, 2008 23:14:57 GMT
Also, OK Computer really isn't that good and OOS really suffers at the end There's wrong and there's wrong and then there's this! OK Computer *is* the best album ever made, and the very end of Origin Of Symmetry (i.e. Megalomania) is a song so good that if it played football it would be called Dimitar Berbatov! You, sir, are a buffoon! ;D
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Post by Lawrie on Jan 14, 2008 13:14:01 GMT
And yet another thread descends into bickering... Surely everyone's defintion of genius is their own though- I mean, this isn't the sitting on the fence answer but the way I see it is, if philosophers etc can't agree on what it means to be a genius, then if someone has done something that is revolutionary or amazing to you, then in your eyes they may well be a genius... I dunno, it's just one of those abstract terms that you can't define, so therefore while you can disagree with him, he's not necessarily wrong. I'd go with that argument, although my personal position is that no members of PRR qualify for genius status at the moment. You certainly couldn't argue them being geniuses on a technical musical skills basis (i.e. geniuses like Hendrix etc). And (IMO) while they might go on to make a work of genius in the future (possible without being a genius technical musician - e.g. OK Computer etc), The Dark Third - while being very, VERY good - doesn't qualify as a work of genius in my book. Who knows, PRR might well make something as good as an OK Computer or an Origin Of Symmetry in time, but for the moment I'm firmly in the "no" camp as things stand. (ps, I certainly agree PRR are better than Muse, in my eyes, Matt Bellamy is certainly not a genius...ok, so maybe not the other two...but all a game of opinions.) Fair play, BA, no problem with liking PRR more than Muse, but if Matt Bellamy as an individual is not a genius in your eyes then your eyes need testing! ;D For me, he is a nailed on musical genius, even if people don't agree with my opinion that Origin Of Symmetry and Black Holes & Revelations are two works of genius. The standard of the man's guitar playing AND his piano playing AND his amazing voice mean that he's a unequivocal musical genius to me: he may not be the very best guitarist in the world, nor the very best pianist, nor the very best vocalist, but the fact that he's in the ball park of the greats in all THREE categories gives him genius status in my book. ...but as you say, it's all about opinions, even if yours are wrong...
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