Since returning from their 10-year hiatus in 2020, Pure Reason Revolution have kept up the productivity by announcing that their fifth studio album, Above Cirrus, will be released on May 6th, 2022 via InsideOutMusic. This time around, Jon Courtney, Chloë Alper & Greg Jong (who returns as a full-time member for the first time since the Cautionary Tales For The Brave EP) follow up 2020’s Eupnea. The band find themselves adapting to a world that is radically changing before their eyes, and on this new record, exorcising the isolation and uncertainty in search of something greater. To mark the occasion, the band announced the launch of the album’s first single, the epic 9-minute track “New Kind of Evil”. Watch the video, created by Thomas Hicks, below.
The album will be released as Limited CD, Gatefold LP+CD & as Digital Download, featuring beautiful cover artwork by artist Jill Tegan Doherty, who previously created the cover for Eupnea. Pre-order now here.
In a statement from the group’s current guitarist Greg Jong, he comments, “When Jon first played me his initial version of New Kind of Evil, I was honestly astonished by the beautiful melding of the halftime shuffle beat with such a giant yet melodious guitar riff. Then the synth line and vocal melodies entered and elevated the emotion even further — it was a really cool moment, I hope people hearing it for the first time experience a similar feeling.” Frontman Jon Courtney then adds, “Very excited to get the first of our new material out there in 2022. This was the first track I worked on in 2020, the embryo formed in the midst of tidal waves of uncertainty. I wanted the rollercoaster of a track to mirror that uneasiness & surreal bewilderment.”
The album is also available to pre-order now on CD, Vinyl & Digital here:https://t.co/1zwp9VUoa7
— Pure Reason Revolution (@PRR_official) March 4, 2022
Chloë Alpe, the band’s permanent bass/synth player states, “Since Pure Reason Revolution’s reformation I feel that this band has embraced its identity and its place within the Progressive rock genre with a force, confidence and grandeur that radiates through the work. This new record fills me with as much pride as it does head-to-toe tingles. I am excited for the music loving community to hear it and excited for the prospect of it growing our reach.”
On Above Cirrus, the band continues many of the musical through lines that fans have come to expect; maintaining a balance between somber reflection and intrepid exploration, leading listeners through a shapeshifting collection of seven tracks that evoke a range of emotions. On the songs “Our Prism” and “New Kind of Evil”, the energy reaches magnificent heights of guitar-led catharsis, rivaling the best efforts of acts like Tool and Filter, while offerings in “Lucid” and “Dead Butterfly” meld the group’s keyboard-centric song-structures with vast, epic soundscapes. But, unlike its predecessor, ‘Above Cirrus’ is far from a narrative-driven concept record. As Jon confides, each song, while fueled by his personal journeys and the condition of modern times, is truly its own device. Reflecting on the lyricism of the record, he adds:
“Often my writing occupies itself with relationships; how we can be so tender/loving with each other in one instance, days later or even in a few flashes we’re tearing each other apart. The sublime & the savage/vicious. The music reflects this light & shade dynamic shift too. Our world shrinks through lockdowns/restrictions & strain is intensified. However, the end message is one of optimism – affirmation we’ll get to the end of this surreal chapter & be stronger together. Through the turbulence, we’ll help each other through the darkness.”
As well as a new album on the horizon, the group have also announced a single UK date as a part of their upcoming European tour. Set for April 17th, the group will host their one night in the UK at the Earth Theatre in London. Ticket information can be found here.
