A well crafted classic Being a 30-something who has listened to the electronic side of music since the late-1980s, I think I've been around long enough to know what's innovative and what's a bunch of tripe junk. VNV Nation is one of those sincere artists that truly love their music and you can hear it. Empires is probably my favorite out of their catalogue. What's so striking about this album is the song writing. "Too repetitive" is one of the primary criticisms of electronic music and, while I can respect that criticism to some extent, it is a criticism that one absolutely cannot associate with Empires. The melodies are sick; the album has its peaks and valleys, and it also has a few dance floor stompers. These are the kinds of albums I like. I also like the song order. Since I tend to prefer more aggressive music, the latter half of Empires is probably where I spend most of my time. For example, the "Standing", "Legion", and "Darkangel" trio is mind numbing. By the time you get to "Darkangel" you won't know what to do with yourself because you'll be so awe struck by "Legion". And then here comes the fast-paced "Darkangel" with one of the catchiest chorus' on the album. An overall outstanding effort that still sounds fresh after eight years. I love it.
Best of VNV Nation I've bought several VNV Nation albums recently, and this is definitely my favorite. Ronan Harris's songs become technically more complex starting with this CD, and music is very smooth (as opposed to the harsher beats in "Praise the Fallen" and "Advance and Follow"). If you're looking for a great vocalist, this isn't the CD for you. Ronan lets the music do most of the work, but the lyrics are very evocative.
The first track is pretty dull, but right after the songs pick up. "Kingdom" starts off the CD with a decent trance-like sound. "Rubicon" is one of my favorite tracks, as it combines moving lyrics (taken in context with the song title) with great music that fits it surprisingly well. "Fragments" is a quick song, with a beat reminiscent of songs on "Praise the Fallen." The rest of the songs are excellent as well. The album has a lot of fast, upbeat sounding tracks; only three are dull, in my opinion (though "Distant" should sound that way, given its context).
Overall, it's a great CD with good lyrics and good music. If you like smooth sounding electronic music, this is for you.
Classic VNV Nation VNV Nation is easily one of my all time favorite bands. I discovered VNV Nation about four years ago and have been hooked since then. What has always appealed to me is the combination of heartfelt lyrics and epic dance beats. I consider the band's third album "Empires" to be classic VNV Nation. After seven years since its release, "Empires" still sounds remarkably fresh with its crisp, infectious synth melodies. My favorite song has to be the lush ballad "Standing" with its haunting melodies and emotionally moving lyrics. The combination of the melodies and lyrics always moves me to the very core of my soul every time I listen to the song. I think this song is one of the best songs Ronan Harris has ever written. The lyrics to "Kingdom" are also great in an epic and grandeur sense. My favorite instrumental track is "Saviour". I will say that I prefer the vox version of "Saviour" (found on the rare "Burning Empires" EP). The instrumental track has a good dance beat. I like the build up in the song but the song is a lot better with Ronan's vocals. I am not really too big on the other instrumental tracks on the album like "Firstlight". They didn't have the same catchy pop hooks that "Saviour" has. Another minor flaw is that Ronan's vocals tends to be monotonous. Most of the time I am not bother by his vocals but if I am not in a good mood, I will tend to find his vocals rather annoying but that is rare. Another great song on the album is "Fragments" which is a bit more harsh and abrasive than "Standing" and "Kingdom". The high level of energy in the song shines through and will make the listener want to jump and down. "Distant (Rubicon II)" turns down a few notches. It is another wonderful ballad. It is a nice segueway into "Standing". If there was one album by VNV Nation I would recommend to anyone curious about the band, I strongly recommend getting "Empires" first.
Musical Mass Culture Introspective There are very few people out there, let alone bands, who are willing to broach the concepts that VNV thrusts into its songs - nevermind the fact that the result sounds absolutely superb.
This album is a marker for the band, engaging EBM and Industrial sounds and rythms with unadulterated vocals rather uncommon to the scene: self-labeled "futurepop" that runs the emotional gamut from slow and subtle to the heart-pounding, foot-stomping adrenaline rush. The album is a favorite with diehard, longstanding VNV fans as well as those new to the sound altogether; the lyrics are painfully insistant, to the point of easily being interpreted a call to action. The vocals are also a crowning gem, and are organic - generally an unsynthesized breath of fresh air - and feel more like active poetry or the oral traditions of ages long gone. The sounds are better executed than armfulls of other bands, and the combination is unforgettable and irreplacable.
VMV deserves a place with the music greats, and thus far have never been matched in depth or skill in their field.
MUSICAL PHENOMONA This is probably among the most best band of today, or at LEAST lyrically, they are miles ahead of many musicians today, Standing is extremely emotive, beautiful, the lyrics are great throughout this whole CD, heck all the melody on this cd, along with his voice, is all outstanding, it's sad that this cd or Futureperfect isn't on the Rolling Stones 500 greatest cd's of all time, especailly considering some of the cd's they have on it that don't even compare with VNV
Anything Goes Trivia
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