Steve Moore and Daniel O'Sullivan are each involved with a multitude of projects spanning numerous genres, but their dystopian synth pop project, Miracle, seems like the overlapping point of a Venn diagram of their respective interests. With Grumbling Fur, O'Sullivan frequently sounds like Depeche Mode writing songs for the original Blade Runner (even going so far as to penning "The Ballad of Roy Batty" on their second album, Glynnaestra), while Moore has gone from making mutant prog rock with Zombi to dramatic Italo-disco as Lovelock, in addition to recording horror soundtracks and techno 12"s under his own name. The two previously released a handful of singles/EPs on House Anxiety Records before landing on Planet Mu for their 2013 full-length debut, Mercury. Follow-up The Strife of Love in a Dream appears on Relapse, Moore's longtime home as part of Zombi and as a solo artist. Immediately out of the box, the album sounds more urgent and paranoid than Miracle's previous work. The album's lyrics seem less romantic than on the duo's earlier releases, with fewer (or at least not as direct) expressions of personal loneliness. The horror-disco arpeggios are still there, but Moore's experience as a soundtrack composer has heightened his ability to craft suspense, and here he utilizes his skills in more of an art pop context. "The Parsifal Gate" is a prog-disco epic, with layers of snarled, suffocating vocals and vicious lyrics that bring to mind a less caustic version of early Meat Beat Manifesto. Then the vocals disappear as the tension rises, combined with a monumental drum solo that carries the rest of the track. "Light Mind" is a more driving synth rock song, with chugging guitar riffs and O'Sullivan's rich, swarming self-harmonies delivering lyrics like "I let go of economics, I let go of control, I let go of the common good." "The Seventeen Nineties" features an even more complex vocal arrangement, over an offbeat but surging dance rhythm. The album breaks away from pop influences with "Angelix," a lengthy synth-scape with patient, simmering drums and light, sporadic whispers. The Strife of Love in a Dream is easily Miracle's most ambitious work to date, and a thrilling piece of audio cinema. ~ Paul Simpson, Rovi

1		The Parsifal Gate
2		Light Mind
3		Night Sides
4		Sulfur
5		The Seventeen Nineties
6		Dreamours
7		Mind Environment
8		Angelix

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