“Transformation is never gentle. The forces that save us are often the same forces that undo us”: Pure Reason Revolution’s Terrifying Angels came from OCD, anger and heavenly heavies

Pure Reason Revolution 2026 — (Image credit: Press)

Pure Reason Revolution linchpin Jon Courtney revealed the title for Terrifying Angels – the band’s seventh studio album – came to him after he and his family attended an Easter church service in his adopted home city of Berlin last year.

“The sermon pointed out that angels tended to be terrifying most of the time,” he says. “They’re there to give some kind of judgement or message that scared the hell out of people.

“Traditionally, angels aren’t cute cherubs. Their general aura is often overwhelming and intimidating.”

The new LP, which follows 2024’s Coming Up To Consciousness, is Courtney’s second with Dutch singer/multi-instrumentalist Annicke Shireen (of Heilung) and My Vitriol drummer Ravi Kesavaram. Courtney’s fellow founding member, Greg Jong, also appears and co-writes, as does Paul Mullen of Yourcodenameis:milo.

Pure Reason Revolution - Spin Like Fire (Official Video) - YouTube

Watch On

Elsewhere, Kenny Fitzgerald, a prog songwriter whom Courtney has mentored via Patreon, supplied the meditative piano part that opens Below Radiance – but much of Terrifying Angels takes Pure Reason Revolution in a heavier direction.

Indeed, while classic prog elements remain, Courtney says it was partly inspired by his longstanding love of grunge greats such as Nirvana, Mudhoney and Smashing Pumpkins.

“Coming Up To Consciousness was probably the most chilled Pure Reason Revolution record; less riff-based,” he explains. “It came from a sombre place because of my OCD diagnosis and things like that. I didn’t feel that LP was particularly well-received, so that pissed me off and gave me a bit of fire.

Pure Reason Revolution - Black-Arrow Acrobats (OFFICIAL VIDEO) - YouTube

Watch On

“Songs like Spin Like Fire, Haywire Heart and Rumination Ruin all came out of that angrier energy. It just made sense to do something heavier.” Elsewhere, Black Arrow Acrobats was inspired by a dream where he was chased by strange Ninja-type acrobat beings.

Summarising the themes, he reports: “It’s is about encountering forces that appear redemptive and discovering that transformation is never gentle. The album follows a narrator who repeatedly mistakes salvation for safety – only to learn that the forces that save us are often the same forces that undo us.

“Ultimately, he must reach a deeper understanding by accepting complexity.”

Terrifying Angels is on sale now.

James McNair grew up in East Kilbride, Scotland, lived and worked in London for 30 years, and now resides in Whitley Bay, where life is less glamorous, but also cheaper and more breathable. He has written for Classic Rock, Prog, Mojo, Q, Planet Rock, The Independent, The Idler, The Times, and The Telegraph, among other outlets. His first foray into print was a review of Yum Yum Thai restaurant in Stoke Newington, and in many ways it’s been downhill ever since. His favourite Prog bands are Focus and Pavlov’s Dog and he only ever sits down to write atop a Persian rug gifted to him by a former ELP roadie.